Hello, is anybody out there? Have I been gone too long?

I disappeared. It was a gradual thing, one not planned or expected but something out of my control. This journey I had been on over the last year had all lead to this, the Blog, Social Media immersion, writing for other websites, all so I could shift my career in a different trajectory and it payed off. I got the job I wanted, the dream job, my Social Media job.

Initially I had great intentions, initially I thought I would be able to do it all, work in this online world day-to-day and continue my Blog but slowly the words began to dry up. You've all maybe experienced something similar, a general fatigue, a drought of inspiration but ultimately for me having to work in this online world for a living drained all desire to hang around here in my free time.

Don't get me wrong, I truly did love what I was doing for a living but it's like that scene from Friends, where Rachel is flirting with Carol's OBGYN and he explains why he does not want to have kids. It was exactly like that, I would get home and if I had to see one more Blog post or write one more Facebook post, well I could not bring myself to.

Now a change, I shift again career wise. I move into an area less online focused and I also have one month off with pay. It's is not a half-bad deal and so I come crawling back to this wee Blog of mine. I'm not going to bullshit you, make claims that I am back for good because I really won't know until I start my new job and see if I can strike the correct balance this time around. For now I seem to have found my voice again, found my words and it's a truly wonderful feeling. I think I have a good deal to say and I want to catch up with all my dear Blog friends again. I do apologise for my desertion but it was something that had to be done.

As for GBM I am still unsure what direction to take, to evolve, to stay the same, to delete and start a new, only time will tell but what I do know is right now I am not quite ready yet to say goodbye to this little Blog of mine.

Hello again Blogosphere.

I have missed you.

GBM

Where to go from Here?

I'm at a loss for words, a loss for words to fill this wee Blog of mine with. I honestly don't know what to do or how to proceed with this, with Ginger Blog Man any more.

My Blog was a place for me to come to be happy-go-lucky, to be silly and write funny stories about my integration to Swiss society. Yet now that I'm here, now integrated, I feel that continuing this tone is not an accurate representation of who I am any more. Life has really and truly has caught back up to me after my sabbatical in all its wondrous and difficult glory. My time is limited and I want to utilise it to the best of my ability. I know I want to continue to write because that is what I love but I am beginning to wonder if this Blog in it's current form is the right fit for me now.

Born from a desire to change my career direction and gain some hands on experience of this social online world, I created GBM almost 9 months ago and the decisions made about how I promoted it and who I allowed access just don't seem to fit anymore. I crave anonymity, crave the shadows so I can write my truth, the happy, the sad, the fears, the love, the anxiety. With great pain comes great creativity and my creative juices have been flowing lately.

Trouble is I am not sure what I want, if I am looking for a forum to write about any anxiety I am feeling, does it make more sense to keep a diary rather than air it publicly for all to read? This then brings me back to the issue of time again, I have less free time than I use to and time is so precious to me at the moment (though you wouldn't know that from seeing me laze about the house during the Christmas holiday period). With time being so precious I've been truly internalising what exactly I love to write about and when I genuinely walk away from a post feeling quite proud. Music is always what comes out on top, I really feel like I have something to say, something eloquent when I touch on this beloved subject matter. Do I focus on this then?

Then there's the problem of letting go, I am really proud of this Blog and I don't just want it to disappear either. If anything it is a collection of my memories, my accomplishments and the space I met so many great and wonderful people. My fellow Bloggers, my Blog friends, coming into this world I really and truly did not expect to be so pleasantly surprised by this thing called the Blogosphere. When deciding to be quite open about my sexuality when writing online, I initially began to wonder if I would experience any form of hate because of my openness. Truth is, in my 9 months I never experienced one negative comment but what surprised me and what I did not expect was how much love and encouragement there was out here in this little online world. All of you guys have truly made this experience for me and I just wanted to thank you all, for sharing your worlds with me and for joining me, on my ride.

So I guess, I am still undecided at the moment. A lot to give up, if I do leave this world or start from scratch. Blog friends, Becca, Mynx, Pikelope, J. Day, Hey There Monkey Butt and all the rest of you guys, if you have any advise or thoughts I would really appreciate it at the moment. If any of you have been through something similar please, send me an email. I think it would really help me figure out where exactly I should go from here.

Thanks a mill guys.

GBM

Guest Post: By Mynx from Lizard Happy

I think the best thing about blogging is the way it connects you with people you would not normally meet in real life.

Hi I am Mynx and I write a little blog called “Lizard Happy”

If you don’t know me, I am an Aussie, in my fabulous forties, married with a couple of teenagers.

I also like to paint and tell the odd story.

Here I am, guesting on “The Ginger Blog Man” blog and it hit me that we are almost polar opposites when it comes to pretty much everything.

And that is fabulous.

I get to have a little peek into his life as a young guy who is now living in a country very different to what he grew up in and compare his adventures to what I might have had at the same age.

You could say that before blogging, I had lived a pretty simple sheltered life.

Wife, mother, working in a post office. Our internet was mostly used for Facebook and just generalities.  And I confess, I had heard little about blogging.

But then my “other” hubby, who I had met online (through a Facebook game!!) mentioned he had a blog and after much nagging he let me read it.

And through his blog I found others, and when something of a crisis in my life happened, I just knew that a blog was the perfect place to put my stuff out into the universe.

I never expected to have anyone much read, but I continued to find blogs that I liked and gave them plenty of blog loving with comments.

So what did I find?  So many awesome writers, photographers and artists.  Giving me a look at worlds I couldn’t imagine.

So you think that being a Flight attendant was glamorous?  Perhaps not.  Moving to Japan will definitely give you a culture shock and living on a boat can certainly present a lot of challenges.

I have learnt about foods I have never heard of and seen things I may not want to see again (One should always be prepared for anything when there is an adult warning on a blog).

I have discovered Haiku. Not that I really understand it but now I know it exists.

And I have made friends. Friends who have challenged me, supported me and helped me find who I am.

If not for blogging I would never have met these people from all over the world.  Never learnt their stories, never shed tears for them, laughed with them or celebrated our friendship.  It really is pretty cool when you stop to think about it.

And if not for blogging, I would never have discovered that I can paint, that I am an artist. And because of blogging, my art is in homes all over the world.  (Which is very cool, don’t you think?)

Everyone blogs for different reasons. 

Some want to be famous, some consider it a way to earn a little cash.

I just needed a place to be me.  To find what was missing.

Thank you Ginger Blog Man for finding me in this big blogging universe and letting me come play on 

your blog. 

I am looking forward to returning the favour and introducing you to some of the amazing people that I know.

Mynx

 GBM: You're very welcome Mynx and I cannot wait :-D