Diary, journal, planner, organizer??

@beamer88 (4259)
Philippines
December 2, 2011 9:05am CST
My 8-year-old son and I were talking awhile ago of him keeping a personal journal. They have one at school. But I unconsciously said diary instead of journal. He cringed his eyes and said he didn't want to have a diary. He didn't want writing "Dear diary." It made me think, is there something sexist about this? I mean, why do some people prefer to call it a journal or a planner, and refrain from using diary? For me, they're all the same.
1 person likes this
4 responses
• Philippines
3 Dec 11
I think that in a diary you are supposed to write every day about your observations or the things that happened to you within the day. The "every day" thing is stressed out. The journal, on the other hand, does not have this daily requirement. I mean, you can write on it whenever you feel like it or whenever you are inspired to write. The planner is something that you make in anticipation of events that are going to happen. I mean, you put them in your planner so as not to forget about them when the appointed day comes. Well, I don't know... these are just my impressions.
@beamer88 (4259)
• Philippines
3 Dec 11
I think you're right. Well, that's why I just lump them all together into one. It's more convenient for me. I see my plans. I see how I progress each day in attaining those plans, and I also scribble down spur of the moment things :)
• Philippines
3 Dec 11
It's convenient to have just one notebook for all of these. I used to keep one but I've been lazy lately so I have not written any update yet as to the latest happenings. :P My daughter is required to have a journal too. She's in the 4th grade. She likes writing in her journal. Sometimes they are given a topic by their teacher. At times, they write their own topic. When that's the case, she'd often write about our dog.
@toniganzon (72285)
• Philippines
5 Dec 11
People always refer to diaries as something that is feminine but i don't agree. Most people refer to their daily schedules as journals instead of diaries. Diaries are more intimate, personal and very private.
@beamer88 (4259)
• Philippines
7 Dec 11
I guess that may be one such difference. I hardly put intimate entries on my journal and when I do put one, I write it in a matter-of-fact way, not mushy or tear-jerking :)
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
3 Dec 11
My impression on a journal or planner is more like what you have planned for the day, times and places where I think of a diary as putting down you most inner thoughts more on a very personal level, I look at a diary as a girly thing maybe because girls do write more personal thoughts than boys.
@beamer88 (4259)
• Philippines
3 Dec 11
Well, I guess my son share the same view as yours. He also thinks diaries are girly stuff :)
@coffeebreak (17798)
• United States
4 Dec 11
Used to be Diary as girls were supposedly the only ones that kept one! But about the 80's it changed to journal so boys could to, but also it was more "hip" to say journal than diary. Now....just the other day... I mentioned to my 5 year old grand daughter about keeping a journal and she corrected me saying.."I call it a diary cause I'm a girl". So....take your pick I guess!
@beamer88 (4259)
• Philippines
4 Dec 11
Okay, so I guess we can call it any other way, journal or diary :) But I didn't know that journal was never used before as a term similar to diary. I thought all along that diaries were for the younger people while journals are for adults :)