On blogging

Well, I'm back, with the goal of writing 7 days in a row, Monday through Sunday. My classes don't start until next Monday and I'm only taking 9 credit hours. Only two of those classes will require much effort outside of class. Because of this, I hope to get comfortable with writing regularly.

Blogging has been very difficult for me to keep up, and I have three theories of why this might be:

1. I think that instead of having a lack of topics to discuss, I really have an excess. My problem is that I think too fast about too many things at a time, so I have trouble focusing and making priorities in my mind. When I start on one topic, one-hundred others come to mind.

2. I have a slight perfectionist complex when it comes to writing. I don't want to write anything unless it can stand alone and be infallible. Most of the writing I learned to do in school was rhetorical, so I suppose this makes sense. I often feel I have to make a logical argument for why you should believe me, as though you wouldn't simply value my personal experience and not judge it.

3. I am a verbal processor. If there are experiences in my life or things that I am thinking, I prefer to discuss it with someone I'm close to. If it is important enough, I would just call you up and talk to you about it. You'll respond instantly that way and I usually can make more sense of the situation with your feedback. Since I expect only people who know me in person to read this blog, why should I waste time writing?

Now here are some observations in response:

1. Having too many things to write about is a good thing. I'll start writing them down and saving them for later. All I needed before was time, and I expect to have that this semester for the first time in a long time. Priorities don't matter - I'll talk about anything I want, any time I want. It won't matter to you, the reader, you just care that I write. I mean, c'mon. Its my blog.

2. It is not going to be perfect. You won't always be impressed with my writing, but your standards are pretty low at this point. You're thinking, "Something is better than nothing," right? I can talk about the reality that I live in and I don't have to back up all of my theories. You're not here to judge me.

3. Writing my thoughts down is much better for you because you can read them on your own time, at your own pace. I can still process my thoughts by getting them outside, and you might even leave comments other than, "We miss you!" "Thanks for writing!" "Very interesting post!" and "Good for you, Justin!"

Finally, it is important to try to live in my heart again, now that I have some free time. Thanks for reading. Wish me luck this week, and I'll see you tomorrow.