Visual Venturing a WordPress Recommended Blog (or How Blogging Made Me Fat)

Posted on by Stacy P. Fischer

glass of bubbly champagneSix months ago, as my pants began to get tighter and my backside bigger, I laughingly said I was going to write a post called “Blogging is Making Me Fat!” Each month that went by, that resolve grew (as did my size) until, now, six months later, I’ve finally decided to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and actually put my thoughts into words. Why now? Because today I’m celebrating two blogging events that have a direct correlation to my pant size: Visual Venturing’s one-year anniversary on WordPress and being chosen as a WordPress Recommended Photography Blog (huge shout out and thank you to Michelle W.!).

Don’t get me wrong. I love blogging. I just had no idea how addictive it was going to be!

I know I’m not alone in my addiction. So many of you post as regularly or more than I do, in fact with much more substantial posts, and I find myself wondering how you find the time to do all that you do.  I have a husband, one 18-year-old still at home, and a small, mostly deaf and blind dog, and while I do volunteer quite a bit of my time in communications during the school year, I don’t have a full-time job.

And yet, since taking up blogging, stacks of dirty laundry have become large enough to function as easy chairs, my refrigerator often boasts nothing more than a bowlful of not-so-fresh fresh fruit, eggs, and soft drinks. Dinner time will come – and go – without me taking notice. And my weekly workouts have become, well, non-existent (Can we talk about how I now get winded walking up a flight of stairs?)

Why? Because I much prefer being on my computer, post-processing photos, reading and commenting on other bloggers’ posts, replying to comments, creating my own posts, and of course, learning more about photography and using my camera.

My bedtime has morphed into a go-to-bed-when-I-can-no-longer-keep-my-eyes-open time.  I’ve seen 3 and 4 a.m. more in the past year than I have in all my college and graduate school years combined! I recently learned that lack of sleep can contribute to weight gain. Well, that makes perfect sense to me. I mean, think about it.  If you’re awake into the wee hours of the morning, you get hungry. So, what happens to that nice glass of wine and bowl of munchies I treat myself to before I finally head to bed? Hello hips!

And yet, I can’t seem to stop this crazy merry-go-round. Why (I ask again)? Because of each of you: the talented, skilled, funny, compassionate, giving bloggers who amaze and teach me something every single day. I feel as if I have a world full of friends and that if I travelled to where each of you live, I would be able to knock on your doors, sit down over a cup of coffee (or preferably that glass of wine), and talk as if we had known each other for years. In fact, I had the opportunity to meet a fellow photoblogger who, as it turned out, lives just 15 minutes from me. It was such an exciting day for me! And I recently read a post about a group of bloggers from various corners of the world getting together in less than a month’s time for their first meet up! How cool is that?? I cherish the connections I’ve made here on WordPress and would miss the camaraderie as we follow each other’s journeys with our chosen crafts.

It is because of each of you that I have made it to the one-year mark. Each of you has kept me going, encouraging my progress, participating in After-Before Friday, and challenging me with the beauty of your works to continue to reach higher and dig deeper into my own creativity. And so, Visual Venturing being a WordPress Recommended Blog is as much a result of your actions as of mine.

Would I change anything at all about this first year? Honestly, I don’t enjoy wearing clothes that are too tight, running out of clean underwear, or eating junk food because I didn’t want to take the time to think about making dinner.  So I guess my answer would be having a better balance between my blogging life and my real life (or RL, as I’ve seen it referred to on WP – anything to save time, right?) As for everything else? Not a thing. So as I begin my second year on WordPress, I vow to take better care of me (and my family). To go to bed before the early morning news teams begin to broadcast. To dial the take-out restaurants less often and become reacquainted with my grocery store. To squeeze back in to my old workout gear and sweat because I choose to, not because I’m out of shape. All while continuing to visit and learn from each of you.

My daughter’s high school graduation is 90 days away. On day 89, I’d like to be able to publish a new post, “Balancing My WP/RL Imbalance” (okay, I definitely need a better title, but you get the idea), and on day 90, walk down (and ultimately back up) the amphitheater hillside in my comfortably fitting clothes, wearing clean underwear, with my heart pounding only because of my pride and excitement for my daughter, not because of the exertion. Let the countdown begin!

As for you, my blogging friends, be well, be healthy, and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your amazing support.

Cheers to you all!

76 thoughts on “Visual Venturing a WordPress Recommended Blog (or How Blogging Made Me Fat)”

  2. Hurrah for WordPress suggestions or I would never have seen this. And you even reference our get together in DC before realizing that we too would meet. I too love my blog, taking photos, commenting, reading comments, reading blogs and well, the whole encompassing world of blogging.

    I too have grown wider and fluffier and frankly fatter this past year. Yes, I had foot surgery, but I didn’t need to eat all that chocolate while parked on the couch instead of moving throughout my day.

    I needed to read this today, so thank you. You rock.

    Like

    Reply

  3. Fantastic post Stacy and huge congrats on being a WP RB 😜
    Love the way you write and I had no idea you’d been blogging only 1 year this past Feb. feel like Ive known you for years 😃😃
    Congratulations!! So well deserved x

    Like

    Reply

  4. How nice and kind words, for me and my blog, I remember those days Stacey (waist getting larger) LOL but oh so true.Until finally one day I started a list of blog posts I wanted to make or at least ideas,then would take the pictures to put with the posts and one day I found that I had 40 couple posts to make, I always used Windows Live Writer (which I am told now does not work with all WP themes.) Shame because it beat the WP editor and leaves it in the dust. I sat down each morning and wrote several posts, added the pictures and set the pub date and time, and went on my merry way. However that takes some keeping up with as well, though not as much as one by one.
    I found I had to step away from the computer and get on with life. and do things to make more blog posts (addictive YES) however i needed to work on baskets, recipes, and other things to be able to make the posts and here I am nearly 5 years into my blog, over the past year I fell into a funk though and that was a killer, NO POSTS? !! YIKES, but now I am coming out of it. and glad because I sorely missed posting, and seeing and reading all the comments from people all over the world. I am so glad that you did not give up, when I started I thought I have nothing worthwhile to say or add that people would be interest in but I was wrong.
    Because of my blog I met you (or you met me) and have met so many wonderful people out there that keeps me going.
    Thank you Stacey!

    Like

    Reply

  5. Haha, this is such an awesome post and a big congrats to you, Stacy! I can so relate to all of this and I continue to struggle with that balance…and that weight gain thing. Best of luck to you, exciting times ahead with that big graduation coming up!

    Like

    Reply

Any thoughts?