in transition

I’m kind of obsessed with people going through transition and how they talk about it. Not just because I’m mean and don’t want anyone to ever be stable, but because some big stuff bubbles up during these periods. And I’m struggling with my own transition as things wind down with my book tour and I try to figure out where the hell I’m going.

I’m sure if you look at it a certain way, everyone is going through transition — everything between birth and death is transition. But all metaphysical bullshit aside, there are these two friends and bloggers who I’m a little obsessed with right now. These are two totally different people in totally different realms. Both going through transitions. Please don’t tell them I’m obsessed… they might laugh and point. More so.

One is my friend Kristen Forbes (krissymick.blogspot.com). She is somebody I went to graduate school with — we both got lucrative creative writing degrees there. This hasn’t been an easy year for her and she’s blogging some potent stuff on her blog in a way that is so honest and open and so full of humility and it’s amazing to read, even when it hurts. I know she has a great writing future ahead of her — she’s just at the beginning of her path — and I’m excited to see what happens. Example post from her blog: The Tragedy of Comedies

Then there is this dude Michael Schechter (bettermess.com). He is a fellow geek. But he’s experiencing some new insights lately. He still talks about the way he uses apps and tools and workflows like he always does. But something else is going on. He is going through some realizations about ADHD and his goals in life and what he wants to do and who he wants to be. I remember he used to make offhand references to ADHD, but in a jokey sort of way. Now he is turning things over more thoroughly. He dedicates whole post to the personal things he’s going through — whether they are about ADHD or about where he is focusing his attention in life. His geeky workflow posts are the ones he is probably most famous for in the geek community — and they are very good — but these from-the-heart posts are another big part of who he is and I appreciate that he isn’t scared to post those either. Example post from his blog: Inside my ADHD (Redux)

At a time when I’m a little burned out of reading geek blogs and writerly blogs (it’s not you, it’s me!), and at a time when I feel like I’ve temporarily lost my own voice, these are two refreshing examples of how it can be done uniquely and done with heart.

So I just wanted to pay tribute to life-in-transition and to the people who have the courage to be open about their transitions.

And thank you, internet, for letting me stalk these two people online without getting arrested.