Happy First Blogaversary TGNIB!

A year ago today I created this blog in anticipation of writing about my then-impending trip to Tanzania. It may have begun as a result of my first trip to Africa, but it became so much more. In honor of the first anniversary of my blog, I’d like share some stats (humor me, I work in tech).

My very first post was Dead Trees and the End of My Love Affair with the Mailman. That post was fun to write and the response was encouraging.

I’ve written 32 entries, an average of just under 3 entries a month.

I’ve gained 45 followers.

There have been a total of 3845 page views.

The most popular tags I’ve written about are “black people” and “race & ethnicity“.

TGNIB was visited most in April 2013 and July 2013.

The Top 3 Most Popular Posts are:

Why I Don’t Eat Watermelon in Public (246 views) – Paula Deen’s “n-word” kerfuffle and rumored predilection for dressing up her black staff as Aunt Jemima and plantation workers were a big boost to this entry.

Black in the United States and Exhausted (232 views) – Experienced a resurgence after the verdict was announced at the trial of Trayvon Martin’s murderer. I have so many thoughts about that case, or rather the race and stereotype discussions it generated, but I’m going through a bit of race-chatter fatigue right now.  For sanity’s sake, I’m taking a break.

How I Learned to Love My Thick Thighs (200 views) – Some men like thick thighs, some women are actively seeking to make their’s thicker and others want to lose the thickness altogether (I’m basing these assumptions on the search terms I see). I couldn’t have picked a better title for the post. Interestingly, the bulk of the feedback I received on this post was in person or via email. It really struck a chord with some. It was inspired by a discussion I had with a couple of female co-workers. Yet another conversation with other women about our weight. It’s bothersome.

The Top 3 search terms that land people here are “black woman”, “black women next door”, and “full moon massage dar es salaam”. I’ve never written about massages (I’m actually not that big of a fan), nor have I been to Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania’s capital).

The Oddest search terms that land people here (not statisics-based) are “black people eating watermelon”, “pics of girls wearing flip flops on hiking trails”, “thick black thighs”, and my favorite: “what to do when black people move next door.” The answer is: get your life and say hi to your neighbor. What in the hell kind of question is that?

Most page views come from the United States (2,559), followed by the UK (335) and Canada (123). There are visitors from all over the world like Pakistan, Poland, Korea (South, are they even allowed to use the internet in North Korea?), France and Tanzania. Curiously, there are no visitors from South America. Perhaps it’s time to write about my past Brazil trip?

Writing this blog has been fun. I enjoy sharing my ups and downs and rants and raves and discovering that there are others who can identify with what I write. Sometimes, I get caught up with the fear that I’m sharing too much. But then, someone will tell me how a post I wrote really resonated with them. That’s been an unexpected outcome of writing. I don’t write with the intent to inspire others. I’m just a normal chick trying to figure out how life is supposed to work. I probably spend far too much time worrying about the reactions of the amateur grammar police.  I love reading your comments and appreciate that some of you share your experiences with me and other readers. I’m flattered that there are people who enjoy reading my thoughts. I’m touched when followers implore me to write more or ask “When is the next post coming?”

I cannot say thank you enough to all of you who are regular readers and commenters! I hope I can continue to interest you with entertaining content.

Here’s to the first year of TGNIB and I hope more years to come!

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