Chit Chat Life Update

/ Catherine

This post will naturally not perform as well. That’s because I won’t be using social media to promote it, for the first time in two years? You’re probably wondering ‘why not use social media to promote it if it gets better results that way?’. The reason is… I’m taking a social media detox. I’ve wanted to do this for a while, but out of fear of losing engagement, I stuck with it until I completely burnt out. It’s a much needed break, I assure you. I was feeling anxious, physically, and my whole mind felt cluttered. Here I am. Still blogging, of course. Even if Instagram and Pinterest slip through my fingers, I will always keep blogging. Nothing can stop me. Nothing has stopped me for 3 years!

This post goes live in a few hours, so I haven’t taken any photos either. It’s strange not living up to my high standards. There’ll be no Pinterest thumbnail… no stress of filtering through photos last minute and editing them minutes before the upload deadline. Just me. Pure me. 

No Electricity 😥

Today the electricians are doing work on the power line, so no electricity from 9-5. No music, no kettle, no hot water. That’s why I decided to sort out my room today. We recently bought some Ikea boxes so I can organise my over-bed shelves. At the moment everything is up there, collecting dust, so I wanted to put them in boxes to a) not have to clean them all the time and b) make my room look neat. I have an audiobook lined up on my iPad (The Selection, might I add) so I can keep my mind occupied while sorting. I do love sorting, but without food for thought, I would go crackers. 

Live In The Moment

My plan through this detox is to take life as it comes. Although it would be amazing to go out for frequent walks, practise my cello a lot and wake up earlier – that’s not the main aim. I just wish to live more presently. 

Plans For Content Going Forward

You thought you could get rid of me that easily? No way Hosé. I’ll still be uploading three times a week on here. I don’t expect numbers to excel with the absence of Instagram, but blogging is about enjoyment. The numbers do matter somewhat, I would love for lots of people to read my message, but my main aim with blogging is to progress my writing and find other likeminded people. I have very successfully achieved that. Hmm, maybe my English teacher has something to say about the first one but slow progress is still progress. And writing three posts a week has got to be more than some people do, eh? 

Thank You!

Thank you for the support over the last three years. It means more to me than you will ever know. Thank you for your patience with me, and to those who have stuck with this blog through thick and thin. It’s been a wild ride and I am gladly awaiting the future. 

Have you done anything cool in the last week? Or even something small that made you feel happy?

I love chatting with you, so please leave a conversation starter in the comments. Sending love,

catherine x

My inactive but still awesome Instagram

Check out what I’m reading…

My bookstagram

My Pinterest (I’ll still be immersing myself in cute cat photos, and aesthetic book pics)

38 thoughts on “Chit Chat Life Update”

  1. I rarely share my post in social media and when I do usually only in Tumblr or FB
    And no electricity drive me crazy. Mainly because I hate moving around the house in candle lights. I can cook and heat water using firewoods or charcoals, I won’t even miss wifi for a month but it’s pissing me off to work in dim lights.

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  2. I am so glad to at least be reading your blog posts Catherine!!! And I can’t believe that you are listening to The Selection!!! The Selection series is DEFINITELY one of my faves!!!! Francine loves them even more than me, so we should all talk about the series once you’re done listening!! And did you hear that the series is turning into a TV show?!?! I am so scared to watch it! I probably won’t even watch it because the movie most of the time disappoints you once you read the book!

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  3. I think taking some time off social media is very beneficial. I was quite active on social media before but I took a break like over an year ago and just never went back to using social media regularly. As fun as social media can be I felt that pressuring myself to post everyday, plus editing which is more time consuming than people realise was making it feel like more of a forced thing rather than a fun thing to help promote my blog. I guess the pressure kind of ruined it for me and so I decided to just concentrate on blogging which I really enjoy,

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    • I’m sure it will be. Don’t get me wrong, I love Instagram. However it dawned on me the other week that I’ve never taken a break from it. During my detox I plan to put the blog first, and get into a good routine of taking photos (which tends to be my downfall with blogging). Even if I don’t achieve those things, it will be nice to take a step back and live in the moment! Already this morning I’ve seen a drastic (positive) change in my mood without social media 🙂 x

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  4. Hey Catherine! I actually had online school this week-just on wednesday. Met my new teachers…but I did have to open the camera so my new teachers can see me and see that I’m “attentive”. This has made me realise that I don’t stop moving/fidgeting 😂😂 it’s been hell trying to control my facial expressions, but my self control is getting better by the day 😂

    What about you? When will you start school (online or irl)?

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    • Oh I didn’t consider that some people are already in school! That’s so awkward – meeting your new teachers online. I’m sure it will work out though! Here in the UK we’ll be going back to school full time from September onwards. That’s what I’ve been told anyway… it’s as if coronavirus doesn’t exist anymore! All the government want is to make more money… typical 🙂

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  5. The only point to any of this is to do what is right for you and have everything be in good time. There is so much to maintain and keep up with on a daily basis that it can so easily lead to burnout. The only way to combat it is to intentionally take a step back and say “not today!”

    Sending you lots of love and light Catherine. Enjoy your time away and I hope you get your room sorted out! x

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    • Hey Maryam! Thank you for your lovely comment. I do love making content, but with the intense heat recently I’ve found it hard to concentrate. All I want to do is eat ice cream, sleep, read, repeat. Of course that’s exactly what I’ve been doing! I did get my room sorted, thank you for asking. I put an audiobook on while I sorted through things – making it less overwhelming. My room looks much more put together now! I really appreciate you reading. Have a good week :))) x

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      • Sounds like something I’d do! Except I usually listen to podcasts while I fold clothes or sort out my room. I like listening to music too but it sometimes find myself just repeating songs. I totally get what you mean about the heat interfering with everything you’re doing. That’s no fun at all! Best to just step back and use the time to relax or slowly work through things. Anyway, thank you! Have a great week Catherine x

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  7. So proud of you for taking the social detox, I’m sure it’ll be amazing 💓 Social media can be so draining and even though usually I’m sad that I don’t have it, (I’m not allowed) I think my quality of life is better than if I had social media and was constantly obsessing over posts and likes.
    Okayyyy conversation starter: I drove on the freeway for the first time the other day!! It wasn’t as bad as I thought it was gonna be but it was still pretty nerve-racking! I feel like this is a dumb question but you have free ways in the UK right? Haha I feel like you have them but I didn’t know for sure 🙂
    Loved this post ❤

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    • Instagram and Pinterest are mainly ways to share my blogging message through other platforms! Most of my supporters come through Instagram – which is crazy. Didn’t know what a free way was until I searched, it said ‘a dual-carriageway main road, especially one with controlled access’. From the photos it’s just like a motorway or dual carriage way! We do have them in the UK. And the infamous M6… That probably makes no sense to you. I feel like driving down a freeway, even though it is really fast, must be better than a busy road with lots of turnings and things to look out for (people!!!). I’m so glad to hear it 🙂 Good luck with the rest of your driving adventures x

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  8. Oooof, no electricity must have been tough! It’s crazy how much we rely on it these days but, it also it shows me how lucky I am to take that for granted.
    Let me take a minute to appreciate you were listening to the Selection! That series is everything 😁

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  9. It’s sad how so many people rely on their happiness being made by the likes of social media of which isn’t exactly healthy for them, such as Instagram and promoting body image. In all honesty, I think we would be one step closer to a happier world if it merely didn’t exist. We have texts, and calls…we don’t necessarily need everything else that comes along with the latest smartphone. Thank you for this post…it’s nice to read all of these comments and know that I’m not the only one that feels this way x

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