A Reluctant Return to the Blogosphere

Well, it’s certainly been a while since I’ve shared my thoughts on the internet somewhere other than Facebook. I used to have a blog that I wrote in quite often but I chose to delete it one day. I decided to start another one a few years later. This one, in fact. Originally, I had intended for this to become a daily account of life as a culinary student in Italy. A lot of people had been asking me to collect all my thoughts together. I wrote my first post and got so many responses from friends and family. I wrote more in Italy than I had in a very long time and many things that I wrote were what I decided would turn in to future blog posts. But, as you can see, my first post was also my last until now.

While in Italy I came to the realization that I was spending more time on my computer than being out there and exploring the beauty that was around me. So after the first few weeks I chose to go for an evening bike ride rather than type on my computer. I spent my time exploring the area that I was in and cooking up a storm with my fellow classmates. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s wasting my precious time and using up all the minutes of my life sitting in front of a bright screen. That’s why I went to culinary school.

Recording everything can certainly be a way to relive your life but you’ll also miss out on everything else if you spend all your time simply typing, typing, typing. If I had spent all my time writing about my classes and posting pictures, I never would have had the time to make the most of my experience. Being in Italy is really a full sensory experience and I'm not sure pictures and words can really do justice to what I experienced during my six months there.

That isn’t to say that I’m against blogging. However, I do think that too many people have gone way over-board with the social networking. Many people use Facebook as their social calendar. Other people decide to share every meal and every thought on Twitter. It’s too much for me sometimes. Children play on the computer more than they play outside. I can’t even imagine growing up with a cell phone in one hand and an iPad in the other.

Blogging sparingly and social networking responsibly can certainly be a good thing. As long as you’re not spending more time talking about the weather than actually experiencing it, then go ahead. As for me, I’ll be making a disaster creating new recipes in my kitchen, or going out to concerts, or riding around town on the same bike I’ve had since I was in middle school. I’ll be living my life. And yes, this time I’ll really be sharing my thoughts on a myriad of topics once a week at the least, perhaps more if I feel so inclined.

~ElenaNicole