The Baby Boomer Blogger: Interview with The Boomer Chronicles Rhea Becker

Readers of LifeTwo will already be familiar with The Boomer Chronicles, a blog we frequently link to. The Boomer Chronicles is the brain child of Boston-based journalist Rhea Becker and was launched in 2006. The Boomer Chronicles is an interesting mix of news, information and tidbits interesting to people who've entered middle age. Posts range from a recent one about the irritating sounds that ice cream trucks make to this one about the baby boomers' worst memories (think Billie Jean King vs. Bobby Riggs).

Rhea Becker

It has quickly risen to be one of the most popular baby boomer focused blogs and is a model for people who find themselves in midlife and wanting to do something different. We recently asked Rhea about The Boomer Chronicles and what makes her tick.

LifeTwo: Tell us about Boomer Chronicles and why you started it.

I had been looking for a way to use something I already knew how to do (write) in a new way and in a way in which I could eventually be self-employed. At the time I started The Boomer Chronicles I had very little experience with blogs. I'd read a few posts here and there but found a lot of blogs too visually chaotic to read. I also found the content rather bland. Of course, I didn't know where to look back then for better blogs.

Was it hard for you to learn the technology?

When I decided to start my blog, I put something very simple up on Blogger. Within days I realized I wanted to do better than this and didn't want a long learning curve. I put an ad on Craig's List seeking an 'expert blogger'. A amazing guy named Stephen Labuda answered the ad. He was in the business of building blog traffic. He has ably guided me through the whole process nearly from day one. Because I had Stephen helping me, learning the tech stuff behind blogs was much faster and easier. Honestly, I don't think I would be blogging today (1 year and 3 months later) had I not received all the information I needed from Stephen. I still work with him. In fact, he recently created my blog's new look.

Is it fun or is it work?

I have a blast doing The Boomer Chronicles. It is fun, nearly always, and I spend hours and hours each week on it: writing and researching posts, finding new blogs in my niche, reading and commenting on other blogs, finding good photos, etc.

What is your favorite Boomer Chronicles post of all time?

My favorite Boomer Chronicles post is the one I call "Things That Are Older Than You: A Baby Boomer Pictorial" in which I went around my neighborhood and photographed old things. Living in Boston, there are lots of 100- and 200-year-old things (houses, antique objects, etc.). In the post, I told readers not to feel too bad about being, say, 50 years old because these things in the photos are a heckuva lot older than you are. I was (and continue to be) very amused by it. I don't know if the readers were into it, but I sure was!

Has writing the blog changed any opinions that you had about the Baby Boomer generation?

Honestly, I knew nothing about baby boomers until I started the blog. I never gave baby boomers any thought and, in fact, didn't even know for sure if I was a baby boomer. So as far as having new ideas about boomers, now that I'm blogging about them -- well, everything has been new to me. I had no preconceptions.

What are your three favorite baby boomer blogs?

I make a habit of collecting links to baby boomer blogs. To choose three of my favorites is difficult. But I enjoy "I Remember JFK," a blog that reminisces about baby boomer childhood stuff; "The Wastrel Show," which mostly addresses how one woman saves money and lives frugally; and "Legacy Matters," a blog that concerns itself mostly with death. I have a weird fascination with death.

Tell us one thing on your “to do before you die” list?

On my "I want to do this before I die" list is to get a small RV/van and travel the country for a long time. Just meander, meet people, try the local food, take photos, have a life. All my life I've just wanted a life. I feel trapped by ordinary 9-to-5 life. That's why a blogging life (if I can ever get it to bring in some reasonable income) would be a perfect life for me. Here's hoping!

Thank you Rhea!