Rough Cut: one year old

Hard to believe, but I posted my first entry on this blog one year ago today. At first there was a bit of frenzied activity, with posts going up every day or two. Back in February, I went to once every five days, then in March just once a week. I hadn’t done this amount of writing in decades, and there were some weeks when it felt like a self-imposed burden, but I’m glad I stuck with it. I seem to have a stable readership now, with numbers which have grown a little every month, and what feedback I get has been gratifyingly positive.

Because of the increasing quantity of material on the blog, my web-hosting costs have also increased since I started my site, and at the suggestion of my friend Steve (who actually put the site together for me), I have signed up with Amazon Associates. Although the purist in me can’t help but feel that this is a bit of a compromise, it falls far short of giving in and allowing Google to stick random ads for weight-reduction and engine parts all over my pages. Steve says he looks at this as simply providing a service to my readers, saving them the time it would take to track down films and books I mention.

So starting this week, I have begun adding links to Amazon for the DVDs and books that I talk about in my posts. If what I write inspires interest in my readers, this will provide a convenient way for them to make an impulse purchase. If anyone clicks on one of these links and ends up purchasing that particular item, Amazon will pass a few cents on to me. If enough readers make use of these links, who knows, I might even be able to cover my web-hosting costs!

To those readers who have stuck with me over the past year, thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings. I enjoy sharing my thoughts about the things I see and read and will continue to write here in the hope that I can pass along some of my enthusiasm.

Thanks,
George