In Which I Have Returned and Have Some Explaining to Do

Right now it's a little before 4:30 in the afternoon on a cold, snowy Monday. I'm sitting in a Starbucks with a venti flat white (my new obsession) and socks so wet that I could probably wring them out. I've had to walk everywhere recently since our car died and today was especially slushy. I should be miserable (and, believe me, my wet socks aren't making me feel particularly comfy), but I'm actually pretty excited. Why? Because I'm blogging again. And, gods, have I missed it.

The last time you all heard from me was December of 2012. I posted a Top Ten Tuesday list and then vanished. For two whole years. Where did I go? What have I been up to? Gather round, darlings, because it's story time!

THE ODYSSEY OF GABE

So, I'm going to preface this by saying that the last few years of my life haven't been all that exciting overall. There were a few high points, obviously, but I'm still broke, underemployed, and dealing with my mental health. But I'm determined to make 2015 the start of a winning streak, so strap in and hold on because I'll be taking you all along for the ride.

Anyway, I was working crazy hours between the bookstore and the library during December of 2011 and, even though I was reading quite a bit, I just didn't have the mental bandwidth to blog. I kept trying to and just never really got around to it. By the time the bookstore closed (it was a seasonal experiment), I had kind of given up on the idea.

In February of 2013, I married a wonderful man who reads constantly, writes novels, and puts up with all of the craziness that is being married to me. We got married by a justice of the peace in front of his mom and brother, my mother, my best friend, and two of his best friends. Don and I will be celebrating our two-year wedding anniversary on the 22nd of February and I couldn't be happier.

Woah! A photo of Gabe? Holy crap. This is the two of us on
our wedding day. My husband has since lost about 50 lbs and
looks incredible. See photo below.

April saw me leaving my library job for a full-time job that I ended up hating and that led to a nervous breakdown. Phone sales is just not the job for me. I struggled to find a new job for a few months, got one that I also hated, left that one after a few months, and then started working two jobs that I absolutely loved.

Meanwhile, in June I quit smoking cigarettes after being a chimney for almost 9 years! I could breathe and run (I ran!) and felt amazing. I ended up losing about 15 lbs, too, and would have kept going if I hadn't lost my groove and stopped around the end of August. I've since gained that fifteen back (and more besides) and am in the process of getting all of the extra weight off for good.

Starting in September of 2013, I worked at a craft store--first as a cashier, then as one of the people who goes in in the wee hours of the morning to set up the product--and as a tutor, which I'm still doing. I had very little time to sleep between that September and March of 2014, let alone do much of anything else. So, although I was tempted over and over again to come back to blogging, I really couldn't.

The lack of sleep, the stress of everyday life, and a million other things led to a bit of an episode and I ended up in a partial hospitalization to deal with my depression, anxiety, and (newly-diagnosed) Borderline Personality Disorder. I quit my craft store job and started working on myself, including getting a therapist. I had picked up crochet while working at the craft store and did that quite a lot to help with the healing process. I've gotten significantly better and feel no shame in being open about my mental issues. If I can help even one person by letting them know that they're not alone, I will consider my life a success.

In October of 2014, my best friend married one of Don's best friends and the two of us performed the ceremony for them. It was a beautiful wedding and they make a beautiful couple. I love knowing that they met at our own wedding, knowing that they're together because of us. I was trying to find a good, not blurry photo of us performing at the ceremony, but there currently aren't any available to me, so I'll just post a photo of my much slimmer and extremely handsome husband instead.

When we have children, they damn well better get his hair.

Other than that, the big news is that Don and I adopted a bunny, which we named Loki. He's huge and adorable and we got him the day after Thanksgiving from Lollypop Farm, an amazing organization here in the Rochester area. Here he is eating greens off of a paper towel while our cat looks on skeptically:

Loki and Teyla

So, that's pretty much it. I decided shortly after the new year started that I was going to get back into blogging and that's exactly what I'm going to do. Running this blog gives me an amazing sense of purpose and is a ton of fun as well. It's a platform for my ideas and a place to express my creativity. And I've missed it so very much.

As always, I'm an open-book, so feel free to ask questions, either in the comments or at gabrielreads@gmail.com.

Tomorrow morning my review of Channel Blue will be posted at 8 am EST!

-Gabe