shootin' for 100

Some people who blog do so to a very wide audience. Me? Not so much. Oh, at one point this blog was rather more popular than it is now (ah, the good old days), and got double-digit comments on every post, but slowly the audience dribbled away to shinier things (hello, Facebook!).

(Note: I do NOT blame my writing, content, political views, taste in clothing, or overall style for losing readers. That would be to admit cause, which is clearly not an option.)

Losing readers would have made me nuts a couple of years ago, but now the pendulum has swung way over to the other side and I'm not all that bothered. It's nice to have a core group of people who care to come by, read, and comment.

Naturally, I'd love to be adulated more, but it's always been my motto 'quality over quantity' (except, perhaps, where bourbon is concerned) and so I'm taking a moment now to say thank you to all of you who do come, read, and comment.

Thank you. With a big squishy rainbow on the side. Plus sprinkles.

Now, go tell 10 friends about this blog or your computer's RAM will turn into a bleating ewe. I totally swear it will.

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For the record, I am a mosquito magnet. Invite me to an outdoor party and I will be the one covered in a cloud of bloodthirsty insects. You'll have little need of any other form of protection, such is my power over any bug wanting a meal.

It comes from my Mom, who can't venture out in the summer with uncovered ankles, ever, unless she's either in a windstorm or coated in bug-off.

And, I'm proud to say, the skill has been passed on to the next generation, as Thing 2 has the same generous nature. Sadly, the boy is also 'atopic,' which means that any bites he DOES get will swell up to a nice marble-sized hard lump and itch like mad for weeks. Way to take it to the next level, dude.

Who among you are magnets for the mosquito? I can't be the only one.

Or CAN I?

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One of these days I think I'll run a little experiment and see how long it takes a post to get 100 comments. My prediction, based on the amount of traffic I get, is that the regulars here will have to comment about 10 times each to get over the hump.

Some folks have gobs of drive-by readers who comment effusively over every little post, no matter how sloppily thrown together, NAY has its dedicated core group who, one can hope, would step up to the plate of slavish behavior and put poofy little hearts and puppy kisses all over my ego-driven offerings.

But, no limits today. So, you're welcome for that one.

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Lastly, the new IM tool at work has some really cool features, like a nice assortment of emoticons to spice up your interchanges with similarly bored workmates.

Examples include the regular smiley, the sarcastic smiley, the concerned face, and a slice of pizza.

Also, a sheep (-->). Which, combined with either of the 'hug' emoticons, will put a stop to almost any conversation.

Begs the question - What's the weirdest emoticon YOU have in your arsenal, and would you ever use it for a work-related conversation? Also, what's the SHEEP FOR??

For the record, I've used the sheep/hug combo to good effect, as well as the slice of pizza in a response to a colleague's posting of the 'glass of beer' emoticons. We do have a rollicking good time at the cube farm, oh yes we do.

Tiff out.