ENERGY is the theme for March 2016

Get Your Energy Levels Up With BlogHer's March Writing Lab.

So what is the BlogHer Writing Lab theme this month?

ENERGY
I know that the saying about March is in like a lion and out like a lamb, and while that's nice for weather, it doesn't really serve us well as individuals. We need to get our energy up, up, up. We need to be completing projects, writing posts, checking things off our to-do lists.

We are moving towards spring, and that means it's time to start gearing up for the high-energy time period of summer. It's time to think about what we're going to do with those extra hours of sunlight. It's time to even start thinking about banking some evergreen posts so you can take the summer off to play while your blog continues to work.

But you're not going to be able to do that without a little spring prep work.

This month, we're looking at your energy levels. We're going to think about energy drains and ways to restore energy. We're going to talk about how to not only get over writer's block but how to power through posts so you can bank a few for the lean weeks when your energy stores are low.

This theme looks familiar.  Oh, yes, it was the theme for January 2013.

Follow over the jump for me being a good environmentalist and recycling.


What did I have to say about it then?

Based on the description above and the prompts, the theme refers more to motivation and inspiration than it does to energy as I use the term on this blog.  Take today's prompt, for example. "From where do you draw your energy?"  When it comes to motivation and inspiration, it's my love of knowledge and teaching that knowledge so that people can improve their lives, along with my intense desire to perform and be appreciated.

My observations about the prompts are just as true of this month's as they were of those three years ago.  So is my reaction to it and them.

But that's not how I'm going to treat this theme.  Instead, I'll take the part about "how well we'd do with an extended power outage" and run with it.

When I blog about energy this month, I'll write about how many calories of food I metabolize, how many BTUs of natural gas is burned on my behalf to heat my house, heat the water I use, and cook my food, how many gallons of gasoline and diesel move me and all the things I need to where I need them, and how much dirty coal and Uranium-235 it takes to keep the lights on, refrigerate my food and drink, and run all the electronics.  On top of that, where does all of this come from, how much does it cost, including all the hidden environmental and human costs, and what happens to all the waste that is produced.  Finally, is there a better way and, if so, how can we get there?

Of course, I'm subverting the monthly theme to mean what I want it to mean, and what I do here anyway, except in a more intense form than usual.  But that's OK.

And it still is.  As the current announcement states:

The BlogHer Writing Lab is what you make of it. At its core, it's about getting you writing. It's about helping you get your words ready once you've taken the time to write. And it's about helping you grow your space and take next steps.

So join the March BlogHer Writing Lab, and let's get your energy levels up.

And that's exactly what I'm doing.  Of course, it helps that energy is already one of my most used labels with 508 uses so far.  Expect at least another 33 by the end of the month.