Blogs, Life and Choices - and Quilting

It seems like, in general, you either make your life happen or your life happens to you.  And usually we have seasons of one - having some order or control over what is going on in our lives and seasons of the second - reacting to life happening around us.  Lately I've been in that second category of watching life swirl around me.  And consequently blogging hasn't been at the top of my list.  I have a paper by my computer of topics I want to blog about but haven't, for one reason or another.  But I have had so many thoughts and ponderings and getting older means that those thoughts will only stay with me for so long unless they get written down.

Long ago, at the start of my blog I wondered why blogs stop.  I was new to following blogs and would often find one that I enjoyed but taking a closer look at the dates I realized that the writer had been gone for months or sometimes years.  There was no conclusion like a book, no season finale like a TV series, no final thoughts.  The blog just seemed abandoned like someone had walked out of their house one day and left everything behind.  Now, having blogged for several years, I think I understand a little better.  Sometimes life happens.  Other interests take over.  Writing down thoughts and activities no longer adds to our day, it just becomes another thing to do.  Sometimes the whole process of picture taking and editing and posting is more than we want to deal with.  But we still sort of like the idea.  Maybe life will slow down or inspiration will strike so we just sort of put our bookmark in place and set the blog aside.  Then time moves on and suddenly it's been months or years and blogging becomes something we did "back then"- sort of like diaries of old or paper and pencil journaling (both of which I've done in the past).  I guess the main difference is that no one knew when those writings were started or when they ended.  No, I'm not getting out of the blogosphere.....just acknowledging a little insight into some old questions I've had.

That sort of leads me to my second pondering (which actually has a quilting connection).   We often think of choices in life in terms of what we choose, but in reality choices are more about what we DON'T choose.....what we say "no" to can be as important as what we say "yes" to.  Son #1 had a very broad assortment of interests in high school - from drama to art to engineering to logic and debate to science.  But to be good at one he would have to spend less time with the others.  His dilemma was not finding what he liked or should pursue in life but acknowledging the need to say  "no" to other likes.  So maybe my missing bloggers have decided to say "yes" to other interests for awhile and need to harness some of the time and energy spent on blogging in their other areas.  Just like (wait for it.....here comes the quilting transition) choosing fabrics for a quilt.  We may have 20 fabrics that seem to go together and that are all pleasing to us.  But saying "yes" to all of them would create a chaotic design.  So we need to figure out what to say "no" to so that we can accomplish our final goal of a coordinated pattern that we like.  Did we like ALL of the fabrics?  Yes.  But we couldn't make our quilt with all of them.  Did Son #1 like all of those varied interests? Yes.  But pursuing his eventual profession required a total concentration of his time and energy for several years.  Saying "no" to good things is sometimes needed so that we can say "yes" to other good things.

So, life is still happening to me and probably won't slow down for awhile yet, but I'm not ready to say "no" to blogging.....just a bit slow at it. 

Playing Hooky - Again!

I've been playing blog hooky again.  It started with our beach vacation at the beginning of June and then just expanded to now.  I have a whole list of things I want to blog about, though so perhaps I'll get motivated to put all the thoughts down on virtual paper soon.  I'm still a bit behind on things around the house.  My quilt guild had our quilt show this past weekend (more on that soon) and tomorrow Seamus is due at the vet for some surgery (probably no details forthcoming on that since I don't think it's of general interest - unless of course I just need to share  :-) ).  And the garden got way ahead of me as you can see:

Yup....that's a sunflower growing out of our gutter.  But I love sunflowers and can't bear to pull it out just yet.  In a few days it will die and I guess then it's time to clean out the gutter and weed the beds.

More (hopefully) later.

Back from My Blogging Sabbatical

I've been on a bit of a blogging sabbatical this last month.  Things got a bit busy around here and it seemed like a time to just be quite and to myself instead of sharing.

I've been keeping up with most of my bloggy friends even though I haven't commented much at all.  I can't say the same for my sewing.  Some has gotten done, but I don't have a full and complete finish to share and still might not for awhile.  I have actually been NOT reading the posts that make me want to start yet one more new project.  I'm determined to finish up a few things.

