Wednesday, January 12, 2011

One year of Amusement and Mummy-Terrors

It has been a month since I posted here. I had a good reason, honest. I have a new baby daughter, Kara Eris Cook. Hurrah! The leadup to her birth and its aftermath have occupied me, but now I must impose some normalcy upon my life. That means writing again, tired though I am. Incidentally, I find fatherhood very agreeable. Life is better.

My friends, it has been almost a year since I started writing on this blog. What with my blog's anniversary and new fatherhood, this is a time of reflection. This post is going to be the equivalent of one of those cheapass sitcom clip-shows.

God bless Blogger's stats page. I love looking at it to see what people are doing on my blog and what search engines are leading to it. Perhaps this could be called navel-gazing, but I prefer to think of it as introspection.

Since last year, We Are Amused has racked up rougly 4600 page views, mostly from the United States, then Canada, then the UK. I sold out and signed up for Adsense in April and so far, my labours have wrought a whopping dividend of 89 cents. I've written 38 posts full of insightful reviews, unforgettable commentary, and of course, foul language. Five stars.

My blog is the world's source for this picture, which appeared in my post The Disaster that is Art: Part II. It's drawn a huge number of clicks to my site. Yes, amongst all this painstaking, mind-blowing intellectual poetry, the greatest draw to my site is an image of two 80's wrestlers. I admit it. It bugs me.

Another popular post is Ten Video Game Cliches that must be sent to Hell. I've revised it since it was originally published. So pack your pipe, boil some tea, relax by the fire, and adjust your reading glasses. Read it again, chuckle warmly at the delicious bon mots and when you're finished, exclaim, "How marvelous! I've shit myself laughing!"

In my Maiden Post I expressed anxiety that I would either neglect my blog or use it as an excuse to avoid writing that might actually make me money. I'm happy to say that neither of those fears has materialized. I love We Are Amused as a place to spout my bullshit. Writing here is the highlight of my week. It keeps me creative when my main projects are blocked and reminds me why I love writing.

So, for all of you who make this site a regular stop, thank you for reading. Comment often and let me know that you like what you read here. Your kind attention contributes to my mental health and keeps me from reaching for the shotgun. With your support in 2011, I'll make We Are Amused another non-stop action-packed thrill-ride that will leave you breathless.

http://pharoahphobia.blogspot.com/