The Cow Pasture’s 2015 Review

Thanks to WordPress.com for preparing this 2015 annual report for the Cow Pasture. It has been a year of growth, in spite of life and health getting in the way. I am proud of my accomplishments and hope I brought something to your table, be it a story or information.

To all my readers, Thank you, and, particularly, those who take the time to comment and interact. Feedback is the lifeblood of the blogging community. I encourage each of you when you read something helpful, inspirational, or thought-provoking- speak up, say something, comment and even debate. Communication, after all, is what brings us together.

Here’s to an even bigger and better year for all of us.

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 5,900 times in 2015. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 5 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

Well, Hells Bells

well_hells_bells_throw_pillow  If you’ve noticed I haven’t been as active in the Cow Pasture the last few weeks and the only excuse I can give you is, it’s been one heck of a month.

October arrived and  my muse took a hike.  Halloween brought enough candy to put my whole street in a sugar coma. And, right before I spent three straight days cooking a Thanksgiving meal, for twenty plus people, I broke my toe. IMG_1138

I gotta tell you, lugging around a big black orthopedic boot is a pain (no pun intended). It’ll throw your hip outta whack in a skinny minute! Not to mention screw with your holiday attire. There’s just no way to look sexy wearing a one-legged,  open-toed, platform, orthopedic, boot.

This time of year brings no rest for the wicked, infirmed, or plain ole’ tired and writing always takes a hit. Whoever decided to have #NaNoWriMo during the month of November, is as crazy as the people camping out for 12 hours, in the cold, at Toys r’ Us on Black Thursday.  I mean, really? images-14

For the record, I didn’t take part in the Black Thursday-Friday madness. Limping around in an orthopedic boot in a mass of crazed shoppers was as appealing as water torture.

Something’s gotta be wrong with people leaving a table spread with goodies to join a bunch of crazy shoppers.  What’s wrong with staying home, lingering at the table (with a glass of wine or two) and engaging in conversation with each other? There’s a novel thought.

Of course, I’ll admit it’s easy for me to say this year; I’m ahead of the curve. Every last Christmas present is purchased and ready to go under the tree.  Ebates and Amazon are my new best friends. As they say, every cloud has a silver lining. In this case, a broken toe leads to online shopping. I may never step foot into a store, again. But, seriously can’t we slow down this speeding train of time and just talk?  The world might be a better place if we did.

But, who am I kidding? The art of conversation has gone out the window with bell bottom jeans and hippy hair. Talking? What’s that? 

Speaking of which, I sent my daughter a lovely message the other night (yeah, via text). Conversing is too taxing for her. The holidays sometimes put me in a reflective mood. So, I sent her a note expressing my love and pride for all she’s accomplished.

Her response? “Is this a suicide text? Well, it’s rude to send a suicide letter via text. Handwritten is preferred.”

The world has gone crazy, indeed.

Perhaps, the best I can do this year is to be thankful for the little things in life – a good laugh, orthopedic boots, and my iPhone.

 

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story. And as always, you can follow me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, PinterestBloglovinTwitter@sheilagood, and Contently.

You Asked: SEO, What is it, and How Do I Use it ?

Welcome to another, You Asked, the Experts Answer, segment. This week ‘s question is:  SEO, what is it, and how do I use it?

For those of you who are as confused, as I am most of the time about SEO, I’ll try to make this easy to understand. First off, if you have a WordPress blog, they take care of all the technical stuff related to SEO.

What is SEO?  The acronym stands for Search Engine Optimisation.

“… the name given to activity that attempts to improve search engine rankings.”  In search results Google™ displays links to pages it considers relevant and authoritative. Authority is mostly measured by analyzing the number and quality of links from other web pages. In simple terms, your web pages have the potential to rank in Google™ so long as other web pages link to them.” Redevolution.com 

Why is  SEO so important?   Simply put, SEO is a way for your website/blog to be found in search engines  from relevant keywords or phrases.

What are Keywords? Keywords are words or phrases that your target audience might use when searching for your site. Example: if I want to find information on iCloud. I might type into Google, “Tips on using iCloud.”

SEO and keywords are nothing more than how we find things, information, or websites on the internet.  Knowing that, we certainly want our website or blog discoverable.

And the more often your page is found or linked to by someone else, the higher your website is ranked by Google. The higher the rank, the more Page Authority Google gives your site.

What is Page Authority?

“Higher page authority means greater chances of your page showing up on search engines, and that your page will be placed closer to the top of the search results. Note that page authority is related to the pages within sites, not the site itself.” Drumbeatmarketing.net

Images can give your blog/website a big boost in rankings as well,  but you have to label them correctly. Google doesn’t know an image is about the Eiffel Tower unless you provide a clue. ie. the image name, the URL of the image, or using a keyword to tag  the image.

WordPress handles the technical aspect, but it’s up to you to choose the right keywords and phrases. The good thing about that is you can search for trending keywords or even tags  right in your WordPress Reader.

Like everything else, there is a knack to using keywords:

  • Use some broad words: ie. Dogs
  • Then get specific: Bichon Frise’
  • Don’t overdo it.
  • Don’t use the same word, repeatedly.

Want more Information? Check out the following articles and always remember WordPress support is always available.

  1. SEO and Your Blog
  2. WordPress Support
  3. You Can Optimize Your WordPress Blog, It’s Easy!
  4. Beginner WordPress SEO (Part 1): How to Optimize Your Blog Posts.
  5. How to Use Keywords: 4 solid Tips for Building Your WordPress Blog Traffic.
  6. WordPress Reader (searching keywords).

So, before you write your next post, check out what’s trending.

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story. And as always, you can follow me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, PinterestBloglovinTwitter@sheilagood, and Contently.

Answers to Your Questions Found in the Cow Pasture

 I’m having a wonderful time participating in, Robert Lee Brewer’s,  2015 October Challenge. The Writer’s Digest has been a favorite resource for me since the day I began writing in earnest. So, when the opportunity came to take part in a challenge focused on building and/or improving my platform, he could count me in.

It’s day 15 and I’m pleasantly surprised to find myself ahead of the gameso to speak. Yesterday, while chatting on Twitter with fellow challengers, several people expressed confusion regarding #hashtags. I’m not the expert when it comes to Twitter, but I did my best to answer their questions. The conversation reminded me of an idea for my blog, I’d been tossing around for a while, and decided now was the time.

Each week I’ll answer questions on writing, blogging, or any related topicposed by my readers. I understand many of my readers are way ahead of the curve, but we all have questions from time to time, regardless of one’s experience. I don’t profess to know all the answers, but I can share what I‘ve learned and what the experts say.

So, here’s your chance, ask away. I’ll do my best to find  the answers. Leave your question(s) in the comment section below and check out the first Q & A in my next post.

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story. And as always, you can follow me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, PinterestBloglovinTwitter @cofcmom, and Contently.