The View From 32

HOME  |  ABOUT

MAY 28, 2007  More below:  MEMORIALS

Discuss among yourselves?

Thought and speech balloonsThis site was never really supposed to be a blog—I've always called it a "sort of blog." I see it more as an online journal that includes images and sound along with the typical ramblings of the author. And so it is, more so on some days than others.

Since it now includes three months of daily entries, you think I'd be happy. Why, then, when I check my Google Analytics and see only 10 visitors on a typical day am I disappointed? Instead of being satisfied with whatever traffic the site gets I feel like I'm missing the boat in some respect. As in, if it's good, why aren't more people reading it? Or more importantly, linking to it.

I've tried to get listed as a "Cleveland Blog" on About.com, but I guess I'm not bloggy enough or Cleveland enough. Likewise with a blog listing in CoolCleveland... hmm. Maybe there's a message here.

Anyway, since one of the things that makes blogs a unique type of publishing is the ability for readers to respond, I thought I'd add a "Comment" feature, which you'll see below. I'm using a pre-built service from Haloscan.com. Let me know what you think. I'll be waiting with bated breath. Oh, and if you enjoy reading this "sort of blog," please tell a friend and/or link to it from your site.

TOP   |       |   

Memorials

Since it's Memorial Day I'd like to do something appropriate. But what? I googled "online memorial," which yielded 68 million entries. Most of the page one listings are websites where you can set up a memorial for whomever you choose. But scattered among them are existing memorial sites for Steve Irwin, Australian naturalist and TV personality; Eric Dybsand, computer game developer; and the World Trade Center. Strangely, nothing related to the U.S. Memorial Day itself on the first few pages.

Then I tried "how we remember people" and got 140 million hits, including the Martyrs of Uganda; We are what we do; an article on the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; and the Virginia Tech memorial.

Memorial Day itself has a website, USMemorialDay.org, for whatever that's worth.

Flowers on the grave of Joanne's momThis idea of remembering significant events seems as important for societies as for individuals. It's something I've talked about before, and will again, I'm sure.

Yesterday we drove to Calvary Cemetary, taking Broadway through the "old neighborhood" where I used to hang out as a kid.

We walked around Section 22 of the cemetary for a long time before finding Joanne's mom's grave. Joanne put a bouquet of carved wooden flowers tied with a bow in the bare earth. We stood for a while, remembering.

 

TOP   |       |   

ARCHIVE

   MAY

   APRIL