I should have written this a long time ago. I should have written one for my last diary, my first diary I had online.

Everyone should know that a diary is a private thing. There are feelings, thoughts, musings, aggrievances as well as a whole lot of rambling inside. You treat them with respect. You don't read a diary, do you? However, when it's an online diary, all those things go out the window. People are keeping a diary which ANYONE can read. And in some cases, that person may well be someone you know, someone you write about.

The same is true about me. I cannot tell exactly who reads my diary and when. I can have educated guesses, based on the guestbook, notes, and hell, even my stats, but I can never be sure.

Experience has told me that writing an online diary can affect your life in a BAD way. I have had several bad experiences. The major one being that I was forced to leave school a month before my Alevel exams due to people at school finding it and giving me hassle. I went from an unknown girl to the most unpopular girl in school. Because of an online diary.

But as I'm stupid (or something else similar), I keep on writing in a different one, because I'm addicted maybe. Because I feel like when I get GOOD responses, people love me for who I am. The bad and good. I get support from people I barely know apart from a username, as well as others I know better.

Anyway... the truth is that I am very aware of my audience. In a way, I write to be read. But also, there are times when I don't consider who my audience are. And I might say something that you, the reader, do not wish to read, either about me, or about you.

Of course I'd be lying if I said it wasn't personal. Of course it's personal, it's a diary. It's a diary. It's a diary. IT'S A DIARY.

Just like a secret paper diary, I write for me. If not all the times, I do sometimes, and I don't wish to hurt anyone. These are just my FEELINGS. I don't wish to offend anyone at all. Especially not those who are close to me. But sometimes, the closer a person is, the more likely they are to hurt you, without realising it maybe.

I understand that people get hurt by people who are close sometimes.

I am asking you to understand my position here, as a diarist. If you read something hurtful that I've written, by all means feel free to write to me about it, but understand that this is about me. People who read this are mainly strangers. They are unlikely to know who the people I write about are, except by names, or titles or whatever. OK, so there are bound to be people who read this who know people I write about personally, but I trust them to realise the content in this diary is MY OPINION ONLY, and doesn't have to be shared by everyone.

Lastly, if you get offended by what I write in here, just close the browser and stop reading. The same for a private paper diary. Close the book and stop reading. You don't have to torture yourself.

If you want to carry on reading, feel free. Just have a hard skin, K? ;-)