📛 Why I don’t use my real name?

The answer, in my mind, is pretty straightforward. I am a private and reserved person by nature.

William Shakespeare:

What’s in the name? That which we call a rose/ By any other name would smell as sweet.

Why I started blogging and why I still Blog today?

When I was bored stuck at home during COVID, I decided to do something different and that is why merecivilian.com exists today.

In many ways, my blogging is equivalent to journalling in public. Many posts that I write would in prior years go straight to Day One (journaling app). However, I found that publishing online nudges my brain to give it more thought and consideration. This has, at least for me, allowed me to get better aquatinted with myself. This is the single most important reason why I continue to blog today (all my blog posts still end up in Day One via IFTTT).

Why I do not disclose who I am?

If I am publishing my thoughts on everything and anything, I much prefer to give my mind complete freedom without occupying my headspace on the consequence of what I am writing. For example, if I write about my dissatisfaction at work or I am struggling to focus, I rather my manager not know about it. This is just one example.

Why not use any other name?

Of course, I could have used John Smith (some other name) but that would be pretending to be someone else I am not. I am not John Smith. Therefore, it is clear to my readers and also to me, that I am writing as a mere civilian. This also means I am an ordinary person. Nothing special about me.

This particular blog is hosted on Scribbles. Therefore, Scribbles knows who I am (I paid with my credit card) and also knows my IP address and am comfortable with that. I am pretty confident it provides Scribbles no benefit in disclosing personal information of its users to the public. On the same note, PikaPods hosts my main blog (merecivilian.com) and they also know who I am. I am not attempting to be completely private. I am merely attempting to be private online.

Mere Civilian has served me well for almost four years now and I intend to keep publishing as Mere Civilian, because that is who I am. I also own myfirstname.tld custom domain (great story behind it) so someday, I may publish there as well but there will be no linkage between the two.

Probably, in the very distant future, there may be someone (no one in my real life currently knows I have this blog, not even my wife) in my real life who discovers my blog  and based on my writing (likely my pictures), can determine who I am. I look forward to that conversation.