Where to start?

Lately I've been considering a return to blogging. It's been more than a year since I've written regularly, and honestly, I just don't know where to start. But lately I've been reading some blogs again, and I randomly got two comments last week from readers I don't think I know.

By the way, thanks and welcome to both Anonymous and The Saxophone Player's Wife.

And so last week (or was it the week before?) I went on this random grammar tirade, and while it's true that grammar is a subject about which I'm quite passionate (Did you see how I avoided ending a sentence with a preposition there?), I admit it was kind of out of nowhere.

So let's start with the best part. I'm gonna be a dad. I think most of the people that will end up reading this have already heard that news, but you've probably never heard how excited I am. AND, dear reader, I've wanted to share this with you for some time. Sometime let's talk about abortion. Cause really, I'm not nearly as understanding as I used to be regarding that issue. Sorry. But an ultrasound can be a life-changing experience sometimes, just in case you didn't know that already.



We're having a girl. We're going to name her Emmelyn. It seems like every day I'll lean over to Wifey and ask something like, "Do you think Emmie will be smart?" or "Do you think Emmie will have curly hair?" or "Do you think Emmie will be funny?" Incidentally, if she doesn't have a sense of humor, she's not gonna make it in this house.

I'm already preparing my apology for the day my daughter comes to me and asks why we couldn't have given her a normal name. Because I know she's going to have to go through life repeating it to people that mistakenly call her Amy or Emma.

Honestly, there's no good reason we have for naming her Emmelyn. Sure, my mother-in-law's middle name was Lynn, and we're sort of naming our daughter after her. Her name was Kitty. Emmie's middle name will be Kitty. But really, I was just sitting around one day and thought it up. Emmelyn sounded like a real name to me, so I looked it up on the internet, and sure enough, it's a real, albeit obscure, name. And Wifey liked it too. So there ya go.

What else? We moved to the Dallas area. I'm no longer "a Texan on mission to California." My old church pretty much fell apart. (That's another story for another day.) I failed to get into any Ph.D. programs, which is just as well, because so far I've failed to graduate my Master's program too. (Grr! I'll get to that another time too.) And I've officially gone from employed to unemployed to underemployed, which is what probably best describes my current situation.

And even as I look back over this post, I feel overwhelmed by inadequacy at my ability to make up for more than a year of not writing, despite the much appreciated encouragement I've gotten from readers. It makes me want to just delete the whole thing and just find a Netflix movie.



But I'm not gonna do it. I'm gonna hit the publish button this time, with a few itemized disclaimers:

1. I make no promises, reader. I may blog again tomorrow, the next day, or I may wait another year.

2. If I do return to blogging, I hope to find some interesting topics. But I've figured out something that I think is a hard lesson for most bloggers. My blog is not likely to ever draw too many readers outside the circle of those that already care about me. That's ok. But even as I write now, I remind myself that the most important person I write for is myself. It's just good for me, as my wife often reminds me. So if I fail to entertain you, dear reader, I offer my apologies, but note that you have been warned.

3. To anyone from my church that reads my blog now or ever, let me apologize to you in advance my lack of pious restraint. I am humbled by the example of those saints that came before me, and even those that surround me now whose words are always befitting to their station. But me? I'm pretty raw, overly confessional, and sometimes bordering on crass, and if that comes out in my writing every now and then, you too have been warned.

4. To those who enjoy having something to argue about, to those that read my blog just to have someone to disagree with, to be mad at, to make fun of, you have been heard. I'll make an effort to get your ire up real soon.

To all of you, thanks for reading. See you again soon.

-Solid