On Complaining

I am trying to decide what is more agonizing, the time when Gerog came after me for insulting skating (or has he metaphorically put it, "his home"), or something more recent. Let me explain.

I have been cross posting the cycling relevant sections of this blog (yes nearly everything) to the BCC (Beaches Cycling Club) under the blog section of the BCC site. Obviously a lot of this content is not really BCC specific, it is more bike friendly stuff, but as such, I would argue as relevant as pretty much anything else on there. Well someone was complaining, anonymously, again. This time they complained to the guy who runs the club who in turn sent me a little note.

The irony to me, as I read over the offending post is that besides a short -well earned- tirade against drivers, my most recent post was actually fantastically useful to anyone new to cycling. Specifically it describes how I have screwed up (bad nutrition) and the importance of avoiding bonking. (It is almost verbatim the post I have right here.) Even more on topic, it includes my impressions from the previous two BCC rides I was in.

I guess the biggest irony of all to me, it's printed flipping words, for heaven's sakes, I am not forcing anybody to read any of this!! Its not like I am ranting out loud and you MUST hear what I say even if you really don't want to, all a reader need do is stop bloody reading. (Sorry for all the vulgarity there, I am sure in 20 minutes I will be deleting that, or wishing I had.) But honest to god, if you don't like what I have to say, don't read my writing. For example, lately the Toronto Star has been delivering free copies of the paper to my door, and being that I am not a particular fan of the writing in The Star, (I am a Globe and Mail person myself.) I take the paper and put it directly in the blue box, there problem solved. So what is to stop a person from just moving on to the next damned post? They don't even get ink on their fingers!

This is the part where I shake my head in a resigned state of despair.

At least now I understand why I crave positive comments, the negative comments just hurt so much, maybe even too much. It is a shame, I spend an awful lot of time, and effort, writing and really don't have much to show for it, just a lot of people who I now know, don't like what I have to say - except in at least a few cases I don't even know who they are. I must be some sort of masochist.