Today marks nine years since I began posting to this webspace. As I write this next entry in my series of annual reports about the status of this site, I have published 1,527 posts to this webspace (this will be 1,528), as well as revising individual pages, attracting 147,355 views from 45,024 visitors. As such, in the past year, I have published 157 posts, garnering 46,274 views from 12,601 visitors (per “Reflective Comments about the Eighth Year“).
The following graphs present changes over time, noting posts, then views, then visitors.
I continue to be pleased to have the opportunity to do this kind of thing, to have an outlet for my ruminations and occasional verse, as well as to continue to offer the resources I do (and which viewership figures tell me attract some attention; I hope they are useful). That this has been the best year I’ve had in terms of readership is also a pleasure. It suggests that I am doing something right, and there’s no small joy to find in that suggestion.
I continue to be pleased, too, to offer writing to order. If you’d like to have some done, please fill out the form below:
As it happens, I’ve been away from the day job this week, ownership having determined that, after a full season and the stresses of opening a new office, the company as a whole could use a break. Steeped as I am in the things that I am, I resisted the notion–and I was somewhat justified in it, in the event, with clients making appointments and sending worried emails more or less as soon as the decision to close was made. But since I need and appreciate my paycheck, and since there are other concerns involved, I posted a sign in my office door, and I’ve been away from the office. (I go back Monday; I’ll pick up then.)
In the event, things worked out well. My daughter is off from school this week, and her whirlwind summer tour of the Hill Country doesn’t start until next week. (It is a packed summer for her; she’s got a month of one theatre day-camp [plus dance and cheer instruction], two weeks of Girl Scout camp, two weeks of another theatre day-camp, and a week of a cheer day-camp before a few days off and the resumption of classes.) I’ve gotten to spend a fair bit of time with her, going to a local park and cooking out, or simply relaxing (in and around addressing regular medical appointments for her, because such things need doing, and school being out makes it easier to do them).
Thanks to no small amount of family support, I was also able to take her to the Witte Museum in San Antonio. (Full disclosure: the Witte does not sponsor or endorse me as of this writing, although I wouldn’t be sad to receive such from them.) It’s not the first time we’ve gone; we’ve toured the museum before, although it’s been a few years. It’s not the first time she’s gone; in addition to having gone with me before, my daughter’s visited with one day-camp group or another, and there might’ve been a school field trip to it. It’s far from the first time I’ve gone, either; in addition to having taken my daughter before, I did have one or two school field trips to it. But this trip was special, really. I don’t know if it’s an issue that she’s at just the right age, young enough to be enthusiastic about things and old enough to actually pay attention to and focus on what’s on display. I don’t know if it’s an issue that I’m at a good place for it, relaxed enough to not worry so much about things and to let her be while still engaged enough in things to be good company. Whatever the reason, though, she had a great time, and I had a good time; I feel like she got a lot out of the experience, and I was pleased to be there with her as she did.
Admittedly, it wasn’t the only good part of the day. But it was a good part, and I’m damned glad of it.
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Yesterday (as this posts) was my fourteenth wedding anniversary. It having been a Tuesday, my wife and I knew that we’d not be able to do anything to commemorate the occasion on the day, itself. Both of us work, after all, and neither of us can afford to take the day right at that time. What we did, then, was to go out on the Saturday before. For a while, we had been looking at going out to check out some of the local wineries (the Texas Hill Country abounds in them) and breweries; on Saturday, we took the opportunity to do the latter, stopping off at a few places along Fitzhugh Road west of Austin.
A stretch of the road in question, shown on Google Maps for reference and commentary.
The first stop along our short tour was Jester King Brewery. The approach to it was a bit rough, and the facility shows that it was assembled in stages. Still, the wood-fired pizza looked and smelled good (we ate before heading out), and the beers I had were tasty. Too, there was something of a festival atmosphere about the place, with its open fields, goats, and such, and we were advised by staff of an upcoming event to which we are like to go–taking our daughter with us, weather and circumstances permitting, since it sounds like something she might enjoy. (There were a number of kids of various ages running about the place and petting the goats, as well, so I think there’ll be enough to catch her interest.) It was well worth going to, and I do hope things work out such that we can find our way back over to the place.
