Penguina here. Back indeed from flowerland!
Well, I read all these comments with interest and thank you for your words of comfort. They help! I knew you'd understand.
Quite a few people talked about consultation with an instructor or the club as an option. GK430 even sounded rather critical. Strange as it may seem, I do actually do this!
Friday was a good example of where it was not so helpful.
I made up my own mind, on the basis of the various 'PROB's in the TAFs, that the weather was not good enough to undertake what I'd planned. This decision was partly based on the fact that I HAD to be at my destination this weekend. I couldn't risk needing to divert and, moreover, spotted the potential to find myself attempting to battle on where I should really be looking to land somewhere.
I then phoned the club to cancel and they were clearly a little surprised as the weather wasn't too bad at the field. To their credit, they didn't attempt to persuade me outright not to cancel my flight, but they did instill the doubt in my mind that led me to post here in the first place.
Things were not helped when, at my beautiful destination, the weather was rather gorgeous for two days!
I've been stupidly overloaded and busy with not-fun things lately (as well as a nasty accident), pining for my other world of hushed, slow-changing landscapes and wandering shadows of clouds, where I feel in control for a change!
As to flying with instructors, I agree this has its place, especially if the instructor is good. However, the effect on me of having to defer, which I find undermines my own confidence a bit, has to be set against that benefit of gaining experience of adverse conditions 'safely'. I have spent a lot of time with instructors...
"I just don't feel like facing that particular challenge today". When people make fatal mistakes in aircraft, it's often because they hadn't fully committed the time and mental effort required to get it right on the day.
Whirlybird is of course right: no point in paying to be miserable. But there are times when I have thought I didn't feel like it, couldn't face it, would rather have a beer, etc., but forced myself to make make that psychological upheaval and fly - and landed glittering with enthusiasm and pride, itching to go again tomorrow! This is what makes it such an impossible call!
Looks like the agonising decisions don't stop with the IMC either!