I really like January. It’s the start of a new year, and like an Etch-A-Sketch, the slate is wiped clean, ready for fresh beginnings.
No batteries needed
That’s one reason why January 1st was the day my husband and I chose to get married. We wanted a day that signified a fresh beginning together. It’s also an easy day to remember.
This year marked 43 years together. It might be one of the only we have spent apart since I was in Okinawa helping out with our new grandson. FaceTime is handy in that regard, although my January 1st was my husband’s December 31st.
Another anniversary to celebrate is my time with WordPress: 13 years, so said the little pop up sent to my inbox. Wow! Really? That’s a long time, almost more impressive than being married over four decades, since a quick AI info grab indicates most blogs last about 2 years, and first marriages last roughly 21 years.
Surpassing the odds is an excellent way to start out 2025.
January is also when I begin anew my Goodreads reading challenge. I always plunk in 101 as my base goal with hopes of squeezing in twice that amount. The best I’ve achieved is 171.
As of today I have already read 8 books so using some quick math—8 books read in 15 days means the possibility of reading 8 more books in a month of 31 days which computes to an average of reading 16 books a month times 12 equals 192 books. Hmm, this could be the year of 200.
I’d finish this post but I have get down to the library to check out more books.
Today’s focus is on the eclipse, which for some didn’t register as an event because of a)not being in the path of ta-dah or b)dealing with cloudy skies. There is also c)there was an eclipse?
For me the event of focus today was the four year anniversary of my debut picture book Someday We Will.
Yup, four years ago Beaming Books brought out my book in the beginning of April having postponed its publication from the previous fall. FYI: Grandparents Day is the first Sunday in September.
Instead of fall, the idea was Mother’s Day and the summer months of vacations when families visit. Good plan except four years ago about this time the pandemic showed up closing schools, libraries, bookstores, all those places where I might have personally promoted my book. A virtual book launch does not quite have the same impact.
Since then I have tried to make up for lost time and have done some story times with the library and have done a couple of bookstore appearances.
If you have yet to check out Someday We Will I hope you will. It’s a dandy little book for sharing just how special those family visits are, especially the grandparent ones.
As for the eclipse event? I hope your experience was satisfying. I ended tidying up the garage in hopes the clouds would part. They didn’t, but the garage looks better.
The perfect gift for grandparents as well as grandchildren anticipating a visit
End of the year. I tend not to get overly reflective. So many newsfeeds and websites and bloggers, etc. fill in that checklist more adequately than I care to do. However, WordPress sends a tidy little Year in Review to my mailbox and I do find that interesting. Not being a stats follower (I’m just delighted when I get a few likes and comments) it does cause some reflection to see the numbers tallied up. If you are interested here are my stats for 2023–if you aren’t interested, I’m not offended. Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful new year!
2,861 views
WordPress says: “A crowd of viewers has engaged with your content, a testament to its appeal and reach.”
49 posts
Actually this makes 50 posts. Just saying.
516 likes 83 comments
WordPress says: “Your writing has resonated with your readers, and they have shown their appreciation.”
My best day? Glad you asked. With 2% of all visits for the year, it seems June 10, 2023 was my day in the digital spotlight, according to the WordPress gnomes. I have no idea which post garnered so much interest. My stat sleuthing did not reveal that particular answer. I would say all the posts are worth a look, right?
And tadah–it’s anniversary number:
Goodness that’s a long time to be tossing out my thoughts. I’m going to keep going and maybe try to get back on track with posting more consistently and try out a few more new columns.
Enough about me. What marvelous milestones have you achieved this year?
WordPress has informed me I have blogging for ten years. Ten years! A decade of posts. My oh my how the time did fly on by.
Happy Anniversary to me…
No cake, presents, or hoopla, although a quiet reflection is perhaps agreeable.
The decision to create a blog derived from the admonition of a presenter from a writer’s conference who said social media presence is important in creating a personal brand.
Cricket Muse was launched as a blog about my writer’s journey as a reader. I remained incognito until recently. I had determined to blog behind my nom de plume until the publishing of my first book.
In 2020 Someday We Will, my debut picture book about anticipating visits from loved ones, particularly the grandparent/grandchild connection, was published by Beaming Books and I unveiled my true identity as Pam Webb. Cricket Muse is still around and provides reviews at Goodreads.
Ten Year Reflection:
People seemed chattier ten years ago. Looking back at early posts there is a noticeable difference between replies then and now in length and depth. Perhaps we are busier, more distracted. I know my responses are less than they used to be when I reply these days.
Blogs simply disappear, which is sad, since friendships, of sorts, are made whilst blogging.
