...and we thank you.
If you look down yonder left, you'll see that my SiteMeter counter passed 100,000 visits earlier today.
To be precise, a visitor from the University of Edinburgh's Moray House Institute of Education dialed into ScienceBlogs' 'Last 24 Hours' channel at 2037 GMT and clicked on my post about yesterday's death of Dr Robert Cade, the renal physiologist who formulated Gatorade. (So that readers don't get nervous, SiteMeter doesn't track in any greater detail than that.).
So, a great many thanks to my Scottish reader for being #100,000. If I knew who you were and could be overseas today, I'd treat you to a pint or three of Caledonian Edinburgh Scotch Ale.
But then again, I'd also owe the other 99,999 of you a pint as well.
I also owe a debt of gratitude to every blogger who has ever linked to me, encouraged me, and advised me. To readers, thank you for the tips, the questions, the challenges, the corrections, and the story ideas.
To all of my journalist friends who make an actual living at this writing thing, your examples set a high bar to which I strive - thanks also for the encouraging advice.
I first signed on here at ScienceBlogs.com on 9 June 2006 with a lengthy diatribe on my life story.
So, it took 538 days, or 1 year, 5 months, 20 days, to get to this milestone, with an average of 186 visitors per day.
Yes, I know, that is not a huge number in the blogosphere, and even the scientific blogosphere. The Drudge Report gets 100,000 visitors every 11 minutes. On average, my blog mentor, Orac (Respectful Insolence), registers 100,000 visitors every month. Even some of my "classmates" who joined ScienceBlogs when I did, like Michigan neuroscience grad student Shelley Batts (Retrospectacle), have eclipsed my readership.
But having taught classes of 90 to 140 students, I've always figured that I was having an impact on the world if I could reach more than 140 people a day.
So for those of you who read regularly, I hope that you leave here more informed than you were before you visited. I'll do my best to continue to make reading Terra Sig worthy of your time.
And for those who are visiting for the first time, I hope you stick around.
For the record, here are some fun, representative posts for your reading pleasure:
Why Terra Sigillata?
The ugly reason for CAM in US medical schools
Grapefruit juice as a "drug booster": don't try this at home
On the origin of witches and broomsticks
What's your favorite MTV memory?
Curcumin for cancer: Part 1, Part 2
How can Hooters support the fight against breast cancer...
Technology
Comments
Many blogs deteriorate over time. Terra Sigillata keeps getting better and better and better... Congratulations, my friend!
Posted by: Coturnix | November 28, 2007 9:34 PM
Congratulations and keep up the good work!
Posted by: Laelaps | November 28, 2007 10:41 PM
Congrats!! As a regular reader for a long time now, really appreciate your insights and writing.
Thanks
Posted by: anjou | November 29, 2007 10:57 AM
Yeah - I think you have interesting posts with a good variety of topics.
Posted by: AnnR | November 29, 2007 12:30 PM
Congrats Abel!
Posted by: Tara C. Smith | November 29, 2007 12:40 PM
Well done indeed Abel.
Keep on truckin' dude...
Posted by: McDawg | November 29, 2007 12:57 PM
Congratulations. 100,000 might be peanuts compared to certain blogs, but it's still an impressive number.
Posted by: Kristjan Wager | November 29, 2007 4:21 PM
Congratulations! You do a fantastic job, and obviously a lot of readers appreciate it.
Posted by: Liz | November 29, 2007 4:41 PM
Indeed, Kristjan, I remember being very excited when I got my 3,000th hit at Terra Sig's previous home. "Success" in the blogosphere is all relative anyway. I'm so impressed by all of you that your endorsements mean a great deal.
Coturnix linked to me early and often; only later did I learn he lived very close to me. Anjou has been a constant source of info AND support. Tara was another of my early influences and Brian is a newcomer (at least to Sb) who gives me confidence in the future of science. AnnR and McDawg can always be counted on to make some thoughtful and thought-provoking questions and Kristjan has been such a great commenter that I am so pleased to see him start his own blog.
Liz has also been such a great friend over at The Pump Handle, giving me a traffic boost almost every Friday with their blog round-up. Even my blog-brother, Orac, was nice enough to link to this milestone.
So, this is a long way of saying that I am thankful for your readership and participation. Regardless of whether you think 100,000 is big or small, I wouldn't trade your camaraderie for anything.
Posted by: Abel Pharmboy | November 29, 2007 6:55 PM
Don't pay any mind to the "trafficistas", as I call them. 100,000 is great. Congrats.
Posted by: Nick Anthis | November 29, 2007 6:56 PM
Congrats.
Posted by: factician | November 29, 2007 7:33 PM
Congratulations.
100,000 is an impressive number especially when you consider you are promoting science and not sex, sin, scandal, and self-indulgence.
Posted by: Kevin | November 29, 2007 7:40 PM
Congratulations! I might not have time to come by every day but I appreciate that you're here.
Posted by: Monado | November 29, 2007 11:11 PM
Awesome Abel! Proud to be your 'classmate!'
Posted by: Shelley Batts | November 30, 2007 12:09 PM
Consistently informative and personable, if a blog can be personable...love what you're doing here, please keep it up!
Posted by: isles | November 30, 2007 10:58 PM
Congratulations!
Posted by: ges | December 31, 2007 6:08 PM
Thats wonderful.Happy new year.
Posted by: Sally | December 31, 2007 6:13 PM