1 year ago
Monday, January 2, 2017
FIRST COMMENT
On Dec 27, 2008, I decided to start a blog. It was perhaps the only New Years resolution I ever kept.
I had been reading and lurking on other blogs for quite a while before taking the plunge. My main objective was to tell some stories and to kind of let my family know daily that I was on the right side of the grass.
I really thought only family members would read what I had to say. Interestingly though, only one family member reads my blog. I understand this is not all that uncommon among bloggers. Family members kind of want a more personal touch. Thank you little sis Jan for hanging in there.
Expecting nothing that day in December, I hit publish, then went on my way. I was totally amazed to get a comment that same day from someone I admired and whose blog I had been reading anonymously for about a month.
I expected no one would know I existed but sure enough, there was a sweet welcoming comment from Robin from The New Darma Bums. She had traced back to me from a comment I had tentatively left on her blog. I did a really floppy happy dance around the house to think I had actually gotten a comment. Me--a comment!! Wow.
Robin is still with me today and I would never miss one of her posts. We have hung out over the internet back fence and shared many a tale, fun times and a few not so fun times, but all with caring.
Thanks Robin, I am not sure you knew how you made my day and because of you, post # 2 took shape and I continued till today.
Then on the same day out of the blue came a comment from Blue. Blue was an interesting lady from Finland and to this day I am not sure how she found me in Arkansas on my maiden post.
Sadly I wasn't savvy enough to add a working translate gadget to my blog at that time so she eventually had to quit stopping by. Her English was marginal. She is no longer posting and for that I am sorry. She had an interesting blog.
But there I was on day one with two comments. Boy was I hooked. Haven't out grown the small pleasure I still get when my computer tells me a new comment has posted. I just may have become a comment whore. Are you?
Do you remember the first commenter that appeared on your blog? Are they still with you? Tell the truth--- did you do a happy dance too when you got that first one?
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As a matter of fact, Patti, I was thrilled to get YOUR comment last week. Happy New Year and keep posting!
ReplyDeleteOut to Pasture,
DeleteGosh, thank you. You don't show up on my reading list too often but I enjoy popping in to see you when you do.
Happy New Year to you also.
SPRINKLE was my first to comment on my blog that started in 2003 and ended in 2005. she left and went to Facebook. KENJU was my first to comment on Fools Rush In started in 2005 and has been with me since plus she is on Facebook as well. Most of my early day blog friends have gone to Facebook and remain my friends but I miss their blogs. And no, my family never reads my blog.
ReplyDeleteAnnie,
DeleteDon't think we are alone in the lack of family checking in on our blogs:) We do remember those first ones who found us though don't we?
Yes and KENJU is Just Ask Judy blog and also had a blog Imagine. Sadly several of my blog friends have died and they had family members notify their blog friends. Others had just disappeared and we have to wonder if they just left blogland or if possibly they died also.
DeleteAnnie,
DeleteJudy was one of my very first commenters and I enjoyed her posts and support for years. Then she just quit showing up here but I would see her on other blogs. I guess I finally just bored her with my long stories or said something to offend. I know I have lost others along the way also. I kind of hope when someone quits stopping by that is the case and not death or ill health. We do get attached.
A young woman named Charmine first started commenting on my blog. She's been on Google+ for some time, but no more blog. I know my sister reads my blog because she tells me when I make a typo or grammar mistake. I love my community of bloggers, and I've followed you for years now.
ReplyDeleteDjan,
DeleteHa ha, I would make the occasional mistake just to keep her honest. You and I have been in each others days for quite a while and I hope we keep it up.
At least you have one family member reading your blog. Not one person in my family reads mine.
ReplyDeleteMe too. I was shocked to discover someone read my words. I
Belva,
DeleteI know. I originally felt both a bit exposed yet quite honored when people dropped in on my posts. While still a pleasure, none carry quite the impact as those first ones.
Congratulations for continuing to blog. I always enjoy your posts.
ReplyDeleteI did get comments on my first post. I'm sure it was because I had been posting on other blogs, particularly pottery.
