Blogiversary
Seasons of Violet is one year old today.

It's been an interesting year with 247 posts and over 6000 "unique" visits. (A unique visit means the same visitor is only counted once per day, even when they visit multiple times in a day.)

I never fooled myself into thinking I would write everyday. My goal was a minimum of three posts a week, and I met that goal. It seems to be a reasonable goal, so I'm extending it for another year - four more seasons.

My biggest blogging surprise was the way nature pictures starting taking over Seasons of Violet last spring.

My biggest blogging thrill is to get comments and know that someone is actually visiting Seasons of Violet. Welcome. Please come back. And leave a comment, even if it's just "hello".

This was the first Seasons of Violet post on September 1, 2003. It was written during last September's ennui. I was in month 9 of a 15 month weight loss effort, I was anticipating losing my job, and many of my long time work friends were getting unceremoniously kicked out the door into a non-existent job market.

Picking a Name
A few weeks ago I made a list of names I might possibly use for my blog. They all included the word violet, because violet is my e-mail name and my Windows theme.

After making the list, I sent it out to some family and friends for their thoughts. Most of them thought that "Violet Blooms" or "Blooming Violet" was the best name because either it reminded them of spring or it indicated that I was blooming. Blooming as in personally growing and becoming a more complete person.

So glad I asked. I do have days when I'm blooming. They are rare and wonderful days.

Many of my days I am just trying to survive. Sometimes I'm depressed and/or tired. Sometimes I feel crummy. Sometimes life seems heavy and hard. Those are the days I need to write the most.

I'm sure everyone will be surprised when I don't use a name containing "bloom". Instead, I'm going to go with "Seasons of Violet" to represent the changing times of my life.

My dear husband Bob, in his great wisdom, picked that name from the start. He knows me well.

It's been a great year. Thank you for coming to Seasons of Violet.