December What’s Up :: November Wrap Up
WRAP-UP What a month November was! Even though I didn’t put up the most posts (that record belongs to August with 47 posts) or get the most hits (only 9,459–the record is September 2009 with 16,701) I did reach the milestone of 160,000 page views this month and I must say that
November was certainly my most amazing month as a blogger. Not only was it my two year bloggoversary and I hit 150,000 page views, but I spent my bloggoversary in Portugal!
I mean–how many bloggers can say they went to PORTUGAL on an all expense paid trip to WINE BLOG?? Not too many. I know for a fact that I am the only one that Enoforum Wines took on an exclusive tour of the Alentejo wine region.
That’s right–it was me and Jo Diaz, their US publicist, climbing all over castles, interogating winemakers, tasting wine from barrels and bottles, and sampling the amazing Alentejo cuisine which for me included octopus, venison, and duck. (Jo wasn’t quite as adventurous foodwise…but we love her anyway!)
I could go on and on about my trip to the European Wine Bloggers Conference and my travels in Portugal and the wines and food of the Alentejo. I have several more blog posts I intend to write.
So no surprise that many of the posts from November were influenced by my journey to Portugal. Here they are:
M 11/2 In Alentejo: Carmim Winery, Monsarez & a castle!
M 11/2 Poetry: Lord Ganesh Wants to Travel
T 11/3 As if yesterday’s castle at Monsarez was not enough…
W 11/4Happy Bloggoversary to Me! Art Predator Celebrates 150,000 Views in 2 Years
W 11/4 Miles from Now/here Today: Adventures in Evora, Redondo, Lisbon
Th 11/5 And now, for something different: instead of a castle, how about an aquarium?
F 11/6 Leaving On A Jet Plane…
S 11/7 Back home again: so much to say about Portugal, what should I write about first?
S 11/8 Sleep, Sleep, Glorious Sleep!
M 11/9 Poetry from the 3:15 Experiment: nothing to tag a poem on
M 11/9 Poetry from Portugal: The Embark & The Goodbye by Luis de Camoes
Th 11/12 A visit to a Cork Forest in Portugal & a few words about TCA
Just adding these links makes me want to go back! Or at least have some quiet time so I can get more writing (cork, castles, cuisine…wine!) and post more photos! Well, that gives you something to look forward to for next month!
In the midst of November, my new Tidelog arrived and I wrote about upcoming celestial events from now through 2010; that post garnered the most page views (258) of all the new ones I wrote In November, mostly due to interest in the meteor showers:
F 11/13 When’s the next meteor shower? When’s the full moon? What’s up in the skies for 2010? Tidelog knows!
The rest of the month posts focused on being grateful and thankful, and on the upcoming Santacon.
And what did you read? The highest page views this month, with 759, went to winter solstice activities which I first published last December while When’s the next meteor shower? from November 2009 came in fourth with 258.
What’s Up
SANTACON! Also known as the Save Santa ArtRide is this Friday Dec. 4. Rumour has it there will be an early afternoonride later in the month, on Saturday Dec. 19. Stay tuned for more details!
More cool events on the horizon; I will try to keep posting about them here. This post is getting long enough as it is and it’s getting late!
According to my Tidelog, mid-December brings us the Geminid showers (peaks Dec. 13) and the year ends with a blue moon–that’s two full moons in the month of December with the second full moon on New Year’s eve.
Astrology.com says the big news is that Uranus turns direct December 1 and explains:
Uranus is the oddball of the solar system. For starters, it rolls along its side — on its equator — instead of spinning upright in its orbit the way planets typically do. Uranus is also in retrograde for more than five months out of every Earth year.
Uranus, the planet of rebellion, turns direct on December 1. Astrologically, Uranus liberates you from the shackles of convention and applies pressure to change whatever is stagnant in your life. Uranus rules electromagnetic energy and is like a lightning storm that creates chaos as it cleans the air, revealing a fresh new world once the storm has cleared. It is a new day — almost a new year — and the road ahead needs your help in paving it. It’s not every year that Uranus turns direct within hours of a full Moon! (The full Moon in Gemini occurs on December 1 PST, and December 2 EST). This year, your desire for independence and freedom is heightened, and the full Moon dials up your emotions even more.
Where’s Uranus in your own birth chart? That will also determine what role it plays in your life…
No matter where Uranus might be in your chart, have a great December! Enjoy the full moons & the shooting stars, sing songs, go for a bike ride, throw a snowball, splash someone with your rain boots or skip a stone across a body of water…and last but not least, subscribe to your favorite blogs–like this one!
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Yes, I was not as adventurous as you with food… You, Delfim, Luis, and Isabel put me to shame… As adventurous as my spirit is, my palate with food is not-so-much. I will never, in this life time, eat a fraction of things you dared to enjoy! You go, girl… You were an amazing traveling companion, and I loved every minute with you, even when you helped me to NOT open the door… which was only a glass wall. (You had to be there.)
Love your writings, and will continue to follow what you’re up to. I, too, have so much more inside of me, just waiting to get out.
What a trip of a lifetime we had… my friend.