Long time, no blog.

We arrived back in Melbourne in July last year (gosh, 'last year' makes it sound so long ago!) after an amazing holiday in the Kimberley. We're now back in our own lovely home, and have enjoyed settling back in to the house and working in our garden. Melbourne's predictably unpredictable weather is certainly a change that takes some getting used to, but it's nice not to be hot all the time (although it's very hot some of the time!).

I've been on a hiatus from work, taking some much needed time off to look after myself and get my home, heart and health back in order. Unfortunately it hasn't been quite as rejuvenating as I had hoped - some pressing family issues have been keeping me busy, and keeping my stress levels elevated whether I like it or not.

And I haven't blogged. In fact, things have been pretty quiet on the whole social media front lately - tweeting, posting photos, etc. It's funny, I thought I would be blogging my boots off during this time off work. Instead, I found that I didn't really feel like talking to anyone ...

It's not just social media either. Apart from a small number of occasions I haven't really socialised, or caught up with friends. I've been spending a *lot* of time with my family, and just haven't had much energy left over to pursue social activities. I guess my inner introvert took over to help me deal with it all!

I occasionally flogged myself for not being more 'out there', but to be honest I preferred the quiet. The solitude. The keeping of my thoughts to myself (especially the not-so-happy ones). So I decided to stop feeling guilty about not being online much, and just accept it for what it was. Quiet time.

But that was then, and this is now :) 2014 is a new year. The stresses are never going to go away, and I'm accepting that and moving on. It's time to rejoin the wonderful world!

I've polished up my resume and put myself back on the job market. I'm going to Library Camp and a conference-related tweetup next week, and I'm really looking forward to catching up with my friends and colleagues in the library world, as well as re-engaging in professional issues. I've joined the local gym, and am putting my health back at the top of my priority list. I'm also doing some major decluttering at home, and am implementing the Getting Things Done system in my home office. And I'm itching to put some dedicated time aside for creative activities each week.

It's good to be back :)

P.S. Photos of our Kimberley trip can be viewed in this Flickr set. I kept a travel diary throughout, and hope to use some of my scribblings in future blog posts.