Why do you blog?
To get things out of my system; ideas, emotions, bad poetry and all kinds of nonsense. I find it useful to clear my head of all this stuff so I can get on and do other things, especially when I am writing - otherwise all this gubbins invades the pages of my book. Also to communicate, just put something out there when I am feeling particularly isolated. The comments I get have meant a very great deal to me.
How long have you been blogging?
About eighteen months, since February 2005
Self PortraitThis is not the most flattering picture of myself, but it does give me an excuse to post yet another picture of my gorgeous little rock star nephew.
Why do readers read your blog?
Morbid curiosity, perhaps. In truth, I have no idea why people read my blog because I have always posted on such a wide and somewhat random variety of subject matter. There have been times when I have thought, this is a useful medium, perhaps I ought to better utilise its potential as a political soapbox. Greater consistancy would undoubtedly increase my popularity as a blogger; I think the really popular blogs are those that cover the same subject areas most of the time, whether they are consistantly personal, political or whatever.
However, I suppose there is a readership for utter mish-mash. A great number of my hits come from poor innocents searching for goldfish-related information and landing on here by accident.
What was the last search phrase someone used to find your site?
legless tights
Which of your entry gets unjustly too little attention?
I don’t think any of them get unjustly too little attention, but there are a one or two which get unjustly too much attention, because folks have found them searching for all number of arguably rude words which I have managed to include in some entirely innocent context.
Your current favourite blog?
The Perorations of Lady Bracknell is quite possibly my all-time favourite blog. And would be even if her Ladyship was not a personal friend.
Which blog did you read most recently?
Rocky Spring's Blog. He has been painting!
Which feeds do you subscribe to?
I don’t read blogs by subscribing to feeds. But I use my own blogroll to browse through blogs so check them out.
What four blogs are you tagging with this meme and why?
I'm a rebel and I'm going to tag five:
A Girl I Used To Know because she sent me a lovely e-mail and I have been very slow in getting back to her.
Little Stitches and Did I Miss Something? because they've both written interesting stuff about the nature of blogging.
And This is My Blog and Life In the Shire because both Sally and Mary are having a hard time just now Memes are reasonably easy, low energy blogs to do.
14 comments:
Lady Bracknell would be blushing furiously now had she not been completely broken of the habit in her youth by a series of governesses...
A shout to Goldfish: I have answered... (great picture I think.) and a bow to lady bracknell too!
thanks! i'll get it done tonight :) reading this, i realise that i have just had my three year bloggiversary and forgot about it!
cripes, a job to do! I'll get onto it as soon as my possible potential future mother in law leaves and I have more than two minutes to myself.
(I may be currently hiding upstairs with my laptop. Trying to type quietly. Should be sleeping, but am too wound up to do so...)
I think you're right about the huge blogs being focused on one topic, but isn't it more fun and interesting to blog about everything under the sun? I *like* that about your blog-reading about a variety of things is fascinating.
gah! it wont be done tonight but the weekend is almost here - i promise to get it done soon!
Dear Goldfish
As a self-confessed fan (Carassius auratophile?) perhaps I can elaborate on why people (at least why I) visit this blog.
Far from the diverse and apparently random scope being a deterrent, it is precisely this unfailing eclecticism and the erudite style that make it so attractive.
I certainly wouldn’t visit half so often, nor with such enthusiasm, if it was a single-issue soap-box. In a society which is so dominated by market philosophies that others attempt to squeeze us into ever narrower categories defined by a single aspect of taste or preference, I find it sad that so many choose to apply similar constraints to themselves when confronted with the possibility of freedom.
I like this blog, not because we share the same tastes but because we are different, because it makes me think, because you make me laugh and because we share a taste for legless tights.
You and Lady Bracknell are undoubtedly the polymath stars of the blogosphere. Keep up the good work.
Dude
Thanks All,
Your Ladyship, I should apologise that in paying you a compliment, I made a heinous grammatical error and stated that even if her Ladyship was not a personal friend instead of even if her Ladyship WERE not a personal friend. I am very sorry.
Imfunnytoo, well done; that was quick work! 3rd Daughter and Mary, no pressure - it took me at least a week to respond to Mark's tag. I'm pretty muddled just now.
Spotted Elephant and Dude, thank you - not having had the advantages of Lady Bracknell's upbringing, I am now blushing furiously. ;-)
Goldfishgoldfishgoldfishgoldfish (or anyone else who knows)
HOW do I find out what the last search phrase someone used to find my site was?
Hi Mary,
You need some sort of sitemeter. The one I use is called Sitemeter (funnily enough). If you go to here you can sign up for one (make sure you opt for the free one). It's really okay; I think they may have sent me one confirmation e-mail and then they e-mail you ever week with your stats; you don't get any crap from them.
They'll give you a bit of code which you have to put on the template of your blog somewhere. Mine appears at the bottom of my sidebar, other people put it right at the bottom of the page (but you're not allowed to hide it completely).
One you've done that, you can click on your sitemeter, look at 'Referrals' and see a list of where your visitors are coming from. These will include search engine entries, many of which are equal parts amusing and bemusing. :-)
Hmmm, that was interesting.
The majority of the traffic on my site is from links clicked on another site, which might be described as a "hate site".
I would describe the experience as neither amusing nor bemusing but slightly scary.
I think perhaps I won't blog for a while. Sorry.
I'm ever so sorry, Mary. I can't imagine what that's about. :-(
If you're still getting crap through your blog, I don't know, it seems inappropriate to suggest you scrap it and start again. I wonder if there is someway in which you could allude this person who is so intent on causing you grief without bowing out entirely?
I don't know, but anyway, I am very sorry that my suggestion lead you to discover something you'd perhaps rather not have known about... :-(
Hey, don't be sorry - you're not part of the group!
It's not a problem - but it's also not just one person, it's a group, and a group that I am linked to through a couple of roundabout routes (they even have my home address) so I'd have found out about it eventually sooner or later. In fact I have the impression I was intended to see it and be upset by it.
For the time being at least, I have no intention of scrapping it, but I don't feel inclined to update it a whole lot at the moment. Maybe once things calm down. For now I intend to focus more on offline things although I will of course be keeping tabs on my favourite blogs :)
Sorry, I'm lagging behind everyone. This particular meme is very welcome and it is something I need right now, so thank you for the tag :-)
For my part, I love the diversity of your writing. It's funny, intelligent, inspiring and it's accessible. I have an attention span that can't cope with single topic forums so it's refreshing to come here, it makes my mind work. If your diary was a book, it would be permanently stuffed in my rucksack and read often.
I'll get to this meme as soon as I can work out how to write what I need to say.
B.
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