To Blog Or Not To Blog?

You can't fail to have noticed that I have been somewhat absent from this blog in recent weeks-again. I've not posted in over a month for various reasons (which I'll get onto shortly) and I was, for a while in two minds about whether I should continue blogging. Then I realised I'd miss it too much if I gave it up because actually, I genuinely love being a blogger. I just need to make it fit into my life a little better at the moment. I'm going to try to stop feeling bad about not posting regularly or on time and just post things when I want to, when I think of them, when I can-after all it's my blog to run as I please rather than let it control me with posting schedules and deadlines. If it means I am out living my Every Day Adventure more than writing about it from time to time, then so be it.

There are many reasons why I'm blogging less nowadays-firstly I'm happy. I've always struggled to find inspiration and be able to write well when I am in a good place in my life-and sure, it's far from where I would like it to be but the people in it make me feel happy. I've got excellent friends who never fail to make me laugh and I'm falling in love with someone wonderful-so who am I to complain? I've got blog ideas swirling around my brain clamouring for attention but as soon as I try to put pen to paper they shrivel away to nothingness and never turn into something worthwhile. I don't have anything new to post here because my brain won't let me write.
Secondly, this is no longer my only blog-yes I am cheating on this one with another, like a cat who goes to two houses for dinner. That other blog is a million light years away from being a lifestyle blog and doesn't really require me to think, to carefully sculpt words into sentences and craft those sentences into paragraphs and posts. This makes it a lot easier to produce content for, almost without thinking, and therefore it monopolises my time a lot more easily like a spoilt younger sibling pulling a mother away from its older brothers and sisters. This blog will always be my baby, and I know it's content to sit by and let me deal with the attentions of my second before returning, always, to it, with a shrug and a smile as if to say "sorry, you know how it is". I've also discovered a-whole-nother blog community out there, and I enjoy interacting with it a lot-though this again takes up time.
I'm not actually dedicating much time in my life to writing anything at all at the moment-and this is something that I do want to work on. Even if they don't end up being published on here, I want to try and write something every week simply because it's something I enjoy doing-sitting down for a while with a notebook and just scribbling away. I really wanted to get involved with NaNoWriMo again this year but I struggled to come up with a good idea for a story and it just never ended up happening.
Also, it got difficult. The next post in my 30 Posts Of Truth series is something that's not easy to say, so I've just avoided writing about it for the last 5 Sundays. But the reason I began that series was to learn something about myself and tackling the difficult issues within it is part of that, so I will be continuing, although I am going to allow myself a little longer to write them-I aiming for one post every other week. No matter how much I enjoy blogging, I don't want to make it a chore for myself, something I feel obliged to do.

At the end of the day, I need this blog, if only as a place to file away all my thoughts and feelings on my own little corner of the internet, but I don't want to let it take over. I don't want to feel guilty for not updating to a schedule or even at all, so I'm going to do things my way. I will post when I want to, not when I feel like I should, when I've got something to say, when I've managed to bend the words to my will to make what I want to say come out right. And as long as someone keeps reading, I'll keep writing, how about that?

Until next time

-Jenni-

30 Posts of Truth-Part 11

I've missed a couple of Sundays posting these, so I thought I'd get this one up today instead, for want of other inspiration!

11. Something People Seem To Complement You The Most On

I had a thought about this and came up with T-Shirts, Socks and Earrings-basically because I wear awesome ones. I didn't want to do a whole post on that though, so I had another thought, and then it hit me, I knew exactly what this post should be about. 

I started blogging in 2011 basically because my best friend had a blog and I liked reading it. I've always loved writing and just decided that this was something I'd enjoy. This blog is actually the second one I started because I wanted to be able to do something a little different to what I started out doing. One day I just decided to share my blog posts on Facebook and suddenly my friends started talking to me about them-so I'm really glad I did. So many people have commented to me about my blog-people I barely know and people I know really well. It is by far the thing I get the most compliments about and I'm always really happy when I do. It means a lot to me that people actually take the time to read my posts, to enjoy them and to tell me that they did. It's the reason I keep it going, the reason I always feel guilty for neglecting it and the reason I will always come back to blogging no matter how long a hiatus I take from it. All of us in this blogosphere are just blurting out our words into a tiny corner of the internet hoping someone will read them-and it makes it a million times better when people do.

So if you're reading this right now, you're awesome. If you're one of the people who have ever told me you enjoy reading my blog then you're one of the reasons I'm still here, still blogging. You guys make it for me, and I thank you so much for every comment, every criticism, every time you read the posts I put out. I'll keep the posts coming as long as you keep enjoying them!

-Jenni-

Blogging on Blogging

Source
Think I need to get this!

