1. I have been blogging since 8/9/2004. That’s just over 7 years. For me, the eternal dabbler, that’s freakin’ amazing.
2. A Beautiful Mess is blog number five. My first blog was Comfortably Numb followed by Unfinished Object and I kept two sewing sites, Sew it Seams and Stash Bustin’.
3. I deleted Comfortably Numb this morning (it took me a long time to let that horse go).
4. This blog is by far my favorite. I think it was the title that helped make it more positive.
5. I’ve met some wonderful people blogging. Some still blog and some don’t, some I’m still acquainted with and some not, but I wouldn’t trade the experience so far for anything.
6. When I started I really wanted to be the next big blogger, something along the lines of Dooce. Clearly I never made it.
7. It took me a long time to understand that I had to blog for myself and not for others, and that it was ok if there were very few readers.
8. My blogs have done far more for me that they have for any of my readers.
9. When I first started blogging I did not use my real name. I signed my posts Jade, because that was the handle I was using in a MMORPG I was playing at the time.
10. It was stupid … live and learn.
11. One of the things I’ll miss about blogging is having a touchstone to go back too when I cant remember what year I did something. The memory isn’t what it used to be.
12. My first blog, via Blogger, was before you could post photos there.
13. I still think that someday I’ll go through all my posts from the non-sewing blogs, clean them up and have them printed in a hard bound book.
14. You do know about be an procrastination, right? Like 13 will ever happen.
15. Of all my blog posts my 100 Things lists have always been a favorite. I’ve done them on pets, family that has passed away, happy things, annoying things and a few things I’m sure I’ve forgotten. What I like most about them is that they help me remember the little things.
16. The exercise of making a 100 Things list is something I will continue to do, even if I’m not blogging.
17. Writing this list is giving me second thoughts.
18. I blogged for almost two years before someone left a comment.
19. The first blog I was uber fan-girl over was WomanChild. She was interesting, worldly, dramatic … all the things I wasn’t. I was crushed (and a little hurt) when I went to her site one day and all it said was ‘Goodbye’.
20. I found her again a couple of years ago on Flickr, but we never ‘spoke’ again.
21. On the flip side, one of the other bloggers I stalked was a fan of still chats with me from time to time on FaceBook, though I suspect its because she wants to steal Emma. Why, yes Reecie, I’m looking at you.
22. I plan on keeping this domain name for a while … ya know, just in case.
23. I could not have done much of this without Brad. He hosts this site for me for free, has always been super helpful, and is just an all around nice guy. He’s never met me in person, but you’d never know it. Much, much thanks!
24. For the most part the people I’ve met while blogging have been nice, but I won’t say that there weren’t a few trolls. Luckily the nice one outnumbered the trolls 100 to 1.
25. I originally intended to have the photo header change to something different every time you accessed the blog … I took the photos but never got around to working out how to ‘cycle’ them.
26. If I had a dollar for every intention I posted about but never finished I could remodel the bedroom … in a new house!
27. Blogging has done wonders for my photography skills, but I still haven’t read the instruction book for my camera.
28. My photo entries would probably be my other favorite posts.
29. I haven’t turned on my computer at home in some time, in part because of my iPad and in part because I’d rather be turning on my kiln.
30. When I first started blogging all of my post titles were song lyrics.
31. Later all of my titles were unfinished thoughts and ended with an ellipsis.
32. Sometime in the last few years my titles became just titles.
33. Monday posts were nearly always a laundry list of the weekend activities. Writing out my ‘to-done’ list made me feel accomplished, even though a nearly equal amount of time was spent with my feet up.
34. I loved knowing the little things about people’s lives … and I hated that distance made true friendship nearly impossible.
35. Well written, well thought out posts never got many comments. Photos of big, hairy, scary spiders always did.
36. I found that blogging made me pay more attention to the every day.
37. It also made me regularly use the phrase “I am so blogging about that!”.
38. Let me reveal the greatest mystery of this blog … D’s first name is Dan.
39. I tried never to use anyone’s names, unless I was linking directly to a blog (ie someone who already used their name online).
40. BeadMistress K would be ok with me revealing her first name … but I promise she’d never let me show you her photo.
41. I have on a pretty shirt today but no one has noticed (just making sure you are still reading).
42. One of the greatest lessons I ever learned about blogging is that you must read (and comment) to be read. Think of it as blog networking.
43. My other favorite posts were the video posts. As a kid I was always using a hairbrush for a microphone and carrying on a talk show.
44. I always tried to put a positive spin on my posts. I’m not saying I didn’t complain, I’m sure I did my fair share.
45. The total number of posts about how badly I need to de-clutter might outnumber the posts crying over the dry season.
46. I once blogged a photo of D’s nekkid butt, but cropped it so all you saw was a big bruise.
47. To this day he’s annoyed about that crop (the man is proud of his butt).
48. This is one of my all time favorite photos. I like the way it feels, bright, sunny, and breezy. Truth be told it was a bit of a fluke.
