After my last blog entry went out to my subscribers, I eagerly watched my writing-related inbox for feedback. There was none. Not even from my loyal, long-suffering sister who almost always posts a reply. Did she disown me for the salty joke at the end?
On a whim, I checked the spam folder on Saturday and got a shock. It revealed several recent messages that were valuable, including a reply from my beloved sister on my latest entry. I needed to approve her comment before it would appear on my website.
When I talked to her on Sunday, she admitted worrying that she had not entered her reply correctly when it hadn’t shown up.
It appears both of us inherited the “second-guess yourself” gene.
Something had gone haywire with the filter on my writing account, directing everything sent to my website to spam. And spam is automatically deleted if one doesn’t take action on it within 30 days.
I trust the filter on my personal e-mail account, as the subject lines in the spam file there would lead me to believe I’m the luckiest person on earth. Congratulations! You’ve been selected! I’m not that naïve.
It hadn’t occurred to me to check the spam file on my writing e-mail account, even though I haven’t received any mail in the inbox for months. After this experience, I’m becoming less naïve.
I vow to establish a new habit. Every four weeks, I plan to scan both spam folders in case a nugget was misdirected there.
If you sent me a message more than 30 days ago, I hope you will accept my apology for not responding. Please resend it. I promise to reply this time.
I love hearing from readers. The social connection is a big reason the blog is a life-giving activity for me.
Now, I promise to take a few weeks’ break from blogging. I don’t want the frequency of my blog to make it feel like spam to you.
A cute twist at the end! And it gets you off the hook so you’ll have time to check that the air passages in your vacuum cleaner are clear!
Good one! You know me.