Where I Am Now

Yep, it's been a while, alright. As you can see, I took a rather extended hiatus from blogging. Finishing grad school took up most of my time in late 2010, and I needed a break from writing for a while. I stayed away much longer than I intended to, though, due to various life and career developments, and thus this year I made a resolution to start blogging again in 2013 and to post every day if I can, even if it is something short. Thus far, I've been keeping that up, with only a couple of exceptions (and even then, I make up the posts later on).

My new blogging home is here. I moved over to Tumblr because I like what that platform has to offer, though in updating this blog, I remembered why I liked Blogger too. So for now, that's where you can find me.

I plan on keeping this blog up for archival purposes, at least for the time being. I did update the sidebars to reflect that this blog is no longer being updated and removed the links since I will not be maintaining them going forward.

I don't think very many people read this blog, but if you did, thanks for stopping by, as I always appreciate people reading what I have to say. I hope you will follow me over to my new blogging home. Have a good one!

Happy New Year!

It's me again. It's been just over a month since my last post, in which time I finished grad school and completed my Master's degree, celebrated Christmas with my family and friends, and, of course, worked.

I'm heading out soon to spend some more time with my immediate family and other relatives, but I wanted to pop in to wish you a Happy New Year and to thank you for reading this blog, if you by some chance happen to read it. I don't really do New Year's resolutions anymore, but I have three goals for blogging in 2011:

1) Blog more;

2) Not announce that I will write about something until I actually do it;

3) Figure out my long-term plans with my other neglected blog, Hired Minds.

We'll see which of these I actually stick to. :) Have a safe and fun NYE, and as the tired joke goes, see you next year!

Cobwebs

Just a quick note to wish anyone reading this a Happy Thanksgiving, and to let you know that I'm still here, just very busy. I have about two and a half weeks of class left until I have earned my Master's degree, so it's crunch time there along with work and my standard home and family obligations. As such I probably won't update this again until sometime in the second half of next month. I miss writing here, though, and am looking forward to getting the chance to do more. Not too much longer...

Oh, and this is the 50th post on this blog. So there's that milestone too.

Dusting Off the Blog

Apologies for the lack of posting in the past few weeks. I wouldn't say I've been particularly busy, just that I haven't thought to write anything here recently. I have class starting in a little over a week (my last semester of graduate school, assuming all goes according to plan), so I'm not sure how frequently I will be posting through the end of the year, but I will try to get something up at least once in a while.

The funny thing is, I often have good ideas for posts when I'm somewhere where writing one isn't possible (at work, on the bus, etc). I guess I need to do a better job of capturing those thoughts and expanding on them when I'm at home where I can write.

Back

My plane landed an hour ago, so I haven't been back too long yet, but I thought I should post anyway just to check in.

I had a great time in Vegas, and it's provided me with a lot of blog post fodder that will keep me occupied for a while (not just about what I did on the trip, but general observations and ruminations as well). Plus, I still want to write up a recap of the Minnesota Blogger Conference from a week ago, but that will be on my other blog. So, yeah, lots to do.

Hello New Visitors!

Just wanted to say hello quick to anyone visiting the blog for the first time, either because of the Minnesota Blogger Conference or for other reasons. I know this blog needs work, but I'm glad you stopped by, and I look forward to meeting you and reading your blogs as well.

(cross-posted at Hired Minds, my blog about contract and temporary work and life)

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted?

A week from Tuesday, assuming nothing changes between now and then, I will get on a plane and fly to Las Vegas for a few night's stay at the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino. I should be excited about this, but lately, I'm not.

I planned this trip much earlier this year, after wanting to go somewhere due to not having been out of town all of last year and only escaping for a couple of brief times (one or two nights) this year. I'd been to Vegas before, and knew I liked it and can have a good time there for cheap, so I booked the trip. However, due to a couple of different reasons, my enthusiasm has waned. For one, this isn't the best time to be going out of town, and for another, I would like to go someplace I haven't been before.

However, at the same time, there are reasons why I should still go. For one, I paid for the bulk of the trip long ago and can't recoup the costs at this point, due to it being a package, and don't expect to spend a lot of money once I'm there -- I'm not a gambler and I don't have expensive tastes. For another, I'm not sure when I will have another chance to go on a vacation (I have tentative plans for next year, but they require the chips to fall right, pardon the metaphor), so I want to take advantage of this when I can. Finally, I don't do a good enough job of doing things for myself and just letting go and relaxing. I really think the trip will do me some good and give me a much-needed chance to clear my head.

No, the timing isn't great, but you can't live your life always waiting for the perfect time to do something. There's times when you just need to plow ahead and do it, and deal with whatever comes of it.