Thursday, October 04, 2007

No Lettuce, No Peanut Butter

Foiled again!
What do you send for lunch when the staples are low? We have jelly, but no partner and we have roast turkey, but no greens. It's too late to boil eggs.

Alex just groaned, "It's school picture day." We are late, he hasn't showered and he's trying to get books into his school bag. A loss? Maybe not. We were none too impressed with last year's pose in front of a backdrop of plastic pink and purple flowers. True... each kid was shot with a cargo net crammed with cheap, fake flowers in the background.

Lunch. Lunches. Balanced, interesting, filling, school lunch. School Lunch Challenge. And I know about the blogs with the daily photographs of cutely packed, tofu crammed, veggie strewn lunches, with fruit cut in the shapes of the 9 8 planets. Feh.

1 Hour and 23 Minutes Later

I stopped at the market after dropping the boys off at school. On the way to school Alex and I had a talk about how much homework needs to get done the night before, and not the morning of. Life: It's a process, right? At the market I got leafy green lettuce, 2 pie pumpkins, some yogurt, Amy's California Garden Burgers, corn bread mix, mineral waters, and two ready-roasted chickens. LOL I just remembered Janece's post today and I realize I am being terribly common!

Time to save the day with a cute-cute picture:


Nothing common here. My nephew is a honey. He celebrated his first birthday in August. Can you blame me for wishing we were neighbors?


We saw Daniel last week, and the boys got haircuts. Two of them got haircuts. "Finally!" says Alex. I am trying to work-up the courage to give Maria a trim. I am not opposed to cutting her hair... I just don't want to make a mess of it. After years of cutting hair for 3 little boys, I am reluctant to give Maria her turn.

Oh good grief.

You know Geoff showed me something last week: My hits. Deep in the recesses of my server are pages and pages of statistical facts about visitors to Chickenblog. How many visitors per day, where they came from, how long they spent at Chickenblog, most popular labels-topics, which days I had the most visitors. It's all calculated down to the second. And it's all kind of fascinating and then it becomes a little unsettling, because I realize that for years I was basically talking to myself, and only recently have there been more hits, but still there are not as many comments compared with the number of people reading the blog... It leads to doubt, insecurity, suspicion and feelings of conflict, turmoil and befuddlement.

My busiest day? I knew, even before he showed me, that it would have to be about the time that Anna Maria mentioned me in her post and awarded me the BNRPA. She sent 500 people to Chickenblog! 500! That's more visitors than cumulatively have visited the blog in 5 years, or something like that. Anyway, I sort of wish I had something fantastic going on at the time, something to keep 'em coming back for more, devoted. What? Face it, bloggers love company, and I am no exception. It's about exchange and community and visitors! And a secret longing to be discovered and published and buy a comfy country home and have chickens in the yard and never run out of lettuce again!

8 comments:

nikkipolani said...

I like your stream of consciousness entry, Natalie. I, too, have discovered stats - but I don't look at them much. I agree with you that bloggers like company. It's fun to have people visit, comment, ask questions or just say hi. But even if they don't, I like the chronicling nature of your blog.

Anna Banana said...

OMG, how embarassing that you can see how many times I check to see if you've posted! Seriously, I worry about you when you don't post. But I shouldn't, right? because it usually means we'll find out you've created something wonderful or had a fabulous family outing or acquired a pet like Steve! Thanks for blogging, some of us out here need you!

campbellgirl said...

Hi Natalie. I discovered your blog a week or so ago and I've been enjoying it very much. I don't often leave comments on people's blogs - I'm always scared of looking (sounding?) like an idiot or something, but today I thought I'd just say hi, and thanks. Keep up the great work! Diane

Natalie said...

Hey! Company! Welcome!
Don't panic Anne... mostly I can see what led them to Chickenblog, if they searched Google, or something like that. I cannot literally track You, and since I didn't memorize the maze that led Geoff to the stat page I won't be pouring over any details again... not soon any way lol.
Thanks for saying hi, Diane... you sound cool, beautiful and sophisticated, just like my other friends. Come back again.

Sabine said...

When reading your blog, I never realised that your pictures are always sunny, and that California has a completely different climate than we have in Belgium.
Comments can be very instructive too!
And I really enjoy talking with people from the other end of the world (or almost that far), and reading abouttheir habits and life.
Very different, and yet very similar to my life.

Jennifer said...

One of the things I try to explain (unsuccessfully) to people about why I blog is that whole relationship/non-relationship with people (1) the ones you know personally who visit and comment, (2) the ones you know personally whom you KNOW read your blog but never comment, (3) people you 'meet' electronically and develop a friendship with and (4) mystery guests from around the globe who seem interested enough in stopping by but who never comment.... What all this does for you as a writer, as a thinker, as a human being with an ego is a fascinating exercise that you can't go through any other way (that I know of). So that probably isn't clear but I mean this is something that makes blogging what it is (so do you only get it if you do it?). Well, let's just keep forging ahead and try not to think too much!

Tarie said...

1. Hahaha. Whenever my mom is in town she makes me pack lunches to take to work. :D My colleagues are envious of the beef with mixed vegetables and brown rice, and the tuna pasta in tomato sauce. My mom always throws in some fruits too, like pink grapefruit. :D

2. I know how you feel. I know from site stats that many people visit my blog, but they don't leave comments!!! Why, oh why not? I want feedback! I want connection! Waaahhh... :( :( :(

3. I told you already, write a memoir. I'm sure it will get published!

kimsherrod said...

Here's my stats: I have written 580 posts in (one week away from )a year, with 78,138 visits and only 2,239 comments. My Neo Counter says that people from 137 countries have stopped by. It is bizarre to me that people read me and never say hello. Like, they like the blog and its content well enough to come back but not enough to say hello or share their names? I don't understand it at all. The most visits I have had were right after FiFi started her blog and when Anna Maria and Ullabenulla posted links to my blog. The essential key is to travel to blogs and leave a comment and then add them to your sidebar- if they come to visit and see that you have them, they often will list you on their blog and increase your readership. It is difficult to keep up with the emails and I read all of mine but tend to not get back to them as often as I would like. It is wonderful when people leave encouraging comments about my work or a picture or whatever and I am so glad that I started the blog and kept it going. There were so many times that I didn't think anyone was reading it and almost gave up. I used to check Technorati and My Blog Log all the time. Now, not so much. I figure if they have something to say then they will take the leap and say it. Your Blog has wonderful content and awesome pictures and I enjoy reading about your family and your dreams. You are more like a neighbor than the actual strangers who live beside me. anyway. don't give up. never surrender. peace, out.