Let me clarify my statement on yesterday’s post. I will be posting as usual this week. I’m not taking a week off from blogging, I’m just not doing A Favorite Thing this week. I will be too busy next weekend to visit each linked post and leave a comment and I take that responsibility seriously. We’ll be back up with A Favorite Thing the next week.
Actually, the thought of taking a week off from blogging fills me with a wee feeling of panic. I rely on this daily blogging journal to keep me grounded. I rely on it to keep me sane. Every morning I wake up, pad downstairs to let Scout out, brew some coffee, which I then carry into the den. Scout gets into the ‘tunnel’, I pop open my laptop, check my email, visit a few blogs and then, when I’m sufficiently awake, I start to think about the day’s post. I choose some photos to edit. Often, the theme of the post will spring from the photos. At other times, I have an idea for that post percolating in my head and I go through my photos to find something that will enhance my thoughts for the day or I take some photos right then and there. Either way, the vast majority of my posts evolve from how I feel that day, that morning.
Like today: I’m feeling a little foggy, my head is full of congestion, Don came home unexpectedly yesterday for a couple of days after finding out he had the day off today so my schedule has been thrown off a bit, I’m drinking coffee and wondering why it’s taking me so long to wake up and I woke with the thought that I had to clarify the words I used in yesterday’s post. And so a post begins that evolves into a peek into a my daily blogging ritual.
I count on this ritual to focus my often all-over-the-place thoughts into some sort of coherent narrative. I need that. I don’t know what I did before I blogged.
Well, I do know what I did. I read whatever book I was reading at the time. That was my morning ritual, with a healthy dose of coffee. I still read all the time, as you well know, but the mornings now are a time to read the latest headlines from the New York Times online, visit other blogs and write my post for the day. I usually finish it before Don gets up but not always. Don’s “Are you writing?” has become one of his first questions of the day. Because if I am writing, he doesn’t like to disturb me. The same goes for him. If the guitar is out, I ask “Are you writing a song?” Because I don’t want to disturb the creative process.
Yesterday, when it turned out Don was on his way home, courtesy of another cast member driving back to NYC, we arranged a meeting point where he could be dropped off. I drove 45 minutes or so to get there and amazingly, they pulled up a minute after I did. I was introduced to everyone and Caitlin, whose husband was ferrying everyone home, said Don had showed her my blog and that she loved my photography. That’s gratifying. But what is even more gratifying is that Don regularly touts my blog to everyone he knows – often when I am right there beside him. He gets it. He knows how important this little piece of real estate is to me and how deeply the daily ritual of blogging has become woven into my life.
I don’t know what I would do without it. Truly.
Now, here we are, a post nearly completed, my brain focused, my thoughts put on virtual paper. I’ll edit a bit, think of a title and when I’m sufficiently pleased with it, I’ll hit Publish.
Nine times out of ten, I’ll go back and edit a bit more after I see the post on the page. I’ve been known to edit a post a day or so later if necessary. The other day I noticed I’d used it’s instead of its on a previous post. I went back in and changed it. Once a teacher, always a teacher. Once a perfectionist, almost always a perfectionist. (I’m working on that one.)
What’s your blogging ritual? How has blogging changed your life?
Happy Sunday.
I feel the same way about blogging – it keeps my thoughts grounded and gives them purpose. And, I usually have a post somewhat written in my head, but don’t know exactly where it is going until I start to write that morning. I can’t schedule posts to publish in advance – how do I know how I will feel that day?
P.S. I stated the Deborah Combrie series – thanks for the recommendation :-)
So glad you’re reading Crombie, Vicki! I think you’ll really like her.
Blogging started out as a way to “share” with my Mom and daughters. My girls never comment – but they read it daily because they’ll make a verbal comment about something I’ve written about every once in awhile. It makes a difference who you are writing about or for — your audience!! I would write about family pieces/stories in hopes that my girls will remember who the rocking chair belong to or the Antique Gone with the Wind lamp. Growing up I kept a diary, so blogging is like journaling, but again, you have to remember who you are writing for — just myself or my family or blogging friends.
I do the same as you concerning editing. I’ll write the perfect blog – hit publish – and wah lah — so many errors to go back and correct. Then I’ll check the next day for the flow and occasionally edit because there is too much OR not enough information!!
After rereading what I wrote — I used way too many “about”!! Need to go in and reword several of the sentences.
