One of the things that obsessive compulsive people do is to check things. And recheck them. And check them again. The Dashboard feature on WordPress makes this habit hard to resist. Every time I hit the Dashboard button, I can see how many people have been reading the blog, and how many times the page has been “hit.” And if I hit the little word “Counterize” on the Dashboard, I can even see what days of the week the site gets “hit” the most, and even which hour is most popular for reading. What is even more bizarre is that I can see what people were actually searching for when they end up on my blog. I probably shouldn’t tell you all this. That’s another habit of obsessive compulsive people—we talk too much. But tonight, as I got home after a Christmas shopping foray to the local mall, I hit “counterize” and there, in the right hand margin, someone had googled “Is it possible to be depressed when you own a Corvette?” Although I have not yet addressed this in the blog, I can answer that question with an unqualified and emphatic YES! I have owned a red Corvette since my fiftieth birthday, and it is certainly possible to be depressed when you own a Corvette. Though I will admit that getting behind the wheel and driving one really fast helps with that, at least until you get pulled over. I have been to traffic school more times than I can count.
The other thing that is fascinating when you begin to write a blog is the sheer volume of spam that you get in the Comments section. It took me awhile to figure out that there are programs that filter out the spam from the readers who genuinely want to comment on the writings posted. And here I will admit that we bloggers live for your responses—otherwise what would be the point? But some of the spam is so entertaining that I have saved it. My son the computer genius says that these comments are generated by drone computer programs installed by people that seek out ways to link to your site or server to get traffic for their own. Below, for your enjoyment, are a few of my best samples:
“What i do not realize is in truth how you are not really much more neatly-favored than you might be now.” I am happy to be neatly flavored!
“I do think with the best excellent on the market today, best of all the fashionth. Your tip toes will almost always be warm each time sending these items.” My husband can tell you my tip toes are NEVER warm.
“We accommodate all kinds of dear propertys that sink in fare in a variety of styles, colors and sizes at wholesale price. All Mother of the Bride Dresswedding dressesprom dresses” What a shame that I need not a prom dress nor a Mother of the Bride dress. And if I did I would not want to sink in it.
And finally, best of all—“Saw a son of the building Lord, I sank into the serious thinking. I think, if not the son of the building Lord top up, is a betrayal of the truth, is the great compromise on fallacy. Therefore, I decided no top!”
I don’t know who the building Lord is, but one thing is for sure—I’m keeping my shirt on!
ah, and you listed the clean spam comments! The ones that are fifty shades of purple make me blush…
Well I was reading your blog the minute I saw a new email prompt that you’d added something. I believe my OCD tendencies have been exaggerated with having an iPhone -probably true for any smart phone user. Have to check email and FB or texts often (too often) even in the middle of the night on a bathroom trip (phone charging on the bathroom counter). I can sometimes see your new post and think “ah something to look forward to reading in the morning…). If I can wait. If I stop to read your blog then I am usually wide awake by its end and cannot sleep. So then I have to get on the computer and cruise/shop. I have ordered new jeans, some holiday gifts and most recently, Pastries from a fabulous place in Wisconsin. Your blog is costing me a fortune. And those Pastries are going to make my new jeans tight. So, that is why I am waiting until the morning – now – to read your latest posting.
Jackie, here’s my confession–writing the blog has kept me off of eBay, my repetitive guilty pleasure! M
And here I thought you were going to talk about surgical margins for cancer surgery 🙂
But an interesting blog nonetheless. Myself, I am enjoying your blogs very much. And I guess, as you know, Dr. OCD, its what I often read first thing in the morning to wake up with while I have a cup of coffee. Thanks for an interesting and entertaining blog.
Amy, thank you and glad you are enjoying it! M
But it’s those OCD tendencies that make us successful in our medical careers, right?
Here’s my OCD admission: In my Contacts address book I have, as of today, 1,733 listings.
How can I have so many, you ask? Well, because I use my Contacts list to store info and links to people I meet and businesses I use. And it’s all done logically and in many cases with photographs (so I can remember what the heck they look like – many photos scavenged off Facebook) and urls and phone numbers and addresses and information in the notes so I can remember people’s children or dogs or idiosyncrasies (much like my father’s rolodex, back in the day).
Many are friends. Many are veterinarians in my local area that are on my email list for the professional organization that I run (I just checked – there are 491 DVMs). Many have deerhounds (207). And because I’m very committed to putting info into the Notes section, I can locate people based on all sorts of criteria.
I will admit (though grudgingly) that 1,733 does seem excessive.
I am going to have you come back to visit so you can do that in MY address book. I haven’t even gotten to the point of associating email addresses with phone numbers! I need a personal assistant, NOW! M
No, you need to use ALL Apple products. My address book syncs between my iMac, my MacBook Air, my MacBook Pro, my iPhone and my iPad. (Did I already admit to being OCD?? ;>))
And then it’s just a matter of being consistent and doing it right away.
Much the way one should maintain one’s house, although I’m much better about doing stuff on computers than I am at housecleaning.
Oh, Margaret, I am laughing so hard…
There are a lot of smart peeps who read this blog. What say you to the idea of being a Personal Assistant as a second, post-retirement career choice? Hmmm. Note to self: think about this, it might be better than Personal Trainer. Note #2: post this question on Facebook? not really ready for that….
fyi to Miranda, I subscribed to this blog in Google Reader and read it going backwards and forward. I wonder if this activity shows up in the Dashboard.
Vicki, I did see that you subscribed, and I appreciate it! As for the individual page “looks”–I can’t really tell who is looking at what.
As for the personal assistant thing–didn’t those used to be called “wives”? I really do need one, especially with my 87 year old Dad living with me now. Love of dogs, cats and horses required. M