Baby Steps...

This is new for me... this 'blogging' business. Not that I have not heard of blogs or that I don't understand the concept of blogging, I have just never done it. So, why now? Well ... I think it stems from of a conjunction of things: I am opinionated, I need an outlet to vent my frustrations and document the musings of my daily (weekly?) life, and lastly -- because I am entering into a time of transition. Let me expand for a moment on the last piece of the conjunction... transition. I think that in moments of transition it is important to develop a constant, something that you do -- a hobby or a habit -- that is just for you, something that can help keep you anchored. It may seem counterintuitive to say that this blog, a public display once I click 'publish', is just for me. I suppose that it isn't 'just for me' but it is mostly for me, since there is no guarantee that anyone will take interest in it... which isn't necessarily my goal. My goal is to allow myself a space to feel, to think, to expand, and to share (or document rather) the variety of interests that I have as time moves forward.

My transition: I will soon be graduating from college (University of Michigan), finding a job, creating a new 'home', possibly moving to a new town, and putting my child into school ... for the first time. In this troubled economy (although the most recent quarterly report did show increase!) and with my degree (Sociology and Global Change... 'Hippie Studies' as I so lovingly refer to it) I do not know where to begin my job search. As a very organized person, bordering on anal-retentive control-freak, this is a strange position to find myself in. There aren't books on this (are there?) or self-help tapes that can help me figure out how to market myself and my degree... hell, I don't even know exactly what kind of job I am qualified for! But I do know this...

I now have a blog*.

Feel free to follow me on my journey... and laugh at, disagree with, or criticize the musings of my world that I will be posting to try and distract myself from the craziness of this transition...

I don't know who said this, but I appreciate the sentiment, it leaves a nice taste in my mouth:

"It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power."

I hope you have a peaceful day,
A.Tobias

*Be prepared for misspelled words and made up words... I am the product of the word-processing generation. I apologize in advance. Additionally, I would like to warn you of my opinionated and unrelenting views... remember, I am not writing to please you, I am writing for me.