Yes, you do have to remember who you’re writing for. In my case, I have to remind myself that some family members on my husband’s side of the family read the blog. Not that there’s anything offensive but I don’t want to tread on their own particular sensibilities.
l do the exact same thing when editing. I’ll go back days later if I’m reading the post and see a grammatical error or misspelling. I can’t stand it. A Robert Ludlum novel I just finished had 4 errors in it: missing words, misspelled words, etc. I wondered who their proofreaders were because in 1982 I don’t think we had spell check or grammar software to check for missing words. Kinda funny when you think about it.
xoxo,
Connie
If you check out Dewena’s comment (scroll on down) you’ll read that Alec Guinness hated typos in books. He said he never remembered seeing one before 1960! I see them a lot, too, and I’m amazed. I’d gladly be a proofreader. I think human eyes (a couple or more sets of them) are better than spell check!
My ritual will be changing once I retire but I usually read blogs in the morning and later at night. I write on the weekends and have a calendar of post drafts in the queue waiting to be written…I only post once a week at this point but will add a few more a month soon.
Soon you’ll be able to blog more if you are so inclined, Donna.
Good morning, Claudia! Just finished my cup of coffee (yes, I do drink coffee in the morning, in spite of my blog’s name!) out on my back deck, enjoying a lovely start to the morning. And I am now admitting to feeling very relieved at your post today–I was sitting on my deck, sipping coffee and musing over how much I was going to miss reading your blog for a whole week! Thanks for clarifying, because I would probably not have checked in for a week. My blogging routine is two-fold–because I work full time I need to sketch out my ideas for the week on the weekend–at least a general idea of where the blog is going to go that week and I assemble what poems I plan to use. Sometimes the blog follows the poetry I’ve chosen, and other times I search for poetry that hopefully enhances my writing and photos. Then each night I do a rough draft of the next day’s blog, and in the morning I proof it once again and edit whatever has been rolling around in my brain all night. Sometimes I wake up with a whole new post in my head and then it’s a rush to get it written before work! My first break at work is when I read your blog–it’s part of my daily routine. At night I browse through a few other blogs if I have time before starting my own writing. I have been blogging for almost a year now and honestly it has brought such a richness to my life–I can’t imagine not doing it. But oh, how I hate it when I find errors in earlier posts after I’ve proofed and proofed! Of course I go back and correct them, as a former teacher and a perfectionist I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I know there are errors waiting for someone to discover! Have a marvelous day with Don and Scout! xxoo, Martha
I imagine that working full time makes a difference in one’s blogging routine, Martha. You sound pretty darn organized in the way you go about writing your posts.
I sometimes find errors well after I’ve written a post. I’m mortified!
Hi Claudia–
My blogging ritual chugs along into existence each time I sit down to write. Like you I often let my photos dictate what I may write about…and sometimes I will just insert a photo to make the page more appealing.
I do enjoy blogging–but admit that I am not disciplined enough to be “at it” and taking care of the home the way I should with balance between the two, you know?
I’ve let my writing over the years become too relaxed and lazy…that is an irritating point of blogging for me. You said the teacher in you always lets you edit and proof read- paraphrasing here; but I’m almost certain, I’d get a less than perfect score on some of my submissions.
My ritual is, read around, jot some things down and write a really long post…and lately, I’ve been going back before publishing and make 3 posts out of 1. Come to think of it, my photos MUST dictate more than usual, because I’m having a time with my “hooks up” and getting my pictures to my pc AGAIN… and I haven’t posted since this developed late in the week.
Now, there, I’ve rambled on about nonsense and how exciting is that? !
Glad you get some unexpected time with Don this weekend. Enjoy!
~Pat
Well, I think blogging in one’s own voice can lead to a relaxed form of writing – and I don’t think that is a bad thing. I guess we try to find a balance between writing in our own voice and proofreading for errors!
well, you know me… I just struggle with balance anyway! I’ve been told I’m UNbalanced for years…LOL!
have a great week. -Pat
Blogging has given me more friends than I thought possible, and I treasure each one of you.
Hugs ~ Mary
Me too, Mary. Me too.
You are disciplined! I would rather write in the morning, honestly, because my mind is more alert then, but I’m at the age where the mornings are when I best accomplish housework and cooking and writing stories for the fun and sense of accomplishment it gives me. After 3 o’clock it’s mostly sit down time. You would think that would be plenty of time for me to blog but it isn’t because my poor brain is too dull then! Oh well, life when you turn 70 is all about pacing and balance. Something has to give and it seems that I’ve chosen frequent blogging to be the loser. That’s okay though. It will come when it comes.
I have to admit to much of my time being given this last week to reading the 3 books I wrote to you about. The 3 autobiographies/journals of Alec McGuinness. Claudia, if anyone I know should be reading these with fascination, it is you. The books are full of the love of his life–the plays of Shakespeare. The movies he did to make a good living for his family but it was the theatre that was his love, and his remembrances of it have held my interest more than almost any other autobiographies I’ve ever read. So that is where some of my absence from blogging has gone lately and I don’t regret a minute of it. In fact, I am so in love with the Renaissance man that was Sir Alec. One of the things he hated was typos in modern books. He claimed that he never found typos before 1960 in books. A lot of good spell check has done us?