So....one good news item to share:  I'm now officially a Nana!  Our granddaughter arrived late January 22, one week before her due date.  Her mother got to experience everything the hospital offered from natural labor to pain control measures to induced labor and finally to C-section.  But they are both doing well now and I am truly smitten by this little one as is the husband.  He bought the most girlish lavender dress with ruffles that he could find and he can't wait to fill the backyard with a sandbox, playhouse and all manner of play equipment.  I've tried to point out that it will be quite awhile before she can use such things, but he just wants to "be prepared". We were supposed to have our babysitting debut tomorrow but that might now be in question due to:

We are buried in snow along with much of the East coast.  Fortunately our power is still on.  I've cleared the bird feeder for our feathered friends and we've broadcast seed on top of the snow for them.  The colors of the birds are so brilliant against the white snow.  So far we have at least 12" and it is still coming down.  Not much is moving outside in our neighborhood.  I've called to be put on the list for a driveway "plow out" so all that is left is to sit and wait.  I may make a snowy excursion to the mailbox soon although I don't think my boots are quite high enough to keep the snow at bay!

 

Spring will be SO welcomed this year!

 

When Your Toys Don't Work

Part of the frustration and busyness of the past week has been the result of technology failures.  We've had a series of problems with different items in the house.  And I just get so frustrated when my toys don't work.

First was our TV.  Our old one died so we replaced it.  I was amazed at how much better the picture was and for several days we just stared in amazement at the TV, weather it was showing a commercial, a news show or a National Geographic special, commenting on the great picture.  The TV also has some "smart" features including the ability to be operated by voice or by hand movements.  I went through the tutorials to "introduce" myself to "TV".  I never could get it to understand my hand gestures (tempting me to make another hand gesture that nice girls don't use). But we did seem to come to an understanding on the voice control.  It turned out to be a feature that has a lot of cool factor and little practicality so it went unused.  I guess Mr. T.V. was feeling left out because every so often in the middle of a show with no hands on any remote it would go into voice mode, mute the TV sound and demand that we use one of the voice commands.  A call to the store finally resulting in disabling that feature on the options menu.  So for now it seems that problem is solved.  Although it makes me wonder why we have features that we can't use....but there IS that GREAT picture.  That counts for a lot.

Then the embroidery function on my sewing machine had a hiccup.  The machine works great but it doesn't want to read any files from a USB stick or from a laptop.  This isn't something that I do often, but I had decided to work on the Craftsy class on Machine Embroidered Quilting and was actually making some progress when the machine decided that it didn't want to play nice with outside technologies. Finally after trying a variety of things for about an hour I called my local store who called tech support who said that it sounds like a loose connection but it needs to be checked by a technician.  So it's at the sewing machine doctor getting fixed.

And then....what really made me lose my blogging mojo was Blogger itself.  I wrote this nice post about my neighborhood and pets and social media but Blogger coughed somewhere in the middle of my composing and the entire post was lost in cyberspace somewhere.  The only part saved as a draft was a first sentence.  It was one of those posts that is difficult to recapture once you've put the thoughts down initially.  Maybe one day I'll try those thoughts again, but not just now.

So, to balance out the techy failures and provide a bit of eye candy - here are some successes of nature from our yard:

 

 

Bloglovin' Time

It's time for a little blog housekeeping post.  I've been reading about blogs signing up with Bloglovin' because Google Reader is going to be discontinued.  When I view my blog "dashboard" there is a reading list where new posts from the blogs I follow show up.  I'm assuming that this method of following blogs will continue.  If I'm wrong about this, someone please tell me.  I would hate to just have the list of blogs that I follow disappear one day.

Anyway, I popped over to Bloglovin since there was also a lot of talk about having to sign your blog up so that others could follow this way.   And....my blog appears to already be there with some followers.  So it seems as though all is well.  Again....if I'm missing something here, please tell me.  It seems as though this blog can be followed via Bloglovin' once Google REader completely disappears and it seems like my reading system (the Reading List) is safe.  True?

