It’s almost the end of 2021: it’s time to look back at the past 12 months of my almost daily microposts.
I’ve been posting daily for about 10 years. The posts don’t document my life during those years; they’re merely a series of little things that have given me joy. Occasionally I miss a day which nicely releases my compulsion pressure valve.
I don’t post to garner reader impressions, but I do appreciate the odd bit of feedback when something resonates. One of the joys of being post-work is I don’t need to pay attention to metrics. However, in this blog post I’m going to be lazy and break this rule by selecting popular posts.
August 2023: I replaced the Tweets with Microposts managed on this Website. The content is the same.
January
Apparently people on Twitter are interested in nerdy things, and this post is certainly nerdy.
A few days earlier I’d slipped backwards on ice, hit my head and blanked out. The emergency room doctors determined I had a concussion and that I would have to take it easy for a bit. It took a few days before my brain functioned well enough to set up this Hubitat home automation controller.
February
I told you so: nerdy stuff gets attention.
Almost every light in our home is connected to the home automation hub I set up in January. With one command we can turn off every light, or set predefined scenes. I’m the first to admit this level of nerdiness is not for everyone.
March
It’s a mystery to me how complete strangers encounter my Tweets. This one featured an old pedestrian bridge across Interstate 94 in St. Paul.
April
On the day I posted this Tweet I had gone for a walk through the Minneapolis North Loop/Warehouse District. Later this day, former police officer Derek Chauvin would become the first white Minnesota police officer to be convicted of murdering a black person.
The parallels between the events of 1934 and the murder of George Floyd did not escape me.
Ultimately, the concrete barriers, razor wire, and large police and national guard presence that day in Minneapolis were not put to the test.
May
It’s a mystery to me why 423 people had the time and inclination to view this post.
A few months later, at London Heathrow my extra passport proved to be superfluous. UK and USA citizens now use the same immigration lines. In fact there were no lines: I walked right up to an electronic passport barrier, scanned my USA passport, pulled down my mask for a mugshot, and was on my way.
June
Apparently I’m not alone thinking Norwegian Nordic Blu Salmon is an interesting subject.
To be fair, the post mentions Coastal Seafoods which has an almost cult following. If you care about your seafood, you make a special trip there. They air-freight their fish and supply many of the supermarkets and restaurants in the Twin Cities; they really know their seafood. For me, it’s a 15-minute ride on an off-road cycle path to get the 20% senior discount on Tuesdays.
July
We’ve known Nick’s mom over 30 years of haircuts. I’m not sure if we go to her for great conversations or great haircuts. Her two children are exemplary: her daughter is a school teacher who chooses to work in an under-served area of Baltimore, and her son is a community organizer. Nick ran unsuccessfully against a long-term incumbent, but I’m sure we’ll be hearing his name again in the future.
August
Next summer we plan to take our nephews (13 and 14) and their dad on a backpacking trip around Japan. I’ve purchased all the flights and booked several hotels.
With vaccinations freely available I expected Japan to be open to tourists in the summer of 2022. Now I’m not so sure.
September
I wasn’t too surprised at the number of likes on this one. Reader impressions go up ten-fold at the very mention of Orchestra Hall.
October
Similarly, references to the Guthrie Theater attract attention.
It was good to attend live performances in September and October surrounded by my people (the fellow-vaccinated).
November
There was a clear winner this month with over 2,400 views.
The picture is pretty but harmless. The mentions of Tynemouth and Whitley Bay attracted a lot of local attention. People, playfully, tried to claim the North Sea is always placid and blue. One person gently criticized my use of the word “untypically” rather than “atypically.” I was in England where these things matter.
December
I don’t consider this is my most interesting post for the month, but it got the most views.
Many people go to Hawaii to relax in the grounds of a condo complex or resort hotel, with a few activities thrown in. We go to Hawaii Big Island to hike the mostly uncrowded trails.