Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer


Summer is FINALLY here! Yesterday was the girls' last day of school. It took forever to get here. June 23rd seems awfully late for school to be letting out. And actually it was. School was supposed to be over last Friday, but we had to make up two snow days. I love the more relaxed pace of summer - no schedule, no after school or evening meetings, no homework hassles and especially no getting up at 6:30 am (have I mentioned I'm not a morning a person?).

In light of the fact that it's now officially the lazy, hazy days of summer and my recent struggles with Guilt Free Blogging, I may be backing off a bit here on Pam's Perspective. I've done a lot of soul searching on this and I've figured out that I really do enjoy posting and responding to my comments, but I may post a little less frequently this summer. A summer vacation of sorts.

And to follow up a bit more on my Guilt Free Blogging post, what I figured out was that I was simply following too many blogs - 72 to be exact! That's just too many. I will admit that I went through my Reader and weeded that list down to the 51 blogs (still a lot) that I enjoy and identify with the most. It was very hard for me to do this. I had some guilty feelings about it. But, I decided I had to get back to basics - blogging for me. Since I did that I have noticed that keeping up with the blogs in my Reader is much more manageable and I've had much more time to write posts. Which is what I enjoy the most. I still plan on posting a few times a week, it just may not be every day. (I have a bunch of posts in my drafts folder, ready to be posted, so you may not notice a change right away). I hope you will stick with me as I try to figure out a workable schedule of posting, visiting other blogs, commenting and responding. And for those of you who are struggling with these same issues, I encourage you to determine for yourselves which aspects of blogging are taking the most time and that you enjoy the least and let them go. It's hard at first, but it's also very freeing. And summer is the perfect time to do that. After all it's the lazy, hazy days of summer. Everyone should relax and take it easy during the summer. Even amazing bloggers like you!

13 comments:

Sandy said...

Okay, that't it! I'm outa here! :-) Just kidding!! Enjoy your summer and some Guilt Free Blogging. This isn't supposed to be a job.

Aunt Julie said...

I understand what you mean about getting bogged down in blogs! Quality, not Quantity, is my motto. And I'll bet you're glad that summer's finally here, huh? Stopping by from SITS, to Share Some Comment Love...

Anonymous said...

Enjoy yourself and don't worry about life online...it will be here whenever you're ready to return to it.

Unknown said...

Pam, I am in total agreement. I have wittled down my blogs a bit this past week too, and I'm not going to get all guilty, I am finding it to be freeing! I mean honestly, who am I blogging for first........me! What do I enjoy most.......writing! One problem is SITS, which I love, but I do keep finding blogs I want to read, so I'm now doing like trial runs, reading for a few days, to see what the feel is really like before committing or following.
You just enjoy summer............reading, writing, some blogging some traveling, more reading, some sun, more reading, you see where this is going right.........ENJOY!

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

Happy Summer! Of course our "summer" heat-wise, has been around for weeks now. We had about oh, 2 weeks of spring-like weather down here.

You should check out this blog post. I ran across it on someone's blog recently http://eminpursuit.blogspot.com/2009/06/are-you-pos-blogger-come-on-everybodys.html I think you'll find many others feeling the same way you do about time away from blogging!

Enjoy your summer!

Gamma Sharon said...

I agree with all your commenters. It is hard and I was feeling pretty guilty about not posting more. I really enjoy your blog, and I will be reading no matter how many posts you write... so no guilty blogging. Have lots of fun and relaxation on these lazy hazy days of summer! ;)

Midlife Roadtripper said...

Pam,

A perfect post for my morning as I try to catch up after a week's absence. I, too, share the joy of summer and lazy, hazy days. I'm amazed at those of you who post every day. I haven't been able to find the niche of posting ahead as my ideas of what to write can change in a moment's time. The guilt issue is real as I want to return the time others give me. Guess it is just like life - finding the correct balance.

Enjoy your summer, read, read, read. Wanted to add a suggestion to you - Enjoying Ella Minnow Pea. Great book for word lovers and a nice change from my usual box.

Dumb Mom said...

I jave struggled w/the idea of taking time off this summer too. I think it's really the only thing that keeps me sane, though. Plus, I only do it during kid "quiet" time or bedtime, so I figure it's really only eating into my cleaning time, and who wants to do that anyway. Love your heading, and guess I'll get to know you better at the end of the summer:). Found you on SITS by the way!

mommakin said...

Aw, Pam, you just do what's right for you - as someone posted above, it's not a job (though it's easy to start to treat it like one). I skipped today and didn't even realize it until I read your post. I'm not going to write just for the sake of writing (plus, I have another writing project this summer, and I think it might be getting the best of me for now).

Ash said...

I think I need to follow your lead and clean out my reader as well - so many great blogs, so little time (so much guilt!!!).

Happy Summer!!! Em

Clare said...

Pam, you know how I feel about this. I took it over the top and initially deleted my blog. I just needed to step away from the computer, (it feels good) and not put any pressure on myself to comment, post, etc. When I did that it became a lot more stress free. Dont go away entirely. I love to read your tv reviews!

Alex the Girl said...

As long as you're back to active blogging by the time the Tudors start their next season. Yes, You are the reason I'm now in the midst of researching as much as I can find about Henry VIII, his wives, and even his wives sisters! Enjoy summer for sure, for sure.

Pam said...

Sharon - Thanks for your support. I really appreciate it.

Clare - I'm definitely not going to go away completely. I'm just going to feel compelled to post every day. I doubt anyone will notice the change all that much. Both you and Alex mentioned my TV Quick Quips posts. I didn't realize those posts had a following. I'll be sure to resurrect them as soon as the new season starts.

Alex - Yay Henry VIII. Check out Alison Weir's books. She writes great non-fiction about that time period. Philippa Gregory is a good source for fiction of the time period. Enjoy!

 

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