And....since every post needs a photo:

This oil painting was done by my cousin.  My poor photography doesn't do it justice.  She got the coloring and shadows so spot on that you feel like you're at the lake when you look at it.

A Blog By Any Other name.......

I think it's time to change the name of my blog.  I started blogging as some accountability in my efforts to lose weight.  But then came quilting, and other quilting bloggers and that has now become the main focus of my posts.  I also feel like I've developed a community of other quilting bloggers and it seems like it's time to make my blog name reflect this.

So, now, welcome to Quilts, Life and Balance.  I just couldn't let the balance thing go.  Everything in life seems to demand balance.  In dieting, balance is everything.  Most foods can be OK if eaten in a small portion and any food can be bad if you eat too much of it.  And the same is true of time spent sewing, or on the computer or cleaning my house.  And since not all my posts are sewing related I opted for the name you see today.  I've kept the URL the same so that links to my blog will still work.

And, to go along with the new name I decided on a new picture:

Yup, that's me at about seven years old.  I can tell that by the gap in the front of my mouth.  I loved that Mickey Mouse dress with the Peter Pan collar.  Get a look at the vintage print on those curtains!  That was taken in our kitchen.  My mother made those curtains and after they were curtains they were a table cloth.  We were strong proponents of "Use it up. Wear it out. Make it do. Do without." 

So, if my blogging skill is adequate, once I hit the right buttons my changes will be seen.  If your reading this and the name and picture haven't changed...well....I'm working on it.

The Liebster Award!

                                                  

During this season of Grammys and Oscars, I have been awarded the Liebster by Nancy, at Joy for Grace.  Thank you, Nancy!  The Liebster is a fun award by bloggers to bloggers.  To qualify the blog must have less than 200 followers or must be less than six months old.  Once the award is received you are to write a post and:

1. List 11 random things about yourself.
2. Answer 11 questions posed by the nominator.
3. Choose 11 blogs to pass the award on to and link them to your post.
4. Create 11 questions for those 11 people to answer.

So here goes....................

11 Random Things About Myself:

1. I love black licorice and dark chocolate - not together, though.
2. I like to send and receive letters.
3. My favorite coffee is from Cafe du Monde in New Orleans. It has chicory mixed with the coffee and strangely enough is sold in a local Asian market near me.
4. My sister, the family genealogist, tells me that several of our ancestors made their living by sewing in the "old" country.
5. I love to swim.
6. I'm an alum of West Virginia University.  Let's go Mountaineers!
7. I hate to grocery shop.  It's almost a phobia.
8. I homeschooled my 3 boys for grades 1-4.
9. I like to skeet shoot and horse back ride, although I seldom get to do either.
10. I've always been a breakfast eater.
11. I didn't get chicken pox until I was 30 and then managed to infect an entire church nursery of children and my own, of course.

Answers to Nancy's Questions:

1.  What is your favorite kind of cheese?
I like Gouda for snacking and Parmesan for adding flavor to dishes.

2.  Do you prefer wearing pants or dresses/skirts?
I prefer dresses and skirts, but I'm most often in pants....jeans.   

3.  How long have you been involved in the topic(s) you blog about?
I blog about most everything I guess.  I've sewed since I was very young, but only    dusted off my hobby two years ago when I retired. 

4.  Do you have a pet and if so, write something about him/her.
I have a beloved 11 year old male golden retriever whom I love dearly. He is the first and only dog I have ever owned. I take him with me whenever I can and miss him when I can't.

5.  What is your favorite season and why?
I like spring for it's promise and hopefulness and autumn for it's calm and rest.

6.  What color are your living room walls?
My living room walls are a creamy white.  I think the paint chip was "Calla Lily". The woodwork is a putty color.

7.  Are you an early bird or night owl?
I have been both at different times in my life, but presently I'm neither.  Winter makes me a bit of a black bear - I hibernate and like to be away when the sun is out.