Really good stuff is learned along the course of blogging: new words, reading titles, perspectives, and stories. There is so much available to learn and absorb through the blogging world.
In order to plump my social media presence I opened an Instagram account. Truthfully, I much prefer reading blog posts to reading Instagram posts. The difference is akin to enjoying a baked potato with all the substantive trimmings rather than snacking on chips from a bag. But guess what I end up doing more often than I should? Yup, snacking. So easy to swipe through those Instagram posts—it is addictive. Gotta love those cat reels.
I am not that concerned about follower or post stats. It is a boost, of course, to be noticed, yet I blog because I like to share my thoughts, and as an ambivert it’s a way to converse with others without the stress of in-person dialog.
The biggest benefit from blogging is the people met along the way:
Mike Allegra: probably the longest-running blog acquaintance at present, at least seven years. We have wrangled over literary tastes in our short-lived Debatable posts. A fellow writer and a funny guy.
Mitch Teemley: Mitch is amazingly talented and well-versed in all kinds of stuff. Prolific in postings and entertaining to boot.
Tish Farrell: her photos get me traveling without having to leave home.
Pete Springer: a most recent discovery, fellow writer, and Humboldter (Humboldtian?), and knows all about the wins and woes of being a classroom teacher.
This is just a smattering of blog folks I exchange with and as some leave for other pastures of creativity there are more who come along.
Five years ago I jumped on the platform wagon upon the advice of an editor at a writing conference. Establishing a platform as a writer was, and seems to still be, advice that is to be embraced.
Five years ago, I thought it would be nanoseconds until my contract for my debut novel would be signed and my career launched.
I’m still dreaming and my dream of walking into a Barnes and Nobles and find my novel on the shelf (better yet–they are sold out). But I’m not asleep. I’m sending out manuscripts, still waiting for an editor, agent, publisher to sign me up, and my blog is now five years old. I’m okay with that. Okay, I’m fairly okay with that. I would rather have a novel published and celebrate that announcement on my five year old blog.
I’ve enjoyed writing a blog. I’m pleased that I’m keeping up with my posts and I haven’t had any lags of more than a week or so. The blog has changed, morphed, developed, and grown during its five years. If it were a child it would be potty trained, riding a bike, and getting ready for kindergarten. In dog years I think a five year old blog is roughly fifteen years old.
For fun, here is my first post. It’s been viewed a total of around 50 times since it’s debut in 2012, no likes, and 3 comments. I’m glad writing book reviews isn’t my day job. Since then I’ve decided writing about books is still my prime goal, but I’ve taken off the training wheels and I’m covering different topics as well, including the posting of my own writing such as poems, and short story tidbits.
I promised myself when I reached 1,000 followers I would sign up for the professional.com version of WordPress. I’ve surpassed that goal by a dozen or so. I just need to figure out what to name the professional launch. CricketMuse.com–hmm…
Marriage is like a long-playing record–a bit of static, some scratches, a couple of skips now and then, but overall the music compensates for the irregularities that occur. image: bunko/morguefile
33 years ago, my hubs, whom I affectionately designate as MEPA (most excellent personal assistant) and I, stood on a slip of beach in the calm of a January storm and exchanged vows. I was 25 and he 36.
Neither one of us thought marriage when we first met. Both of us, tired of the dating game and relationships gone wrong, thought it satisfying to have a working relationship. You see, I hired him to help me remodel the little shop I had decided to set up my balloon bouquet delivery service. The landlord had cut me a deal: remodel the store–I provide labor and he provide material. I gained six months free rent from that little agreement. I signed the line and upon recommendation, hired the cute guy sporting the fu manchu and curly hair who worked at the local hardware store. Auburn gingers are a weak spot.
The first night of work involved sheet-rocking the ceiling. It took the two of us, my entire repartee of elephant jokes, and about five hours to finish the job. I paid him the agreed sum of $65 and threw in a deli sandwich.
We met in October. I proposed two weeks after meeting him and we eloped 56 days later. I thought getting married January first would be a significant way to start our new life together. Too broke to afford a reception or honeymoon, we found a pizza place open and had the place to ourselves.
Last night we celebrated our anniversary with dinner at a new restaurant and the owners sent over a delicious complimentary slice of key lime pie. The evening was topped by watching Anything Goes with Donald O’Conner and Bing Crosby. The Cole Porter score fits the general theme of our marriage: a bit whirlwind and somewhat lyrical.
We are opposite in tastes, strongly singular in outlook, and much more mellow than we used to be.
33 used to be a LP record designated for long playing–yup, just like it should be for marriage.
Happy New Year!!
Pam Webb 