After waffling back and forth about whether or not to archive my old blog and start a new one (it felt like throwing away a lot of memories), stop blogging altogether (but I have sooo much material waiting to be loosed upon the world), or do "something" with my existing site to make it fun for me again (it felt so clunky forever and I had gotten in the habit of heading over to Twitter or Tumblr when I have something to say), I picked door number three.
This is my toe in, re-introduction, new beginning, the opening of the floodgates (I like that one the best). It's been three years since I've blogged on a regular basis, and I want to thank my friends Angie Mizzell, Aleigh Acerni, Doretha Walker and all of the blogs in my reader (so many) for inspiring me and inspiring me and inspiring me once more. I've been testing the waters for a long time and I'm ready to get my hair wet (and if you know me well, you understand that this is kind of a big deal because me getting my hair wet in a chlorinated kiddie pool is equal to most other people diving from a high cliff into the ocean).
If you're reading this post in a reader, you are probably confused. Click over to my blog and see the "something" I did with my site. I'd love your feedback, even if you just want to throw out the spirit fingers (Angie).
And since the actual work on my part was choosing a designer, let me add that Carrie of CarrieLovesDesign.com is responsible for all of sexiness up in here.
So with renewed vigor and enthusiasm, let the navel-gazing commence!
I love a lazy weekend, but even when I have plans to sleep in (especially when I have plans to sleep in), something happens to my brain. Last night, as I drifted off to sleep in the wee hours (was reading late at night), my last thought was "no alarm tomorrow morning...sleeping in...yay." And then I woke up at 6am for no apparent reason. Please note that during the week, my daily alarm is set for 7am, so this is a full hour earlier than I would normally wake up. I figured I'd take the dog out quickly and crawl back in between the sheets so I could sleep for a few more hours.
But after a walk (in the lovely cool morning air), I came back inside and figured I'd "just check my email." Which led to doing a little work online, which led to a cup of coffee, which led to doing some more work, another dog walk, more coffee, and before I knew it: 11am, breakfast, and I knew if I got back into bed or tried to crash on the couch, I'd end up watching Urban Legends back to back on TV for a few hours instead of sleeping.
The TV is still off and I've been working on my freelance and personal to-do list for the better part of the day. Although I love going to work at an office every day (especially after working from home for over a year), days like these remind me of the things I loved about working from home: taking breaks to walk the dog whenever I was creatively stuck so I could mull over whatever I was working on, listening to NPR podcasts while I'm working, listening to music while I'm working, still being in my pajamas (technically, yoga pants and a tank top), hair in ponytail with no makeup on, no ringing phone, no "what am I having for lunch" (because the fridge is 10 feet away), and sitting cross-legged on my couch with my laptop instead of in an office chair, blinds open with a view of my back deck and beyond.
I was prepared for a lazy weekend. I have three books to read, the current season of Weeds from Netflix, clean sheets (because I did laundry last night), and nothing terribly pressing on my to-do list. But it feels better to have accomplished something rather than nothing, and it's still only Saturday so I can have a lazy Sunday.
In honor of checking more than 10 things off of my list since 6am, some "energy music" from The Ting Tings (in my current top 25 iTunes playlist).
Since my book has been out since 2008 and I haven't done a signing or workshop in about a year, but still want to keep updating my other site with career advice, info, wage gap, etc., I finally gave it a makeover. And added a few posts I was extremely late in gathering.
More tweaks to come when I have more time, but in the interim you can check it out here!
...now, officially. I just had a wireless router installed at home so now I can use my laptop all over the house. I can't believe I didn't get one of these wi-fi things sooner.
It reminds me that I waited until the video store hardly ever had any videos before I bought my first DVD player. Or that my last car still had a cassette player. Or that I still have LPs stored away in a closet (OK, but I no longer own a turntable and I keep my LPs for a different reason).
Watch out internets. I can get you anywhere in my house now.
All of these things are off limits to me, but in the same way I watch Food Network and No Reservations on the Travel Channel (I actually do have totally non-food-related hots for Tony Bourdain), I've found myself perusing some of the yummy offerings on the web lately and imagining what it would be like just to go all crazy and eat them.
Jack and I are no longer friends and the alcohol/sugar combo might send me into insulin shock, I still like to think about breaking out a fork for Tipsy Cake soaked in Jack Daniels. Hey, I'm a southern gal. I can't help that I (used to) like my desserts with a whiskey chaser.
I think it's sort of like being in a monogamous relationship. You can look; you just can't touch. I eat things like a single square of dark chocolate or some fruit when I have a craving for sweets, but that doesn't mean I can't drool over butter-and-sugar-based dessert items. The temptation is there, but whether or not you act on it is the test of character. Speaking of temptation, I think a new episode of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives might be on this week. I still daydream about that one episode where Guy battered and deep-fried a whole hamburger at Dyer's Burgers in Memphis.
I've been tinkering around with this for weeks and am finally ready to share. My new "author web site" is up at kellylovejohnson.com. It's going to be a home for my first book (and hopefully my second...and third...and fourth) and other writings. Since I'm self-taught with the web design stuff, I'm still playing around with it, but I'd love to hear what you think.