Here's to 2017!
smartcat,
DeleteThank you. It helps when you have a common thread to your posts. Didn't we meet through Peter? My posts are pretty much all over the place.
Wow! Eight years is a long time to have a blog. So many of the blogs I've loved over the years have disappeared after half of that.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like someone will be doing a great blog and then the posts will get bigger and bigger gaps between them and then stop altogether.
Congrats on EIGHT years!
Nasreen,
DeleteThank you--it has flown by. Know what you mean by the frequency. I use to be a daily blogger, now I'm lucky to get one out once a week.
Welcome to TNS--I'll stop by and check your blog out.
We are all either comment whores, or we are liars. I think my first comment came from a cousin I see once every 10 years. SOme of my family reads, my posts, and I occasionally get in trouble when my wife drops by.
ReplyDeletejoeh,
DeleteGlad to hear you say that I am not alone. Also happy that you have family visit and I love it when Mrs. C stops in to keep you honest.
Well done, that's a lot of years and a lot of stories!!
ReplyDeleteI had to go take a look, my first post was in May 2011, and the first comment appeared on June 1. The reader no longer comments, though I do know she still blogs. I suspect we didn't quite connect.
I did have 12 views on that first post, though I suspect many of them were mine as I previewed the post.
Keep on blogging! Your posts are definitely a highlight. All the best to you in 2017!
Eileen,
DeleteHa ha, think I had a few extra views on my first post also.
I sure wish you hadn't hung up your public keyboard. Your posts will be missed.
I just went back and looked. I got my first comment on my 6th blog post, back in 2010, and it was from my cousin Georgia. She was the sole commenter also on my 10th, 16th and 19th posts. On my 20th, Kittie Howard commented. I notice my posts were much shorter then!
ReplyDeleteLinda,
DeleteWasn't it special when you got that commenter that wasn't a relative though I am a bit envious that you did have family visit. That puts you ahead of most bloggers.
I have been reading here for a while and now will write my first comment.I like what you wrote and I aldo like Robin and her gentle comments and pictures.
ReplyDeleteMy family ignores my blog mostly but occasionally I get a call from my daughter asking if this is 'for real', i.e. needs family attention, or 'just a blog' thing.
My first comment freaked me out completely. Until thrn I had been blogging to calm my heart and mind and never really thought about readers.
I almost shut down the blog that day. I have grown up since.
Sabine,
DeleteThank you so much for commenting today. I know there are readers out there who only leave a footprint in my stats. That you and they are there is also rewarding, I just don't usually get to thank you.
I am glad you have learned to embrace your commenters now days.
I've actually had several runs at blogging. I discontinued my first blog to get rid of some family and friends that were reading it. Politics is the great divider. One of my reasons for leaving Texas was politics so I did not want to hang on to family and friends from my life there. I'm much happier without family reading my blog.
ReplyDeleteLinda,
DeleteHum, never thought it might be a good thing that most of our families don't read. I am glad that works so well for you.
First I worried about no comments. Then I celebrated. I am still here having gone through several phases and changes but still here hitting these keys.
ReplyDeleteI, for one, am very glad I found you and your wonderful blog.
Gail,
DeleteMe too that we found eachother. It is one thing to meet someone from another state or country via blogging but when you think of you and I--we are not that far apart geographically but had we not been bloggers--we would have never crossed paths. I am so glad we did.
I just looked it up; 14 people commented on my 1st post (in 2012)--I wish I got that many comments now!!
ReplyDeleteFran,
DeleteWow, 14 commenters on your first post. That is amazing but then so is your blog. You always lift my day and attitude.
I don't have a blog, but am a regular reader of yours and several other blogs. However, I am, for the most part, a lurker, and never comment--not sure exactly why. So this is a coming out party for me!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, congratulations on eight years! I like blogs SO much more than social media. Bloggers tend to write, rather than the one sentence nonsense of Facebook. A good blogger can turn a trip to the pharmacy into an interesting story.
Dave,
DeleteI am delighted that you decided to "come out" on my blog. I feel honored. You have the soul of a blogger and the heart of a reader.
