1. I got the first wine barrel pot pond planted yesterday. I like it, well I will once the plants grow and stuff starts to hide the black pots that you can still see, but I really, really wish I could do an in-ground one. I know though it would be a recipe for disaster with Cassie who thinks it is her job to remove anything from water.
2. Easter dinner is at our house this year. We’re going for simple and non-traditional – raclette.
3. I am still waiting for the results from Cassie’s biopsy. They said maybe Monday or Tuesday.
4. There are still spots open in my online class on Social Media for children’s authors and illustrators. May 4-7. Details.
5. We are getting estimates for a new roof, a "green" roof, a steel roof. I know it is the right thing to do but I’d rather do something fun with that tax refund, like remodel the downstairs bathroom or paint the inside of the house. Sigh. The joys of being responsible.
6. I’m pondering blogs. My blog in particular. And then I am telling myself to quit pondering because it is a recipe for, if not disaster, insecurity. Do many people read any more? What prompts people to post a comment? Am I blogging about the right things to build an audience? Ack! You can see how this kind of pondering can lead to dangerous thinking. 🙂
Edited to add: I know many people read and don’t comment…I’m just pondering the changes from why people used to comment and now don’t. I find it curious.
Happy Saturday to all.
I’m wondering if you can really measure the size of your audience by the number of comments your posts receive. (“You” meaning anyone who blogs.) Have you ever used sitemeter or something similar? You might be surprised by the number of people who read your blog (including all the links, including comments) but who don’t leave a response for whatever reason.
You’re right though: pondering such things can be instructive, but it can also be destructive. Autobiographically speaking, I know this to be true. 🙂
PS Raclette?
I have a sitemeter on every page.
I think what I am pondering a lot is what prompts people to comment….what happened to people who used to comment a lot and who comment a lot elsewhere….that sort of self-destructive sort of thought process. (See, I know that’s the case which is why I know I won’t stay in this pondering mode. 🙂
I was really excited to do the audio recordings of me reading from Hugging the Rock but only a few people listened to the first two which makes me wonder about taking the time to do any more. That sort of thing. 🙂
Oh, raclette…so so yummy. Kinda like fondue. We have a raclette grill and you boil some small potatoes, get some meats and some raclette cheese. Each person cooks their own cheese in the grill until it melts and then you scrape it onto your meat and potatoes.
You can grill the veggies and stuff on top.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raclette
So good!
I read your blog, Susan.
I have wondered though, with sitemeter, does it count the people who read your post from their Friends Page? If I’m not commenting, I don’t go “into” the blog itself.
You know, that’s a good question. I’m think it might not. I don’t know that you can get a clean count on a meter anyway. I’m not obsessive about checking.
I do the same thing as you – read through my friends page but don’t click through always to comment. What a balancing act we all need to do now.
Thanks for reading. 🙂
You know, that’s a good question. I’m think it might not. I don’t know that you can get a clean count on a meter anyway. I’m not obsessive about checking.
I do the same thing as you – read through my friends page but don’t click through always to comment. What a balancing act we all need to do now.
Thanks for reading. 🙂
I read your blog, Susan.
I have wondered though, with sitemeter, does it count the people who read your post from their Friends Page? If I’m not commenting, I don’t go “into” the blog itself.
Oh! Please post a few pix of your wine barrel pond. I’ve always wanted to build one. My pond is lined with a rubbery thing to keep the water from leaking into the limestone-studded Florida dirt.
(I used to have water lilies but the koi gobbled them up.)
I will. Though it doesn’t look super exciting yet. I hate waiting for plants to grow. 😉
Regarding your #5, I agree the wondering will put you in a bottomless pit of insecurity. I always come back to the same two things. 1) I’m boring. And 2)I don’t have the time to make comments like I should. Then the endless parade of guilty feelings start.
So… I decide to do what works for me. Post what I want, when I want. Read and comment when I can.
I figure that when I’m published my editor will want me to change my title, my characters’ names, the climax, the love interest, and the setting. Why not my blog too? LOL.
Yes, I’m done with exploring this thought because it will only make me crazy.
Good idea…post what you want, when you want, how you want. Read and comment when you can.
Yes, I’m done with exploring this thought because it will only make me crazy.
Good idea…post what you want, when you want, how you want. Read and comment when you can.
I don’t comment on blogs I read that aren’t LiveJournal because I read them through Google Reader. So, to comment, I have to click on the post and wait to go all the way through to the actual blog, etc. etc. And I’m just too lazy to think my comment is that important. That doesn’t apply directly to your posts, because I get them on my friends list, but it could be a reason for others.
That’s another good point – the readers. I tend to syndicate everything over here on LJ so I can read it here but I still have to click through on the non-LJ ones.
Thanks for the feedback.
That’s another good point – the readers. I tend to syndicate everything over here on LJ so I can read it here but I still have to click through on the non-LJ ones.