I think we are so lucky when we have the choice of how to spend our personal time, don’t you think? Not everyone does. Yes, you still have to take time away for jobs, and for picking up a husband! I still have to do the one thing I hate the most–bookwork and paperwork for our family business–but it is a necessity that I am glad I can still perform. But then, the rest of my time, now that my family is grown up and gone, is thankfully my own. Not a bad life.
I think you made a responsible choice to skip Favorite Thing when you realized you couldn’t do it thoroughly one week. Life is all about choices.
Ooops! Now you see why I can’t blog frequently anymore! Alec Guinness, of course! My fingers fly faster than my brain and added in the Mc. Oh well, he constantly complained that people misspelled his last name!
I think Don has read one or two of Alec Guinness’ books. Thank you so much for reminding me of them. You’re right: I should be reading them!
I see typos all the time and it makes me wonder…don’t you think one or two or three pairs of eyes are better proofreaders than spell check? I do!
Dear sweet friend,
I look forward to reading your blog every a.m. Sending sunshine from middle TN…rain since the 4th.
We’ve had a boatload of rain over the past few weeks, too. Even now I’m hearing the rumble of thunder out there!
Claudia, much like you I get on my computer every morning. I drink coffee, read the news, some blogs and emails. I don’t post daily as you do but I read blogs daily for sure. I would miss my friends so much if I stopped blogging or they did! Yikes, I am very attached to this cyber world. So happy Don got home for a few days. Enjoy!
Linda
I would be bereft without my blogging friends, one of whom is you!
Hi Claudis.
I do pretty much the same as you. I never write my posts ahead of time…I like to be spontaneous and write about things off the top of my head. Once in a while, I think that my life can be pretty boring to others. Then I read a post about someone’s favorite coffee cup and I find myself interested…so who knows what is boring to others? I post almost everyday…it’s a habit that I’m in, and for the first time in my 75 yr. old life…I am keeping a journal.(something that I have tried many times in the past) I make my blog into book form every year. I now have 6 books. My kids and friends love to look at them.
I really enjoy reading about your life…from your favorite coffee to you posts about your pup. I would miss blogging if it ended, and I would miss your blog if you stopped writing.
Balisha
I tried and tried to keep a handwritten journal through the years, Balisha, and I couldn’t do it either. My blog is my journal! I would miss you if you stopped writing – so please don’t!
I see that I called you Claudis…how funny when some talked about going back and doing some editing.
Sorry, Claudia.
Balisha
I type fast and I’m always having to correct my own spelling of my name! I’ve typed Claudis many times!
You must cringe at the way I write Claudia..just a habit I started and can’t seem to shake..Of course being from the hills of Pennsylvania doesn’t help with the way I talk..A day among the people here and your ears would probably be burning..lol..I’m so glad that Don got home for a visit..Maybe he can get a couple nights of decent sleep out of the heat and humidity..Enjoy!
Of course I don’t cringe! I love different writing styles – be yourself! xo
I loved seeing your Lantana! I am in love with that flower. The way it has little square florets, how they open one color and change, magnificent little fleurs! I’m about to post and have photos of mine to share too. My blogging ritual is.. not really a ritual. :-) I kind of try to blog every other day, but have no rules. But if I had a normal – I like to blog midday. Today we are resting up from the 4th and are expecting our 4 yr old grandson to arrive any minute. We’re taking him and his 5 yr old brother to an Indian hot springs tomorrow to swim. I’ll be taking photos! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)
For some reason, I associated lantana with my time in Southern California, but I saw some at my local nursery and decided, why not? Love it!
Great subject Claudia. First of all, glad that Don got to come home for a couple of days.
I usually blog first thing in the morning with a cup of coffee. Sometimes I stay online way too long. Good thing I work later in the day.
I came across a blog from one of my favorite magazines. I was so surprised that this person was writing about everyday things. I really enjoyed it. A friend of my daughter’s started a blog and I enjoyed reading it. I love writing our Christmas letters and friends and family said they looked forward to them. So, with a little help I started my own blog. I did it just to write my feelings. I never dreamed I would find new friends that I really consider friends. So many blog for other reasons and not from the heart. I type fast and sometimes miss spelling or grammar errors. My husband is the proof reader of the family. I don’t let him proof my words but he does read my blog. He shared it with his secretary so I do have to watch about blogging about money or his work.
