The Power of Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a neat little tool for the website and blog owner. I won't attempt to explain what Google Analytics does, because Google have cornered the market on doing a good job of that. I will, however, let you know that daily perusal of Google Analytics will not only tell you where your visitors are coming from, and whether anyone at all likes your writing enough to come back, but it can lead to a good few, free laughs!

One of the categories of information provided by Google Analytics is Keywords. You get details of the words people punched into their search engine, which turned up your website/blog and caused them to visit. Am I weird to be fascinated by this? I don't know, but I think it's useful information. For instance would you ever have guessed that the most common reason people reach my blog here is because they are searching for Wizard of Oz Lesson Plans? Try it, search on this phrase, or something similar, and my humble, little blog comes up on the first page of Google results! Well, that may be surprising, but it's not terribly amusing. Hold on, just getting to it...

Here is a list of the more unusual keyword combinations that have found my blog in the three months that I've been blogging:

• as i go a wandering - I hope they got there.
  
• flintstone's premiered-1960 - I don't remember mentioning the Flintstones!
  
• "hedge apple" ethanol - wonder what they were planning...
  
• 10 nice people attributes - apparently people don't know what qualifies as nice any more!
  
• 47d608ad36f318f572b6b4c232 - well, no clue on this one.
  
• arr where's me booty - not on my blog for sure!
  
• canada economy materialism - did I talk about this?
  
• galaxy bits - was this the candy/chocolate galaxy, or are we falling apart?
  
• google analytics zero views - I guess someone wanted to know how to make their blog invisible, which brings us to...
  
• guide to become invisible - I'm lost for words!
  
• i admire you for raising your children - thank you, I appreciate that.
  
• it's a braw bricht moonlicht nicht the nicht robbie burns - my favorite - who ever typed such a lo....ng search term?

So, have people used weird search keywords to find YOUR blog? For personal security purposes it might be worth knowing!

Brought to you by GreatFunBooks.com - the home of fun reading for kids.

M is for...

the letter game, passed to me by Janet over at Adventures in the 32 Aker Wood. Janet passed me the letter 'M'. What fun! Ten things I love that start with 'M', in no particular order:

1. Mountains, marshes, moss, meandering, and maps, especially the meandering, which makes the maps handy.
2. Music - I simply can't imagine life without it.
3. Mothers and mummies - I'm thankful for the long chain of women passing back through time.
4. Meat free meals and mints.
5. Mice, moles, mongrels and magpies - gotta love those adorable, scruffy, brown-eyed mongrels.
6. Media, magazines and mail.
7. Merry Christmas, magic, moonlight and mangers - we all need a little magic in our lives.
8. Memories, macaroon, Mull and Mac... - it's the Scot in me.
9. Marriage - I wasn't good at being single.
10. Mercy, The Matrix.
    

Want to play? Leave me a comment and I'll send you a letter to play with. Yes, I cheated a little and put more than one similar item on each number in my list. What is life without stretching the rules just a tad!