…. and she’s twisting my arm to come back to the book blogging world.
(And I decided to write this so she’ll shut up.)
I guess before I can talk about coming back, I should talk about why I left. I love to read. Obviously. But books had taken over my life. By the end of last year I was reading more than 20 books a month. And blogging. And working. And therefore, not spending any time on my relationship or myself. I was using books as an escape from my life. Getting too sick to read early this year seemed like the worst thing ever, but turned out to be just what I needed. I used that break to step away from my book addiction.
I’ve gotten back in shape (and lost 20lbs!). I started practicing yoga again and running. I started making time to spend with my husband (which has been extremely difficult due to his work schedule). We’ve also recently started the search for our first house (which has been very overwhelming). In the midst of all of this, I was scared to start reading again. I was terrified that I would be sucked back in and lose myself all over again. But I couldn’t stay away for long.
Over the last few weeks I devoured the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning and have reread the last Dark Hunter book I finished to get ready to read Acheron. So if I’ve been reading again, why am I not blogging?
Because I feel insanely guilty for all of the amazing posts I’ve missed. I can’t reconcile my coming back to blogging without catching up on my GoogleReader (which is over 700 in my VIP folder alone). I’m still not sure how to overcome this issue because there is no way I can go back and catch up at this point.
I’m going to start by updating some pages on here and posting Tattoo Tuesdays again. I’m hesitant to write about the Fever series because anything I want to say about it is insanely spoilerish and that’s not really my style. Amanda started her own beautiful (if I do say so myself) blog, On a Book Bender, and we’re going to stay affiliates and keep our blogs connected somehow.
I have missed all of you very, very much and I’m looking forward to easing myself back into this amazing community.
We will welcome you with open arms whether you catch up with our posts or not. Just coming back is good enough.
Er… wait, I’m supposed to shut up now, right?
@ Amanda : LOL thank you for pushing me back into this. I needed it!
I’m glad you’re back. I’ve missed you on Twitter and here as well.
Aside from our selfish love of your posts thought congrats on getting things going in your offline life that you’ve been wanting to do. I’m so proud of you and happy for you!
@Stacey : Thank you
I really miss you too! To go along with restarting my blog, I’m hoping to stay up to date on Twitter as well (at least my personal one).
TARA!!!! I missed you! Lol. I totally understand about needing to take some time out for real life. I had to do that myself a little while ago, and I ended up taking a 2 month virtual hiatus from blogging. With work and school and life, it was starting to be just another chore I needed to check off my to-do list, so I decided to take a break for awhile. Things are a little less chaotic now, and I was surprised by just how much I missed blogging! I guess the key is everything in moderation. Finding a balance is hard sometimes!
And CONGRATS on the 20 lbs! I know how hard it is to lose weight and get yourself back in shape. I’ve recently started working on that myself too (I even did pilates tonight!) so hopefully I’ll be as successful as you were!
Glad to have you back, in whatever way you can handle.
P.S. My Google Reader was a mess. I never caught up. I just ended up starting from scratch and spending some extra time exploring my favorite sites.
@ Natalie : I missed you too!! Turns out my GoogleReader would only go back a month (which is probably a good thing) so I caught up faster than I thought I would lol.
I really missed blogging too, but I hated it feeling like a chore. Hopefully this time I’ll be able to manage my time better this time
Good luck with your getting shape goals!!
@ Natalie : PS my GoogleReader was smarter than me and only went back as far as May 1 lol
Next step is the also guilt-ridden action of unsubscribing to some of the blogs I follow… I have way too many to handle in the reader right now
We welcome you back with open arms! It’s so funny because I was just wondering where you went the other day. Hope your break has left you refreshed. Just remember, it’s okay to set limits. I’ve had to do that myself.
Happy reading and blogging!
@ Michelle (The True Book Addict) : Thank you! It really has! Writing my first review in months felt more fun and not like a chore
Just hit mark all as read and start anew on the reader
I have to do that when I go on vacation—it will take the “overwhelming” out of reading blog posts !
I am so glad you are coming back and heck do it at your own pace
We love and did miss you!
PS Congrats on the house and the weight! That is awesome! I remember home buying it was terribly scary but once it is done, you are going to be thrilled!
@ Felicia : The comments on this post have been so touching and encouraging. As much as I needed the break, I really missed you guys! I’m so happy to be back and hopefully I can keep things in check this go around
Home buying is SUPER stressful! I’ll be really happy when it’s over and we’re settled in our new home
Finding balance is so hard. I was just talking about how I need to slow down on the reading and the blogging because I can feel the burnout coming. And that’s after figuring out a way to juggle blogging without taking time away from my family and just having real life fun.
Come back any way that will work for you. We’ve missed you!
@ Jennifer : I honestly have no idea how you do it!
Thank you for the encouragement and warm welcome back!
You are missed Tara! But it’s fantastic that you’re taking some time for yourself, it’s so easy to get caught up in blogging until it becomes a second job and adds stress instead of relieves it:)
The Fever series is a great way to get back into the fun of reading, and I always make a point to read a few books each month that are just fun reads, no review involved. Good luck with the house hunt and come back whenever you feel up to it!
@ Jenny : Thanks
It was a great series to get back into reading! It completely sucked me in lol.
I LOVE your idea of reading books that you don’t need to review. I think I was losing my love of reading because I wasn’t doing it for me anymore and that is a great way to create that balance!
Don’t try to catch up! Just start where you are! Nobody would expect you to catch up!!
So, did you like Acheron? I thought it was incredible how she kept the story line together. I’d have had to have notes upon notes upon notes. I guess that’s the end of the Dark-hunter series though. Acheron was my very first post almost a year ago. Of course, when I realized I wanted to be a strictly YA, MG blog it was totally inappropriate.
Good luck house hunting. That takes times. And spend time with your hubby. Much more important than your blog. Though I always liked your reviews.
Heather
@ Heather Rosdol : I didn’t start Acheron just yet (I’m thinking Sunday when I have the whole day off to read). I’ve heard amazing things about it and cannot wait to jump into it!
Thanks! I’ve been surprised at how stressful it is! I thought it would be a lot more exciting, but that seemed to die out after the first disappointing day of house showings lol.
Tara,
When I got an e-mail from my subscription to your blog yesterday, you wouldn’t believe how loud I squeed. But even with how happy I was to see that you had posted, I’m only now able to get around to checking out the post. Work was crazy yesterday.
Family… Work… Life.. it all take priority, and that is fine. We all understand.
That is not to say that I don’t know what you mean. I live with that guilty feeling day in and day out when I don’t get to visit the blogosphere as much as I like.
My suggestion, clear out your reader and just start over. Nothing wrong with that. Better yet, just start posting. Just have fun and try not to worry.
Congrats on the weight loss. I already thought you were a hottie.
@ Missie : Awwww I’ve missed you so much!!! I’m so excited to be back
I am so glad you are back! I missed you!
Want my opinion? Clear you Googlereader to 0 and start again. I wouldn’t bother trying to catch up…. just take it from now
@ Rachel : Thanks! Missed you too
You were missed! I’m really happy to have you back!
@ Kay (Infiniteshelf) : Thanks!
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Welcome back! I think sometimes we all need to take a break and step away from reading and blogging. Life happens and sometimes, as much as we love reading, a break is what is needed. Congrats on losing weight and starting to run again! I’m an avid runner myself and know what a time-hog it can be, but also how rewarding. Of course, I’m cross-training so much these days I’m having to double up on workouts..which means less reading time. boohoo! But..it’s what I need to do for me. So..welcome back and know you that you aren’t alone.
@ Kris : Thanks!! If only I could read while I was running
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