Recovering Malcontent

I visited my poor lonely blog tonight, considered writing about my trip to New York, and ended up reading the caption under the title.

"My blog started as a means to vent about all the things that annoy me, or about which I was "malcontent".  However, sometime during the process, I decided that I would be better served by taking a more positive outlook, and looking for ways I could make change to create positive results.  Thus, I am in recovery."


I guess the recovery worked, and I find myself content.  Unfortunately, content means fewer circumstances that rile me, and thus fewer rants, which leads to less writing.  So much for blogging.

I could turn my blog into a journal, but I was never fond of journalling.   There is too much pressure in it.  I know that a journal, faithfully kept, gives a clarifying depiction of events when reviewed through the lens of time.  However, the commitment of time required to actively journal makes me tired before I even begin.

I do try to write about notable events.  And my trip to New York does bear chronicling.  Hopefully I'll get to it soon, before I forget all of the details.  It was a wonderfully fabulous trip, that was a gift from my husband for my 40th birthday.  It was definitely a birthday to remember.

It would be cool to write about my transition to healthy eating.  It has been a long journey, and I haven't yet reached my goal, but it is shocking to see how far I've come.  I never thought I'd ever be anything but a meat & potatoes kind of eater.  It's crazy what a little education will do for a person.

I can't quite say goodbye to my blog, although it is looking a little lonely.   I will come back to it....when the time is right.  Wait for me.

Blogging...

I have a list of blogs that I love to read. They are what got me thinking about starting one for myself in the first place. I was constantly feeling the need to RESPOND to what I had read, and though I did leave several comments, I felt like I could use a longer medium to voice my opinions. And boy, do I have lots of opinions!

I have a list of blogs that I've bookmarked that are business related. The things I'm interested in include finances, real estate, entrepreneurs, politics, out-of-the-box pastors, cooking, and freelance writing. That's not too much, is it?

Then I have a list of frugal shopping blogs. These are written by people consumed with saving more than a few dollars on their grocery bill, and/or know how to turn a frugal shopping trip into an even more frugal dinner for four. They keep track of every coupon, match them up with great sale prices at various stores, and tell their readers where to go to find the best deals on specific items. Cool.

And finally, I have my "personal interest" blogs. These are friends who also blog, and a great way to get a peek into their lives, especially those that live far away or I don't see often.

However, I haven't been reading much lately. Well, I haven't been reading the blogs that I bookmark. When I get a few minutes, I try to catch up on one friend at a time. Reading back to where I left off. But that's about it. I haven't read a frugal blog in months, and have let my own coupon shopping fall behind. I haven't read any of that other long list of blogs in much, much longer.

I read one this morning, though. Something about Gen-Y being the new wave of everything. One of the blogs I read is a collection of bloggers, open only to the twenty-somethings who have something to say about their career. It amuses me that at least half of the blogs published at this site include the term "Gen-Y". If they are Gen-Y, what am I? Gen-X? Gen-W? Was there a W? What were the Baby Boomers? Gen-P? And now they have a new term -- Millennials. Maybe they feared running out of alphabet, since they started with X!

Who thinks up these things? And why the overwhelming need to label absolutely everything?

It's especially amusing because I read such a broad spectrum of topics. Labels exist in every one. You should see the religious ones! They have "movements" now which are just as amusing. It takes some serious work to keep up with what each label refers to. Being so long away from THAT culture, I felt completely at a loss when I started reading. Now I just laugh.

Ha! I CAN still write! I just haven't been keeping up with the reason I had to write in the first place. I've had nothing to laugh at since I've been consumed with the Education of Young Children! That's my thesis. Maybe when it's done, I'll let you have a look!

Blogging...

I have to say, I've missed writing this week.  I'm surprised at how often I thought about something to write, and came up blank.  However, I'm more surprised at how much I missed NOT having something to write about!

When I started this blog, I had the intention of making every entry be about something.  In other words, every entry would have a topic of discussion, and not just be a random entry about my day.

Because of this, I've thought a lot about blogs; blogs I follow, as well as blog tips about writing blogs.  Most "experts" agree that in order to have a successful blog, you should have a specific topic of interest that you are more or less an expert in, and can share this information with other people who are interested in this same topic.

I do read blogs like this.  As you can see from the list of blogs I read, however, I don't have a single topic in which I am interested.  I'm not an expert in anything.  I have several areas of interest.  I know there are blogs out there, like Pioneer Woman, that are conversations.  Her blog is more of a diary of events throughout her day.  Combined with her flare for writing, it makes an interesting read.  She has many followers, as testified by the thousands of comments left on any given entry.

However, I find myself wondering about the longevity of this type of blog.  My life isn't interesting enough to keep people entertained.  So what direction should I take this?  Do you like the format?  Do you like the randomness of the entry topics?

I would love your feedback.