Ay me… what to do when you receive your first negative comment on your blog…? My Partner Alice (business, not personal perv) immediately suggested that I delete it, then subsequently, we would both go on pretending we never read it….

First instinct- but not the right instinct. Partners are good like that. They care about your feelings and look out for you (but that’s a whole other post). Anyway… the whole “delete all negative comments” bit… I don’t buy it.

I want to take this opportunity to investigate further. It’s funny how with all the positive support and feedback we have received from the media, industry, friends, sponsors and guests who attended the event, one comment from “Anonymous” saying “looks like a crappy showing…” can still make my heart sink. Why? Because I’m probably way too sensitive and because I, and a lot of other people have poured my heart into WxW to make it what it has become today. What does “looks like a crappy showing…” even mean anyway? And what is the “…” leading to? Is that just the trail off of an undeveloped thought?

I wondered who “Anonymous” might be? Were they actually at the event? Did they see the work? Are they a disgruntled guest/photographer/jaded member of the fashion industry? One can’t help but be curious.

That’s the thing about the internet and online conversations. Everyone can get their “hate on” behind the veil of anonymity because most people wouldn’t say that shit to your face. Well I’d just like to thank “Anonymous” for making me realize that if that if I actually want to “do” shit in this life, which if you stop and think about it, not all people aspire to do, I will probably have to toughen up my skin a bit because the road to success is lined with people who want to see you fail. Actually, while I’m at it, the road is also lined with flakes who don’t follow through on their words, and people who will take credit for your endless hours of hard work.

Makes you realize who’s really in it with you when it’s 2 am and your feet hurt from wearing brand new Jimmy Choo’s that you bought but couldn’t afford and you’re scooping fruit wedges and cigarette butts out of a filthy bucket with your bare hands- and they’re right there with you. Or when an unidentified volunteer goes dumpster diving around back to try to find a bag of rentals that got mistaken for trash and comes back victorious. Not that I’m speaking from experience or anything, man. I like John Christian Bovee’s quote “False friends are like our shadow, keeping close to us while we walk in the sunshine, but leaving us the instant we cross into the shade.”

When I read comment logs about my peers online that are so hateful and negative, it seems kind of funny how far people will go with their online comments when they don’t have to put their face to their words. I guess my comment bash was pretty PG13 rated in comparison- so, yea, thanks for that “Anonymous”…

Anyhow, they say when people start hating on you, that’s how you know you’re doing something right… so cheers to that. Excuse my while I drown my sorrows in this bottle of tequila.

Until next time… “Anonymous”