I do hope this isn't your only comment. Do let us hear from you again either in comment form or perhaps in your own blog?? I think we all started as lurkers.
Patti, I went from writing in a journal to a website to blogging over the years. I find it cathartic (is that the right word?)... whatever it is, it helps me to keep things straight in my head and I also find it helpful as a way to track events. Comments are an added draw... and reading each others blogs is a lovely way to share. Thanks for sharing yours.
ReplyDeleteRian,
DeleteI think cathartic is the perfect word. I use it that way also but usually just for pleasure. I really enjoy dipping into others lives so easily and finding virtual friends.
This post brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for that, Patti. I always track down commenters on the blog. I have been so lucky to have made many virtual friends of the heart that way. Sadly, when we started blogging we used an old comment platform, and all of those were wiped out when the platform was discontinued. So, no way to remember who the first person was. No one in my family reads the blog. Not sure why that is. And no one else in the family keeps a blog. Maybe there's only one in each family with the burning desire to share stories and pictures. I'm always glad to still hanging out with you here, Patti!
ReplyDeleterobin,
DeleteWe have been hanging out for a long time and I am so glad I finally got to tell you just what that first comment and your continued support meant to me and how it inspired me to keep pounding the keys.
Maybe we bloggers are the family recorders and historians. The ancients always had one member to do such--perhaps that is our role.
Yeah it took me 6 months before I had a comment and she has changed careers and blogs are no longer public. I was very ecited and at first we kept each other going. Gradually I followed others and a small regular group became set. Many were yeachers or writers at some point. Some have passed away . Other just dropped out because life changed them.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes my family has little interest in my posts. An in law a distant one once did appear but shehas changed what she likes on computers which tends to be games.
I'm glad we met here. I find myself hoping for attention now and then. I used to love to write but my eyes now limit time spent with a screen.
Heidrun,
DeleteHow else would we have ever met with out blogging? I am so grateful for the people that have come into my life that never would have without the Internet.
I am so sorry your eyes are giving you problems but I always enjoy when you post and bring us up to date. Please don't give it up entirely.
My family does not read my blog but some of my friends do, I know only because they occasionally say something about a post directly to me never post a comment. I can't say I remember who first commented, but I have treasured many virtual friendships over he years. It's always sad when someone stops posting and commenting. I am thrilled when I hear from someone who has been "quiet" for some time.
ReplyDeleteOlga,
DeleteMe too feeling sad when someone quits blogging with out any announcement. Some just get tired of the daily effort or lose interest. Some have career moves or family reasons to quit. I have lost some blog friends who have passed away and it is amazingly difficult when that happens. Thus that is in the back of my mind when some just stop posting. Like you I am thrilled when they pop up on my reading list again. Ahhhh.
Yep, it sure feels good to get those comments! It is such a great way to connect with others. I've often wondered what it would be like to meet in person all the bloggers that we follow and all our loyal commenters. I bet it would be fun and interesting too!
ReplyDeleteI remember my first commenter, and yes, she is still with me:-)
Carole,
DeleteWouldn't that be a fun gab fest? I have met a couple and it is a very comfortable thing to do. It is more like a reunion than a meeting as we know so much about eachother.
I can't remember when I started my blog. I needed to write and a blog made the best sense. I am lucky that a few nice people have found my blog and I have found theirs. For me finding people with interests like mine was a little difficult. Blogging and the internet brought the world to my laptop. While I don't think I share anything of great importance, I still like to share and love that a few of you have hung on with me - and bought some of my tie die - which I have put away for the winter. Always fun to read your blog. You have a great sense of humor and I appreciate your sharing it with us.
ReplyDeleteBarbara,
DeleteIsn't it amazing how we end up meeting? I am so glad you and I found eachother and I really love my shirt. I guess playing with ice isn't such a fun winter thing to do:)
We started at about the same time. My first post was in April, 2008, and I had one comment. Then, in 2011, that same post got another comment -- such fun.
ReplyDeleteI do leave comments open on all my posts, so people who find me through Google search terms are free to leave a comment if they like.
