Bloggy and personal thoughts

So, I've been on vacation for three whole weeks. It feels sort of like forever, really. I spent some of my time thinking about this blog and where I want it to go.

I want to use this to show my creative work, but at the same time, I know that there are so many other blogs out there with the same goal, the same crafts, the same point. Why should I add one more to the mix? Why should I clutter the "blogosphere" (I hate that word, really. *sigh*) with yet more shouting about me me me?

I haven't come to any final decisions, but I've come to a few realizations. One of them is that there are parts of me, facets which are important, but about which I don't talk. Some of this reticence is that I live in a country which is increasingly at odds with a large part of my self-identification, and one that reacts very strongly (and often very negatively) to this identity.

I'm an atheist. I ... just don't believe in gods, of any sort. I was raised this way; this is as much my family tradition as anyone raised in any religion out there. I've thought about it, as an adult, but I just don't understand any other point of view.

This is not to say that I think everyone should do it My Way - I am happy for people to believe whatever they want to believe as long as no one gets hurt in the process. I honestly have many very good friends who are deeply religious, in more than one faith.

However, I find myself unwilling to mention my lack of belief. I've done it once or twice and had universally bad experiences. Some have been more amusing than others, I'll admit.

Once, in a class, religious affiliation came up and I said that I am an athiest. After explaining that this means I don't believe in god and answering several questions, I sat whilst most of the class stared at me, their faces showing varying degrees of confusion or dismay. Finally, one man said, in tones of deep consternation, "But you believe in Jesus Christ, right?"

When I said that I didn't, in fact, believe in Jesus Christ, he insisted that I must believe in god, though, right? I ... sort of didn't know what to say. For this man, there was no way to comprehend lack-of-faith.

One thing that confuses me about this - the reactions to my atheism - is that people often get offended by my atheism, but expect me to not be offended at their theism. Shouldn't it go both ways? Shouldn't they be as accepting of my way of thinking as they want me to be of theirs? It's as if my lack of faith is a personal attack on them, and that bothers me. Another thing that bugs me about this is that I feel social pressure to keep quiet, so I don't offend people; it seems to me that atheism is stigmatised and thought of as a dirty secret.

I'm not going to write much about this - I'm not interested in blogging about atheism. Or theism, really. Just, recently I've been reading more craft blogs and it seems that many of them are equally about their religious beliefs as they are about their crafting activities.

Part of why I don't talk about this much is that it's ... not a part of my life in the way that religious observation is a part of the lives of those who are practicing theists. I don't spend time thinking about my faith or connection to immanence, nor do I spend time in religious buildings, working on religious organizations or teaching in religious groups. The time that theists spend on that, I'm spending on other things, activities which I do discuss, think about, plan for and create during.

Anyway, I'm not sure exactly what I'm going to do with this blog. I know that I'll still make things every single day, I know that I'll continue to find new things to make and new creative activities to try...

I'd like to post more often, and to post more pictures of my ongoing projects, so I think that's what I'll concentrate on for now.

In other news, I've started a companion blog to this one: SongBird in Flight. It's got my trip notes (but no pictures, because I started it during the trip and haven't put any pictures in yet!) and I'll be keeping up with my personal life there, I think.

Now, it's time to figure out what we need, grocery-wise, then go out and get foods for meals for the next few days.

SongBird

Cycling

I've promised myself I'm going to be better about this, and I keep not pushing myself about it.

I will cycle every day. Around the island I live on is 6 miles and mostly flat. Most of it is quite pretty, even with the horrible headwind off the bay. I made it today - 6 miles in 35 minutes. Tomorrow I'm going to do it again. Friday also, but Monday, I'm going to see if I can make it one and a half times around. If I can, I'll give myself two days at that level, then see how much further I can go. If I'm going to get stronger and lose weight, I'm certainly not going to do it sitting on my (ample) butt.

Up and at 'em.

I was actively rolling at 11:30 and I made it home at 12:05. Not bad. Plus, I didn't coast. Well, I did coast over the spots which are so bumpy that sitting on the seat and pedalling will make your crotch get up and leave you forever, and I coasted past the sweet little old lady pumping along on her walker. Plus, I had to wait for a second cycle of the light at the one intersection with a light. I'm not great at starting off. *facepalm*

Then, once home, I swept up the back yard. I haven't put all the sweepings into the greenwaste bin. I might decide to be lazy and ask Geordie to do it. *is lazy*

I should go take a shower now!

SongBird

Working on resolutions

One of the things I'd like to do over the next few weeks is catalogue my In Progress projects.  I know I have more than is ... sensible, let alone finishable.  I want to bring my WIP list down to a manageable level.

(At this point, it's overwhelming and is making me feel defeated before I even start other things, so it's long past time I cleared things out.)

As part of that, I'll be clearing out clutter from the house.  I think that today, while I'm running several loads of laundry (that chore never goes away!), I'll concentrate on the side chair and the area around it.  I tend to toss things I need to put aside while I'm sitting on the couch onto the side chair.  It's way out of control.

I know there have been several photo-free posts in a row now, but I'm not sure I want to start with a picture of the horrible chair.  I should, huh, so you can all cheer me on as I make progress!

SongBird

Busy, but no photos

I've been busy, but the pictures I have don't really represent what I'm doing.

Here's one thing, though.



*glee*

SongBird