Confessions

_This introductory post ended up rather long-winded. You can skip to the end for the summed-up version, or, if you have the inclination, grab a cuppa and join me!

Okay. My first blog post.
Let’s start this off with a few confessions, alright? I want everyone to know where we stand from the start… be up front, get it off my chest, lay all my cards on the table so to speak [insert any other lame cliché you can think of here]… Sometimes it’s hard to believe I am a published writer. I am way out of practice. I’ll try to correct this as we continue, but first things first:

Confession number 1:
I [heart] blogs. I <3 blogs. I luv blogs. I mean, I looooooooovvve blogs. I love photography blogs, cooking blogs, travel blogs, DIY blogs. Blogs where people do all of the above, living in fabulous restored homes, creating fabulous food, taking wonderful photos of such food, and then showing me how best to set my table to enjoy such gourmet delights which I can easily make myself at home while sharing my latest vacation photos with friends at my latest, perfect dinner party. Ahem… right. So, I like blogs. A lot. I have bookmarked lists and lists of blogs. Some I read for fun, others for inspiration. Some I check once in a while, others I read nearly. every. day. This fact alone, that last bit there, is the number one reason I have never started my own. Being a blog reader myself, I know if I go to a page and there is no new content, no new post, a picture, something, anything to amuse or entertain me, I get disappointed. Click. I’m gone. My mouse is already scrolling to the next one on my list. So, my schedule being what it is [confession number 2: I have three jobs and, regrettably, the one that takes up most of my time is the one I like the least], I dread the pressure of constantly trying to come up with new things to put here, and wondering when I will find the time to do it. (Already I can hear some people thinking, “well, maybe, if you didn’t waste so much time online…” I’m working on it, okay?)

Confession number 3:
I start things and never finish them. [insert update to say: hey, read this too] Or, to be more accurate, I prepare projects and then rarely even get to the starting point. The thing is, I get an idea, I get super excited, have grand intentions, research every aspect, make lists, implement plans, even go so far as to purchase equipment and supplies (sometimes recipe ingredients) to complete a project… and then it sits in my house collecting dust or mold (which is worse). I hazard a guess to say this is probably because, by this point, the initial excitement has faded and I have moved on, looking toward the next fun thing (who knew starting a blog would involve so much self-analysis? The things I am discovering about myself, yikes!). Once I have secured what I “need” (and I use that word loosely) for my project, I always intend to complete it, but then time becomes an issue and it turns into a “someday-when-I-have-time-I-will-do-this" kind of project. I have stockpiles of supplies and plans for projects that could keep me busy until the next millennium. My craft room is more like a craft warehouse.

A perfect example: I saw a necklace I wanted on Etsy. I decided it was too expensive for me to purchase. Oh, did I want that necklace though! “Hmmm…” I think, “surely I am creative and smart enough to make one myself?” Of course I am (and don't call me Shirley)! So, I did what any smart and savvy crafter would do. I went to Hobby Lobby. [Interrupting myself to insert confession number 4: I love Hobby Lobby. I’m addicted. The end.]

You know where this is going, right? I am now the proud owner of a whole slew of jewelry making tools and supplies. And no necklace. I probably spent more on the supplies than I would have to just-purchase-the-necklace-already. Okay, fine. I know I spent more on the supplies, but at the time, it was such a smart decision. I know fellow addicts and wanna-be crafters will understand, because we rationalize things. “Yes,” I ponder, “it’s more money now… but with the items I’m purchasing I could make, like… 10 necklaces! And maybe, maybe! I could sell my own necklaces! Or, even better! They could be gifts for friends. It’s like I’m buying presents. It’s totally the more cost efficient way to go…”

So, friends, I just spilled the beans. I bought you a necklace and it’s homemade. Don’t worry. By the time you receive it, you will have completely forgotten this rant and will be totally surprised. You're welcome.

This is just one tiny example of the warped way my brain works, so you understand my dilemma*. Or maybe I have issues that no one can understand. Anyway. Moving on.

Confession number 5:
I’m a bit of a perfectionist (as an aside: that sound you hear echoing right now would be members of my family who just read that last sentence and collectively collapsed to the floor in hysterics). Okay, fine. OCD, anal-retentive, compulsive, controlling, obsessional, fanatical, neurotic, excessive, whatever… I like things to be JUST SO. Consequently, if I can’t do things the way I have envisioned them (which would be perfectly), I don’t like to share them. I never think they are good enough. Add to this the fact that I am a fairly reserved and private individual, and, well, I think you get the idea (which is, I have issues—and, also, I don’t share well with others). On the plus side, this means I am in a constant state of study, always trying to improve upon my best and then do better.

So, back to the beginning: Here I am, wanting to start this blog, being told it’s the smart thing to do for my business (I mean, after all, photographers are supposed to have their own blog, right? Keeping up with social media, proving we’re all tech savvy and on top of the latest and greatest iGizmo, sharing our best work), yet knowing I have little time to maintain it and having no idea what I want it to convey to peak your interest and then keep it.

*my dilemma, the summed up version: I like blogs. I want to start my own blog. I worry about what to put in the blog. I wonder when I will find time to update the blog. My family likes to laugh at me. I have issues. Those last two things may or may not be corollary. And also: buy homemade items on Etsy. It turns out they are worth absolutely every. single. penny.

With all that in mind (and good grief, did this ever get WAY longer than planned—can we say TMI, Carrie? TMI!) I’m starting this little web log here. I may not update it every week, or even every month (reference confession 2 above if you skipped to the end for the good part) but I will do my best to make it worth your while if you occasionally want to stop by and look for pretty pictures. To make it fun, I think we need audience participation. More on that soon!

P.S. For those who haven’t already quit reading by now—you’re still here, fabulous!—we are going to be BFFs, I can just tell!