New "Feature": Things I Love
As many of you have probably noticed my blogging frequency has gone from daily (a year or so ago) to weekly or, often, semi-monthly. When I started blogging, I had just moved to Boston and wanted to document my adventures in addition to staying in touch with my family and friends in Oregon. I wrote frequently - daily, and sometimes more than once a day - and enjoyed cruising around to many other blogs. When I moved back to Portland I no longer had that same mission, but I enjoyed blogging and so continued to write fairly frequently about getting my life "put back together" again. Once my MS reared its ugly head I started chronicling that misadventure as well.
Both my life and my MS have stabilized considerably over the last 18 months (The Good Doctor and his Hateful Shrew notwithstanding) and while that is a good thing, it means I've not had as many "what's happening with me" tales to regale you with. It's not that I'm not busy: I am; there are a lot of things I am doing. The problem, though, is that the busiest aspects of my life are work- and/or recovery-related and thus non-blog-worthy. I don't write about work on principle (see: Dooce.com); I don't write (extensively) about recovery simply because it is an area of my life that I want to keep private.
So I've been thinking lately about the direction in which I want to take this website and the topics I want to write about. Although I am interested in many things, this blog has always been a collection of personal stores about various aspects of my present and previous lives, and I do not want this piece to change. Further, in writing yesterday's post I realized how much I enjoy writing about the past and my childhood, and looking back it's become clear that my favorite posts are the ones where I'm telling pieces of my personal history. So I suspect I will continue to share those stories here.
The downside to those, however, is that they sometimes take a long time to write, edit, rewrite and then share. Sadly, I don't have time these days to really spend extensive amounts of time writing those types of posts unless I'm really feeling inspired. So the question I posed to myself was, "how do I continue blogging without having it be a blow-by-blow of my day-to-day existence (so. boring.) but that will allow me to post thoughts and observations, without spending ridiculous amounts of time every day?"
The answer was, a regular* feature highlighting different things I love in the world. When I originally started jotting down ideas for this it was focused primarily on "stuff" I've found recently that I love, but I've decided to keep this endeavor a bit more broad. This will (hopefully) allow me to include the things in the world that bring me pleasure but that do not necessarily cost any money to enjoy. My hope is that you'll find it useful, interesting and not-too-serious. (I may even entertain the idea of guest-posts on this topic; anyone interested?)
So, without further ado, my first "thing" is: the Daphne odora shrub. These are one of the first shrubs to begin blooming here in the northwest in early spring, and their flowers are extremely fragrant. The daphne odora's smell is how I imagine heaven will smell (if, indeed, heaven exists). It ushers in spring in a way that even the early-February blooming of crocuses doesn't. These are planted with fair frequency throughout the northwest and, according to this article in the NY Times (from 2003), the Southern parts of the US. They are perennial, and because they are sensitive to cold temperatures, don't do well in climates that get excessively cold in winter. This would explain why they do well in the Northwest and southern climates, and why I didn't see them at all in New England. [Photo credit: Wikimedia.]
*...and by regular I mean, occurring with some as-yet-undefined frequency: more often than once a month, but probably not daily.
Comments
WHATEVER you continue to write here, I am certain to be enlightened, amused, entertained, and fulfilled. So, that said more simplified: Keep on writing, girl!
Linda D. in Seattle
Posted by: Linda D. | March 1, 2008 09:37 PM
wish we had some in london, maybe then i wouldn't have to smell polution as much!!
Posted by: sara | March 2, 2008 01:52 PM
by revealing a little bit ourselves, we all are better able to understand each other. Keep blogging about what interests you - for as you do, we get to know you a little better each time.
:)
Posted by: dkaye | March 2, 2008 06:45 PM
I caught a whiff of the Daphne in our yard this weekend and did a double-take ... it was the sweetest smell I've experienced in a long time. Excellent choice :-)
Posted by: SanDeE*![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.rathnait.net/blog/nav-commenters.gif)
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March 3, 2008 07:23 AM