Who the heck are you?

I started this 31-day blog challenge with a personal essay about my husband and it only seems right that I conclude it with a photo of him. In the interest of keepin’ it fresh, I snapped a pic of Jesse today after I picked him up at O’Hare International Airport (ORD). With no further ado, here is my new favorite photo.

Now that you know what “Goldie” looks like, I want to thank you for reading my blog. I know who some of you are because you clicked “like” or commented. But most of you are a complete mystery. Who the heck are you?

WordPress metrics tell me how many people visit every day and that’s about it. I mean, I know most of you are from the United States, but I don’t know which states or what you think of my blog.

I suppose I don’t need to know who you are or what you think, but I definitely want you to know I am grateful for your readership.

Here is a roundup of the 31-day blog challenge:

My most popular blog was Here’s the thing. It’s about gratitude.

My most commented on blog was A merry old soul. This was about an eccentric theatre director I worked for many moons ago. Several people messaged me about similar experiences with their early-career directors. It was amazing feedback.

My least popular blog was Before the Ding Could Dong. No surprise there as it is terribly long short story with penis humor. Hey, I write what I write.

My favorite blog was Which item on the McDonald’s menu are you? It’s about assumptions I made when I was 16 years old.

My least favorite prompt was for There’s no place like home row. The prompt asked what I liked most about my writing. Instant cringe! But as I answered the question, I learned that my body and my mind are two separate things and so is the part of me that likes to write. Until I started this blog challenge, I always thought of myself as “whole.”

My most emotional blog was about Alfred. Writing about my old director reduced me to an absurd amount of tears but also opened my eyes to real forgiveness of self and others. I am still somewhat awestruck by the experience of writing about him.

And the blog that was shared the most was What keeps you up at night? It’s about dog poop.

***

When I picked Jesse up from O’Hare this afternoon, the first thing he asked me was, “Did you blog today?” I told him I was going to do it this evening, which is several hours later than usual. He said he missed it and that he had been waiting for it.

Furthermore, a few nights ago, we were talking on the phone before bedtime and he said he looked forward to reading my blog every day. He said he valued it more than talking on the phone at night because “that’s when we’re both exhausted from the day.” He said my blog helps him see what’s going on in my brain when he’s far away, which is most days of the month.

I realize nobody is going to care about “my brain” the way my husband does, but his words meant something to me and just one short month of blogging has improved my life. So I’ll continue to blog, even without the WordPress prompts. Thanks again for stopping by! -Connie