8.  How did you choose your blog's title?
Life is all about balance and that's never truer than with dieting.  My blog started out as a way to help me stay on track with my weight loss.... and then came quilting.  I decided to keep the name.  Even quilting is about balance of color, size of the pieces, value.

9.  What one thing can you not live without?
This is a hard question!  I'm going to limit the field of answers to "things" (as opposed to people) and say my toothbrush.

10.  What is your favorite color and color combinations and have they changed over time?
They certainly have changed!  Years ago I had a chair recovered in a blue fabric because I thought I would always have blue in my house....now most of the home is green and brown and the chair is again in need of recovering!  And, I still like blue.

11.  What is your favorite movie and how many times have you watched it?
My lifelong favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz.  I've watched it at least 30 times, probably many more.  I started watching very young and have never tired of it.

Blog Nominations:

The Lazy Quilter
Amanda's Musings
Quilts in the Queue
Heart of Charnwood
Hello Quilty Lady
Red Letter Quilts
Kevin the Quilter
A Smidgen of Joy
My Quilts and Other Stories
Naahien sewing nahen
Walking Life's Path Again


Questions for Nominees:

1. Are you a coffee or tea drinker?
2. Name one quilt or pattern that is on your "some day" list.
3. Do you live in the city or the country?
4. What are your favorite and least favorite parts of blogging?
5. Where (sewing room, dining room, etc.) do you sew?
6. When you are not sewing or working, what activity do you do?
7. Do you sew in the quiet or is a radio or TV playing?  What is it playing?
8. Have you ever been to a quilt convention or retreat and if so, what did you like most about it?
9. Name a historical figure that you admire.
10. Would you rather spend a day at a spa or a day at a fabric store?
11. Do you like to ride roller coasters?

So, there you have it.  I hope my nominees have fun with this. I enjoy all of your blogs so much and love to see what you've been doing both sewing and otherwise.

The Virginia Quilt Museum

I'm still not back to the sewing machine.  My days have been pretty full lately with seasonal activities.  I've also spent quite a bit of time researching new sewing machines!  But this weekend my sister and I paid a visit to The Virginia Quilt Museum.  It's a museum devoted to quilting through the years and through different cultures.  They have special exhibits that change regularly.  The current exhibit is from a mostly Latina quilting cooperative in California and depicts scenes of family life, border crossings and life in Mexico.  There is a also a room devoted to Civil War quilts, to quilts made by groups, quilts from several generations of a local family, a room filled with old sewing machines and a small library.  The gift shop is filled with quilting related items.  I decided to become a member which allows me free admission for the year as well as some other benefits.  No pictures were allowed in the museum but if you follow the link above there are some nice photos of some of the exhibit quilts.

Admission is $7 for non members.  If you're in the area (the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia) it's definitely worth the visit.  The skill and detail of the older quilts made with a hand needle or one of the primitive machines really made me think about my desire for a new sewing machine that "does more"....than my present 34 stitches!  These ladies had so little to work with and created beautiful pieces.  And their quilts were not only pretty but had to be useful and stand up to the stresses of the day.  I really admire their work.

And, I'm a little late but I'm hooking up with the small blog meet again at Lily's Quilts. What a great way to "meet" other bloggers!

Small Blog Meet.

There is a small blog meet sponsored by Lilly's Quilts.  I thought I'd give it a try.  Here's the link:
                                                       
Hop on over and have a look. 

I'm Back!

It seems like I've been gone forever, but I've never left home!  We had a severe storm a few nights ago and our Internet went out.  My tech support (the husband) was away and my simple solutions (basically reboot anything you can) were unsuccessful so rather than make a total mess of the home network I decided to just wait for his return.  It made me realize how many times I access the Internet for answers - everything from the weather to directions to a place I read about to information on a topic that caught my eye.  Of course I could turn to the newspaper or TV for the weather, paper maps for directions and books for information on certain topics, but usually my first choice is to look it up online. We're back to normal now.  It will take me a few days to catch up on things here and elsewhere, but being "unplugged" for awhile provides a nice perspective.

