One Thousand

I posted my very first entry on my newly created blog, Willow House Chronicles, on February 4, 2009. When I started the blog, the goal I set for myself was to post one entry a day for an entire year. I had no shortage of subject matter at hand. As we had recently moved from the Toronto area to a home in Eastern Ontario, there were plenty of new sights waiting to be explored. I easily met my first target of 365 posts and continued to make regular entries thereafter.

Today’s entry marks a significant milestone, my one-thousandth post. In recent times, I haven’t posted so regularly as in that first year. Still, one thousand posts. That’s a lot of writing.

The Chronicles form an interesting record of our early years in our new location. It’s fun to look back over old posts and consider what has changed and what has remained the same. The house itself has changed quite a bit in its outward appearance, with a new roof and a new colour scheme. The overgrown gardens have largely been reclaimed and have even been expanded.

I’ve enjoyed meeting other bloggers and visitors who have dropped by and left comments, always appreciated. Thank you to everyone who has helped to make the writing of Willow House Chronicles a rewarding experience.

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The Year In Review

Crazy Cat Lady with, from left, Arthur, Capone, Mikey, Tonka and Moey

February 4th marks the one year anniversary of Willow House Chronicles. Wow, the year has flown by. When I began the Chronicles, I didn’t have a clear idea of what I would write about. I was spurred on to begin, however, by Birdgirl, my highly successful blogger daughter, who writes The Marvelous in Nature. She got tired of me making suggestions and said “Write your own blog!” and finally I did. Birdgirl has a zoology degree and a strong background in hands-on zoology, so her posts tend to be more technical or detailed, while my nature-related posts offer the view of a layman nature lover. While retaining a core of nature-related subjects, I have also covered local events and other diverse topics.

Blogging offers a number of satisfactions. It is very nice to have a place to post photographs you love and be able to share them with others. Blogging also sharpens your powers of observation as you have an eye constantly on the lookout for interesting phenomenon suitable for a blog post. Now that I have a year’s worth of entries, it is pleasant to look back over the year and observe the changing seasons, revisit favorite events and remember interesting sights. It also provides a calendar for anticipating the schedule of the upcoming year.

I thought I’d mark the anniversary with a look at some of the most popular posts as measured by the number of views recorded. By far the most visited post, a runaway winner, is Crazy Cat Lady. This single photograph of the cats and I draws visitors every day. I’m not sure quite what the fascination with crazy cat ladies might be. Perhaps it is other cat owners seeking out their fellow addicts.

Beautiful Workhorse

The Sunday Snapshot that gets the most visits is Beautiful Horse. Probably this is partly a function of the fact that search terms are more likely to link to it than views of scenery, but it is a nice shot of a lovely horse.

The Bibliophilia Monday book review in the number one position for visits is Early Ontario Gravestones. I was rather surprised by this. Apparently bloggers have more of an interest in cemeteries than I ever would have guessed.

The number two position in this category is held by Two About Beavers, which features two warm and informative beaver tales.

In the category of informational blogposts, the most-viewed post is about McIntosh Apples. In spite of many newer introductions, the old standby McIntosh still apparently enjoys a strong following.

Another popular search subject that leads people to Willow House is robins and their nest and eggs. Robin’s Egg Blues is viewed nearly as often as the McIntosh Apple post.

How Galling!, about goldenrod galls and pine cone willow galls, is another popular subject. Since then, I’ve posted about a number of other interesting galls, including this Tuesday’s post about Ash Flower Galls.

Birches, which features Robert Frost’s poem of the same name, is popular.

The Gleaners, which links art and nature, is next in popularity.

The Gleaners: Canada Geese (Branta canadensis)

Older posts, of course, are likely to have been viewed more than newer posts that haven’t been available very long. One newer post that is quickly overtaking older entries is Fuzzy Wuzzy, about woolly bear caterpillars.

Coy-wolves, also posted in October, has generated considerable interest.

Another October post, Climate Change and the Boreal Forest, rounds out this top dozen.

There are a handful of posts about horse events that all enjoy regular visits. First in this group is the Kemptville Slide Reining Show review, followed closely by the Leeds County Draft Horse Club: Field Day post. All of the posts related to draft horses are popular, including From Lilliput to Brobdingnag and
Richmond Fair: Six Horse Hitch. The Mounties also attract visitors at The Musical Ride Comes To Iroquois. I am surprised and dismayed that Minis!, a post about miniature horses, has attracted no following whatsoever, and is near the bottom of the blog inventory as listed by number of views. Therefore, I’ll close with a photo of Nicholas and Flash, who are too cute for words.

It was my goal to write a post a day for a full year. Having achieved that, I may be taking it easy henceforth and following a less rigourous posting schedule. Thank you to all the visitors and regular readers who have dropped by Willow House Chronicles. I’m glad we met!

Nicholas and Flash

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