When is the last time you did something just because you wanted to? 

I find that doing something just because is becoming increasingly rare in all of our lives. We're constantly moving forward, worrying about what we need to accomplish in our careers, our relationships, our homes. Taking a day-- or even just an hour-- to do something that has no tangible reward almost makes us feel guilty.

But yesterday I did just that. I spent the entire day exploring the area around my house and taking pictures. And, let me tell you, it felt amazing. I felt completely present in the moment, no worrying about what I needed to do for work the next day or the cleaning I probably should have been doing instead. It was peaceful and relaxing and perfect.

It made me reflect on the importance of having a hobby, something that you do only because you enjoy doing it. I write, but I hope to make a career out of it. I blog, but I hope to form a connection with others through it. With photography, I know that I am not the most skilled and that I won't make any money by doing it. But I genuinely enjoy capturing the beauty of the nature that surrounds me or my gorgeous friends-- or, more often than not, my goofy cat.

Here is my favorite shot from yesterday:


Last summer, I tried to get a shot of the moon and I just couldn't do it. The picture always turned out blurry. But last night I decided to try again, not worrying about how the shot would turn out. And voila.

And, hey, isn't that a good metaphor for life? Once you stop worrying about how things are going to turn out, they usually fall into place.

Grab a cup of tea and take a seat, folks. We're about to have a talk.

I'm sure we have all met a few shitty people through the years. And I'm not just talking about someone who has had a bad day and is taking it out on innocent bystanders-- we've all been that person a time to two (or seven hundred). I mean those few individuals who are arrogant, rude, and completely awful to be around.

Shitty people can drain your energy and leave you feeling irritable or just plain miserable. But sometimes you can't avoid being around a ghastly individual or two. The best thing you can do is learn how to handle the situation-- and your feelings-- as healthily as possible. So what can you do to make the best out of a bad experience?

First things first. Let yourself feel whatever it is you are feeling. If you are angry, be angry. If you are hurt, let yourself be hurt. Acknowledge to yourself how this person makes you feel and give yourself permission to feel that way. Sometimes when we deal with negative emotions, we want to suppress them in order to move on with our day. But that can cause those feelings to fester-- and if that sounds disgusting, that's because it is. Nothing good festers.

If you find that you are dwelling on your negative emotions, try a healthy distraction. If you are still in the presence of said shitty person, try to focus on your breathing or sing your favorite song in your head. Some good options for when you have finally freed yourself from the situation are meditation, reading or writing, sitting down with a nice cup of tea (or wine, of course), taking a walk, or even coloring. When your mind drifts back to those not-so-great feelings, refocus your energy on a new task.

My best tip, though, is to focus on the positive. It's difficult-- especially in the heat of the moment-- but it is a great exercise in mindfulness. When negative thoughts and emotions start to invade your brain, let them. But then try to find at least one thing you like about the other person, the situation, or yourself. For example, be proud of the way you are handling yourself in the presence of a shitty person. It isn't easy. Or mentally compliment the shitty person's outfit. I find that this just refocuses my energies and balances out the negativity. The more I practice this, the easier it is to let go of the nasty emotions and focus on the good.

Of course, sometimes you just need to wait until you can have a stiff drink or punch a wall. I mean, a girl's gotta do...

I used to look forward to my morning scroll through Bloglovin, where-- for a few moments-- I could see the world through someone else's eyes and take part in their experiences. I would cry as I read about the loss of a pet, laugh as I read someone's recollection of their quarter-life crisis, and feel inspirited as I looked through amazing photographs of places I'd never been. I would come away rejuvenated and motivated and especially inspired to blog myself.

But, somewhere within the last few months, I've lost that enjoyment. I go days without reading a blog post, clicking that awful Mark All As Read button after a week's worth of posts has built up. Why?

Because blogging has changed, drastically, and not for the better.

I know that seems a little pessimistic, but it's true. I'm sure you've noticed it, too.

Posts that reflect the personal life, thoughts and feelings of the blogger are few an far between. They are outweighed and drowned out by posts that tell you how to be a successful blogger, how you need to run your social media, the importance of branding your photography, what you should never do on your blog... Blogging has become focused on the business of blogging.

And there is nothing necessarily wrong with that. Those posts are popular for a reason-- they are helpful and inspiring to many bloggers. But this heavy focus on making your blog a brand and a business, in my opinion, takes away the magic of blogging. It's not what the heart (or art) of blogging should be about. It's commercialized and sterilized and inauthentic.

I would like to see it go away.

I'm going to be taking a step in that direction with my own blog. I've said this before but never followed through because I still felt that pull to become a successful blogger. That pull to take my blog from a hobby to a career really limited what I felt like I could post and just left me feeling weighed down. It caused me to fall out of love with blogging.

But I feel like it's time for the blogging community, as a whole, to take a step back and refocus. Those posts about how to build your brand, what type of blogging is most commercially successful, and the best way to run your social media to benefit your growth... Those are all still necessary! But none of us need to let this quest for success leave us feeling down or like we're failures, and that is a sentiment I am seeing more often this year. And I think a push back from commercial-focused blogging is almost necessary for the blogging community to grow and continue to flourish.

The main point is you do you. Find that balance and embrace it and never feel like you have to limit yourself. It's a good motto to have for blogging and life.