State of the Blog Address

I just went back and read some of my very first postings.  Wow....was that an eye opener!.  I started this blog to provided some accountability for my weight loss.  But it wasn't until I reread the first post that I realized that I never reached my original weight loss goal!  I know that sounds strange.  But I've been so pleased with the weight that I did lose that I lost track of the fact that I didn't lose all that I had intended.  And this year I've essentially added no additional weight loss.  So, the good news is that I've maintained my weight for about nine months, but the bad news is that I still have more to go.  I like how clothes fit now and I'm certainly more healthy, but my BMI is still a bit high and my short stature could afford to be a bit lighter.  So, perhaps I need to review my present diet and activity and figure out how to accomplish a bit more weight loss.  Up until now I've aimed at lifestyle changes that I could maintain and I think that's been successful.  I just need to come up with a few additional changes I guess.

And although dieting was the motivation to start this blog, it has grown to more than that.  I've found it a fun way to keep track of my sewing projects, travel, and even random thoughts and ideas.  It's sort of an electronic diary.  As a teenager, back in the pre-computer days, I had a diary now and again.  After a while we called it "journaling" but it's all basically the same thing: a written "snapshot" of a part of your life.  I'll keep on blogging until it no longer is fun.  The written snapshots really enhance an aging memory!

My First Online Comment!!

Mark this day on the calendar!  I've received my first online comment!  I know I've complained about the lack of dialogue on this blog (or maybe whined is a better word) but it has finally happened!  Thank you so much Heirloom Creations!  This is one of my favorite sites for inspiration and information.  They are presently doing a "foot of the month" series that I really like.  Each month they highlight a different foot showing the different things you can use it for.  I've added a few of them to my "wish list" and actually want to plan projects that will let me try some of the techniques.  The link above is to the blog, but the site includes a lot of other features including an online store.

Thanks again, Heirloom and I'm looking forward to the adaptations to make the 1600 quilt in different sizes!

The 1600 Quilt: Add this to my list!!

 I stumbled onto this pattern from one of the mystery visitors to this blog.  It's called the 1600 quilt pattern and you can read about it at this site.  Apparently someone searched for this quilt and in that strange way that search engines work, my blog was one of the hits.  Anyway, this is a neat way to make a quilt using an entire jelly roll of fabric and a quick construction method.  I definitely want to try this! 

     Mystery readers......check it out!!
                               
                                       

I'm Not a Picture Taker

I like blog posts with pictures and I've come to really admire the people who post frequently with pictures.  Often they are simple things like how to bake brownies or make a certain craft project. It's many times harder to make brownies when you have to take a picture of each and every step and ingredient or to picture each step in a sewing project.  So, I've come to appreciate their dedication and effort to provide that level of interest in their blog.

I like to have pictures of my family, but I've never been much of a picture taker.  I used to be and if you look in my poorly organized photo albums you will see many, many pictures of son #1, slightly less of son #2 and many fewer of son #3.  What you won't see are many pictures of me during those years because I was always the one behind the camera.  But that's not why I don't care to take pictures these days and consequently don't post many pictures.  I began to feel that while I was watching through the viewfinder of a camera I couldn't participate in what was happening.  I was always looking for a good picture or trying to document an event on film and what I wanted to be doing was participating in the event.  I wanted to SEE my children graduate not just take a picture of it.  I want to MAKE the brownies, not take a picture of making the brownies.  I want to be present in the activity rather than document the activity.

I still take pictures and indeed have pictures of graduations and the like, but I would rather just be there and then buy (for what seems like an outrageous price) the professional photographer's picture of my son getting his diploma or getting married or participating in the (fill in the blank) team.  I've come to realize that I'm not paying just for a picture, I'm paying for the luxury of participating in the event and still being able to have the picture to commemorate it....and that is priceless.

2011 Wrap Up: Year One of Retirement

Well, the holidays are over.  The tree and decorations are down.  The big meals have been made, eaten and cleaned up.  It's time to get back to everyday living.  I've caught up on most of the details of life that get pushed aside this time of year and I feel the need to touch base here before fully moving into the new year of activities.  I've had many ideas come into my head that I wanted to write about but little time to do it.  But for now, let's just stick with the recap.

