The Friday Five on a Sunday

1. How long ago did you join LJ (or DW)?
   
   I joined LJ in 2001 and DW in 2009. I stopped paying for an LJ account some time ago, but I don’t want to abandon the community I still have there. So I still cross-post to both, manually since automatic cross-posting hasn’t been possible for some years.
   
   
2. How did you find out about LJ (or DW)?
   
   I believe I was introduced to LJ by victorine. I can’t remember who introduced me to DW: apologies if this was you!
   
   
3. If someone introduced you to LJ (or DW), is s/he still on your friends list?
   
   If they’re still active, either as a poster or a commenter, then yes. I don’t remove people until they’ve been inactive for years and are clearly not coming back.
   
   
4. Have you introduced anyone to LJ (or DW)?
   
   A few people, but I can’t remember their identities. It was mostly a long time ago, when there was more chance of recruiting people to blogging / journaling sites. Most people just use social media apps these days, so it feels pretty pointless trying to compete with that. I’m also really fond of my stable, long-running communities on these sites, and as long as there are a few empathetic folks left to commune with, I’m happy.
   
   
5. Is your LJ (or DW) public or friends only, and why?
   
   They used to be mostly public, but these days almost everything personal or with photos of me and/or my children is locked. Back in the early days of journaling, it was easy to feel optimistic about the internet being used for peace and love and bringing together global communities. With social media being used so frequently to amplify hate and fear, terrorise minority groups, and shield trolls and creeps from consequences, I don’t feel quite so confident about sharing my life openly.