There are many days when I feel like I am ready for bed at 6:00 at night. I don’t have any answers or advice (not that you want it anyway!), but know you are not alone. I feel like I spend lots of days spinning my wheels, washing sippy cup after sippy cup, and praying for a long nap time so I can get stuff done, then nap time ends and all I have done is caught up on my “internet research”.

A break is fine. A few other blogs I read don’t have as many posts so I would understand completely if you scaled back a bit.

It’s hard to find that perfect balance in life, isn’t it?

I also understand when ennui strikes and the creative ideas aren’t erupting. It can’t be forced. Please don’t be so hard on yourself. Hugs!

Only you can say whether a blogging break will help you recharge, but I say you are in no danger of losing your creative mojo just from taking a hiatus if you want to. I feel as if you might not give yourself permission to take a break from something, when it might help a lot! I’m personally thinking that while Baby Bug is completing the Toddler Challenge, a good use of naptime might actually be to nap. You know people who read your blog are just desperate for you to do whatever you need to do to be happy and healthy(!), even if it means missing your contributions here for a while.

So here are my entries in the Unbidden Advice Category:

If you can trade some blog posts and browsing time for more sleep, totally go for it (if it has to be on the couch, drape a sock (clean!) or maybe a damp facecloth over your eyes). Even if you don’t fall asleep, just resting with your eyes closed, relaxing your muscles from your toes up to your eyes, and breathing deeply and regularly for a few minutes is a recuperative act. If you know you need more rest, then it’s absolutely an activity deserving of your time.

If you ever need to work in analog because the computer screen is washed-out, concepts or rough sketches can be computer-ized by digital photo. It took me a while to figure out that my camera would substitute for a scanner in a pinch. But I’m not an Illustrator whiz so I’m conscious that this might not help your work-flow at all.

There was a student in my old lab whose desk was facing a big upper-floor window. He surrounded his monitor with black Bristol board to block the sun from his eyes. You could rig up something more portable, maybe three pieces of cardboard taped together at the edges to make a free-standing screen (like a science project display) around your laptop on the table.

If you think a blogging hiatus might help but worry that it will cause you to miss entries in the neat record that you and BB have of your doings and happenings, would it help to jot in point form once every day or so? You can keep notes for your future reminiscences without the computer if necessary, without taking the time to compose, and no need to think about whether people want to/should read. Luckily these days photos have dates saved intrinsically with the files (remember when they weren’t, unless your camera physically time-stamped on the photo? what a pain), so as long as you write down the date in each entry, you can cross-reference any photos with your notes.

Reduce the coffee, but do it gently to avoid withdrawal headaches. It’s a challenge but I think it’s worth doing, to help regain your equilibrium. Do it GENTLY!

Whatever you need to do. You’ve got a lot of backing!

I can totally relate to the screen problems. When I bought this darn laptop I had visions of sitting outside (when it wasn’t raining), working oh so productively in the fresh air. No–the only thing I could see on the screen was my scary reflection.

I, too, can sew, but have no curtains.