200

Hi, I'm Jake and I'm a Blipfoto addict.

This is in fact true. Unlike some, I don't update my blip everyday,because I'm lazy and I get stressed when I force myself to take a picture. But i do suffer from a slight addiction.

Every waking moment I am plagued blip withdrawal and the necessity to get a blip. I start the day with the shakes, a dry mouth, a headache and bags under my eyes but I'll talk about my hangovers another time.

Without a blip for the day you feel guilty. You feel like you have been neglecting something small but reasonably significant, like a stick insect. You should take care of it, but no-one is forcing you to because even if you don't pay attention it will still be there. Waiting.

It can sometimes have detrimental effects on your life. For instance, I have been thinking about my '200' shot for the last week and have avoided regular photography. I would end up in situations where I would normally be taking loads of snaps but find myself trying to subdue the urge to go snap crazy, just in case I took a photo unrelated to '200' that was so good that I could not not put it on blipfoto. Okay, that's a slight exaggeration right there but you get the point.

But over all I think it has had a positive effect on my photography and, in particular my writing. It's all good and well that it makes you go out everyday to take photographs, but, to be honest I always have done that. I do feel, however, that it has unintentionally exposed me to the joy of writing. Whenever I travel, I always take a journal. For the first week of a trip I will fill in pages here and there, with descriptions of towns and cities and people. Come the second week you may find the odd, irrelevant doodle or hostel directions. Come the third it's usually lost amongst the dirty underwear and socks in my backpack. I thought this last time I was in Spain. I felt I should be more disciplined with my journal but then it occurred to me that blipfoto had done that for me, in a way. I had been documenting my travels with text and image all this time. No wonder I didn't have anything left to write in my journal. It was all here.

Anyway I could ramble on for ages so I'll leave it at that. But I'd like to thank everyone who has commented on my blip so far and all the subscribers and raters and favouriters, you have been too kind. Now to get to three hundred!