49. Stupid Word Press wont auto number this post. Where was I?
50. Because of the blog I have preserved copies of my x-rays (teeth) as well as Emma’s and Mackie’s (hips). Such a strange thing to collect – hah.
51. Looking at my Flickr photos (to find the quilt image) makes me think I’m slacking in the photography department. It might be time for a yard shoot.
52. There are words that I won’t use in my blog for fear that Google search would make me findable; like the name of the market I worked at in Atlanta or that big, crazy, grain company that owns the government and is trying to squash small farms.
53. I don’t really believe that anyone at either of those places cares what I do but why stir the pot?
54. I’m fairly certain that my lack of editing skills drives my mom batty *everybody wave at mom*.
55. The fact that Christmas decoration have been out in stores for over two weeks now disturbs me greatly (I typed this on in lieu of a blog post).
56. I secretly always wanted to be in the finals of Pioneer Woman’s photography competitions.
57. I would never make it in … I can’t shop the way she likes.
58. I was always proud of my ‘fix-it’ posts; like the one on replacing a toilet seal or our remodeling of the bathroom. I wanted to encourage people to try. Hopefully I did.
59. The blog has been a wonderful place to record my progress in bead making. Even I’m a little amazed sometimes at how far I’ve come.
60. With the blog I’ve documented swaps, pay it forwards, gifts, and flowers. I daresay there’d be some I wouldn’t remember without its help.
61. Looking back at some of the swaps I was a pretty darn good swap partner.
62. I can honestly say I never flaked on a swap … I cannot say I was never flaked on by a swap partner. All the way up to this year’s ‘Pay it Forward’.
63. I met some pretty nice folks through swaps as well.
64. Step by step posts were another favorite; the two stand outs are the sail boat baby quilt and the Halloween costume for Miss Z.
65. I have blogged (though sometimes briefly) on nearly every trip I’ve taken, including Madagascar.
66. I’m sure that if you looked hard enough you’d find a post where I said something like “I can’t really ever see myself not blogging”.
67. I’ve blogged some really sad moments: calling off a wedding, Mackie’s death, losing my grandfathers, a grandmother and an aunt.
68. I’ve blogged some really happy moments: traveling to Madagascar, my brother’s wedding, putting a bead on the space shuttle.
69. It’s been a good run.
70. The cooking, oh the cooking! There’s been everything from wedding cakes and catering for sixty to BLT’s and cornbread dressing. Hopefully I made a few mouths water.
71. I even blogged a cooking misfire, Veal Osso Buco … did not turn out well.
72. I was never as good at blogging the failures as I was the successes, but I tried.
73. I’d like to say I’ll continue journaling … it is something I really should make time to do for myself.
74. The blogs have seen a total of three dogs and eight cats as they passed through our lives. Wow.
75. There are over 1600 photos on my Flickr site – most of them linked to a blog.
76. This is my 889th post on this blog.
77. I guess I should have stuck it out to my 1000 to hang it up, but at the rate I’ve been writing that’d be three more years.
78. If I search the word hair I get seven pages of posts that contain that word. I’d wager that two-thirds of those are about my love-hate relationship with my hair and the rest have something to do with hair balls and dust buffalo.
79. There might be a post or two about D’s lack of hair – schnort.
80. Schnort was blatantly stolen from Reecie of the Many Blogs. She used it often and I guess it just stuck.
81. Having spent some time on Flickr today I see I need to clean that up as well, but I have no plans yet of closing that site.
82. This is not the end of me on the internet. There are lots of places you can find me.
83. FaceBook
84. Flickr
85. Google+
86. FriendFeed (my personal favorite)
87. And of course my Etsy shop and my FB Business Page
88. Some where on this blog there is proof that I tried knitting.
89. My oldest Flickr photo is from May 06, it’s a group shot of a party … I’m somewhere in the mob wearing a gown I purchased for $27 off of Ebay.
90. There is a post somewhere that says “Pants are overrated”. Hee!
91. I’ve documented a clean office, a clean closet and a clean house … in my life these are momentous things.
92. My mother is my only family member that reads this blog.
93. I am closing the blog partly out of guilt. I often think of things to blog about and then never get around to it. Sometimes it is as though I am neglecting a friendship.
94. As they say, to everything there is a season. I will refrain from saying my blogging days are done and say only that they are officially on hiatus.
95. Hallooooo? Did you make it this far? Really? Well I’m sorry but I’m not going to say ‘April Fools’. Were you hoping?
96. This was a surprisingly difficult decision to make. The good news is that I figure I can unmake it at any time. Not soon, but someday maybe.
97. I considered several ways of signing off; even just deleting it as my readers are down to about two a week. But this seemed best. A reminder to future self of why I do what I do when I did what I did.
98. Blogging has been good for me, it has given me a sense of pride in my accomplishments and talents that I think would have taken me longer had I not documented them and been able to glance back from time to time.
99. You, gentle reader, have made this ever so much more fun. My deepest gratitude to each and every visitor and commenter.
100. Don’t be dismayed by good-byes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends ~ Robert Bach.
