I recently read a post on Carrie Rubin’s blog in which she mentioned that she usually doesn’t write or share something if it doesn’t fit with her blog’s “tone.” Soon after, I read a post on Madame Weebles’ blog that she doesn’t really have a theme or a “hook,” instead she prefers just “winging it.”
It got me thinking… Do I have a tone? A hook? A theme?
My blog is often a reflection of my life–a little bit scattered–smothered and covered–and rambly with a few recurring themes that somehow all link together at the end of the day, often via the strangest means, sometimes even via my love of bacon and monkeys.
I write about sobriety, though I wouldn’t call myself a full-fledged “sober blogger,” because I write about other stuff too. At two years sober, quite honestly, I don’t even think about sobriety every single day. Sobriety is just part of my life now, ingrained in me, like someone who has received a new heart or kidney via transplant–it’s part of me, and I need it to survive. I would get bored if I wrote about it every single day. I would get bored writing about anything every single day. But I do love reading sober blogs–they help me remember where I came from, and they give me a chance to support others in their sobriety.
I’ve had a handful of new followers lately, and I think a few of you might even be real people (as opposed to the proliferation of spam and business website followers). A couple of you may even be new to this whole sobriety deal, maybe taking part of the 100 day challenge of no drinking (curious? take a look at Belle’s blog HERE), and if so, yay!, congratulations! I will support you any way I can. Feel free to ask anything and comment freely on any post and check out my blogroll of other sober bloggers too.
While I don’t write about sobriety every day, I do write about living life sober–dealing with life’s ups and downs without drinking over any of the good stuff or bad stuff, even though there’s lots of temptation along the way (holidays, getting nitrous at the dentist, bad days, cravings, anger, your dog getting cancer, grief and depression, and more).
I love that I have blog friends and followers who don’t battle addiction. You show us “sober” folks that we’re not the weird, crazy outcasts that we often feel we are. Well, maybe we are weird and crazy, but you don’t care because you’re crazy too. We’re all a little crazy in our own ways. I think by focusing on those things we have in common, we can all learn a little from each other along the way. Plus, I know addiction touches many lives. Many of you have family or friends that battle, or have battled, addictions. More people can relate to addiction than not. While I know the word “sober” repels many folks from checking out my blog–their loss, right?–it just shows me the people who are here are pretty awesome.
Music, running, bacon, my zoo, and grieving my mom’s loss are all key themes too. I also share a “Words for the Weekend” post most weekends of music, quotes and poetry and other people’s works. It started whimsically, on a quiet weekend, when I was craving some inspiration. I’ve kept doing them because they inspire some of you too, they’re fun to do, and, hey, I love any opportunity to share music.
When I began blogging in April 2012, my theme was a bit wanderlust, “I don’t know where I’m running, I’m just running on…” I still don’t know where I’m running, but I am still going.
I’m still going, because life itself goes on.
Life goes on.
Maybe that’s my overriding theme? An awareness of passing time… Life goes on… No matter what happens–good, bad, or ugly–it goes on. And it will still go on without me, without you. Time stops for no one. Tick, tick, tick, each moment passes, and each is a moment we will never again have. How shall we spend those few precious moments while we are here?
Life goes on.
Life even geos on.
Life Geos On
photo: Per Englund from book Life Geos On
I may be making some little changes to my blog format in the coming weeks. Adding some color, sprucing things up… but not too much, clutter stresses me out, and I am not exactly crazy about change. But I evolve (life goes on…) I’m even thinking about sharing more poetry and prose, and breaking out of my writing comfort zone a bit. I hope you’ll hang in there with me.
Oh, bonus points if you know where the scattered, smothered and covered reference comes from. And no, I don’t mean Hootie and the Blowfish, though they do a cool version of Tom Waits’ “I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love With You.” (Waits original HERE)
Do you have a theme for your blog (or for your life)? Or do you prefer “winging it?” Do you like hash browns and Tom Waits? Any changes you’d like to see to my blog? Any thing I’d better not change? I’d love to hear from you!
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