The second stop was not far up the road: Beerburg. Getting to it from Jester King was fairly easy, and we decided to eat while we were on site. I’m glad we did; the food was excellent. The beans and rice that accompanied our meals were quite good, the former solid and the latter finely spiced. My wife had a quesadilla she described as the best she’d had, and I very much appreciated my shrimp tacos. The beers were a bit quirky (the mugwort brew, in particular), although, in the brewery’s defense, they had been advertised as being such. I can appreciate experimentation when I know it’s coming, and I’d be willing to taste some of their other trials–as long as I can get more of those tacos!
Afterward, we put in at Fitzhugh Brewing. If Jester King is a festival and Beerburg a wonky local pub, Fitzhugh Brewing is an HGTV home makeover. My wife identified it as evoking the Gaines’s Magnolia in Waco in terms of aesthetic, and she notes it as catering to a demographic in which neither she nor I partake. The beers were decent enough, as was the pretzel we split between us, but none of them were exceptional. It was something of a letdown after the earlier experiences; perhaps if we’d done things in a different order or visited at a different time, we’d’ve enjoyed it more fully.
The last stop on our tour wasn’t on Fitzhugh Road, as such, but the road it becomes as a driver follows it west; it turns to Pedernales Falls Road and then becomes FM 2766. Just off of the intersection of FMs 2766 and 3232, hard by Pedernales Falls State Park, is the Pedernales Falls Trading Post. My wife had long noted wanting to check it out, and I was happy to oblige her (if later than ought to have been the case). The venue offers a vanishingly small indoor space. There is ample outdoor seating, however, and a grill that gives off the most succulent smells as it cooks burgers to go along with pulls from a scant few taps worked by a singularly jovial barman. It’s a hole-in-the-wall kind of place, perfect for a quiet couple of beers of an evening, and perfect for us to have closed out our day on. I think we’ll be going back there, too.
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Here it is, the first of the year. As I write this, a cup of coffee steaming on the desk in front of me, I feel a sense of hope for the coming twelve months. There’re things going on that don’t necessarily impact this webspace, and I’m largely looking forward to them. Most notable is that, starting tomorrow, I’ll be heading up an office in Johnson City, Texas, where I have lived for a while. The office builds on the skills, abilities, and training I’ve already got, and I have the hope that, in the coming months, it’ll become a thriving part of the local economy.
Stop on by! Image from Google Maps, used for commentary
I’ll admit to some concern about the endeavor. It’s been a while since I was management, after all, and there’s some rust to knock off. Too, any new business endeavor carries with it some risk, and while I do still have some insulation, it’s not as abundant as might be preferred. Further, there’s a bit of a wind-up period to be expected, and while the work I’ll be doing is just coming into season now, it’ll take a bit for the business to get out into the town and well known.
So much said, I’ll continue to offer the services I currently do. I’m still happy to take commissions for written-to-order pieces that do not use the rampant theft involved in AI-generated work, creating unique texts to meet your needs. Poetry, essays, memoirs, works of fiction, ad copy, press releases, business and technical documentation–I’m happy to work with you on any or all of them to help you craft the best possible work. Reader-review and copy-editing are also available, as always, as is support for writing instruction.
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It has been eight years since the first post on this website, eight years I’ve been working on Elliott RWI. As I write this, another in a series of annual reports on the state of the site, I have published 1,370 posts to the blogroll (this will be post 1,371), and I have revised individual pages, collecting 101,081 views from 32,423 visitors as of this writing. In the last year, therefore, I have made 157 posts and collected 35,804 views from 9,748 visitors (based on “Reflective Comments about the Seventh Year”). Performance is up from last year–and, in all measures other than number of posts made, higher than in any previous year.
Of the three figures below, the first displays posts by year of blogging. The second shows views by year of blogging, and the third shows visitors by year of blogging.
I remain pleased to be able to continue doing this kind of work, and I look forward not only to another year of it, but many other years of it. I’ve enjoyed doing the writing I’ve done here, and I’m gratified to have learned that at least some of it appears to have been useful and/or enjoyable to others.
A couple of years back, I waxed loquacious and hopeful about my birthday. Today, as I hit forty years of age–yes, cue the black balloons–I have to note that the hopes…did not pan out quite as expected. And I still don’t know what ingredient in the salad I am, although I expect it’s a vinaigrette dressing, being somewhat astringent.
