I have been off-line so long I can not seem to get back on track. I have gotten a number of post started but not been satisfied with the content so sent them to trash. I downloaded the latest upgrade to wordpress and discovered that the trash link is now highlighted and easy to use. Not good for a blogger suffering from blogger’s block and/or some odd form of perfectionism.
I would not generally think of myself as a perfectionist. However, I have discovered with writing and blogging I suffer from my own internal standards. I don’t seem to have high standards related to spelling or grammer but I seem to have a content standard that even I can not articulate. I want my blogs to be personal, cover interesting topics, get people to think about something differently than they usually do and create connection. My personal best blogs usually come after an experience I’ve had that touches me emotionally or after reading something that seems so paradoxical that I can help but write.
It’s not like my life has been without interesting experiences. Yes, bronchitis wasn’t much of a topic for sharing, nor did crashing computers seem worth detailing. However, there have been some great paradoxical headlines – like anything related to the insane healthcare reform. Or my favorite was the Census note that gay and lesbian couples who consider themselves husband and wives can check that on the report. Now isn’t that insane. Many gay and lesbian couples consider themselves married but ‘husband and wife’ – that just seems wrong on many levels. Still not enough to warrant a post.
Even now I find myself considering the trash button. But I am going to stick with it though. I need to get ‘back on the horse’ so to speak. Even if this post does not live up to my internal standard for relevance I need to hit the publish button and move beyond this sticking point.
Oddly I received some of my best feedback just before taking this extended break. Someone out there found my blog and commented on my unique voice in a sea of otherwise repetitive blog material. Of course instead of just receiving the kind words I have put pressure on myself to live up to the standard with each new post. Most likely the fan has moved on and will never know what post comes next.
Well I am not going to let my internal critic stop me today. In moments I will scroll down to hit the publish button and even if that trash button is right there much bolder than publish – I will not be stopped!!