TYWKIWDBI is one year old!

It was one year ago tonight that I sat down and typed my first entry in this blog. I quoted Lao Tzu ("The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step") and apologized for the poor grammar in the acronym of the title (which was necessary to keep it pronounceable).*

It has been an adventure for me, and a larger one that I had originally envisioned. During the year the blog has grown in size and scope and has consumed progressively more hours of my day, to the extent that it has largely displaced my other hobbies. I'm not complaining, and I wouldn't have let this happen had I not discovered that I've enjoyed the process. My career was in the field of teaching, and the process of composing this blog serves as a kind of substitute for that work that I loved so much. I also view TYWKIWDBI as a sort of repository for all manner of interesting links and tidbits that I would otherwise forget. Now they are all stored up in a handy place that I can revisit when I get old(er) and (more) senile.

As we head into year 2, I envision changing the blog slightly. In particular I would like to create more original content. Truly/literally "original" material would require posting photographs or (shudder) writing poetry, neither of which would be desirable from your standpoint or mine. But I would like to blog more material that isn't already scattered all over the blogosphere. When there's a two-headed turtle or a man runs naked across Antarctica, the item will be in 400 different websites the next day. I've been using such items because they are interesting, but I think in the future I'll put most of that widely-known stuff into the Sunday smorgasbord with a simple sentence and link, and try to devote the main blog items to material that isn't already widely dispersed and available elsewhere.

The other area I'm hoping will continue to improve is the number of comments left by visitors. There were 258 comments in the last 500 posts, versus 175 in the previous 500 and 140 and 118 in the 500s before those. Invariably some comments are inane or free of any discernible content, but others correct errors I make or offer insights from a different viewpoint. Some of you may be deterred by the fact that when you click on the "comment" link below an entry, the reply form asks you to "choose an identity." That feature was designed for people who have their own blogs or internet IDs. You don't need to log on or create an identity - just click "anonymous," leave your comment, and if you wish sign your comment "Dave from Peoria" or "Isabel from San Cristobal" or just leave it unsigned. The more comments you care to make on blog entries in TYWKIWDBI, the better the blog will be.

The image I embedded above for this birthday entry is entitled "His First Birthday." Interestingly, as in the world's first Christmas card I blogged earlier this week, the portrayal shows young children hoisting wine glasses, here in celebration of their sibling's first birthday. The painter is Frederick Morgan, some of whose other works can be seen at the Wiki link or here in Google Images. (image credit here)

* (it's pronounced "Tai-wiki-widbee")