Retirement:  This was my first year of not working.  I was a bit hesitant to retire at a younger age, but anxious to try it. As the year progressed I grew to love the freedom more and more.  I've purposely NOT signed up for anything this past year - no gym membership, no volunteering, no regular commitments.  I'm sure I won't continue that trend for the rest of my life, but it has been so freeing to have my time to myself each day.  I know that my retirement won't look the same for the rest of my years, but for now I'm happy with how it looks.

Diet:  I ended the year just a few pounds shy of my goal.  Over the holidays I maintained the lost weight, but didn't continue to lose.  I've stayed active and changed my eating habits for the better.  I want to lose ten more pounds in 2012.  This will bring my BMI into the acceptable range and should help keep my family history of Type II Diabetes in check (I hope).

Quilting:  I've embraced quilting wholeheartedly.  One of my gifts this Christmas was a pair of quilting books that will continue to teach me some of the basics.  My first project of the new year will be a small wall hanging summarizing my projects of the last year.  I hope to make that a yearly thing and a way to catalog what I've done.  I also have a top that needs to be quilted and a few small projects in mind.  Then I will start down my quilt list.  The books have given me a few more ideas to add to the list too!

Travel:  When I thought about retirement I expected to travel more especially with my husband on some of his business trips and to spend some time helping my oldest sister.  Neither of these happened as I expected.  I did get some awesome travel in, though, but I didn't accompany my husband as much as I thought. That may change a bit this next year.  We'll see.

Parenting:  The boys (men) are all in a good place in their lives.  It's funny that I still consider this parenting even though they are adults and one is married.  The thing is, sometimes as they grow older you see the outcome of decisions you made years ago in their upbringing.  Some, I'm glad for; some I wish I could do over.  I wish I was able to spend more time with them; I wish we were closer (relationship wise). Maybe additional years will bring that to pass.

Blogging:  I've enjoyed my first attempt at blogging.  It gives me a good outlet for writing down my thoughts and keeping track of some aspects of life.  I don't know how long I'll continue or if I'll try to change my strategies any.  I may work on changing the look of the blog some, just for the educational experience of it all.  I enjoy watching the stats, slow as they may be.  I'm curious how people come to find my blog since it has been pretty under the radar.  I have yet to get my first official on the blog "comment".  So, if anyone out there has anything al all to say, I'm all ears.

So, like it or not, the book is closed on the holidays and 2011.  It's time to move forward and see what this next year has to bring.

Quick Blogging Thoughts and the Pirate Quilt

I still watch the stats for this blog.  I still (in almost a year) have yet to receive my first comment.  But one thing I have noticed is that my pirate quilt gets the bulk of the hits and searches.  So, I'm thinking:  What if I name each entry "Pirate Quilt" and then a consecutive number?  Just kidding - but apparently that is quite a draw.  Who would have guessed??

Secondly, I like to limit my posts to one per day, but sometimes I will have a bunch of ideas for posts, but try to hold back to spread out the publication.  By the time the next day comes around either I don't have an opportunity to post or just forget to write.  But, google in their wisdom has allowed me to schedule posts!  So now I can post my heart out and just schedule them each a day apart.  Thank you Google!

I've also discovered that even a hot number like "pirate quilt" comes up differently on different search engines.  I haven't devoted the time yet to figure out why my posts show up better on some search engines rather than others.  Perhaps that's a task for a long, cold, middle of winter day. 

So, for all you people who came to THIS post looking for my pirate quilt, sorry....try here.

Why Do Blogs Stop?

