Hey, It's 2015!!

We're in the middle of the first month of the new year so I guess it's time to start blogging in 2015. 

My posting goal for this year is to surpass 1000 posts by my birthday in September or, at the very latest, by Christmas. This is post 805 so the goal is just under 200 posts away.

It's hard to believe that coming up in April will be the 8th anniversary of this blog. Most of you have joined me along the course of this 8 year journey. But there have been some who have with me from the start. No matter which applies to you, I thank you for sticking with me.

A lot has changed in 8 years; both in my life and the place of a blog in relationship to the rest of social media.   

Therefore, in this first post of 2015 I'm going to tell you what I want this blog to be going forward. 

Actually, I'd like to start with what this blog is not. It is not a way of bragging about my life. I am not the kind of guy who thinks he is better than everyone else. I write about and share accounts of, the people, places, things and events in my life because I am grateful for the blessings I am gracefully given by God.  

I want everyone to know that life is good and full of surprises for me. I am continuously amazed at the places I get to go and the things I get to do. A lot of times it all seems so surreal. Some are fulfillment of life long dreams and others are complete surprises. 

As I've recently realized, when you have a spirit of gratefulness, something very positive, you don't have room for a lot negativity that seems to seep into any void in your life in a kind of emotional osmosis. There's no room for negativity in your life when it's filled with gratefulness. It is with that new attitude of gratitude that I write what I post on this blog.  

Keeping in touch: The same reason I started this blog back in 2008 continues to be paramount with every post. I want to share my life with my family and friends who live in other parts of the country. Most of them are in the Lehigh Valley area of Eastern Pennsylvania. 

I don't get to see or talk to them any where as often as I would like. It's been years since I've actually seen some of them. I just want to share the blessings and events that happens in my life. Hopefully, they will share some of their life with me as well. 

I also want to share things that happen in my life with my family and friends here in Kentucky, who I do see on a regular basis. Every day life is so busy and "crowded" that often difficult to find time to sit and talk on a personal basis with those whose company I am blessed to share occasionally. 

Because the time I get to spend with them is, sometimes, so short, I'd like to give us the advantage of starting out already beyond the introductory "so what's new?" level of conversation. Blog posts help us to do that. 

Learning: I consider myself a life long learner. Now I may not have been very good in the classroom because I'm more of an independent learner. I am very driven to learn about things I'm interested or curious about. I love to learn the little known details. 

Most of what I look to learn about has to do with pop culture or history or things I enjoy. That's why I taught myself how to play the ukulele. Learning has to intrigue and entertain me at the same time. I guess the best way to describe it is to borrow an old term used at EPCOT in Walt Disney World back when it first opened: "Edutainment"  

The way I learn varies. I read books and magazines, listen to audio books and podcasts, watch informative programs on cable stations like the History and the Smithsonian channels, listen to movie commentaries on DVDs. 

Of course the internet has become a valuable resource for learning. You have to be a bit skeptical about what you read on it. However, if you are discerning enough to just take in what's credible you can learn a lot. 

I like to share what I learn with my family and friends. Again, not to show them how "smart" I am. I am no expert on anything but do pride myself on knowing a little about a lot of different things. I love making discoveries of connections and similarities between things. 

One thing I know for sure, all my blog readers have skills, knowledge and experiences, I can learn from. I want to make this blog a resource for learning for both my readers and me.

Geek Search: I admit it. I have a tendency to be a bit obsessive about things. This includes my hobbies and entertainment interests.  

In our culture today someone who is overly enthusiastic or obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit is called a "Geek".

I am a geek about several thing including: my music collection, Walt Disney World, Lego, TV, movies, and baseball. Those are just generalizations. There are multiple subsets of each of those things about which I really geek out. 

 I like to post about my geekiness for all those things on this blog for two reasons. One is that my passion for my hobbies & interests are a big part of who I am and I want to share that. Two, I am sharing the enjoyment of my pursuits in hope that I can connect with some of my readers who have the same or similar interests. 

Essentially, I'm saying, "Hey reader, I'm a geek about (fill in the blank) are you? If not, what are you do you geek out about? I'm sending out a beacon in search of fellow geeks.
Come out of the shadows, my readers, show me your geeky side. 

 Conversation: Not only do I want to share the events of my life through this blog. I want my posts to spark exchanges with you. If, for example, I write about a day with my granddaughter,telling me about a day with your favorite kid. 

I want this blog to be an exchange between you and me. You can contact me by leaving a comment on this blog or sending me a friend request and message on Facebook (facebook.com/ron.havens.50)  or Twitter (@RHFactors909). If you want to send a longer comment or have a questions email me: RHavens1423@aol.com. 

I want to be more socially involved in 2015. Now in my mid 50s I want to take advantage of every day to share with those around me. Now that social media is a part of daily life the extent to which I can do that is almost unlimited. So not only do I want you to be a reader, I want you to actively interact with you on a consistent basis. 

Okay, so it took a while to get there (it may be a new year but some things just don't change) but there you have an explanation of what I want RHFactors to be in 2015. 

Eventually, I would like this blog to be a component in a bigger network of social media which includes the platforms I've already mentioned and a couple more. But those are things still to come. 

2015 is going to be an exciting year of change and growth for this blog. I invite you to be a part of it with me. Its going to be fun.