Today Is The 2nd Blogiversary of RD80s!

Today marks the two year anniversary of Rediscover the 80s! Wow, it's been a worldwind of a time since I I began blogging about the 80s. I've tried many different things along the way from my own radio station to trivia to a podcast. But I think I've finally settled into what I enjoy doing...just posting fun 80s content! I thought this would be a great opportunity to pull back the curtain and take a look at the past, present, and future of my little corner of the internet.

PAST
Over the past two years, I've created 411 blogposts on RD80s! I guess that number is appropriate since I've added more recent '80s news (mostly via The Weekly Links posts) to go with my recurring theme posts and lists. Stuff like new game apps, new re-releases of music albums, and news stories about '80s pop culture have been a fun way to keep the past alive.

RD80s has had over 300,000 pageviews since Oct 1, 2011! That blows my mind! I heartfelt 'thank you' goes out to my regular visitors and commenters. I've learned over the past two years that blogs are a shared experience. It's fun to share your stories and what's on your mind, but when you get at least one interaction from someone (a conversation on Twitter or even just a 'thank you for sharing',) it makes the experience so much better.

PRESENT
The past couple of months have been very exciting. I decided to change my site template in mid-July and I'm still not totally pleased with it and its limitations. However, this template has seemingly accomplished something I've always wanted which was an easy way for viewers to catchup with recent posts. The infinite scroll feature on the home page has been a way for visitors to do just that judging from feedback I've received. What else have I liked about this new template over the past 2 1/2 months? How about double my monthly pageviews! I'm not sure if it's the ease or adding new followers but the new template seems to be a hit! September was RD80s' best month yet...nearly 50,000 pageviews! THANK YOU!

Unfortunately, my 'real' job has taken away alot of my energy to write and research at night. I'm also a family man so with school back in session and our first baby girl on the way, I'm probably going to slack off from providing content 5 days a week, down to about 3-4 times. BUT, my rss feed app (Feedly) makes it easy to share other '80s content so you'll still see links on the RD80s Facebook and Twitter feeds daily. Plus, you can subscribe to my online newspaper The 80s Weekly on Sundays for a lift on the weekend.

I also still plan to continue the Rediscover The 80s Podcast! I've got content recorded for 2 more episodes and might also mix in some special episodes during the massive production time for the 'I Love The 80s' style episodes. So keep your subscription to the podcast! And don't forget about the RD80s Video Arcade which has been available for over a year now.

FUTURE
My dream is to one day have the RD80s brand as my full time job. I'd love to create an awesome interactive website and essentially, a space for an '80s community to connect. I've tried to make this a reality, but I've realized that I just don't have the time and resources at the present time to express my full vision. So, for the immediate future, the blog format seems to be the easiest way for me to satisfy my need to keep the '80s flowing.

The one thing I've appreciated the most on this blog journey has definitely been interaction with you. I've gotten lost down the path (like so many of us bloggers do) of reaching pageview and followers goals. Of course, it's an excellent way to measure your reach, but I enjoy learning more about the people who create those pageviews and comments. I love my little 80s community and look forward to meeting more of you in future years of blogging!