We were on a break, but you're my lobster!

We were on a break, but you're my lobster!

• Dec 4, 2012

First, the bad news:

That's right, y'all. WE WERE ON A BREAK! But I hope you can forgive me for cheating on you with all the crap that was just a placeholder until I found my way back to you. The perfect storm of things leading up to my blog break included, but was not limited to, the gorgeous Georgia summer, work suddenly becoming incredibly overwhelming, lots of traveling and guilt-induced avoidance.

What's guilt-induced avoidance? It's a vicious cycle where you start neglect something (namely, my blog), feel guilty for doing so, and then completely avoid and refuse to acknowledge the source of your guilt.

The more books I read, the guiltier I felt that I still hadn't caught up on writing reviews. I felt pressure (from myself, obviously) to write really awesome blog posts... but I also didn't have the energy to write long reviews. I felt bad that I didn't even want to get on Twitter to see what was going on in the world. I just wanted to come home, put on my PJs and snuggle up with my husband and my dog. Usually, words help me work things out. I put pen to paper (or fingers to keys) and write to make sense of things. But, for whatever reason, I just didn't have it in me these last few months. 

Even still, I really only intended for the break to last a month or two. You can imagine my surprise when I looked at the calendar recently and realized that it was already December. 

There wasn't anything really wrong - I was just stressed and needed to take a step back. I needed to let the blog go to be reminded that we're obviously meant to me.

Now, for the good news:

Yes, despite our break, you're my lobster and I still love this little corner of the world. In my months without blogging, I remembered how much I love to just read. No expectations, no rush... just reading for the pleasure of it.

But I also remembered how much I love to talk about what I've read. I felt the blogging itch almost a month ago, but I wanted to let a little more time go by to see if it stuck. I didn't want to start blogging again unless I knew my heart was going to be in it.

Lisa from Lisa is Busy Nerding took a blogging sabbatical not too long ago, and I've read her return post a few times now. If I could write hearts in the margins and circle big sections, I most certainly would do so.

I can't do that, unfortunately for us all, but I can quote her:

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.

 AMEN, SISTER FRIEND! I'm so with you on this, lady. Just substitute "Hannah" for "Lisa," and I couldn't have said it better myself.

A few well-timed Twitter conversations, and I knew for sure that it was time to make a comeback.

I promise you not to make any promises. I'm posting when I want about the things I want. If I don't want to write about a certain book, I'm not going to. If I want to gush for three days straight about a book that's THE BEST THING EVER, I'm going to do that, too. If I'd rather watch Grey's Anatomy instead of read, I will. No guilt, no pressure... just lots of the things I love!