I love reading your blog. It’s about real life. Those are the blogs I like. I love your home. It really reflects who you are. Some are constantly changing their homes for something to blog about. Not me. (I have to laugh because recently I did make some major changes that I have wanted to do for years) Funny thing, my family members and friends don’t read my blogs. Just one sister-in-law. I don’t think the others get blogging. It’s okay.
So you keep on blogging the way you do, and I will do the same. I consider you a friend and look forward to your posts. Hope your week-end went well with your Hubby and puppy.
xo
PS…….I struggled with the colors I wanted to have in my home. White vs. bright or neutral. Through you I discovered I like the colors of McCoy and the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. It is a good medium for the brights and neutrals. I also have a few pieces of McCoy pottery and USA. I also started collecting little pitchers. You have influenced me. I never spend much on them. It’s all about the hunt.
I also like blogs about everyday things, about real life. I want to know real, not manufactured pretty pictures, though they are lovely. But after a certain amount of that kind of thing, I have to move on. I kept my blog quiet for a long time and there are still very close friends of mine who never read it. They just aren’t into blogging. They might have read it once or twice, but aren’t connected enough to blogging to come back again and again. That’s just fine. I understand.
McCoy colors are wonderful, aren’t they? Have you ever posted about your pitchers, Debbie? Let me know and I’ll make sure I visit that post. xo
Claudia, I am so glad you aren’t taking the week off. I enjoy reading your blog every day and was thinking how I was going to miss it this week.
Never fear, Charlene! I’ll be here. xo
Hi Claudia!! You are my first click of the day and I love visiting your blog!!! Thanks for being there… I hope you never stop blogging – I just love reading your daily words!! I am also in love with your flowers and gardens.. they are so pretty and joyful.. I am glad your hubby came home for a visit – what a nice surprise for you!!! Hope you are staying cool these days!! Francine
It was a very nice surprise, Francine! I’m staying in the air conditioning, except for occasional trips outside to weed and water.
I need to be more disciplines. I have been out of sync this year. Too much going on. I do, however hate when I see a mistake I have made and I will go back and correct it. Hope you have enjoyed your couple of unplanned days with Don. xo Laura
Well, you’ve had a year full of changes, Laura. Totally understandable.
Don and I are having a very nice time together!
I would say at this point ( blogging since the end of last may ) that it is as equally important to me to visit the people that comment on my blog as it is to do a post. They don’t want an email reply or a thank you…they came here and commented in the hopes that I will return the visit. So I guess that I focus on both at this point.::) In the process I get to know some other bloggers better.
I have not been blogging for very long but I think my favorite thing is feeling part of the blogging community. I have been welcomed with open arms and so many experienced bloggers have offered help and suggestions.
Michelle. come visit me at. thebashfulnest.blogspot.com
My ritual is to get up, let the doggies out, start the hot water for coffee (unless Charles has already started it for tea), sit on the couch, check my email and then get on Facebook.
Then I will go to my blog, read the blogs on my blog list (most of the time, I just pick and choose, but sometimes I read them all).
Then I will decide what I want to write about (usually based on the photos I took recently) and start writing. I will stop to shower and get dressed and eat breakfast, re-read and edit and hit “Publish”. Sometimes I go back and edit again if I don’t like the look of it.
I don’t know if I necessarily have a blogging ritual, but I do have a morning ritual. Like you, I get up and make my coffee first thing. Then I sit down to read email, check Facebook, and read a few favorite blogs. Then, I take my shower and get dressed and if I’m staying home that day, do housework, laundry, garden, cook, and work on projects. I try to do a blog post every other day. When I write it and post it depends on what else is going on that day. You are lucky that Don understands how you don’t like to be interrupted when you write. I guess he understands because he’s also a writer. My husband, a wonderful sweetheart of a man, just doesn’t understand that I don’t like to be interrupted when I’m writing or reading (especially the writing though). It totally derails my thoughts and the creative process. He is totally “left-brained” and not creative at all, so he doesn’t “get it”.
A text is never finished. That’s what I tell my students who are done after copying their first draft. ;-) I’m like you and edit each post after publishing. If I see a mistake in an older post, I correct it. Yes, I am a teacher too and a perfectionist. :-)
I”ve met so many wonderful people, gained many awesome recipes, learned so many things about the world at large, through blogging. I love that my family will always have this blog as a way to look back over our life together and the good times shared, the humor and the tears.
Editing after it’s published … I do that too!
I’m like you Claudia, I don’t blog daily, but I simply couldn’t imagine not blogging. The need to always have a camera to hand wears me down at times and I find myself wishing on occasion that I could blog without pictures, but mostly I enjoy recording my world visually as much as I do writing about it. I just keep wishing there had been the opportunity to blog when my kids were growing up!