A Little Milestone: 50 000 views!

Hi folks,

I don't usually post about blog statistics, because they have never really been a focus of my bloggitude (is that even a word?). When I started Old School Gaming it was really just a haunt for my old gaming buddies, which I furnished with gaming curios. I had a good idea of how many friends I had, so after sharing to my private Facebook group, I could pretty much tell when everyone had read a blog post. After that view counter clicked to 7, I was happy. After a few weeks you can imagine my vexation when I hit 23 views one night. Who the hell was reading my blog? Even more importantly, I had to ask myself why were they reading my blog. The article in question was about Raphael the Ninja Turtle, if you're interested.

I came to the conclusion that trying to second guess what people wanted to read about was not for me. So I just posted what I was interested in, and things that I was proud of. Some things were just weighing heavily on my mind and had to be expressed. The blog has grown steadily since then, but not much has changed in terms of my motivation. At some point last night, the total number of blog views ticked over 50 000. That's small change compared to most of the blogs I read, but I still found myself celebrating this morning with a Caramello Koala (if you don't know what this is, you have not truly lived).

Can you spot the two Russian bot spikes?

One thing that has changed is that I don't just post for my old gaming buddies anymore. I have found many friends online that I respect greatly, who have inspired me and made this hobby so much more enjoyable. It is one of my great joys, opening up my Reading List to check what everyone has been up to and reply to comments that people have taken time to leave.

Instead of vigorously pursuing higher levels of readership, I have tried to make meaningful connections with people. To those of you who are regular contributors to my blog, by visiting or commenting, I just want to say thank you. You are more than just a number to me.

See you across the table,

Marc