Thursday, December 17, 2009

A Blog Post about Blogging

No, this isn't one of those blog posts where people talk about the millions of dollars/pounds/euro they've earned off their blogs-though, that would be nice....This is just a post about 'my blog.'  Sort of.

Somewhere over the last 2-3 days, I hit what I would call a milestone-though if you would have asked me about this 2 years ago, I wouldn't have thought it important at the time:  25 followers of my blog, American Expat in London.

Somewhere in the world, 25 people seem to think that what I have to say is interesting/funny/stupid (insert additional adjective here...) enough to actually not only stop by & read what I write from time to time, but actually tick a little box that says, 'yeah. i want to know when she's posted something new.'  Crazy.

Who are you people?!?  I say that in jest-as for many of you, I've started to follow your profiles back to your own blogs and have figured that out for myself.  But, I guess for you 25, me, and anyone else out there, I can't help but wonder, what is so [insert adjective here] about someone's personal blog to make you want to follow it?

As for me, I'm beginning to discover a few blogs from folks that are also American Expats in London, the UK, or elsewhere in the world.  Stuck in the Toffee Pudding is my latest discovery of an American Expat blog, or vice versa as Brits living in the US with  Expat Mum. And regardless of which side of the pond they've come from/gone to, I find comfort in the common pain-points of being an Expat, as well as the joys of discovering new things.

For a few other blogs, the ladies seem to cook some lovely recipes-and based on what I've tried from their blogs-can say from firsthand experience that the pictures don't lie.  Thanks, Intrepid Chef-your latest post on Ice Cream Pumpkin Pie looks fantastic!

Though ironically, one of the reasons I started this blog-to easily keep my friends back in the US up to date on my life-I find that Facebook seems to have taken care of that nicely.  Instead, I simply seem to be updating people who I either know here in the UK (hello Simon), long lost friends I haven't seen in years (but who discovered my blog on my Facebook profile), or any other number of people that seem to pop by from time to time. Go figure.

And, let's be honest:  for most of us who have a blog & blog with any level of regularity, there is an eensie weensie kernel of hope that 'someone' will discover our blog, realize what amazing writers & story tellers we are, and offer us large sums of money to publish what we've posted about.  I know there is a part of me that thinks that would be cool. It's not why I blog-and certainly not what I think about when blogging per se. But, from time to time, as I contemplate 'my blog', the thought does creep into my head.

OK.  I realize I've gone a bit long winded here.  But, the past month as I've been thinking about my blog, these are some of the random thoughts that have been floating around, and if for any other reason than to stay true to the reason I blog, I wanted to get it down.

Oh, and completely random...I'd like to add a new 'Weather widget' to my blog-one that isn't so big & ugly.  Does anyone have any suggestions?  I've looked around, but can't find anything...

14 comments:

  1. Hi Kristina,

    I found your blog today from a Google alert for "expat". Any chance I could get you to do a short email interview on my blog Expat Alley? The interview questions can be viewed at http://expatalley.com/interviews/.

    Feel free to promote your blog in the interview in whatever way you choose.

    Thanks in advance.

    Best,
    Tom Frost tom at boldschoolgroup.com

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  2. I read your blog because I am an American who hopes to someday spend great gobs of time in London, and I like to hear about what everyday life there is like.

    And don't forget about RSS feed readers. Your 25 followers are not the only ones who read your blog. I can tell you that you've got 47 subscribers on Google Reader and 2 more on Bloglines.

    So please continue to keep us posted, we enjoy hearing about life in London!

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  3. I like what Rebecca said. I've bookmarked your blog and have been reading it since the summer, since I'll be returning to live in London again in January.

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  4. I like reading about expat life in the UK because as an expat of 24 years in the US, I am beginning to lose touch with what life in the UK is like.

    I'm one of your bloglines subscribers, not one of your 'followers'.

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  5. I'm also following through RSS. I would be one of the 47 from Google Reader.

    Found your blog on ExpatBlogs a couple of month ago to get into the spirit of London/UK before moving here.

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  6. I follow your blog because I went to London, fell in love, and wondered, "Hey, I wonder what it'd be like to relocate there?"

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  7. Well, since you're so curious (and I am too about my followers), I found you by googling blogs by Americans living in London and I'm interested in these blogs because that's exactly what I'd like to be! An American living in London! Don't get me wrong, I love America and I know after a couple of years of living in London I would want to return to America, but I just think it would be so fun to live your life! That's why I read your blog!

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  8. Hi All,

    Thanks for stopping by & leaving an answer to my question. I honestly didn't think anyone would answer, but am 'well chuffed' as the Brits would say-to find that folks did.
    Hope to see you back again!
    ~kristina

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  9. I came across your blog a while back and subscribed vis RSS. I lived in London for a while several years back, and as an American I'm insatiably curious about how others live and breathe in The Big Smoke :)

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  10. I'm a follower although I suspect you have a lot more people who pop in and read. I have only just started following people and I still haven't tagged everyone.

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  11. Even though I haven't officially followed you through google reader, I found your blog as I was searching for expat blogs-- I'm a student who will be studying abroad in London starting this January & I love reading about others' experiences abroad!

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  12. I started reading about a month ago (as a follower) when I started my own blog about life in England for a 30-something American expat (http://americangalexpat.blogspot.com)--it's been fun to read your take on life in London and compare it to my experience in Birmingham. I've had the same thoughts about blogging....but I only have about 4 followers so far! Congrats on the milestone!

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  13. I really like your blog. I especially like hearing how an American transitions to life in England as I may be that American soon. My husband is English and we live in CA currently but may make the jump over once the economy improves (there and here). I'm an RSS subscriber. Keep up the good work!

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  14. Hi Kristina,

    Right now I am a dreamer (about living in the UK-specifically London), and your blogs allow me to live vicariously through you. Thank you for sharing your experiences.

    Kris(tina, too!)

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