Thanks for the feedback.
I can tell you from my experience that people will post comments on posts that include personal information (joys or disappointments in particular) more than they do on informational posts based on a feeling of personal connection, but that this has to do with whether you do it all the time – if you post personal stuff all the time, it becomes the same-old same-old and people stop reading.
And people will post comments more if you post comments on their blogs (reciprocity).
And on stuff that counts as “informational”, which includes things like poetry posts, writing advice, etc., it’s a crap shoot. Comments tend to be down, even if your stats show that reading is up, unless something particularly resonates with people, in which case comments come flying in.
All of the above is my opinion based on my personal experience. Your results may differ.
Thanks for weighing in, Kelly. It’s an interesting thought for me to ponder every so often….reset myself if need be or shake myself a couple of times to let it go. LOL
I tend to agree with you on everything except the reciprocity part. It used to be that way….not seeing as much of it…which can sometimes be the most frustrating part of it all but oh well. We all have lives and we need to live them.
I think the fact that people read blogs through various readers also factors into it.
Like I said, good to think about every so often and then let it go.
Thanks for weighing in, Kelly. It’s an interesting thought for me to ponder every so often….reset myself if need be or shake myself a couple of times to let it go. LOL
I tend to agree with you on everything except the reciprocity part. It used to be that way….not seeing as much of it…which can sometimes be the most frustrating part of it all but oh well. We all have lives and we need to live them.
I think the fact that people read blogs through various readers also factors into it.
Like I said, good to think about every so often and then let it go.
Since being laid off last summer, I find I spend *less* time on blogs, which equates to me forgetting to read my friends list for weeks or months at a time. For me personally, it’s because I’ve been spending a lot more time off the computer in some cases (making myself get away so that I can get work done, because now more than ever my ability to pay the bills depends on it), and in other cases I’ve been spending more time while online avoiding work and work-related stuff, to give myself more separation–i.e., more time on personal stuff rather than professional, when I do spend time online.
Twitter has been a great substitute for reading blogs, too–it doesn’t take as much time. When I read my friends list, just one day’s worth of entries might take 2 hours to read, while catching up on Twitter takes a few minutes to scan.
So I feel major guilt for not reading professional friends’ blogs as much. I sometimes also feel like I don’t have as much to say as an editor when I’m not associated with a house. And then related to that is trying to build my business site and not spending as much time on LJ as before.
All of it adds up to less time reading blogs, which adds up to less time commenting. And then I spend some days, like today, trying to catch up. 🙂
Thanks for weighing in here. You’re in the same boat I’m in with this trying to learn how to balance time and make a living.
I hadn’t thought about Twitter in quite that way, replacing the blogs….good point. Are you using a Twitter tool to make it easier to sort/track/etc? I am trying Tweetdeck but I’m not sure it’s working for me or not.
I feel guilty too for not reading more. And I know that if I don’t read and comment I can’t expect them to read and comment. It’s a circle that keeps going around and around.
But then I also feel that as an author having connections out here are important too.
Have you discovered any great time management tips since you’ve been working for yourself?
I use TwitterFox for Firefox, which I believe has an IE equivalent if you’re using that. It doesn’t help me organize more, but it does take less time in general. I use it both to get quick updates on people I follow and to get quick access to links about publishing.
Time management: still working on that. I really need to do better. I’m actually still working on the basics, like making myself keep a regular daily schedule. It’s so hard to do when I don’t have an external workplace or coworkers, etc. I actually prefer to work for a company, but this is my life right now, given that there simply aren’t enough openings in NYC.
One thing I’ve done to give myself incentive to manage my time better is to cap my fee for manuscript critiques. When I give an estimate, I cap the cost at the high end, even if I end up spending more time on the manuscript. This is an incentive to make sure I manage my time wisely and don’t spend more than the estimated hours. But that’s only one thing.
Being organized in my office and having a separate space for work makes a huge difference too, though I don’t work in the office nearly as much as I should despite knowing it helps me to concentrate better. And sometimes when my own company gets to be too much (I live alone, and work from home–that can be too much almost daily!) I go to Starbucks, the library, or the bookstore and work there to have people around. Sometimes the noise of people actually makes me work more than the silence of home, because I’m tempted to turn on the TV for noise, you know?
But it all takes so much more time than working at a company ever did, and I’m puzzled by that. Probably because I wander into the kitchen (because it’s there) and because my cats sit and stare at me until I give them attention (distracting and derailing me), you know, the regular home stuff! I might start closing the office door, but I’m afraid if I do the cats will just sit at the door and cry, and I’m not sure which is worse!
I use TwitterFox for Firefox, which I believe has an IE equivalent if you’re using that. It doesn’t help me organize more, but it does take less time in general. I use it both to get quick updates on people I follow and to get quick access to links about publishing.
