Happy trails to you, until we meet again

And so it comes to this.

This is a very difficult decision, particularly because I've spent the last two-and-a-half years since my return to blogging in October 2006 working to build up the audience and interest in this sucky blog that I'd lost during the previous 18 months, when I was going through some really tough times. Since my comeback, I've been honored to receive a number of awards and develop a small but loyal following, and I greatly appreciate all of that.

But this is a momentous and tumultuous time in my life, largely (though not totally) because I've decided to sit for the Florida Bar exam at the end of next month. During the last couple of weeks, as I've been traveling and then starting my preparation for the exam in earnest, I've felt an inordinate amount of pressure to post to this blog regularly, cogently, and snarkily in spite of my unavailability. Indeed, I've actually felt guilty at not being able to post here as much as I'd like, and that means my priorities are kind of screwed up.

The truth is, as many of you know, a blog post that may take 15 minutes to write usually requires double or triple that amount of time to research the issue in question and discard other topics that, for whatever reason, don't make the cut -- not to mention the time I spend after posting trying to publicize the posts. And so, when I'm blogging at full bore (pun intended), I'm spending at least two or three hours a day on this blog that, frankly, doesn't pay the bills -- at a time when I need to be studying and looking for a job full-time. (Incidentally, unemployment sucks.)

So, regrettably, I've decided to go on hiatus. I just can't worry anymore about my blog when I have much, much more important things that require my attention.

My plan is this: the Bar exam is at the end of July. After that, I have to take the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE), or the "ethics" exam*, the first week in August -- yes, lawyers are expected to be ethical. Once all that is overwith and, hopefully, I'm gainfully employed again, I'll return to the blog. In short, my hiatus -- from Blast Off! the blog and Blast Off! Radio -- should last two months at the most. So, please don't delete Blast Off! from blogrolls and such -- because it will be back before the summer ends.

I know I'll lose readers and Google placement and linky goodness and all that, but I just can't worry about that right now. I must focus on my life and the lives of my loved ones, and this sucky blog will have to take a back seat for now. It'll still be here when I return and, besides, it's an off-year for elections (believe it or not!), so campaigns still will be active, politicians still will be politicking, and Republicans still will be corrupt in August ...

Thanks so much for understanding. See you in August -- and keep smilin' until then.

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* Of course, I've done all this before, back in 1994 in Missouri and 1995 in Illinois -- but scores are only good for a year before they expire -- plus Florida offers no reciprocity to attorneys from other jurisdictions even if I were eligible for it (which I'm not). So it's déjà vu all over again ...