7 Things

1. I needed it in the worst way. As I stated in my announcement post, I was burned out, jealous, petty, bitter, and generally unpleasant internally (not externally, I hope) when it came to my blog. Taking some time away helped me to realize just how unhappy I was. I’m glad I stepped back when I did. You should be too. I would never forgive myself if I Hulked out on all of you.

2. I’m a slow poke. I really predicted I would have an epiphany within days of my blogging break. Go ahead. You can laugh. No such epiphany occurred within a week, or even a month. In fact, the end result can hardly be called an epiphany at all. I needed to be patient with myself and trust that I’d know what’s best in time. Good lesson for the future, folks.

3. I like reading books. I don’t need to write about books to read them and love them. I don’t need to write about books to share my thoughts and feels with others. Thanks, friends!

4. I do like writing about books. I’m not exaggerating at all when I tell you I absolutely thought I would not come back to blogging. For at least the first 2 months, I thought it was over. I had no desire to blog or be near a blog. Then slowly but surely, the itch to write about books came back. I pondered what that meant and talked to my friends and le hubs about it. I was back at square one where I sincerely wanted to write about books even if NO ONE read it. That’s how I knew my decision was made.

5. I need to make changes. Changes for how the blog fits into my life and how my life fits into the blog. Changes on how often I post and what I post about. Changes for what I read and how I read it. Changes that will prevent future burnouts and result in a sustainably happy Lisa.

6. I could have prevented this. There are so many blogs out there with so much content and so many things that overwhelm me and make me a jealous blogger. It is up to me to prevent that from happening and to check myself before I wreck myself. Again.

7. I have really supportive readers and friends. For reals, y’all. You all supported me and encouraged me and were so so so good about giving me space and time. I just can’t even express in words that make sense how much that means to me. I can try by telling you it makes my heart safely swell within my ribcage to try and make room for all of the feels. And also I can say thank you.

So you may notice some changes around here. I hope you like them, because I do. I want to make you happy as my reader, but ultimately I’m here to do what makes me happy.

I honestly believe that unabashedly nerding out about things that I love with you makes for better content AND a happier Lisa. That’s what we call a win-win.