Hey! I'm not sure if you remember me, but it's Karen. Let me tell you a bit about myself.
My name's Karen and I'm a blogger who does a lot of stuff. What does that involve? At the moment it involves a lot of slack jawed drooling. I've been locked to my desk for the past 2 weeks going through close to 2,000 of my posts deciding which ones to delete and which ones to keep and update. I've also spent a lot of time contemplating some of my life choices up to this point.
To put it plainly this is a nightmare and I hate every single second of it because it makes me antsy and bored at the same time which results in me wanting to scratch everyone's eyes out. I basically feel like I'm in jail without any of the cool stuff like having your meals prepared for you and learning how how to make a shiv out of hardened toilet paper.
So why the hell? Why the hell am I doing this exactly?
The reason I'm doing this is twofold. Because of Google and because of you. So mainly you're to blame and you should be the ones to buy me salve for the chapped corners of my mouth from all the boredom drooling.
A little bit about Google and how it works. You know when you search for something on Google? Say - a hamburger recipe? Well 99% of people will search for that on Google and never scroll beyond the very first page of Google suggestions. Because we figure the ones on the first page are the very best hamburger recipes. So as a creator of content, if you don't come up on the very first page in Google results you're doomed to a life of eating crickets and living under a dirty couch on someone's porch.
Google judges where it "ranks" you by how good your content is. How well written it is, if all of your photos have text built into them (alt text), if you use subheadings to make scrolling for information easy, and how well you cover every single aspect of the topic you're talking about. Google is looking for a certain type of structured post that has up to date, good information that's easy to read. I do that now. That is how I write my posts now. But 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 years ago? No. So I have to go through all those posts and make them friendlier for Google to say Hey! Look at that! That's a good post with updated information and pretty pictures! We like that!
And as far as you go, I have to do the same for you, the readers. I can't just throw a post out 6 years ago and forget about it because that's great information you're not learning about if you're new here. And if you aren't new here, I might have more information about that topic now. Or better pictures, or great tips that I didn't know about 6 years ago. Like garlic. I've been growing garlic since I was a teenager but in the past 6 years I've learned even more about it than when I first posted about growing garlic. So, tomorrow, I'm publishing my new how to grow garlic post. That's "just a for instance."
So my days now consist of waking up, getting a coffee and heading to my jail cell where I have a binder of every single post I've ever written, printed out in order from the most popular to the least popular. I have a cup full of highlighters that I use as I go through the binder from back to front. Blue is for delete, pink is for keep but remove it from Google's search, green is for redirect that post to a newer post with better information, orange is leave it as it is and yellow is update this post.
I'm just about ¾s of the way through the highlighting section of my nightmare. THEN it'll be getting down to the real work of rewriting the hundreds and hundreds of posts that I need to update. So that'll lead to more questions about my life choices.
STUFF I DID THIS WEEK
Other than work, I did do one super-cool thing the other week. I took a cooking class at Dundurn Castle, a historic home in Hamilton, Ontario where you GET TO COOK IN THE ORIGINAL KITCHEN of the home that was built in 1830. It was exactly like cooking in the kitchen of Downton Abbey (before they got electricity). We cooked soups from original recipes of the time using vegetables grown on the grounds of Dundurn Castle. And the most amazing part is none of the vegetables are varieties that would have been introduced to the world after that time. So all the varieties are obviously heirloom varieties of tomatoes, carrots, turnips and everything else.
We cooked on the original stove which was the size of a Buick and was fire fuelled. The kitchen is deep down in the basement (as they were in those days) but had the unheard of luxury of a WINDOW. A very small basement window, but still. That tiny window let in the only light in the room, the rest of it was lit with a couple of gas lanterns. That was it. You could hardly see anything it was so dark. 4 people chopped off fingertips in that class. It was unfortunate but necessary for the true historical experience. You understand.
THIS stack of dishes we used inspired me to go back to using my mixed antique dishes for Thanksgiving this year. LOOK how great it is.
I also harvested a WHACK of stuff from the garden like squash, dried beans, carrots and the last of the broccoli. I still have the regular potatoes, sweet potatoes, more tomatoes and the luffa sponges to pick.
