The Bitter Sweet Internet

I really love the internet.

I mean, I really love the internet. It’s an escape into a world full of life, information and answers to everything. It’s always there when you need it, even on the go. The internet embraces you like an old friend or at least a good therapist.

Click. Elly! I’m so glad you’ve stopped by! Click. Pull up a chair, rest your feet! Click. Here, have some of your favorite cookies, now what’s on your mind?

Need some social interaction, or some good gossip? Facebook it is. Duh.

How about random news and utterly irrelevant photos and events? Digg is always a good time waster.

Want a funny, clean online comic? Check out Daisy Owl. Steve the bear is a subtle comedic genius.

Ah, internet, you’re always giving and hardly ever asking for anything in return (other than the occasional login or password) and you remember all my favorite things. True friend, indeed.

However, I really need to stop looking at the long list of sites including smittenkitchen, bakerella and of course Etsy, as these craft and foody sites are doing nothing for my inner artsy/homemaker well being, which at the moment is yearning whining for freedom.

I light up with giddiness upon perfectly adorable deserts where I questions if I’m supposed to actually eat them, much like questioning using a cute guest bathroom towel with tassels and embroidery.

I tighten the proverbial belt when studying gorgeous photos of rich recipes as if though they were gingerly hung in a special food gallery that obviously endorses the use of butter…and lots of it.

I feel the creative gears turning from their rusty state of dormancy when I click through hundreds of craft, clothes and jewelry designs, ignoring the running total in my head from cost of supplies.

And just as the internet is a world of its own and friends should never overstay their welcome, I’m forced to step out of it’s warm glow and back into cold reality of harsh florescent lights.

Oh yeah, I’m at work.

It’s times like this I wish I could be that stay at home mom, with the perfectly clean and decorated home. The one where there’s always something baking in the over, simmering on the stove, fabric feeding through a sewing machine and buttons, pipe cleaners and glitter galore.

Although my journal is chalk full of sketches, designs and entrepreneurial ideas, I simply have no time to spend doing these things. Work is one thing, but Max is another job entirely. By the time I get my little free time I’m allotted each day after he goes down for the night, the exhaust from the day leaves me with not even enough energy to remove the stuffed monkey or toy keys on the couch I happen to be sitting on at any given moment.

And so, the dishes pile. The toys are still scattered. The pots and pans remain cold.

Now, this isn’t to say that maybe one day in the future I can transform into Ms. Susie Homemaker...no, better yet, Empress of Embroidery, Contessa of Cakes, Baroness of Bourguignon...

Until the Internet can loan me a few dollars (legally) so I'm not tied to the necessity of working the 9-5, I’ll just have to visit my friend from time to time for a yummy treat.