What I do find interesting is how my readers have changed over the years. There seems to be a natural cycle. Most of the comments from the first three years or so are gone now, for an assortment of reasons. I'm in the process now of seeing new readers come in, and soon another replacement cycle will have taken place. On the other hand, some who stopped by during my first year still are blogging, and we're still commenting on each others' posts. Some, I've even met. It's a great world, this blogosphere.
shoreacres,
DeleteTotally agree on the magic of blogging and yes, it does run in cycles. Some of my commenters are still here but many have dropped out of the scene. Blogging seems to have a shelf life and for some will run its course. Kind of hope to dodge that bullet but who knows?
Interesting that 2008 seems to have been a banner year for starting a blog.
Kay of Musings, who know lives in Hawaii, was the first to comment on my blog. At that time she still lived near Chicago. It was through her that I picked up other readers who comment. Yes, we are still blogging buddies, and we have even met!
ReplyDeleteI have a lot of friends and some family that read my blog, but never comment. Since I have started linking my posts to Facebook, I do get a "Like" from my two sisters. Reading through some of these comments I find it interesting that many others experience the same. Perfect strangers seem to take more interest in us as bloggers, but that way we acquire a new set of wonderful friends.
Linda,
DeleteI too follow Kay who has a great blog and how neat she was your first commenter. You started well.
Perhaps our families know us well enough to not need daily details where strangers have no knowledge of us so everything we post is new.
I agree that it is a wonderful way to meet new friends.
When I'd first started blogging in 2008, I didn't really advertise my blog much. This was directly due to the fact that I came from an area of the cyber world where stalking and trolling were the norm, and the last thing I wanted was to be trolled and/or stalked (which is why I still moderate comments to this day).
ReplyDeleteI believe my first commenter was the one who suggested I start blogging in the first place. Sadly, he stopped blogging (was a well respected and somewhat influential blogger) and I only hear from him 'bout once a year.
Father Nature's Corner
G.B. Miller,
DeleteWelcome to TNS and thank you for commenting and following. I agree on moderating comments. Until I did, I kept getting long epistles from a guy on why he hated American women. Moderating works.
I really love the name of your blog and will be over to visit soon.
I am a recent follower of your blog. I’ve actually been away from the bloggy world for a few months. I don’t get a lot of comments, but I do have two loyal readers who always comment and I am appreciative of them.
ReplyDeletelyndagrace,
DeleteSo good to hear from you.I had stopped by your blog a while back but saw you hadn't posted in a while. So glad you are back in business. Keep those posts a coming.
I can't remember my first comment, but I know I was posting about a week before I received one.
ReplyDeleteStephen,
DeleteBet that first one was really a relief and welcome. You certainly have blossomed big time since.
Who doesn't love comments on their blog, if nothing else it shows someone is reading it. I can't remember my first comment, but for a few years I only had about 5 people that read my posts and even now years later I don't gain the followers other bloggers do. I think people take one glance at my blog and run a mile. So it makes the followers I do have even more special to me!
ReplyDeleteJoey,
DeleteYou have a great blog that is honest, fun and often deep. I am glad I found you via Naomi. I do miss her though.
Hi Patty...Happy New Year! You have a great sense of humor and I love your stories and wish I could write half as good as you! I started my blog going on 7 years ago and mainly started it to jot down things sort of like a journal. My children read my blog and my late aunt used to. I have one friend who reads occasionally. Can't remember who my first comment was from but I do remember how exciting it was to know someone was really reading it!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'll keep blogging as long as I enjoy it. I find it's useful even to me to look up something if I've forgotten when it happened. I hope you keep telling your stories!
Cheryl,
DeleteAw thanks so much lady, glad I can amuse on occasion.
I think it is so cool that your family reads your blog. That has to feel great.
I love how you always accomplish so much every day. You do make me feel like a slacker:))
It's so interesting that you wrote this today ...I often wonder if my family reads what I write and was thrilled today when my daughter emailed me that she often sends what I write to her friends and that my current blog was one she sent to many of her friends with a very positive response. It really made my day ! and I've been blogging since July 2006. I especially remember a wonderful man whose blog was "Octogenarian" ... and now it's me !!
