Reflections on The Journey

May22

Well, I’ve hit my two year mark. It came and went a couple of weeks ago actually. It’s hard to believe it’s been two years since I started up this little hobby. It’s been fun. I’ve enjoyed connecting to like-minded people around the world through the magic of cyberspace. I also go to the recipe page to recall how to make things from time to time so the blog has been a great resource to me that way.

But… (you saw that coming, right?)

I’m just not sure about continuing the blog. Some of you may have noticed a slight change in my tone or the erratic, lessened frequency of my posts over the last few months. Or maybe you haven’t. Maybe I over think it all. I have definitely noticed my lack of drive from time to time. I’ve been struggling for maybe nine months now, going back and forth about whether I’m really enjoying myself and want to keep it up, or whether I’m just doing it out of habit. It’s been especially difficult to continue ever since the last two friends that were facebook holdouts, finally joined the world of facebook. :-) That’s because part of the reason I started the blog was to share things with far-flung friends and family and to have a one-stop shop for doing so. A handful of these people were not on facebook at the time and I was energized by the discovery of the blogging format. It was new (to me) and exciting. But now, it seems like it would make life so much easier if I just let the blog go and became more active on facebook. I can still post book reviews on GoodReads, which in turn post to my facebook profile. I believe I could be connected a bit more “real-time” on facebook; many of my blog posts are written days after they have taken place which can make it feel like old news to me which in turn affects my enthusiasm and energy while writing. It would be nice to be able to spout off a quick thumbs-up or thumbs-down on a movie via facebook when I see it, instead of waiting for the next Movie Monday.

I’ve also found myself wanting to step away from the computer and just enjoy doing all the things in my life, without thinking about how they might fit into the blog. Without focusing on getting the right photo so I can blog about it later. Without drafting blog posts in my head while doing an activity. Without fretting about really wanting to write something up but not having the time or the tools in the moment, and then feeling discouraged later when trying to write and all the inspiration has slipped away.

I think I spend way too much time thinking about this. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought about writing this post and then didn’t. Or I tried to start and then stopped. Or I drafted something in my head and then forgot. And in the end how much time I’ve spent writing and re-writing this final version. Seriously. What is wrong with me? LOL

If I did decide to let the blog fade in obscurity (isn’t it already?) I would lose that connection with both parental units who are not facebook users. Still, I’m not sure they would view it as a huge loss. We’ve still got email and phone calls. Perhaps they would view it as a relief to not have so much information coming from me all the time. You never know.

I don’t take the decision to quit the blog lightly. I really enjoy sharing things with people. I don’t want to lose my connections with others out there. I have a fairly small circle of real people I interact with daily and my online connections via email, facebook, and the blog keep me company and help me not feel so isolated. But I feel a lot of pressure to be regular with my posts. Everything I read about blogging says you aren’t relevant if you don’t have a regular schedule and any time I have a few days go by without a post, I get all worked up about it internally. Maybe I’m just worried about something that isn’t really something I should worry about. But I’ve had yet to figure out how to turn that off.

I’m not saying I’m signing off yet. I just wonder…is it time to let it go?

Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself.
~ Plato 

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Movie Monday – Volunteers, Django Unchained

May20

We stumbled across an old 80′s movie last week that we had never seen. Volunteers stars Tom Hanks and John Candy. The story is set in the 60′s and centers around a spoiled rich kid (Hanks) who runs from a gambling debt, which his father refuses to pay off for him, by joining a group of Peace Corps volunteers. He and two other volunteers are given the project of overseeing the design and construction of a bridge in a small village in Southeast Asia. Hanks is colossally unequipped to do anything himself, much less contribute to manual labor. But through the course of the story he is forced to change his ways, somewhat. To make matters worse, the bridge becomes a key asset to numerous conflicting organizations, including the CIA, a local drug lord, and a local communist force. The three young volunteers must work together to save the village and their own skins. All in all, it wasn’t terrible. Not a blockbuster by any means, but it was fun and silly and very 80′s. :-)

I know I’m far behind the times, just now seeing Django Unchained. Don watched it at work weeks ago so I’ve been stuck waiting for an opportunity to watch it alone one day when he was on duty. It fabulously well done. It’s one of those movies that it’s difficult to say is good because the subject content is so deplorable. Yet, Tarantino’s style is so tongue-in-cheek. It’s obvious that many scenes are not meant to be taken entirely at face value or as seriously as they might be delivered. Still, it’s hard not to take them seriously. It’s hard to laugh out loud at something that is sick or horrifying, even if it’s an obvious jab at a stereotype. If you are like me and haven’t seen this movie yet, I recommend you do. It’s masterfully crafted and well worth the time.

It’s not what a movie is about, it’s how it is about it.
~ Roger Ebert

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Reading Corner – The Well of Ascension

May19

thewellofascensionOutstanding second installment of the Mistborn series. I could hardly put it down. There’s just not much I can say about the book. It’s too complex to give you a well rounded, yet brief plot summary. Suffice to say, it’s a massive story of good vs evil, played out by a wide range of well developed characters, filled with battles, strategy, idealism, philosophy, intrigue, and magic. I enjoyed it immensely and recommend the series to any fantasy lover who hasn’t picked it up yet. Can’t wait to read book three, but going to take a break and read something else in-between, just to mix things up a bit.

A man can only stumble for so long before he either falls or stands up straight.
~ Brandon Sanderson, The Well of Ascension

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