Goodbye to Theme Thursday...already (sigh)

Since for the last few weeks I have been hyping up Theme Thursdays, I feel I at least owe an explanation as to why I am not hyping it up this week. I quit. I really never quit things so I feel half guilty and half liberated saying that, calling it that.

My friend Jenn at Something Clever 2.0 came up with the fabulous idea of a bunch of bloggers all getting together to write their own versions on the same topic. I still love this idea, truly. Even when it was a topic that I felt out of place writing about like playgrounds, it was an interesting personal exercise to ask myself what I really thought about something that I might not ordinarily give a lot of thought to. I'd still like to jump in on some of their topics for the fun of it but probably won't out of respect for the process.

What brought me to the decision to jump ship was multi-fold. For starters, I couldn't give it the time and attention it required. Bloggers are verbal processors, clearly, and there was a lot of great energy backing this idea, which resulted in a lot of emails to filter through and increasingly tech savvy suggestions on how to better organize the whole shebang. I just don't always have (or want, for that matter) computer access or updates on my phone. I consider myself a bit of a tech minimalist; I have only had a smart phone for a year and a half and am still avoiding fancy things like iphones, skype, and "facetime" or whatever that is. And I am either on the computer at work for hours, resulting in not wanting to be on the computer more when I get home, or I am running around outside of the office all day and not available to respond to emails. Either way, I learned that lots of communication related to my blog overwhelms me. I need some email time to talk about last night's tv shows with my bestie.

Also, the promotion necessary to really get your blog out there is a lot of work! The bloggers I was teamed up with were amazing in with Facebook fan pages, Twitter accounts, Pinterest and the like. I made myself a Facebook page (and you should come "like" it!) but I am not sure I have something I want to post every day. I have a Twitter that I only partially understand. And Pinterest is sacred; it's for me and not to be shared with my blog. While I want my friends to know about my blog and welcome interested visitors that are not yet friends, I want to limit the amount of personal information that gets out so that it doesn't get into the wrong hands (see every other reference I have ever made to my work as an excuse). So I found that I was just not that good at or interested in making the effort to hype up my blog.

Even more insight I gained was that I don't strive to be blog famous! I guess a lot of bloggers write just as a means to tell stories to friends and family and I am not quite in that category. And then there are a ton of bloggers who write so that thousands of people will read what they say and they can make money through ads and stuff. I like to read a lot of those kinds of bloggers and am grateful that they have put the time into developing to the point that they were big enough for me to find out about them. For a while, I dreamed of writing about my travels and having companies reach out to sponsor me and help me create a life where I could essentially get paid to travel. That still sounds nice. But unless it happened instantly, I don't have a strong enough desire to MAKE it happen. So I kind of learned that I like blogging because I like doing it. Not for any other ultimate goal. Not to be read by thousands or acquire fans. Just because I have a lot to say. If you like to hear it, great. If 2 people read each post, that's actually fine, too. I had the privilege of putting it out there and creating it and that part is fun for me.

Finally, the straw that broke the camel's back is a bit more personal but I will go there. I was listening to a talk from a church leader on my ipod. In my church, there are 2 meetings a year known as General Conference where a bunch of church leaders talk about all sorts of things, including everyday life topics. One talk, and I honestly don't even know who it was by or what the rest of it was about, touched on priorities and focus. Basically, we can busy ourselves with the wrong things and that takes time and focus away from the really important things, such as the people we love or the things that restore us. For some people, all the work on the blog is like a job and it is a good focus, rejuvenating, and positive. For me, though, it was a distraction and when I heard that talk, I was able to identify that, for me, the emails and the promoting was taking time away from other things that would be better prioritized in my life.

To all my blogging peeps, I want to reiterate that this is just my experience. I am glad there are bloggers who can do all of this stuff because you all entertain me! I'm sure some of this has to do with the other jobs, hobbies and choices I make in my life and the amount of time I need just for myself and my tv watching for self-care. But, for now, I am going to blog because I like it. When I want to. And not when I don't. The rest of the time, I am going to use any free time I can eek out to develop myself into the kind of person I want to be in other areas. Maybe I just need more time to do that than others because I need more work:)

SOOOOooooo, I hope you all will continue to read the blogs I linked to in the other Theme Thursday posts and enjoy the different takes on topics. I will be cheering them all on from the sidelines.