Time management: still working on that. I really need to do better. I’m actually still working on the basics, like making myself keep a regular daily schedule. It’s so hard to do when I don’t have an external workplace or coworkers, etc. I actually prefer to work for a company, but this is my life right now, given that there simply aren’t enough openings in NYC.
One thing I’ve done to give myself incentive to manage my time better is to cap my fee for manuscript critiques. When I give an estimate, I cap the cost at the high end, even if I end up spending more time on the manuscript. This is an incentive to make sure I manage my time wisely and don’t spend more than the estimated hours. But that’s only one thing.
Being organized in my office and having a separate space for work makes a huge difference too, though I don’t work in the office nearly as much as I should despite knowing it helps me to concentrate better. And sometimes when my own company gets to be too much (I live alone, and work from home–that can be too much almost daily!) I go to Starbucks, the library, or the bookstore and work there to have people around. Sometimes the noise of people actually makes me work more than the silence of home, because I’m tempted to turn on the TV for noise, you know?
But it all takes so much more time than working at a company ever did, and I’m puzzled by that. Probably because I wander into the kitchen (because it’s there) and because my cats sit and stare at me until I give them attention (distracting and derailing me), you know, the regular home stuff! I might start closing the office door, but I’m afraid if I do the cats will just sit at the door and cry, and I’m not sure which is worse!
Thanks for weighing in here. You’re in the same boat I’m in with this trying to learn how to balance time and make a living.
I hadn’t thought about Twitter in quite that way, replacing the blogs….good point. Are you using a Twitter tool to make it easier to sort/track/etc? I am trying Tweetdeck but I’m not sure it’s working for me or not.
I feel guilty too for not reading more. And I know that if I don’t read and comment I can’t expect them to read and comment. It’s a circle that keeps going around and around.
But then I also feel that as an author having connections out here are important too.
Have you discovered any great time management tips since you’ve been working for yourself?
I’ve read about raclette but never had it–always sounds delicious!
Fingers crossed re the biopsy!
Well this is our first time doing raclette, we only had it at someone else’s house and then bought our own grill. If it works out we’ll have to have you guys over.
Thanks for the finger crossing.
Well this is our first time doing raclette, we only had it at someone else’s house and then bought our own grill. If it works out we’ll have to have you guys over.
Thanks for the finger crossing.
I’ve been wanting to do a pond…and now that the kids are old enough we have a puppy. *sigh* maybe next year.
I read my blogs on JacketFlap and sometimes I don’t comment because I don’t want to leave the feed, or mean to later and don’t.
🙂
It all depends on the dog…if yours likes the water, it might be tough. Or if you have enough space you can make a pebble beach for the dog and roll with it! If I had a decent sized yard, that’s what I do.
That’s a good point about reading the blogs elsewhere…I have the same problem when I read the syndicated feeds here on LJ.
It all depends on the dog…if yours likes the water, it might be tough. Or if you have enough space you can make a pebble beach for the dog and roll with it! If I had a decent sized yard, that’s what I do.
That’s a good point about reading the blogs elsewhere…I have the same problem when I read the syndicated feeds here on LJ.
I comment when I have the time and when I feel like I have something to say about the post. Sometimes a post really resonates with me but a lot of others have already commented, saying what I would’ve said, so I don’t. Sometimes I just don’t have the time.
I think Twitter and Facebook have drawn away a lot of people who used to be on LJ more. And sometimes people’s lives just change–they have a baby or they get a new job or a new relationship, their book comes out or they have medical problems–and they spend less time online than they used to.
About content: I don’t usually watch videos posted on people’s blogs. I don’t have the time, and since I upgraded, I need to re-install a bunch of plug-ins and haven’t done that yet.
I agree with Candycana–I just post what I want. I mean, I do try to think about what would matter to other people, but I have to find it interesting myself. I put it out there and let go of the result. If one person reads it or a thousand–whatever.
Yes, I have that trouble too, when a post clicks with me but I’m late getting there so a lot of other folks have already said what I was thinking.
And of course you’re right, the time factor is huge and there’s no way we can all read all the blogs and comment on all the blogs and still have time left to write, to live our lives.
You have a good attitude about it all. It’s like our books, we may never know what one person they reach.
Thanks for the input.
Yes, I have that trouble too, when a post clicks with me but I’m late getting there so a lot of other folks have already said what I was thinking.
And of course you’re right, the time factor is huge and there’s no way we can all read all the blogs and comment on all the blogs and still have time left to write, to live our lives.
You have a good attitude about it all. It’s like our books, we may never know what one person they reach.
Thanks for the input.
True about the number of the comments not saying anything about the quality of a blog. I was just in one of those pondering moods today. Okay, and a bit of an insecure one too. LOL.
Thanks on the yard/flower posts.
True about the number of the comments not saying anything about the quality of a blog. I was just in one of those pondering moods today. Okay, and a bit of an insecure one too. LOL.
Thanks on the yard/flower posts.