But for the recent election, I’ve been feeling going-through-the-motions-y lately.  It’s not just the blogosphere, I’m responding to almost everything in my life with a resounding “meh.”  My apathy has some direct causes, but it’s also what I consider a natural part of my cycle of enthusiasm.  But I’ve been stuck in the rut part for a while longer than normal, and lately I’ve been mulling over the idea to shut down the blog until the mood passes, which could be days, weeks, or months.

I’m not going to though.  There’s a theory in swimming that anyone can swim well when rested and feeling good, but you get the best work done when you swim tired.  I think blogging’s the same kind of thing.  When you’re on a roll, it’s easy, but when you’re not, it’s actually work, and maybe in the process you get better at it.  (Maybe…)

And the other reason I don’t want to stop is because of the community.  I really like you guys, and I feel like blogging brings me closer to people that I wouldn’t have otherwise known.  Case in point, I got a message on Friday from Allie of Allie’s Answers.  She was passing through the Hudson Valley and wanted to know if I was around to meet up.  And wouldn’t you know it, I was!  We had a lovely dinner together, and hit it off right away even though our entire friendship is based on commenting, Facebook, and the occasional email.  If you don’t know Allie, I recommend going over to her blog right away.  She has one of the best environmental blogs I’ve ever seen.  Her advice is practical (for instance, she’s not asking anyone to give up plastic for the rest of their life, but she will tell you what you can do to limit your plastic intake) and she’s quite personable, and her new blog layout is really stellar.  Oh, and lately, she’s been giving away prizes…  Bottom line, she’s a class act, that Allie.

Enough gushing, though, since you probably clicked on the link to her site and are not reading this blog anymore because you now are in the midst of shredding the Sunday Times to turn it into kitty litter based on her recipe.  That’s fine, we can still be friends, and I hope that we remain so, because that’s one of the big reasons I’m going to keep doing this.