Self-Blogdulgent Meta-Whinging

We have our two year blogiversary coming up in a few days; meanwhile, traffic here has dropped drastically in the last month or two. I find that juxtaposition very dispiriting. Yes, it's shallow and vain to worry about hit counts, but let's face it: we write to be read; if people aren't reading...what's the point?

The trend seems to be widespread; other bloggers have mentioned it, and Norbizness appears to be packing it in as a result. Which suggests an even more depressing prospect: the end of the individual/small group blog. As traffic is concentrating in a few super-blogs and blog communities, the highly individual voices who made the blogosphere interesting in the first place are getting frozen out.

Don't get me wrong--I got nothing against community. I love community; it's being part of one I can't stand.

Anyway, I'm very proud of this place; I think we've put out a damn fine body of work over time, and (thanks to the contributions of the other regulars who have come on board) I think it's never been better than it is right now. Which makes the fact of having to claw and scratch and fight and still get fewer hits that much more depressing.

I'm sorry, folks--there's no cheerful ending here. I'm in a crappy mood for a lot of other (meatspace) reasons, and Norbizness' departure certainly colors my view of the state of the blogosphere, so take this current black mood with a grain of salt...but there it is.

But as I said, I do think we have a damn good blog here. If you agree, maybe you could spread the word--tell a friend, e-mail a post, drop a link in a comment thread. And if you have a blog you think deserves more attention, leave a comment and I'll check it out. It's not much, but it's something.

Update: Just so it's clear--despite my lousy mood, I do really appreciate the people who do visit (especially if you comment!) and the very generous people who have linked to us and otherwise helped us out.