Summary: Bryan Rutt has always been a writer of some sort, but when he started his blog almost three years ago, he found a reason to keep writing. The blog, entitled, That’s What I Was Going to Say, has afforded him a platform to discuss what he likes and provided him a way to relate to other people, many of them total strangers. Rutt covers all sorts of topics, from baseball to pop culture to creative writing. But a topic he’s begun to explore more and more are the personal struggles he deals with on a regular basis. At first, it took some time for him to get up the nerve to post something so personal. Finally, he decided to take a chance with his post Table for One, where he talks about the difference between being lonely and being alone. Pleasantly surprised by the amount of positive feedback he received, Rutt was encouraged to continue and has openly discussed dealing with such issues as OCD and anxiety. Overall, the response has been very positive and the blog has begun to foster a sort of camaraderie between writer and reader alike. “Sometimes just knowing that you’re not alone is the best medicine…There are people who I can actually reach out to…who understand,” Rutt says. Another topic of great interest to Bryan is music. Growing up with two music-loving parents, he was exposed to a wide array of musical genres and there was always something playing in the background. “New Wave for the New Week” appears every Monday on the blog and features a music review/write-up on something from Bryan’s extensive music collection. He loves having the chance to introduce people to material they may have not heard before. If you’d like to follow Bryan’s blog, (and we think you should), you can find his musings at: www.bryanrutt.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/twiwgts www.twitter.com/twiwgts Special thanks to Becky Svendsen for being our guest co-host while Keith is on leave to celebrate the birth of his fourth child. Support for this episode provided by Winding Way Books, Pennsylvania College of Art & Design, & Lapp Structures. Theme music: Invisible Walls by Revolution Void Break music: Original Piece by Keith Slesser
