To not blog...or to blog?

the creation of pastpresentfuture (2011)

I started this blog at the beginning of 2011, after months of indecision over whether or not to blog – why I should, why I shouldn’t, why I couldn’t . . . Then in early January 2011 I felt like I needed a new venture (for lack of a better word) - something new to get stuck into over the coming year. (This is sounding awfully like a New Year’s resolution, isn’t it?)

While I was thinking, I started a version of Project 365 via my phone camera – a slight twist to the ‘photo a day’ concept, which I love, but have never had the patience to complete. In my version, each day’s photo will be taken on my phone camera (and here I’m hoping for no phone meltdowns over the next 12 months) and stored within the app.

So far so good, but what will I actually do with the photos?

The words past, present and future cemented themselves in my mind.

At the same time, I was chatting (in the broadest possible sense of the word) to a couple of other people about starting blogs, and the connection was finally made.

Something new I can do that will help me remember the past, live in the present and design my future.

For remembering the past, I scrapbook, a phrase which causes people either to groan in despair or make me feel like part of a wonderful, creative community. I make layouts and I use Project Life.

For living in the present, Project 365 provides a snapshot of the moment, one moment in time. I'm always on the lookout for that one photo opportunity each day that catches my eye.

For creating my future, I'm going to start my own Happiness Project. I’m not quite ready yet, but it’s going to happen sometime soon. Or maybe I should just do it now . . . there really is no time like the present.

after a bit of a relapse, pastpresentfuture returns in 2012

After I finished my Project 365 at the end of 2011, I wasn't really sure where to take this blog. I kept blogging early in 2012 but, without the discipline required to blog every day, it all fell by the wayside. Some months I blogged once, and there were several months in 2012 where I didn't post anything.

I had a bit to say, but it never translated into posts. We were also kept busy in the second half of the year with packing up our house and moving. So for most of 2012 I didn't give the blog a second thought.

Even though this is a small blog, with around 30 members and only a very small number of regular contributers - whose input I appreciate and thank you all for sticking with me - I do enjoy blogging and interacting with people who read and leave comments. So I'm keen to get back into blogging more regularly.

Daily blogging isn't realistic for me (and to be honest, I don't know how I did if for a year), so I set myself a goal to blog at least three times a week this year.

I'm hoping to set some regular things to blog about so this will be a bit easier. I've already identifed Mondays as the day I'll write about my journey to quitting sugar, and as the year goes on, to improving my diet in general.

I think Sundays will be a semi-regular Project Life post. Then I'll post (most) scrapbook layouts as I do them (this is a rare enough event that there might be five of these posts during the year).

I'll try and do a review of my 100 things to do in 2013 list close to the end of each month.

This means I really need one or two things to post about during the week so that the posts aren't concentrated over the weekend. Maybe this is where the linkups come in. There are things like "Wordless Wednesday", "Thankful Thursday" and "FFS Friday" that I've seen on various blogs around the place. If I'm going to do it though, I want to make a commitment to do it, if not every week, then at least every second week.

So that's where I'm at now. I'm not sure if pastpresentfuture is still the best name for my blog, but I like it, and I can't come up with anything better, so it will do for now.

I look forward to seeing where this year takes me.