I need…a few more candles. Photo by lil artsy on Pexels.com
As I sit now, though, I have a decent job again. I still have my family and my home. The past year wasn’t necessarily a good one for me, but it’s done, and I am where I can move ahead with some confidence. Hopefully, I know enough now not to get too cocky about it…
It has been seven years since the first post on this website, seven years I’ve been working on Elliott RWI. As I write this, I have published 1,213 posts to the blogroll (this will be post 1,214), and I have revised individual pages, collecting 65,277 views from 22,675 visitors as of this writing. In the last year, therefore, I have made 156 posts and collected 24,525 views from 6,803 visitors (based on “Reflective Comments about the Sixth Year”). Performance is up from last year and overall; I’ve made more posts than at any point since leaving Oklahoma (even with making no class reports), and I had more visitors offering more views than in any previous year.
Of the three figures below, the first displays posts by year of blogging. The second shows views by year of blogging, and the third shows visitors by year of blogging.
Figure 1, as labeled.Figure 2, as labeled.Figure 3, as labeled.
I remain pleased to be able to continue doing this kind of work, and I look forward not only to another year of it, but many other years of it. I’ve enjoyed doing the writing I’ve done here, and I’m gratified to have learned that at least some of it appears to have been useful and/or enjoyable to others.
This last week, my wife, my daughter, and I took a bit of a vacation. I was nervous about doing so, to be certain. For one, the last time we thought to take one–spring break for my daughter’s Kindergarten year–happened right as the shutdowns and lockdowns from the novel coronavirus started hitting in earnest in our part of the world. For another, I have…challenges…having fun, as I’venoted. But I am happy to report that things went well, overall; there are always issues, of course, but they were minor, and the family had a good time.
Clearly, a happy time! Photo is mine.
Heading out from where we live, we went first to Houston, where we spend a couple of days. We traveled by way of Shiner, allowing us to see not only a couple of interesting historical markers, but also to tour the Spoetzl Brewery and sample some of the products of which my wife and I are fond as we sat for a picnic lunch under cloudy skies. And we drove the rest of the way to Houston along surface roads rather than the interstate, which made for a far more pleasant drive, even if it was a longer one. I think I’ll do so much again.
In Houston, we spent a fair bit of time touring around. My wife had grown up in the area and had lived not far from where we stayed, so we had a chance to check out her old stomping grounds, and I was gratified to learn a little bit more about her. We’ve been together for years, and I’m happy about it, and any chance I get to know her better is a welcome thing. Too, our daughter, Ms. 8, getting a sense of her parents’ background is a good thing; we live in the town where I grew up (for a little longer, anyway), so my history is clear enough, and getting the chance to expand on my wife’s for our daughter was good. So was going to Galveston, where we visited a confectioner and went to the beach; both were good for us!
Deuce-38!
One brick, neither in the wall nor of a house
Photos are Sonya Elliott’s
From Houston, we headed to Lafayette, where my wife and I had attended graduate school. We stayed at a bed-and-breakfast there, the Duchess Downtown, where we received excellent treatment; we felt welcomed and appreciated and at home there, and I recommend it highly. And we revisited a number of the places we’d been together, including the office where we got to know one another while in graduate school and working on translating Beowulf. It was good to go back and find our bricks–UL Lafayette paves its walkways with the names of those who have graduated, so that we symbolically speed current students along their way as we remain part of the institution–as well as to go into the Edith Garland Dupré Library and find both my master’s thesis and my dissertation. Even better, both showed that they’d been checked out, and more than once!
We did some of the touristy stuff, too, of course. Chief among them was heading down to New Iberia, where we called at the Konriko Rice Mill and Museum before heading to Avery Island. At the former, we got some tasty treats that will soon grace our table; at the latter, we toured the Jungle Gardens and the Tabasco factory–as well as making a few purchases for ourselves and our loved ones.
Buddha rockin’ e’rywhere
Take it to the bridge!
Hot stuff!
Photos are mine and Sonya Elliott’s
Nom!
Par for the course
Images are mine.
