I tell myself it is perfectly normal to want to look back during the last week of a year and think about things - considering what went well and learning from things that did not. It is also perfectly normal to want to do "countdowns" and other year-end summary writings. I tell myself this, but I still sometimes wonder if people who read this blog like it much when I do actually do one.
Yet here I am, looking at the year's photos and finding the emotions that came with them jumping back up to the forefront. This early photo of lettuce, beans, potatoes and peas soon after Valhalla (our bigger high tunnel) was rolled off of them. We're still eating some of the bounty from these plants that we put up for ourselves and we hope to do so for quite a while yet.
So, I will indulge by looking at some of the things we put up for ourselves during the year. Things that we can enjoy during some of the longest nights and shortest periods of daylight hours.
Today's task? I thought I would share with you the most read entries in the 2021 Genuinely Faux blog according to the metrics provided by Blogspot.
This list MUST go to eleven! It's a tradition, don't you know? And, well, ok.... I wanted to include this one on the list, because I like it. The great thing about this list is that there are four or five here that might actually have fallen into my own top ten list. But, now that they're here, I don't have to put them in THAT list!
Warning, the post above just might have some dirt on the potatoes.
10. What if? A Local Food Challenge
This blog led to a more refined version that was placed on Pesticide Action Network's blog in my professional capacity as Communications Associate. So, this one got a decent amount of attention - and for good reason, I think. This is a good "thought experiment" blog that needs to go beyond thought experiment and move towards "actual thing we consider doing."
What do you think?
9. That Doesn't Seem Fair - Postal History Sunday
This will not be the only Postal History Sunday that makes the list. I am still a little bemused by the attention PHS has gotten in various circles. But, let's be clear here, it's not like any of these posts have thousands of readers or anything like that. And, that's not the point. The point is that people are still looking to learn something new and they are ok with having someone share something they enjoy - like postal history.
That alone, gives me hope for the future.
This entry is an important story with an important point. And it was painful to revisit and difficult for Tammy to read as well. But, it is still good writing, I think. And, it is STILL a very important point. We must continue to properly fund and support our Emergency Medical Services - regardless of how rural or urban the space they serve might be.
The funny thing about the tools that measure blog visits is... they're sort of funny. Funny as in funny strange. Frankly, I don't trust them terribly much because those that collect them are often not willing to be transparent about how they collect them. And, there is no way for me to know for sure why a certain blog got attention and another did not.
Case in point, this blog that features the Garden Sunshine bell pepper. I've written on various heirloom veggies before, and they usually don't stand out for readership. This entry is just as good as any of the other veggie blogs I've written, but not tons better. I'm sure it will remain a mystery to me. But, I'll help it out by linking it here so it will maybe get another hit or two!
And here is an example of a blog that was better than I initially thought it was. I'd like to think that a higher readership level means other people recognized that it was a pretty good entry. This is part of what made this exercise interesting for me. I wasn't entirely sure what I would find, but I had some preconceived notions as to which ones would be at top.
I was right on some, wrong on others. Ah, live and learn!
One thing I noticed about "readership numbers" is that they often cluster. One strong blog often raises a few around the edges. So, there is a cluster of blogs in late February into early March that did fairly well, it seems. But, that's not just it. I feel like my writing was getting pretty darned good through the first part of the year - until that ... thing... happened in late April. But, we won't talk about that here, nope!
4. Pollinator Support in the Nooks and Crannies
This one was based off a "lightning talk" I did for the Practical Farmers of Iowa conference early in 2021. Even I think it was a pretty good presentation and it translated very well to a blog. It was good enough that my colleagues at PAN agreed that I should adapt it for the Honeybee Haven website that PAN maintains. I still believe in everything I put there and I hope to live up to my own expectations to support the pollinators on our farm every year.
3. We Need to Consider the Real Value of Our Food
The only good writing is re-writing. And this is an example of working on an item until it shines a bit. I've written on this topic on and off for years on our blog. Sometimes well and sometimes less well. Some of that writing was used to put together a blog for PAN that was well received. In fact, it was received so well, I put it on our blog too - where it apparently also garnered some attention.
It's another thing that I hope will move from good ideas in writing to reality in our world.
2. Thurn and Taxis - Postal History Sunday
C'mon! This thing has a musical interlude AND bonus material, what more could you possibly want in a blog post?
This is one of those times when the blog received outside help with a "fifteen minutes of fame" event so to speak. It was right about here that I was featured in a couple of interviews regarding the Postal History Sunday weekly feature on the blog. So, there were a number of curious souls who had to take a look.
It doesn't hurt that I consider this to be an excellent PHS entry. So, no gripes about its appearance here.
1. Business, Madness, and Social Betterment - Postal History Sunday
Perhaps it is unfair to put PHS blog posts up against the other entries because they have become the most consistently branded part of this blog over the past year and a half. If I had continued with a Veg Variety Saturday or some such thing, would they have filled several slots? Who knows? I certainly don't.
It doesn't matter. This post got the most attention according the Blogspot metrics - like them or not. And, you know what? This is actually a really entertaining post that has a little bit of everything. I am pretty happy with having something of this caliber in the number one spot.
Hm... maybe those who read this blog have pretty good taste after all?
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Thanks for reading the blog, providing positive constructive feedback and doing what you can to live an inquisitive, thoughtful life that recognizes the good things in this world.
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