Theme Thursday: My Dream Job

This week for Theme Thursday I had to think about what my dream job would be. Oddly enough, this isn't a topic I have given much thought to as I have been at my real life job for 7 years now. It's good work and though it's exhausting, I enjoy it. There's also a big part of me who wants to bounce this back to the stay at home moms (and a dad) who are blogging about this topic alongside me and tell them that their jobs are awesome because they don't have to wear bras if they don't want to and they don't have to pencil in trips to Target. Also, I assume they love their kids so that helps.

So when I started brainstorming my dream job, I really entered a land of fantasy in which prior training and experience are not at all considerations. You are judged solely on enthusiasm in the job interview, in which case I would ace my way into all of them.

First pick: Reality TV show casting director.
No humility here. I would be AMAZING at this. Having watched ever y episode of Flavor of Love, I love New York, Rock of Love, I love Money (need I go on....) and email critiqued them all afterwards with my bestie, I know who makes good tv. My psych experience will only help to inform the best combinations of people to create volatile and entertaining interactions. Not a dating competition show? No problem. I am also loyal to Survivor and catch The Amazing Race from time to time. I know how to tone it down if we are on a non-cable network, don't worry. And if the casting is already complete when I show up for my interview, I could always step in as an editor. I could help to omit just the right portion of the conversations to make the bad guy look worse and the good guy look better. And I would never miss a shot that would be totally humiliating to the average person, upping the shows odds of being featured on Tosh.O.
I would be VERY proud of this work.

Second Pick: If the world of reality tv crashes like the written word jobs of the characters in Gone Girl that lead them to their eventual demise (if you haven't read this book yet, run out and get it. You can refresh this page upon your return and keep reading), my backup plan will already be in place. Admittedly, it will have to be put on hold until my treatment for serious depression in response to said crash is completed. Assuming travel information shows don't count as reality tv, I want to replace Samantha Brown. She has the life! She gets to visit fun places, continent at a time, picking through the major cities. She sums each city up in a half hour segment including descriptions of the swank hotel she stayed at, the delicious food she ate, and the unique cultural experience she had. I can do that! In fact, I could one up Samantha. She is a little weak sauce for my taste most trips so I would throw in some scandalous interaction with a local like the time I went on a drug deal in Central America inadvertently or the time I decided it would be a good idea to have a Rastafarian pen pal or the time I crashed a prom and another time, a stag party. Does Samantha do that? Nope, that's the flavor I bring. If, somehow, travel shows are deemed part of the reality tv crash, I will be a travel blogger. I will write some brilliant post and hit it big instantly, with companies just throwing money and offers at me to promote them. The bottom line is that I am going to be traveling and making money doing it. 
(YouTube was on strike from me or I would have a nice, mundane clip of Samantha in her hotel room in Rome right here)

If all else fails: I am applying at Barnes and Noble and Bed, Bath and Beyond. On my hardest days, I have an image of myself folding towels in the corner of a linens department. And I like to read a lot and give my opinions so I could be put to use in the young adult section of the bookstore, reviewing trilogies and series with Armageddon scenarios and pictures of girls in ruffly dresses to the young minds of America.

So I guess the moral of the story is that I should never have invested in graduate school since all of my favorite things include watching tv, going where I want, reading and relaxing, and hopefully only putting on a bra or mascara when I feel like it. 

If you want to read what some other bloggers have to say about their dream jobs check out the following:
Something Clever 2.0http://www.somethingclever2point0.com/

Cloudy With a Chance of Winehttp://cloudywithachanceofwine.com/

I like beer and babies.http://www.ilikebeerandbabies.com/

Mod Mom Beyond IndieDom http://modmombeyondindiedom.blogspot.com/

Mommy Rotten  http://blog.mommyrotten.com/

The Next Step http://lorihokie.blogspot.com/

A calibama state of mind http://calibamamom.wordpress.com/

Shit I Don't Tell Most Peoplehttp://shitidonttell.blogspot.com/

Mom With Her Running Shoes On http://momwithherrunningshoeson.blogspot.com/

Who Woulda Thought? http://whowouldathought-kevin.blogspot.com

The Insomniac's Dream http://hypnoticbard.blogspot.com/

Theme Thursday: Playground Etiquette

Hooray for the first weekly edition of Theme Thursdays, in which I will be blogging about a selected topic as part of a larger blogging group. My good friend Jenn came up with this fun experiment that will consist of a number of bloggers writing about the same topic, each offering our personal take on it. It was going to be Topic Tuesday but we negotiated into Themed Thursdays so feel free to take all of your earlier excitement for Tuesdays and schedule it to resurface on Thursdays, thanks. Links are at the bottom of this post so you can keep on reading and hear many different voices about one concept. Hello sociology!

