Allright, so Amelia wasn’t having dinner with me, although with my extremely extended absence from this blog, it certainly seems plausible.  A lot has been changing in my life, and I’d like to bring everyone up to speed.

• In July, I moved to small-town Georgia (about an hour East of Macon)
• In nine days, I will be getting married
• I’ve been dealing with personal issues that required the assistance of a psychiatrist. (Hey, I never claimed I wasn’t crazy.)
• My mother passed away in August, and I have been dealing with the grief process
• I’ve - ultimately - been finally approaching that point in one’s life where one sits back, shakes their head in amazement, and finally realized that Corinthians I had hit at last (”…when I became a man, I put aside childish things”).

My life, ultimately, has changed for the better, although this period of time was not without its negatives.  The loss of my mother was a defining moment in my life.  She was truly my best friend, and my closest confidant.  The fact that it happened so soon after my moving out of my parents’ home, and several states away, made it all the harder.  This, combined with pre-existing issues, led me to consult with the wonderful individuals at my local rubber room. (A joke.  I have never undergone
inpatient psychiatric care.  I have merely been being treated for depression as a standard office-visit type patient.)  Fortunately, I have met a wonderful woman, and in nine days, we are to be married.

What does this mean for MindSpeak?  Hopefully not too much of a change.  Since I have moved out of Texas, I will be moving more towards a broader political base, including more national and international politics, as well as a fair bit of Georgia politics.  Yes, I certainly intend to continue blogging about the Texas political arena, and I hope to remain a member of the Texas Progressive Alliance, as well as potentially forming a similar group of bloggers for the Georgia progressives.  Additionally,
I hope to ask my wife to begin blogging here, as well.  She shares many of my political views, and - in fact - is a bit more liberal than I am, overall.  I think her voice would be a welcome change around here.

When is all of this going to take place?  Sometime after the start of the year.  During the next week, I will be moving servers (the change should be seamless, and the blog should not go down).  Towards the middle of January, I hope to be into a routine where blogging will have a specific portion of my day dedicated.  As I have multiple blogs, I hope to - again - have a defined schedule of updates (i.e. every mon, wed, fri, etc).  Given that I will be blogging only a specific number
of days per week, I am considering doing specific topics on specific days.  In example, Monday: Texas Politics, Wedensday: Georgia Politics, Friday: National/International Politics.

Ultimately, I’m not certain how this will all turn out, but I do know that MindSpeak will make a comeback!  I hope to see you around, once it does!