We also took a little excursion to Breaux Bridge and Henderson, where we got to check out some attractions. Ms. 8 enjoyed walking amid dinosaur models and reconstructions (while her parents needed the exercise!), and the lot of us enjoyed mini golf, go-karting, laser-tag, and the like next door to it. Ms. 8 was especially fond of the karting; I drove her, and she got to learn that, while I drive with restraint on the roads, I don’t have to do so. Little speed junkie that she is, she thrilled in it..
Again, in all, it was a good vacation. We saw and did neat stuff. We ate good food (perhaps more than we should have.) We bonded. And we look forward to doing as much again in the future.
Thirty-eight years ago today, I was pulled screaming into the world. I am told–and I have to rely on what I have been told, since memory does not serve me quite so well at that remove–that I was a forceps delivery, and the image of sterile salad tongs cupping my head and yanking me out into light and cold seems apt enough. I wonder if I am the tomato or the carrot in such a salad, or if I am the olive or the cucumber or what.
Something like one of these, perhaps? Image from Wikimedia Commons; I am told it’s public domain.
Whatever salad-fixin’ I might have been or might still be, though, marking another circuit of Sol is something that often prompts reflection and consideration. There’s been enough to consider, certainly, and not all of it has been a comfort. Occupying the position of privilege that I do, I know I am insulated from the direct effects of much of the unpleasantness and outright evil that has been at work in the world, and I am neither unappreciative of that ease nor unmindful of those who do not have it. I work with no few of the latter, and I do sometimes pay attention at work.
I am more or less comfortable at this point, as I sit and type out this post (well ahead of time, I have to admit; I mean to be at work on the NaNoWriMo project when this goes live). And that is a dangerous thing. It breeds complacency, laziness. I already do not do enough. But I also grow more and more accustomed to comfort, easing into it and succumbing to the inertia of my own indolence. I’d imagine I can get more than a few more years out of myself in such circumstances, but whether or not that’s advisable…
As it is, I have more writing to do and different. I also have a new year of me starting, and I had probably ought to see if I can’t enjoy some of it.
It’s not exactly a secret that I do a fair bit of writing. I’ve been pretty good about keeping pace in this webspace, posting thrice weekly, and even if a fair bit of my writing is working through a re-read of novels, novellas, and stories I love, it’s still writing–and not all of the writing I do here is on that project. Nor yet is this the only place where I present my writing, as this and this attest, as well as the conference presentations I still occasionally do. And my mostly-online roleplaying games involve no small amount of writing, too, both in the actual play and in the chatter that surrounds it.
Yep, this is the sign. Image taken fromNaNoWriMo.org, used for commentary
I have tended to struggle, however, with writing narratives of one sort or another. I may be able to put together the occasional vignette taken from my daily life–like this, this, this, this, or this–but longer works have tended to elude me. Too, I do tend more toward a poetic voice than a narrative one, working with sound rather than story, even though I know prose fares better with more people than verse. “Poetry’s hard,” after all, and more people are lazy than aren’t. (For the record, I include myself among that group.)
For the record, I don’t intend on giving up the work I’m already doing. I’ll keep moving forward with the Robin Hobb Reread, which I am flattered to note is getting a fair bit of attention from folks. I’ll also doubtlessly keep going with the other blogging I do, here and elsewhere. I have responsibilities with one of the other blogs, at least, and I try not to let people down. (It still happens, and far more than I like, but I try, dammit.) But I think I will try to address the deficiency in composing an extended narrative–I think I’m going to try to do NaNoWriMo. Kind of.
I know it shows up in my biographical information that I’ve put in a fair bit of time on medieval studies. A lot of it has been more “medievalism studies,” to be fair, looking at how the medieval gets mis/used, but there’s no way to do that work without having a solid grounding in the traditional medieval; one has to understand the references to get the jokes. As such, I’m fairly steeped in the idea of narrative poetry–and, as noted above, I do better with poetry than with narrative prose. So I mean to spend my NaNoWriMo trying to put together a narrative poem.
By the usual standards, I’d have to write something like 1,667 words each day across the thirty days of November to make the 50,000-word expectation. There will be a few days, at least, that I cannot guarantee being able to sit down and write the equivalent of a five-page paper, although I remember being able to knock out five to ten pages with ease when I was appropriately motivated. I’ve got a decent chance at getting the work done, and I think it’s worth a try to do so.
Elliott RWI 