New Beginnings

The break came about when I stepped in as temporary innkeeper at my mom’s B&B for a month while she and my step-dad traveled through Eastern Europe. It turned out to be a great experience, but the rigorous pace of cooking and cleaning left little time for things like blogging. In fact, I had such a good time getting to know the people who came to stay that we’re considering running a self-catered B&B in our suite instead of finding a full time tenant.

The break continued long after I came home partly because I got to thinking about the nature of blogging and what I get out of it. I started writing this blog as a kind of glorified “gratitude journal” written solely for myself, but it quickly became something that I really enjoyed doing, in large part due to the interactions with readers and other bloggers. But lately I’ve been wondering whether blogging is a legitimate outlet for aspiring writers, or if it’s merely a way for attention whores to pimp themselves out to the internet public. I’d like to think that that was never my motivation, but take those negative thoughts and combine them with a serious lack of the mental energy required for coherent writing (rare around here at the best of times), and you can see why I’ve been absent for so long.

This past year turned out to be one of self-reflection and redirection – isn’t that what one’s supposed to do when they turn 40? (Gawd, I’m such a cliche). What started out as an attempt to get a handle on some ongoing health issues resulted in a life-altering shift, during which I lost almost 50 pounds and rediscovered the vibrant person that I’d stuffed into a dark hole at some point during the past 15 – 20 years. The change was so gradual and (seemingly) effortless, that I’m still shocked when I think back to where I was a year ago. What the hell took me so long?

Long story short, I’ve been reveling in my new found energy and have been making an effort to say “yes” to things that I previously would have shied away from, which, while fun, has resulted in less time for sitting in front of the computer. I do think there’s still a place in my life for blogging, but have to figure out a way to fit it in on a regular basis.