When my domain was due to be renewed in July, I thought about whether or not I wanted to start blogging again and decided that I was satisfied with sharing on Instagram and connecting that way. Sometimes, maybe I would want to blog, so I didn't want to entirely do away with the blog, but I also was fine if the blog only reached the friends and family that knew I was reverting back to the blogspot address.
The other day, I got an email from a close friend who had bookmarked www.redoakroad.com on her computer and had clicked on the link to find that a new blog was at the domain...
Well, I knew that was possible. I knew it was also possible that someone would realize the domain had a history of traffic that someone could cash in on.
But what is the likelihood that that person has the same first name as me (a first name that is not very common)? And that that person homeschools and writes about yoga and cooking? All the topics I wrote about.
But I really wonder if the person who took over the domain is really named Theresa and if they really homeschool and do yoga. The photos appear to be generic and not of the person's actual family and friends.
It made me take a step back and really think about social media.
When I first started blogging, I wouldn't post photos of my kids or use our real names. But over time, I got more comfortable. I even met some blog friends and that was pretty cool.
I know that whatever is going on with my old domain is not meant in malice, if anything someone is using the traffic, maybe it will eventually be redirected to a website of some kind. I am going to keep an eye on it to see what happens, if anything.
I don't feel violated or threatened by someone claiming to have the same first name taking over the domain, writing about the same topics. But I do feel that something is not as it seems. And whenever something seems that way, it makes me uneasy. I have to really think about how I want to proceed with social media and with this blog.
