Monday, March 31, 2003

Hi. My name's Guy, and I'm the reason this site is plural. Elanor and I figured that we could harness the ideas and opinions that we threw around in conversation, and assemble them into something slightly more solid. That's why this blog exists: to solidify our thought processes. It's an entirely selfish aim, but some like-minded people may someday get off on it. I should introduce myself more formally, but I'm toying with the idea of writing a bio (to give myself more gravitas). Whether that happens depends on whether I can find a tone I feel comfortable with (what ammount of self-deprecation can prove you're not arrogant without making you seem neurotic?). So, yeah, Elanor's said it all in her introduction/manifesto, but I just wanted to assert my independent identity at this early stage. I'll be writing about the stuff that is on my mind; stuff that is probably less varied than I imagine, but stuff that's important or amusing to me nonetheless. It's a slow process building a blog, and like most things in life, you never know how it's gonna turn out. So, as we launch this blog into the world, (my) ceremony would dictate that we smash a nice bottle of bubbly over its bow, and wish it good luck, a long life and smooth sailing.
Hello and welcome to Symposiasts. Catchy eh? We originally (this morning) wanted our new "project" to be titled Symposium because, well, without really knowing what it meant, it seemed apt. Having looked in the dictionary, we found "symposium" to mean 'friendly conversation' dating back to the drinking parties of Ancient Greeks. We were very pleased to have hit upon the perfect title for a blog started by two friends who just want a venue to air the judgments formed and the tastes cultivated by the everyday. Frustrated that such blazing insights could only amuse ourselves, we thought we'd offer them to you for consideration.

Anyhoo, "Symposium" was taken and all our hopes crashed around us. We ventured back to the dictionary and found that as participants in a Symposium, we are Symposiasts. Nifty, eh? You will admire our humility and restraint when you find that we chose Symposiasts over Symposiarch, which means 'president of a symposium'. We felt it was a touch imperious... even if, well, literally correct.

We realise we follow in the footsteps of many who have tread the fine line between insight and inanity before us. Whether we cross that line or not, we don't care. The value of this place for us is that it is all about us.