it was bound to happen

***Updated a few days and deep breaths later: The comments at the end of this post showcase the hearts and minds of the supportive blog community that I am honored and thrilled to be a part of.  YOU are the sprinkles on the top of my cupcakes, the unexpected discount at the register and the silver lining to every cloud!!  Thank you for your sweet comments in spite of my little pity party below :) ***

That "anonymous" comment that totally bummed me out.  

That made me question what I share here.  

That made me want to click "revert to draft" and sort it out later.  
That same sickening feeling when someone makes a negative comment on a pin from your blog.

Or makes one of your recipes and then bashes it on their site.
Or worse, copies & pastes an entire post (pictures included with my watermarks) on their blog without a link back or mention. 

I am a little saddened since the things listed above (all of which I stumbled on this morning ... thanks, Google.) seem so counter productive to what this online community is all about.  I get the whole free speech thing, say what you want, it's cool.  And I appreciate honesty, I do. 
But from my personal perspective, I don't want to generate traffic based on documenting a recipe fail or share harsh criticism about another blogger's project that didn't turn out like I expected it to.  Basically, I guess it boils down to personal choice.  If something doesn't work out for me, I simply add it to my mental "try this again and maybe tweak this" list or "probably not gonna make/do again" list.

For the record:  This blog is a true labor of love.  Really, I have never made a single penny.  I am not a trained pastry chef but a home cook.  I am not a DIY master, just a passionate crafter.  I am not a perfect blogger.  You might even find a typo on occasion.  You may make something that doesn't turn out just so.  Instead of lashing out with a comment here or somewhere else, would you just consider chalking it up to an experience, a mistake or just a bad day in the kitchen or craft room?  The world will be a better place for it!

Since it's blogging 101 to never, ever publish a post without pictures ;) ... let's end this rant temper tantrum post with something positive and a few of my favorite Pinterest quotes:


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There, I feel a little better already!!
(And yep, I've read the big blogs' posts on responding to negative comments and I might re-read them today, but I just thought I'd share a little of what was on my heart today.)