So, I know that blogging about blogging is the most boring thing I can do, but since my audience is small or maybe non-existent (I sort of feel a bit like Russell Crowe in "The Beautiful Mind" talking/writing to people who really aren't there) I'm taking some liberties here and expressing my wonderings.  I sometimes browse through blogs or happen upon them when searching for something and am surprised to find so many that just seem to end many years ago.  People were writing regularly and then just stop.  What is written is still interesting to read but the ending is abrupt. It's like watching a movie and having the DVD freeze up in the middle.  Or reading a book and losing it somewhere before you finish.  It always causes me to wonder why the person stopped.  Did life just get too busy?  Did they become ill or have some tragedy befall them?  One woman was blogging in January about a flood near her house and then another post in April and then....nothing.  A few are blogs that I try to follow because they write about common interests.  Are they no longer interested in these interests? And, I also wonder, just how long will blogspot keep an inactive blog online?  In any case it doesn't seem like a conscious decision to stop blogging.  It seems more like it "just happened".  I miss the "closure", but I suppose that's my issue.  I AM one of those people who likes to watch a movie from the first frame to the last without leaving for more popcorm or a trip to the rest room.  Hopefully when I stop blogging it will be with purpose and with a heartfelt farewell to my audience....real and/or imagined.

If a Blog is Written.....

...and nobody reads it is it still a blog?  (aka....If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it does it make noise?) I know that posts about blogging itself are the most boring of all.  And I know that towards the beginning of this blog when I was learning how to manage the task I had several blogs about my following, or lack there of and the total absence of comments. I've sort of put that to rest and have enjoyed chronicling various aspects of everyday  life. But.........I have to ask.....is there anyone out there?  You know, blogspot automatically keeps track of visits to pages and I've noticed some occasional traffic.  I wonder if these are evidence of actual people reading a post or do they represent accidental stumbles onto my pages?  Or are they just automatically generated by search engines? 

So, if you're out there, raise your hand, give me a shout, send a comment, leave a note, ask a question or just tell me to be quiet.  Thanks.

More Blogging Ponderings

So, I've been a blogger for a while now and I've been a blog reader for even longer. Here are a few of my observations:

I often hit the "next blog" button to randomly look through blogs.  I've noticed that for some reason I seem to be directed to blogs of a certain type during any one viewing.  For instance, one time I may get a lot of blogs about music, or art, or  by Moms, or in a different language.  I wonder if the "next blog" is truly random or is somehow trying to discern my preferences.

I never stop at blogs that have not been updated in a long time.  And there are quite a few that fall in this category.  Apparently it's a lot easier to start a blog than it is to maintain a blog.

I don't linger on pages that play music.  I don't linger on pages that are so chock full of visual items that it makes me crazy.  I don't linger on pages that make the text difficult to read due to background/text color choices or size or style of fonts.

I like shortish posts or at least short paragraphs.  I don't often read long rambles. 

I'm not offended by four letter words, but I dislike posts that are more about the four letter words than about the content.  I understand that often these words ARE the appropriate adjective in a given situation, but, really folks,....do we need multiple f-words to get an idea across?

I like pictures.  I like short antedotes about life.  The blogs that I follow are often by someone who is a good writer and gives me a little glimpse into their life allowing me to relate in some way to the joys and frustrations we all face.

I seldom comment.  Perhaps I should comment more since I would appreciate some confirmation that my posts are being read.  It seems like most blogs have only a few followers and I wonder if these followers somehow are acquainted with the blogger in "real life" or have an association through some internet activity like gaming or auctions.  I wonder if the purely "internet community" still exists. 

I'm enjoying having this place to put down my thoughts and I'm still waiting and hoping for some small amount of traffic past my virtual door.

How Does This Search Thing Work??

One more comment for today.  I'm still a little focused on the total lack of traffic here and I've stated before that having readers for my posts was not the original intent of my decision to blog.  And yet.....I have to wonder when I "google" this blog by name or by key words, I come up empty.  In fact, the blog title in quotes is a googlenope.  Is this a function of time. Are the bots overworked and will find this spot eventually?  Is search now advertisement driven leaving personal ramblings out in the cold?  Is the internet now just so crammed full of "stuff" that you need something special to perk to the top of the search?  My son told me that maybe if I link to some other blogs that makes the search engines happier.  I'm not so sure if it makes them happier or if it just sort of connects you into the whole blog network.  None the less, that's next on list - sharing the names of blogs that I follow.