A Coffee State of Mind will go through some structural changes at the end of this year. I have to admit, I’ve had some difficulty finding a consistent footing. I don’t often write about personal things. Some writers focus primarily on personal stuff. I can’t do it. That’s the reason ninety percent of my content is based on a fictitious town called Maple Valley. (Maple Valley is a little town on my HO scale model railroad.)

Even though I was in ministry for thirty-one years, I’m not comfortable writing about spiritual things. It just seems to cheapen the content when the motivation for writing is a quest for subscribers and “likes.” I have never been interested in debating scripture interpretation, and I’m not going to start now. I was a writer for a Christian publishing house for several years and had no trouble completing assignments. That kind of writing is very different than a subjective blog sent out into the blogosphere, vulnerable to comments of all kinds.

I have often considered writing about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. Over the past sixty-two years, I have spent an unhealthy amount of time studying, reading, watching videos again and again, and obsessing over the topic. I have been to Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas. I stood near the picket fence on the grassy knoll. I stared at the southeast corner window on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository. Nothing I think, do, say, or write is going to change the fact that my conclusion about what happened is correct.

I refuse to write about politics. I don’t know anything about the environment. All I know about economics I learned in two years of classes when I was studying for teacher certification. I was certified to teach secondary social studies and psychology. I have a Master’s Degree in Educational and Professional Counseling, but I wouldn’t write about education.

My master’s degree led to an opportunity to be a therapist at a community mental health center. I was also a middle school counselor for five years, a position I cherished and still miss. I loved being with the students. I wouldn’t, however, try to write about mental health from a professional perspective. Doing so might open a door for ethical or legal challenges. No, thank you.

I could write about Quintin O’Dillmotte’s mental health. It seems obvious that he struggles with some mental or at least emotional issues. Sheriff Pete Terkinberry’s personal life might be a good topic. No one questions why he spends so much time alone. I don’t know.

I think Linus Van Pelt had it right when he said, “I have learned there are three things I should never talk about: politics, religion, and The Great Pumpkin.” I’ve never considered writing about The Great Pumpkin. I do, however, watch The Great Pumpkin at least three times every year.

The platform for this blog is going to change at the end of the year. The pages may look different. Videos will not work. There won’t be any more AI artwork. All photos will be real. I won’t have access to tools that create nifty titles meant to boost internet search results. The drop-down menus on the front page may not work. To be honest, I’m not sure what will happen.

So, why am I making the changes, you may wonder? (Or not.) First, I don’t need all the gadgets. They’re called “plugins,” and they’re costly. Since I have never tried to sell anything on my blog, I don’t need the mechanics for selling. I haven’t used the fancy themes, so I’m going back to a simple format that is actually called “personal.” That doesn’t mean you’re going to learn anything new about me.