It's a weird thing, having a blog. Sometimes I can't help but feel like my blog is a demanding puppy who is craving attention and love even when I've got nothing left to give to it. Don't get me wrong, I love being a blogger-I love being able to write about whatever I like, I love interacting with the blogging community, I love it when people compliment me on it, or tell me that they enjoy reading it. I love it when my reading figures suddenly spike for no reason (Hello random influx of German viewers from earlier this week-thanks for stopping by!), I love when I write something that's well received, or that people agree with, or that provokes debate amongst me and my friends. I generally just love taking my words and flinging them out into this tiny piece of the internet and having other people read them.

But sometimes blogging makes me feel stuck-when I can't think of anything to write about, or when I can but the words stubbornly refuse to leave my head and collect themselves in an interesting and enjoyable manner on the page. At the moment I've got two partially written blogs just sitting in my drafts folder and I've got no idea how to finish them or even if they're going to turn out to be any good at all. I've got 3-4 more scattered through various notebooks or just lodging in my head having never quite made it out to paper.
Part of me thinks "Well it's my blog, I can update it however frequently or infrequently I choose to, no-one can tell me how I should be doing it!" but another, bigger part is saying "But if you want a blog that other people enjoy reading as much as you enjoy writing it then you need to keep updating regularly. If you want people to visit often and want to come back then you have to so new stuff so that it doesn't stagnate." And I know that however annoying it is, that second voice is right.

I reckon part of the problem is that the thing this blog was meant to be about was my life-the things that happen in it, the issues that affect me and the things that I think are excellent or terrible. The sad fact of it is that there haven't been many interesting things happening in my life of late-the biggest new development is that I had to finally give in and go on the dole like my Dad has been telling me to basically since I graduated. It's not just the blog that's stagnating, I am too. My life isn't really going anywhere at the moment and it's hard to find things to blog about when literally nothing happens to you.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like I want to post something every day-I read some blogs that update daily and can't help but feel like sometimes the author is spreading their inspiration a little thin. In my opinion it's better to write three really good posts than seven slightly wishy washy ones. Mind you, I write looooong posts, I don't reckon it'd be that possible to produce seven good quality posts of the length I write them, without spending all my time on my blog! It would be nice, though, to be able to update once a week, not including my regular Friday and Sunday posts.

Even this is like a holder post really, it's not really saying anything much at all in its 700-odd words, only that I'm sorely lacking in inspiration and finding it difficult to blog about things at the moment. But I'm going to try my hardest to stop being a neglectful blog owner and get some proper posts written again soon. I'm going to try to stop feeling guilty at leaving it to fend for itself for so long, and instead lavish it with the attention it deserves and wants (as long as it doesn't try to lick my face with happiness.)
I've written a list of potential post ideas and I'm going to try and write one up a week and get it posted up and everything. I have friends swear by lists, so I'm going to see if they work for me too. Plus it's not like I have much else to do with my time, is it? 700-odd words a week isn't much to ask from a girl who wrote her 3000-word final year coursework in 3 days, is it? (NB: Don't do this people, it's a terrible terrible idea. Also, don't get dumped at the end of the Easter hols, that's pretty rubbish too!)

So yeah. I'm coming back. I hope.

-Jenni-

Five Minute Fridays

In my insomniac madness the other night when I was searching the corners of the internet for solace in the blog of a stranger or two I happened upon something wonderful-the Five Minute Friday project. Described (rather accurately) as a 'writing flash mob' by the person who came up with the idea, the challenge is to write for 5 minutes only, unedited, unscripted, inspired only by a prompt word posted at midnight on Friday mornings (which is unfortunately 5AM for us Brits!), simply for the joy of writing. Then everyone who's participated link all their efforts to a post and take the time to read and comment on at least one other person's. I think it's lovely-it really unites people in blogging together regardless of the wildly different topics their blogs may normally be on, and there's so many different and interesting posts all inspired by a single word. Some are fictional, some are true to life and some are beautiful, and this is something I want to get involved with. I'm not going to stay up until 5AM every Friday morning so I can do it live with the other participants but I am going to try and devote five minutes of my life every Friday to writing 200 words or so. I'll post some of them, not others, depending on what the prompt is and the post that results from it.

This week, for example, the prompt word is 'Bare'. I've read a few-there's a lot of religious posts about laying yourself bare before God etc etc, there's some about the bare trees of winter, some just about feeling bare without a certain person/object in their lives. Me? I wrote 215 words about being naked, in my usual uncompromisingly honest way. I wonder what they're going to make of me? I definitely don't fit into this community made of mothers and religious folk, I am neither of those things and I am unlikely to ever be. I've read a lot of the 'Bare' entries and not read a single swear word yet-I can only imagine that my posts are going to be heavily disapproved of. But I still want to do it, more because I really like the idea than anything else, it's fresh and it's different and a tiny bit wonderful. Whether my posts go down like a lead balloon or are enjoyed with the humour they're intended to have, it's going to be interesting, that's for sure.

