since I switched to wordpress.com for my blog in January 2010. This is after I had gone through 3 other blog sites that became non-functional between February 2005 and the 2010 switch.
So far things have been going well with this site. I have a total of 131,402 hits and have been viewed from 88 countries. Unfortunately wordpress.com has gotten rid of their all-time stats collecting recently, but to the best of my calculations my all-time most viewed post was Birthday Loot (oddly) from March 2012. Here are the photos from it:
I recently went through all the links on my site, deleting those that do not work. In going through my blogroll roughly half of those blogs have not posted this calendar year. One favorite blogger even died. I kept the links because I find the blogs fascinating. But it seems like blogging is a dying art. My stats are way down, and I think people are gravitating toward single photos and brief posts rather than longer narratives and multiple photos.
But I still like blogging. It is a great way for me to present our story to people who are interested. So I will keep posting as long as someone out there is reading.
PS I managed to find my all-time statistics buried in my site. So More bunnies! from March 2010 was actually the most popular post ever. Here is the photo from that post.
I, too, love to blog, I just never make time for it. By the time I sit down at the end of the day I am often too tired to put together a coherent sentence. I also think social media has affected the blogging world. It’s too easy to post a comment or link on Facebook, or photos on Instagram, and call it good. Sadly. Your post today has inspired me to put this on the agenda for the weekend -I’m a month behind and will fix that this weekend. Thanks! I enjoy reading your blog, too.
Maureen
Thanks Maureen! I am glad I inspired you as your writing is much better than mine. I tend to compose a blog post in my head while I am doing the chores so it is relatively quick to write it once I get to my computer. Plus I try to carry my barn camera around at all times in case something catches my eye.
I do that, too – carry my camera everywhere and compose in my head. But it still takes more time than I sometimes have to get it ready to hit “publish,” so I don’t blog as often as it comes to mind. The most frustrating part is to see that 50, 60, 70, or more people have visited a post, but only one or two or three bothered to comment. Would love to know how to change that.
Well one thing I have noticed is that I can no longer comment on your posts with my wordpress ID. That prevents me from commenting on your blog posts.
Donna, when I look at my comments area, there is a place that asks you to “comment as,” and I can scroll down to a WordPress option. Do you not get that when you visit my blog?
I get the wordpress option and put in my information. Then I can write the comment, but it will not let me publish it. It just stays in preview mode. It used to be I could not do it in Safari but could in Chrome or Firefox but recently I can’t do it with these browsers either. I can still comment signed in with google.
Thank you, Donna – what a nice thing to say! I compose in my head too – have some brilliant blog posts I’ve “written” out in the pasture, or mucking out the sheep shed, feeding the chickens, etc. But the majority of those posts never make it past a scribbled topic idea or very rough draft, if I have time. I have my phone with me at all times (both for safety – I’m here by myself and want it close if I need to call 911 after a fall or something – and the camera feature) and most of my photos only make it as far as Instagram, shared on FB.
Like Michelle, I would also love to get more comments going. Heck, even a “like” here and there would be nice. I post a link to Facebook which brings some traffic, but often people will post a comment there instead of on my blog. Do either of you follow TheKitchensGarden blog? Cecelia is a small farmer in Indiana or Illinois, by way of New Zealand (or Australia?)- she’s had an interesting life before her farm here. It’s a lot of fun – she posts EVERY SINGLE DAY but it’s an easy read. Some days she’ll wax philosophic and have some great discussions going, other days it’s mostly pictures and small vignettes about the critters (cows, pigs, chickens, goats for a while, peacocks, dogs and cats – no sheep any more 🙁 ). You get to know all the animals by name, if not by sight, and follow her on her adventures when she goes back to NZ/Australia to visit her grown children. The comment section she calls the lounge, and it’s like one big family with the commenters talking back and forth to one another. Cecelia is definitely someone you could sit and have a cup of tea with – if we had the time! Check it out here: http://thekitchensgarden.com/
I do not take my phone to the barn, as most things I take out there get destroyed or lost. I will check out that blog!
Count me in as an interested reader. I loved reading about all the animals and there antics.
Thanks
Thanks Jeanne= so glad to hear this!