Blog Phase 3: Why I want to blog again.

Maybe the 3rd time is the charm. This blog has had several iterations, and lately I've felt a pull to blog again.

 http://ericamathews.com/5-reasons-why-you-should-have-a-blog/

Things that make me want to blog again:

1. Sometimes those of us considered "early career" want good information that isn't geared towards 22 year olds who just graduated from undergrad. I'm considered a post-doc trainee these days. It's basically the purgatory between grad school and your first "real" job. A post-doc is a job; I have a salary, insurance, and my own office. It's not permanent though. Mine, for instance will last another 2 years, so between now and June 2016,  I still have to look for a "real" job. That search process isn't like the search for your first job out of undergrad. There are lots of people out there in the same boat. We all have to network, learn better time management strategies, etc. Turns out launching your career is a process that takes several years and takes a lot of  Luckily I have access to cool resources through my program and it would be nice to share some of those resources with other young professionals.
2. People ask me a lot about grocery shopping and meal planning. I've got a routine that works well for me, I eat really well, and I spend very little. Turns out a majority of blogs that include quite a bit of meal planning are geared towards families with young children, people who are willing to eat a lot of stuff because you can use coupons for it, and people who cook really fancy stuff. My favorite of these categories would be people who cook fancy stuff. Especially if they post gorgeous pictures that make me drool. It's not so practical for most of us to eat that way. A lot of us don't have a family yet. Some of us want to eat wholesome foods, don't want to use coupons, and don't want to break the bank. Some of us want to cook for 1-2 people, figure out how to plan lunches to take to work, and how to Some of us also need to support a fairly high level of physical activity. Might as well get some of this stuff written in one place so that when people ask, I can just send them a link!
3. Sometimes I just want to write about stuff on my mind and throw it out there. Not because I think you care, but because it's therapeutic to get it out of my mind. If something inspires me, maybe it will inspires someone else!