-Jenni-

NB If you want to take part in Five Minute Fridays then all the details are here: http://lisajobaker.com/five-minute-friday/
The prompts are updated every Friday morning at 12:01 EST/5:01 GMT but the link stays open for the whole week, so you can complete it at any time. If you do, send me a link, I'd love to read your take on it. 

30 Posts of Truths

Source

I came across this list of blog post ideas on http://parlezvousmoo.com and it really struck a chord with me-a while ago I said I wanted to make my blog posts more honest, more personal and this seems like an interesting way to do it. Sometimes I can't think of anything to write about but still want to write something, and this is a way of feeling inspired. Plus a little introspection now and then can't hurt, can it?

The List

Part 1 - Something you hate about yourself.
Part 2 - Something you love about yourself.
Part 3 - Something you have to forgive yourself for.
Part 4 - Something you have to forgive someone for.
Part 5 - Something you hope to do in your life.
Part 6 - Something you hope you never have to do.
Part 7 - Someone who has made your life worth living for.
Part 8 - Someone who made your life hell, or treated you like shit.
Part 9 - Someone you didn't want to let go of, but just drifted.
Part 10 - Someone you need to let go of, or wish you didn't know.
Part 11 - Something people seem to compliment you the most on.
Part 12 - Something you never get compliments on.
Part 13 - A band or artist that has got you through some tough days (write a letter).
Part 14 - A hero that has let you down (letter).
Part 15 - Something or someone you couldn't live without (because you've tried it).
Part 16 - Something or someone you definitely could live without.
Part 17 - A book you've read that changed your views on something.
Part 18 - Your views on gay marriage.
Part 19 - What do you think of religion or politics?
Part 20 - Your views on drugs/alcohol.
Part 21 - Something that changed your life and at the time you didn't know how.
Part 22 - Something you wish you hadn't done in your life.
Part 23 - Something you wish you had done in your life.
Part 24 - Make a playlist to someone, and explain why you chose all the songs.
Part 25 - An honest letter to your younger self.
Part 26 - What's the best thing in your life right now?
Part 27 - What's the worst thing in your life right now?
Part 28 - What if you were pregnant or got someone pregnant. What would you do?
Part 29 - Something you hope to change about yourself and why.
Part 30 - A letter to yourself, tell yourself EVERYTHING you love about yourself.

I almost certainly won't do them all and I might not do them all in the right order but I will try and do most of them because sometimes I need to think about these things more than I do. The eagle-eyed amongst you will noticed I've already changed a couple from the original list because the originals didn't really fit well with me. You, my dear readers, are not obliged to read them, but if you do you'll probably find out things about me you didn't already know. That's what I hope to discover, at least- a new side to myself.

-Jenni-

Getting Back To It

Hello readers, it's been a while since I last said hello, hasn't it?
I haven't forgotten about you, I've just been a tad busy really. Plus I seem to be having a blog inspiration drought, can't think of anything to rant about, for once in my life. Since my last blog entry all the way back in November, I managed to finish my NaNoWriMo with 50391 words- hurrah! The story is nowhere near finished though, and I think it might even take another NaNo attempt to get it completed, though this is no bad thing because I really enjoyed the act of creating something awesome every day and wouldn't mind doing it again. I've also started my job ushering at the Nottingham Playhouse for their Christmas pantomime and I have to admit that I am really loving it. The rest of the staff all seem really nice folk, very willing to have a chat to all us newbies and include us in their tea breaks and the theatre has such a lovely atmosphere because, let's face it, you can't really be down in the dumps when there's a panto going on just the other side of the wall from you (OH NO YOU CAN'T). I'm in denial that I ever have to leave to be honest, because I really love it so far. I also appear to currently be experiencing reverse insomnia for no apparent reason- normally I really struggle getting to sleep but at the moment I am conking out the minute I get into bed but waking up almost every morning between 5 and 7am which leaves me exhausted by about 10pm. I also keep popping up to Sheffield to visit my friends up there and enjoy the delights of my favourite city at Xmastime. All of this is leaving me with little to blog about and not much time to blog in, but I am determined to get back to it properly soon. I'm really looking forward to my Christmas and New Year plans and hope you all are too!
So if I don't get around to writing another blog before then I wish you all a very Merry Christmas/Non-religious winter holiday/primary gifting window/Hogswatch and a Happy New Year/Hogmanay/Anything else you may be celebrating.


-Jenni-

NaNoWriMo Has Arrived...

