De chile, de dulce y de manteca
I have asked almost everyone who has told me that he/she reads my blog “why do you read my site?”. This may sound like a counter-intuitive and almost stupid question. After all, if (as I argue everywhere on my blog), I write for myself, why would I care to know the reasons behind why people read my blog? Well, the truth is, I am always curious. Every time someone asks me “so, how did you become popular on social media?” or “why do you think people read your site?” I am left almost speechless.
Lately, I have come to realize that my hypothesis as to why people read my blog may be somewhat true. My friends, obviously, I could fathom that they read my blog to keep up-to-date with what I do on an almost everyday basis, particularly if I don’t see them often in person. But people who arrived here through Google or my Twitter account seem to stay hooked because I write “de chile, de dulce y de manteca”.
This expression in Mexican Spanish (chile, sweet and lard) refers to the types of tamales people tend to cook. An assortment of tamales, so to speak. Also, please note – it’s TAMAL, not TAMALE (e.g. tamal is singular, tamales is plural). It’s used as a metaphor for variety. And I think that’s why people read my site. Because I write on a variety of topics. I can write serious, deep and personal entries, like the one I just did on mental health and stigma. I can also write about very inane things. I ask questions about the state of social media, I write restaurant reviews, I cover events, I give away tickets and freebies.
I’m a “de chile, de dulce y de manteca” kind of guy. And I wouldn’t have it any other way. On my birthday of two years ago, my dear friend Derek K. Miller dropped a comment on my post, saying that he wrote about whatever interested him at the moment. And truth be told, I think he’s right. I also write about what interests me whenever I write. Which, I have to admit, writing about tamales has just made me hungry.
Related posts:
Hola, Raul,
“De chile, de dulce y de manteca”? Sounds almost as good as saying “Salud, Amor y Dinero”!
Clementina
A Little Cup of Mexican Hot Chocolate
PS: I will be featuring tamale making in my next post!