Yes, I finally did it. I gave in and started a blog. I had very many reasons for holding out this long, some of which I was very proud of, and some of which were true, and all of which I will list right now:

(1) - Blogging is a really impersonal way to stay in touch with people. It feels like I'm just putting my thoughts up there for anyone who cares to read them, and we can all read about each other's lives without ever really interacting with each other. I do, in fact, love to read your blogs so I know what's going on in your lives! But it is a poor substitute for dialogue, for heart-sharing, for crying and laughing together, for smiles and hugs and praying together and hashing out controversial topics and tough questions together. And impersonal is the last way I want my communication with my friends to be! Well, because you're my friends, and I love you, and I want my relationship with you to be personal, even if we're hundreds of miles away from each other. I don't want my relationships with you to become superficial, because my heart wants to love you and be loved by you in a very deep and heart-wrenching way!
- Reason why (1) is not enough: I royally stink at staying in touch. With all the good intentions in the world of calling and e-mailing and writing snail mail letters, I somehow have not written or e-mailed or called anyone except my immediate family and Dan since I started my new job in September! I think of you, my wonderful friends, on a daily basis, and lift you up in prayer from the bottom of my heart and trust that God is meeting the deepest needs of your hearts at the level that only He can. But I am somewhat lacking in the execution, and I end up convincing myself that I need to wait for a time and day when I can give you my undivided attention without distractions and without any time constraints. And, frankly, life isn't very conducive to fitting those two criteria! And now that it's been so long, I feel very guilty for not being in touch, and I want to do better, and I'm hoping that this will be a good starting point.

(2) - I don't ever want to become addicted to checking whether or not anyone has commented on my blog. And I don't want to become depressed at seeing "0 comments" at the bottom of that entry for too many days in a row. Because I know myself too well, and I like it when people tell me I'm funny or deep or witty or good with words or a good friend, and when nobody tells me those things, I start believing they're not true.
- Reason why (2) is not enough: This one is something that God is working on in my life, and I guess that we humans will always find it easy to be insecure. There's no two ways about it. Being found in Him doesn't mean that I will automatically feel good about my self, but it means that I make a conscious decision every minute of every day to place myself in His hands and let His love and grace and truth be the food for my soul.

(3) - I never thought that I would have enough time to blog. The only time I have internet access is at work, and at work, well, I'm doing work!
- Reason why (3) is not enough: Like Cherith, I find myself with chunks of time to spare in the middle of my day at work - time in which I need to be sitting at my desk, in front of the computer and next to the phone, but I don't necessarily have anything to do. Not that I have tons of time on my hands, mind you!!! But perhaps a 10-15 minute gap between scheduled tasks once or twice a week, not enough time to get anything productive done, but too much time to fill up by twiddling my thumbs or rearranging the tape and stapler and paperclips and Post-It Notes on my desk into new patterns or checking the news for the umpteenth time. So I may indeed have time to update a blog.

(4) - Even as a non-blogger, I have always been able to read and comment on everyone else's blog, so I felt like I got all of the benefits without the responsibilities of updating my own blog and trying to figure out what was or wasn't appropriate to post.
- Reason why (4) is not enough: I just read Chuck's blog about the Trinity, and I was inspired to write a lengthy comment in which I resoundingly AMEN-ed him. But it wouldn't let me post the comment because I wasn't a blogger myself. So, that was the last straw, and I finally caved.

All that to say, my reasons and excuses aren't good enough! (And, please, please comment on my blog every once in a while...) And I promise that this won't keep me from e-mailing you and calling you and writing you on a very personal and individual basis! :-)