I have decided that I am not an ideal blogger. Or even a semi-ideal one! I could sit here for literally an hour, thinking of and then almost instantaneously discarding topics, one after the other. And when I finally DO write, it is generally one of those "writing about nothing" kind of blogs that I despise reading when I come across them on other people's sites. Oh, what a tangled web I weave. Sigh.

Were I a more focused person, I would pick some category - books, my pet's antics, a picture each day, politics, food - and then hammer away. Once a day, you write something down. Sounds simple, and maybe it is, for some folks. For me, I crave variety. I get sweaty-palmed thinking about limiting myself to just one thing. Dear God, I think my armpits are sweating now, too. Anyone want to know why I never finished college? Easy - I simply couldn't settle on learning about one topic, one career. I was endlessly changing my mind, finding a new interest, losing an old one. I have no idea what gave me this perpetual wanderlust of the mind, only that it is part of me, and my boredom with concentration on one topic or idea has been with me my whole life.

It's actually kind of cool to just keep on jumping around the spectrum, as folks who search blogs are generally looking for one on a specific topic. This way, I can post whatever the hell I'm thinking, and it releases tensions and airs my ideas, but possibly no one else will ever even read this, because it is about so many different things. It's sort of like the ship's log of my life, an online diary, only with the added excitement that someone, anyone, might read it at any point. I don't flatter myself that many people would be interested in reading my scrambling ramblings, but the potential is there. Just a little extra layer that makes this about an inch more exciting than saving a daily or weekly diary on my hard drive.

So, I think that, instead of berating myself for not settling on one thing, I will instead shake my own hand and then continue to write when and if the spirit moves me, and about whatever springs to mind on those days. I will avoid categories and classifications as if they carried the bubonic plague. I will float my secrets out into the ether of the internet and wonder where they end up, if anywhere. And, like always, the writing of words is what will be the satisfaction. Mmm.

Books

Good lordy, do I love books. Books, books, books. This was  very good Christmas for me, book-wise. Got the new Stephen King (Under the Dome) and the new Diana Gabaldon (An Echo In The Bone) ... plus, family members also received some good options that I plan to borrow and read very, very soon. And, I just bought and started reading the next book in the Wizard's First Rule series ... I'm on my 3rd 800+-pager, and it's not even the end of January!

I am planning to finally read A Year In Provence after my dad finishes it, and I will be also "hitting" the books, in terms of remedial French language instruction, as soon as Patrick is safely out of earshot. I aim to have regained at least 50% of the vocabulary I had in high school by the time I travel to La Canourgue in the end of April. Flashcards? Patrick has already given me a level-2 high school textbook and workbook (which I have already cracked open and started), along with a French-English dictionary and a lot of encouragement. Hopefully I won't be a complete disaster when I get there.

And if I am ... I'll simply remain quiet and read books!!! Books in the French springtime - what could be better?