Source: NaNoWriMo

This is a short blog to tell you that I probably won't be blogging all that much this month. Why? Because I made the (probably very unwise) decision to take part in NaNoWriMo this year whilst suffering from a persistent yet creative bout of insomnia a couple of weeks ago. The challenge is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days-it doesn't have to be the best quality novel in the world, it doesn't have to be edited as you go along, it's just trying to physically get words on the page and all the rest comes afterwards. After the first day, I have to say I'm looking forward to it, although I have only written 1546 words so far! There's a long way to go yet. I guess the reason I wanted to do it was because I've always been slightly in awe of those of my friends who casually go "Yeah, I've written a novel or two." I think it's really really cool. And then I realised that I could totally be one of those people with a novel or two on my computer, that other people thought were cool and all I had to do was take part in something that runs for a month-easy! (Ha Ha). Also I start writing stories a lot, I have a brilliant idea and I write the first chapter and then...nothing. I have never finished a single story I've started writing in my life, and sometimes I just feel the ideas deserve a little more than 500 words written in a train station*. If I want to finish on time (by the end of November) then I have to write another 1615 words each day-400 words longer than my longest blog post (so far) so I'm not going to have much imagination going spare for thinking of witty and amusing blogs. (They totes are...right? Oh who am I kidding, I just rant about shit =p)
In other news, I also got offered a job yesterday as an usher at the Playhouse Theatre in Nottingham (an excellent thing!) which puts more constraints on my time as well as NaNo leaving me less time than I would like for my dearest blog. But I'll be back eventually.
 If you are interested in following my NaNo progress then check out that little widget on the left hand side, and if you are interested in joining in then there's still time to register and get started and you're only a day behind! Just go to http://www.nanowrimo.org and sign up. Good luck!
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Anyway, I am off to write my next chapter or two, tata!

-Jenni-

*happens a little too often to me.

Hello, and Welcome To This Blog...

I was re reading a few blog posts of a friend of mine's the other day and she mentioned how cringy it was to read blogger's first posts because they had invariably not found their blogging style yet and they were very awkward to read: "I hate reading bloggers' first posts on their sites. They're always so embarrassing and make me cringe a little, because, mostly, they're their first ever blog posts." (Hoping she won't mind too much me quoting her there!). It occurred to me that this blog never really had a first post, because it was born off the back of another one that I was using at the time which has now since been abandoned. My first post on this blog (discounting the ones that I imported over) just sort of began, with no real preamble, and at the time I hadn't even worked out where I wanted to go with this blogging malarky. So I thought I should probably give it a proper introduction at some point, because this is now my official proper blog like, and I do really enjoy blurting out my stuff to the internet for people to read.
So then. This blog: The Life and Times of an Ordinary Girl/My Every Day Adventure/OrdinaryExtraordinaryLife. Basically, I write about stuff that happens in my life. I range from writing about my every day activities to ranting about all the things that annoy me in life/are wrong with the world in what I hope is a slightly humorous and enjoyable way. It's all true and honest, and mostly there to serve as a record for my life. I'm glad that it gets read though, makes it all the more worth while. I aim to keep my labels user friendly so that all the similar blogs get grouped together in one place; my favourite blogs (to write) usually fall into the 'Musings' category or the 'Love Yourself' category, and occasionally (Let's be honest, frequently!) fall into the 'A Little Bit Ranty' one too. If you want to know more about who I am as a person then read some of those, because they're very good indicators to how I think about the world.
So yeah, that's it really. I'm just filling these blog posts up with life, and am grateful to everyone who takes the chance to give them a read too. If you like what you see then follow me somehow, I try and post quite regularly and wouldn't want you to miss out! =p

Hi, my name's Jenni. Welcome to my blog.

Guest Postings

Occasionally, my dearest blog, I do have to admit to the occasional dalliance on other sites. I'm sorry, I still love you. But for my dear readers, in case you want to find me in other corners of the internet, you can do so here:

Awesome Women of Twitter is frankly the best blog community to belong to, as far as I am concerned. It's written by kick-arse females (and the occasional fella too) who want to get things off their chests and talk about all the things that are wrong with the world. Plus they're a lovely bunch of people too, which is excellent. My contribution, thus far, to their efforts is here: http://www.teamawot.com/2012/06/22/reflections-from-aunt-irma/

British Style Bloggers is a blogzine/community of fashion/style bloggers who regularly blog on issues surrounding fashion, lifestyle and blogging. I don't really fit in, if I am honest, but as one of my besties is the Editor-in-Chief, and she asked me to do a "No-nonsense post on fashion" in my usual ranty style, I couldn't wait to join in. So here is my post from earlier in the week: http://britishstylebloggers.org.uk/2012/07/10/who-hates-short-shorts-we-hate-short-shorts/

And for now that's all I've done, but I am sure there will be more in the future. If you want me to write ranty things about something for you then all you have to do is ask, I'll (probably) be happy to oblige. And I'll try and do an actual proper post tomorrow or something.

Until then, then,

-Jenni-