pause button.

I've been around these parts for a while. I've dashed to the keyboard to discuss a lot over the years--mostly light-hearted banter and ridiculous commentary, but being the open book I am, I've never found much to be off limits. And yeah, from time to time, I spilled out something deeply meaningful to me--usually about big loss--but lately, I find myself flailing when it comes to my role as a blogger. I know so many of you've been here too.

Blogging for me began forever ago... (xanga, anyone?). I prided myself on not selling out to what blogging has evolved to. Yet as blogging has become less and less about quality written content and more about sleek graphics, linked shopping sites and splashy ads, I find myself more and more disoriented. I feel a sense of contentment getting my words on a screen, but never set out to lock down any amount of income with them. Not all that suddenly, there doesn't feel like a ton of room for my "brand." (and yes, I shuddered a little, typing that).

I've long considered an aesthetic revamp, but deep down, I don't know that that will ignite the mind shift that I need to earnestly keep at this in a way that I'm proud of. I can't see myself falling away indefinitely, but I definitely need to adjust a bit.

A big portion of my back-burner blogging can be blamed on all of the life I've been living, which is a pretty fantastic reason for an inadvertent hiatus: new job (that isn't exactly limited to 9-5), all of the extra-curriculars, a wonderful boyfriend, my attempts at a social life, the very occasional night to myself... on one hand, there's plenty to discuss--and on the other, there's just no time or energy. Similarly, while my unbridled efforts of covering every detail of early 20-something life really fit that era of who I was as a human being, I don't exactly subscribe to the same manner of thinking anymore. I still firmly believe there's a beauty in vulnerability that may be unparalleled by anything else--but there's also something to be said for clutching the sweetest of memories close to heart.

So, I think I'll be back... soon I hope. But it'll be a little different... plenty of list round-ups of what I've stumbled across lately, lots of photo coverage of Maizie, and sure, a peek into my personal life here and there--but different, too. So much has yet to be determined, but I hope you'll stick around.

In the meantime, I've also dreamt up a little Nashville blog that I hope to dive into in the not too distant future.

xo