Today, for the first time ever, my blog stat counter thingy recorded a record 10 views. A milestone, to say the least.
Being in the stratosphere of blogland popularity and national support gives one that heady feeling that, well, I’ve finally arrived. The double-digit view mark is seldom seen in today’s blog-infested inter-web world, what with tens of millions of blogs and only millions of viewers with limited time to search around.
Of course, the phone was also off the hook. Mostly advertisers wanting to turn this pristine cultural icon of intelligence and class into some suburban shopping-mall equivalent of cheap ads for online dates and German philosophy chatrooms. As if. I told them that they represented the death of the American blogdream, and that their imperialist tactics would not work on me, no matter what their potential buyoff would be. I am not using my newfound worldwide blog-clout as a weapon for the forces of commercialism. I know it will be a tough road without the tremendous financial support of the Nikes and the Gatorades and the Ricolas, but I plan to keep it real. For the little people. Like you.
Ah, yes, I remember those days when my blog was visited by nary a soul. Those were the tough days, but in a very real sense, the days where my vision and sense of purpose were forged steel-hard on the anvil of adversity and virtual unknown-ness.
A concern, however, comes to mind: Am I, by being such a bloggernaut, robbing the ‘average joe’ blogger of potential viewers? A valid question, when almost more people than I can count on BOTH hands have been literally frying the circuitboards in electrical overload of whatever digital entity actually carries the technical burden of this virtual tsunami from Carrell 13.
Though it may be true in the short run, it may help to think about the long-term impact of my blog on the eco-blogo-kosmos. More viewers here (could it go even higher?!?) means more load on the server-computer-thingy. Which means slower times, generating more frustration for those (almost) dozen of folks who are craving the next installment. This, in turn, opens up the door for “copycat” bloggers to make their own mark. (“Notes from Carrell 14″, for instance). Building off of my staggering success, they eventually branch out on their own, with their own viewers. Traffic slows on my account and more can have access to my posts again. This self-regulating feature of the “blog event horizon” thus ensures that actually more people will have more success in the long run.
In the meantime, this guy is going to have a nice celebration dinner of corned beef hash. And to you, faithful reader(s) (in the plural!!!)…I wish you a pleasant evening, and the warm satisfaction of knowing that you are a part of the next swelling movement of humanity.