I think all of the other bloggers in the group at the moment are mothers. I'm not sure how many are stay at home moms but I know that all of them know their way around a playground. Our first topic, therefore, was selected as playgrounds or playground etiquette.

I would like to think I can offer a unique perspective on some parenting issues as someone who is not yet a parent but had a couple parents, works with parents and knows a lot of them. To be honest, though, writing about playgrounds and playground etiquette kind of had me stumped. Let me review my experience with playgrounds up to this point:

• As a kid I played on them. It was always a big treat when my mom would stop at one of those wooden playgrounds (they must have been new and exciting in the 80s). Of note, my mom was a bit of a self proclaimed gypsy and really enjoyed road tripping for the day. We once drove to Canada just to say we did and often went to New Hampshire or Rhode Island-from Massachusetts-for lunch. So I have vivid memories of driving to Cape Cod for the day and my reward for tolerating hours in the car was to stop at a wooden playground in Wareham. 
• I also had my first kiss at a playground. It was right by my parent's house and it was a glorious summer day. I still feel like that park and I share a secret camaraderie when I drive by the section where it took place.
• As a young adult, playgrounds were places to go after all the kiddos went to bed. I am sure I don't have to elaborate on the kinds of activities that were on the table at that stage. And who am I kidding? I am still kind of in this stage. 
• By day, currently, my office overlooks a playground. It's a little chilly but there are 4 adults, 4 kids and a dog out there at the moment I am writing this. My voyeurism is my greatest connection to playgrounds at this point and I think this is where I might have something to add to the conversation.... 

Goings on that I shouldn't see at the Playground when I look out my office window

1. Puppies being tossed down slides. Yes, that happened one day for an extended period of time. The kids were having a blast, they actually did have parental supervision and the little dog was at their mercy. I don't know if the dog was as up in arms (paws?) as I was but I went around the office trying to get back up to go out and have a confrontation. 
2. Men without kids. It's just creepy. Especially when they are shirtless. Exception: if they are playing basketball. Worst scenario: they are sitting on a bench just leering. I do always kind of enjoy the gender switch on Friday afternoons, though, when a lot of dads take their kids to the playground. In my mind, I know all of their stories. They are all on their weekend visitation with kids they don't see all week long and they don't really know what else to do with them. 
3. The metal detector guy. This guy is not necessarily a creep but is definitely odd. What amazing treasure do you expect to find under a plastic swingset? Pokeman cards? (are those even a things, still? ). If a parent lost something like a ring, it's just wood chips-it could be easily relocated and not left behind for a metal detector. And I'm not looking out the window onto an amazingly wealthy neighborhood so I think if I were in search of goodies, I would find a different park.
4. Kids assaulting one another. This is the most common sight and I'd be lying if I didn't admit that I would miss it if it stopped. Before you judge that comment, let me preface that these are not teens brutally beating one another but rather preschool aged kids, usually, pushing each other. It's really interesting to see how it all shakes out. Most often, they have some kind of showdown and moments later run away with each other as if it's already resolved. No intervention. No long talks. Just simple instincts. How great would it be if you could be irritated by someone, act accordingly and then all is well between the two of you? My dream come true. Instead, we have to learn all these feelings words and how to delicately communicate (says the person with a license to practice therapy). 
5. Children who appear to be lifeless. I know this is a weird one but the park I get to gaze out at has this plastic suspension type bridge. On more than one occasion,  I have seen children laying on this, seemingly injured. I stare at them the way you check if someone is still breathing, waiting for a sign of movement or life. Sometimes, I am amazed how long this kids can  play possum. Or this playing opossum like the car insurance commercial that I love? Either way, they all eventually move before I feel the need to call in first responders; it must just be a really relaxing spot.
 

So that's all the insight I can muster into playground etiquette since I haven't used a playground for something that I couldn't potentially be arrested for being caught doing in about 20 years. Want to hear some more first hand accounts? Check out the amazing ladies below and make sure to check back next Thursday for the next theme!

The other participants of Theme Thursday:

Something Clever 2.0

Mommy Rotten 

Cloudy, With a Chance of Wine 

I like beer and babies
Mod Mom Beyond IndieDom
A Calibama State of Mind 
The Next Step