Should I let this blog die? What do I want out of this blog? What do you want?

     I've been wondering of late if I should put this blog to rest.  

    It's been over a year and I'm nowhere near the audience that I've had in the past with other blogs.  Of course, those were a bit more focused.   In the past I wrote about Second and Third Tier soccer in the states, during a time when information about that level of play was hard to come by.   I wrote about communities in virtual reality pioneer Second Life and I wrote about my adventures on a motorcycle.

   

Myself and my Mom on back

All of those blogs had a few thousand readers, and one of the greatest joys in my life was when I was recognized in a bar for my work with the now defunct and fan driven A-league.com (USL soccer) website.   I'm lucky if I break a few hundred hits here on any one piece. 

    Of course, this blog is unfocused.  I'm trying to cover a lot of ground here...and there is a lot of stuff going on in the back ground that I've not discussed. 

    I've also stopped advertising the blog to a great extent.   Getting the word out so people can read your words is just something you have to do.   I used to post to a great extent to the various groups on reddit and Facebook.   You can use hash tags and SEO as well to help drive traffic.  The main reason why I have stopped advertising in groups is that if you advertise to much; you can be accused of spamming and that leads to getting blocked or removed from a group; even if it is a non profit blog.

   

    Or do I bite the bullet and accept that my little hobby needs to become a second job for me and fight my way into an already crowded field by paying for advertising and focusing on only 1 thing that may or may not interest me...but would interest others? 

    The other thing to consider is my enjoyment.  Way back in the late 90's and early "naught's", websites were screaming for content and it was relatively easy to bang out 300 - 1500 words on a subject and get paid either in cold hard cash or in merchandise; I did a review of a motorcycle tank bag for example and was able to keep the item as well as get tickets to the MLS Championship held in Columbus, Ohio. 

    It became a job however...and what ever joy I got from putting my thoughts and feelings out into the world dissipated.   Still though, I was able to do something that many writers have been unable to do.  Actually get paid for their work.

    At this moment in my life I'm interested more in giving advice about what I know, mostly financial advice, and exploring what I don't know.  For example I didn't know much about generator's when I was searching for one but I learned a lot.  

    I enjoyed learning about and making cheese, although I've not made some lately, although I have been wanting to make paneer recently to use as a meat substitute.  

    Both of these things found their way into this blog and generated some hits for me.

    When my doctor gave me a scare - and after seeing what my beloved Sue has gone through with her various health problems- my health became a priority.  My move towards a more plant based diet is misunderstood by many, even Sue I think, but I really am trying to lose weight and be healthy. A plant based diet also has advantages for the environment as well.  It's both scary and fascinating to learn about where and how are food in produced.

    Again I wrote about that.  Do I concentrate on that?   I'm not a cook and despite my love of food, I don't plan on becoming one.

  
    In the spring I know that I'll have two Korean Dogwoods to plant, courtesy of Tree Pittsburgh and  a variety of native wildflowers and grasses from the Mercer county conservation district.       That will be a new adventure for me as well, as I tip my toes into gardening and I like the idea that not only is the dogwood fruit edible but the trees should last long after I'm gone.  

     Despite my background in education and biology and a love of nature; this will be the first tree that I've ever planted.

    I have thought about foraging as well for several reasons but I'm not sure if that is something that I'm serious about pursing or not.  

    I also know this bog would have more readers and attract more traffic if I had video's of me doing these things or pictures that are clearer and sharper, but I know that learning to do a good You Tube video is difficult and time consuming, and I've neither the equipment or the interest to go down that path.

    So, the question for me is should I soldier on or not?   Although I know I probably will, it's the only way to quiet the thoughts in my head.