The Playpen

For those who don’t know me that well, I’m pretty into music. I was one of those kids who’s parents made them listen to every single kind of music known to man throughout their entire childhood (yep, even the New Christy Minstrels), put them in dance class, had them in chorus and musical theater and sat them down in front of a piano, trumpet and guitar every day to practice. We had a fairly musical household.

I once heard a quote from a favorite guitarist of mine that I have remembered and repeated for years and years. “Sometimes, the absence of a note is stronger and more powerful than the note would have been itself”

I have been blogging for almost two years now and, in that time, I have learned to recognize signs that reoccur every so often which point to the unanimous conclusion that maybe its time to step away for a bit. It would appear that, approximately once per year, I reach a point in my blog life where I become incredibly cynical and judgmental. In addition to allowing countless posts to pile up in my reader and rolling my eyes when I hear the alert from my laptop announcing that a new post has published, I also sit in front of a blank Word document for hours at a time, my mind hollow and listless, searching for a topic that’s good enough or funny enough to post. When I do finally manage to get something down on paper, I detest it. It seems that, during these periods, I am capable of producing only rubbish and sophomoric dribble that makes me wretch when I read it, and hitting the publish button in WordPress is akin to the sensation one might feel when turning in a test one has cheated on; shame, disgrace and guilt. In a nutshell, blogging isn’t fun.

I also have a tendency to become a bit negative, in case you missed it.

The good news is that, in the past, I have simply tried to weather this phase and have written through it. Some of what I have come up with during these periods is fairly dark and I don’t imagine anyone who would have happened to read those posts would have come away from them feeling anything less than suicidal. But now I know that, sometimes, this just happens. Its not a bad thing, it just means its time to get away for a moment. Take a break. Spend more time with close friends and family. You know, normal stuff. I know that, in doing so, I’ll come back the better for it.

I’m not talking about very long, mind you. A week or two maybe; we’ll see. If you know me at all you know I can’t stand theatrical, woe is me, boo-hoo, “I am finished with blogging-the end is nigh-goodby cruel world” posts. This is not one of those. It’s merely meant to serve as an explanation of my whereabouts. Simple as that.

So let’s not consider this a full rest, it’s more of a half rest, which is defined as “an indication of a period of silence lasting two beats in simple time”.

Simple time is exactly what I’m going for. I’ll catch you in the next measure.

-Matt

1. Kori Says:
   August 14th, 2009 at 12:35 pm

   Oh, no, Matt, why are you DOING this to me? Because of course it is ALL.ABOUT.ME, didn’t you kow that?

   Be well; have a good half-rest.
   Kori´s last blog ..Friday Fragments 08/14/09

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2. McMommy Says:
   August 14th, 2009 at 2:06 pm

   Why didn’t you title this: “The Post Where I Lose All My Readers”? Because I think that according to Chapter 8 of the blogging bible, that is what you are supposed to call this post. Also? You are supposed to write “loose” instead of “lose”. The Post Where I Loose All My Readers.

   See you on the other side of your sabbatical, my friend. You know I will be here waiting for ya!!
   McMommy´s last blog ..Good Things Come For Those Who Wait.

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3. Barbara Says:
   August 14th, 2009 at 3:13 pm

   I.will.miss.you.

   Like Kori, I’m trying NOT to take it personal

   And repeating the famous movie line:
   I’ll be back. (Too.)

   Hugs to your girls and Dom.
   Barbara´s last blog ..A Pioneering Life

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4. BusyDad Says:
   August 17th, 2009 at 2:33 pm

   I call it “recovering from a hangover.” You are far more poetic than I, my friend.
   BusyDad´s last blog ..Ok, so it was just an excuse to pee into tupperware

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5. Miss Says:
   August 19th, 2009 at 12:37 pm

   Wait a second. WAIT A DAMN SECOND. We’re supposed to announce when we aren’t blogging for a week or two?
   I’m SO doing this wrong.
   Miss´s last blog ..The Heart of Life

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6. The Playpen » Blog Archive » Random Things Says:
   October 26th, 2009 at 3:43 pm

   [...] a few posts that every blogger is required to write by law. As a good friend recently pointed out, “The Post in Which I Loose All My Readers” is the first. After that I’m pretty sure that “The Post About Nothing” is the second, and [...]