I know I said my next post would talk about my preparations for Europe, but I had an interesting thought that I would've probably forgotten if I hadn't written it down. I have avoided writing regularly in a blog/journal for a while; I used to do it quite often but somewhere along the lines I lost a taste for it. The reasons probably being a combination of being too busy, the loss of anonymity on the web (ah, the days when the internet was safe), and becoming aware of the fact that no one really wants to read every minuscule/intimate detail of my life (what? but I thought I was the most interesting person on earth!).
So how do I avoid becoming burned out on blogging again?
I'll try to write something useful. Surely I won't be the last person to be in this position (I won't be, and don't call me Shirley), so why not contribute to the collective knowledge bank otherwise referred to as the internet (also referred to as the oracle). My experience can provide excellent qualitative information for travelers and internship-goers that other sources can not. Searching for information about living abroad and specifically Brno I have found some great sources that provide pieces to the puzzle, but I haven't found anything that provides a comprehensive picture. So as I talk about my experiences, I will try to "tag" useful tips, resources, and hotspots as I encounter them.
Experience passes through us. An infinite amount of information enters our perceptual system at any one time, but we recall only a small proportion of what happens to us. Our brains are information filters; everything reaches it, but only significant bits stick (was going to go with a plumbing metaphor here, but somehow it just wasn't as poetic). Too much of our lives just pass by without retrospection. How do we know we have progressed unless we look back? More importantly, how do we know what has influenced us without looking back? I would like to have a finer life filter then see what gets stuck in it. I won't even have to look for these influential experiences; chances are they will just happen to me. If I find it interesting there is likely something about it which strikes a subconscious chord; writing it down will allow for inspection.
I'll use pictures and music. I've been neglecting my photography hobby entirely too much recently. What better way to enrich this blog than to link the events which influence me during this experience to actual photons. Photos have a special ability to elicit ideas over repeated viewings (smell is a more powerful sense, but don't smell my blog). Looking at a photo I snapped of a fly-in I attended several years ago brings back the smell of burnt oil, propwash and grass (also: pancakes). I can feel the humidity in the air, the sun on my skin, and the aches from waking up too early. All of these details return despite the fact that they occurred several years ago (airplanes are my Madeleine). Music serves as a way to gracefully express ideas and add "color" to my posts.
So there you go - one spurious thought expanded upon 'till I got sick of it.
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