ReplyDeleteGinnie,
DeleteThat is so great that your daughter not only reads your posts but thinks so much of them that she passes them on. That post was very helpful though and your letter worth copying.
ReplyDeleteA famous English writer centuries ago wrote that anyone who writes without getting paid is a fool. So I've been one who stumbled into it about the same time you did, Patti. And I've never regretted it since. The love of writing & the joy of all the commenters...:)
TB
DeleteYou are so right. Blogging is so different from writing for publication. Thanks to comments, we get immediate reaction--good or bad-- to our work plus we get to meet some really cool folks.
WOW your story sounds a lot like mine. I started blogging in 2011. It took me a month to get a comment and until about a year ago, I rarely got any comments.In fact I still dont get many. Its been rough. I too thought my family would enjoy my blog but sadly only one reads it ( it think)and thats my mom since I have her on the email notifications. It sorta bothers me that family dont care to follow my stories. I write about random things I do or see. Its a fun a way to get out frustrations, relax and just share my thoughts. Now excuse me while I go look around your blog.
ReplyDeleteLisa
Lisa,
DeleteWelcome and thank you for commenting and following. I checked your blog and loved the post on the homeless person.
As for family, I guess they feel they know us well enough. I don't take offense especially when I realized how common it is in the blog world.
I couldn't explain why I love blogging in a way anyone else would understand, but I do, and I love any comments I get as it is like a conversation of sorts about things I love. Like a conversation over coffee, or standing in line at the grocery store. I've met so many wonderful people and truthfully- I find out more about their personalities by the comments they leave than by the posts they write on their own blogs sometimes. All that's to say- I am so glad you didn't finish your post with a goodbye as so many others are doing right now. I would miss you!
ReplyDeleteTerri,
DeleteYou make a good point about the comments being more revealing. It is a more unguarded moment with than with posts.
I realize my post almost did sound like a farewell. I'll be here as long as health permits. I like my blog buddies too much to quit. Hope you are enjoying the snow we got last night.
I'm always delighted by a new commenter, so I hope you enjoy mine! My first commenter was from a very sweet lady that I 'knew' on another forum. Sadly, her life got complicated (husband cheated and left her) and she left Bloggerland a year later.
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed your comments on Joeh's blog, so I decided to stop by. Happy New Year!
I entertained the idea of blogging after being asked to write a guest post on TGB. I didn't intend to launch a blog when I did in 2006 but accidentally clicked a wrong key, was so lacking in tech skills I didn't know how to remove my post -- not as clear on Blogger about how to do that then for a novice just learning to use a computer then -- so just to save face I kept on blogging when I should have been spending my time on other matters. Oh, well! I've since stopped blogging a few times, then came back to it.
ReplyDeleteI have few family living now but they typically don't read my blog unless I mention to them a topic of particular interest. Many of my friends aren't interested in blogging so seldom read me plus some don't even use a computer, also, many are now deceased.
I, too, was amazed anyone would want to read anything I might write, much less comment on it, whether on someone else's blog or my own and still am. A few bloggers from then are gone now for a variety of reasons and I continue to gradually discover new ones to read as the frequency of my blogging ebbs and flows.
Came across some of your comments on other's blogs so was intrigued, partially also because I visited old friends in Ark. for first time in fifty years last year from when I lived there for a few years.
The first couple of commenters are no longer blogging. However, Dina in Israel was the friend who got me started and did comment. The other first person to comment was Michelle of Rambling Woods. And you bet I'm a comment whore. I love comments! I'm just so glad you're blogging, Patti. I'm just taking a break from my projects right now, but am looking forward to catching up with you when I'm done. I feel like I've been working on these projects forever, but I am beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
ReplyDeleteAnd by the way, you are definitely one of my very favorite bloggers to read. You write with such wit and humor. I wish I lived close by because I know we would be face to face friends too.
ReplyDelete