I’ll admit it – having a blog is fun. I really do enjoy it. One of the things I’ve always missed most from my student days is writing, so this blog has been a great way to reconnect with that part of my personality. (I was the nerd who actually enjoyed writing papers back in school….) I also really like to help and inform. I love it when I get feedback from people either telling me that my blog helped them plan their trip, or they learned something really interesting from one of my posts. It just makes me feel good!
When I first started my blog, it was to serve two purposes: help my friends and family keep up with what I was doing while away (especially for those not on Facebook), and to share some insider perspective of the singing and travel businesses, complete with helpful tips for both. I think it’s become those things and more. I’ve also used it as a bit of a window to some other aspects of my life – personal and professional. I think it’s important for all of us to remember the human element in everything we do, and that everyone we encounter is a real living person. (For some reason, I feel like a lot of people forget that part.) We’re all human beings going through life and trying to be the best we can be, while searching for happiness along the way.
But there are also some….”interesting” side effects of having a blog that I never even thought about beforehand. I want to cover some of those random things here in this post.
First, let me just say that the easiest way to get a message to me if you’ve read my blog and want to talk to me about it, is to email me. (Just click on my gravatar pic on the right side of the blog – my email is down at the bottom of my gravatar profile.) If you send me a Facebook message, and we are not Facebook friends, it goes into that “Other” mailbox that none of us even remember is there. (Until you see it out of the corner of your eye one day, and notice there’s new messages in there – from four months ago.) I felt bad that I didn’t respond earlier to the girl who wanted to know where I got my bathing suit! (Hopefully she can get it for next season. And FYI – the strappy black bikini IS from Victoria’s Secret catalogue. The white string bikini and reddish-orange string bikini are both from Old Navy.)
If I get a notice to approve a comment, I read through each individual comment request. I do not allow automatic comments, as so many of them are spam. But I do welcome legit comments! Not only do I get to see them, but so do other readers, and you never know when your comment may be of help to someone else.
I was once asked by someone if they could be a “guest writer” on my blog. I wasn’t entirely comfortable with that, or how that kind of thing works. (Do people do that? If so, I would consider it, but I guess I’m not blog-savvy enough to know about that kind of thing. Please enlighten me on this subject! I genuinely want to know.) I wanted to message back, but the person sent me the request as a comment to a post, and I wasn’t able to respond without the comment going automatically to posting form. (If someone knows how to do any kind of personal responses, please share that info with me!) ***Okay, one of my friends just informed me that “guest blogging” is used to increase links to and from your blogs to help with Google rankings. That works. But if you’re interested, please email me, don’t contact me via a post comment. Thanks!***
Remember that post where I talked about search terms that lead people to my blog? Well, when summer was approaching, I got a TON of hits from people looking for info on Saharun Beach. It was rather cool to see that I was able to be a good source of info in helping people visit that lovely place! But now, what are some of my most common search terms? Let’s just say they are terms that lead people to my article about visiting the nude beaches…. ahem… Hahahaha! I have to laugh, because by the search terms listed, I’m pretty sure those people are a bit disappointed when they get to my blog and don’t get to see naked pictures of people. Hahaha! Sorry – not that kind of site!
And a little bit of advice… if you’re a random guy and want to message me because you think I’m pretty and want to interact in some non-professional way, don’t even bother. Seriously, keep your messages to yourself. Not to come off as rude, but I think I’ve made it abundantly clear that I’m taken, AND I’m not the kind of girl who is interested in flirting with random guys. So unless you have an actual travel question, or want to know about the singing business, please find another girl to try to hit on.
My blog has also been a great way for me to write useful articles about Disney. I can send the links directly to my clients and they can have their questions answered right away. But I also like having a platform to share the information with anyone out there on the mighty interwebz! Maybe someone is not a client, but an article I wrote helps them. Perhaps they’ll use me as their travel agent on their next trip. Or maybe they’ll refer me to one of their friends. Disney is always an overwhelming trip, and I’m happy to give info to make it easier to navigate the process. I want people to love Disney like I do – and the best way to do that is by sharing information. 🙂 Having a blog helps to publicly solidify your knowledge on certain topics – it kind of backs you up – it’s a testament to the knowledge you have. Gives you credibility. I like that. I can show that not only with Disney stuff, but with all the cities and countries I’ve visited in Europe. I can show I’ve done all these things first-hand.
Anyway, those are just some thoughts on this rainy autumn day. I hope you enjoy my blog, as I do enjoy writing it for you! Please let me know if there are any topics you’d like to see me write about in the future – I’m happy to do my best to oblige!
Til next time!