I USED MY OWN TUTORIALS
My Herb Drying Rack - My onions finally fully cured on my drying rack - have you seen the drying rack I made? - so I got to take those off of the drying rack to make room for the 400 bean plants I need to dry before I can shuck them to get my dried beans.
Making an Onion Braid! I got to BRAID some of the onions to hang in my kitchen. That's one of those posts I found from AGES ago while I was going through my site that I completely forgot about. How to braid onions or garlic. If you're wanting to braid your own harvested onions click on the link over there to learn how to do it. If you can french braid you can do it. If you don't know how to french braid but can count to three you can do it. If you can't do either of those things you probably operate a phone or laptop either so I'm not worried about it.
I MADE A NEW SOUP
Broccoli & Butternut Squash Soup - I made this Half Baked Harvest recipe when I discovered I not only had every single ingredient on hand, but I had grown or made ALL OF THEM. Bay leaves, broccoli, squash (I used Delicata, my fave), DIY cayenne pepper, garlic, onions - EVERYTHING. I had it all. And best of all, this soup was MIND BLOWINGLY delicious. Like - make it right now good. NOW. The only thing I did differently (other than using a different type of squash) is I didn't have any puff pastry so I used my own homemade croutons, with some white cheddar cheese melted overtop of them.
Wish me luck, keep your eyes peeled for sporadic updated posts and hopefully another post next Sunday.
Have a good week!
A Guy
What does "fire fuelled" mean?
Also, what will all the rewriting and fixing do to your revenue stream?
Karen
Fuelled by fire. Wood fire. Wood fuelled? LOL. It's a range that is fuelled by burning wood. The rewriting and fixing will decrease my revenue stream to begin with. Then in 6 months or so once Google recognizes my updates and more readers are able to easily find and consume my content, it should go up. ~ karen!
Gayle M
Since you're working on your blog posts, does it matter in your "Make snd Onion Braid" post you jump between onions and garlic during the tutorial/explanation? I'm (actually diagnosed, not just forgetful) ADD, and that stopped me in my tracks having to go back to see which I was suposed to be braiding, etc. Just thought you should know. Google might do the same, if not on her meds that day. Lol
Huguette, in La Romieu, Gers, FR
Hi Karen,
At this point, I feel sorry for you... you probably read every single post as I did... and I couldn't resist adding to it to tell you I feel sorry that I added to the wasted time 😏 get back to work! Bon courage!
Karen
LOL, yep, I read em all. :) Thanks for the encouragement! ~ karen
Christine Campbell
Hi Karen
As you can see from all of the other posts, we have missed reading about your adventures three times a week. So glad to hear you are not totally chained to your desk and are having some fun.
I totally had a WWKD moment when I was pulling up my first batch of sweet potatoes. I guess they are a fingerling variety ;)
Keep up the good work and know that we are all waiting for you to come back!!
Christine in BC
Karen
WWKD? Karen probably would have left them in the ground a little longer, lol. :) Maybe you didn't get them in the ground early enough? Other than their diminutive size they look perfect. ~ karen!
Marie Anne
The cooking class looks like fun! I have been on a stretch of no inspiration to cook... Something like this might Kickstart it again!
I'm also going down memory lane of your posts. Love the patio furniture build, your Christmas decor. Oh and i just told some the other day that i want to make the fire glass square thing, i can't think of its name. Your post on what you protected your floors with saved my stairs from orange doom, and so many laughs over the years! I'm looking forward to rereading all the ones I've forgotten. 😊
Karen
Hi Marie! The fire pit is one thing I'm going to update! :) ~ karen
Sarah Padron
Hi Karen! This may be inappropriate and slightly scary but I think, being my bold self, it will help your boredom plight. Anyway, good luck and I hope this makes you laugh!
https://pin.it/lorvauyt2jgg3d
Karen
Ack, lol! ~ karen
Laurie
Glad to hear your written voice! Gas lamps look awesome! Love the braided onions! Timely. Speaking of -happy Thanksgiving next week and Im going to need you to start haranguing about Christmas prep soon though, is that happening this year?
Karen
It actually probably isn't Laurie. I really do need to take about 6 months off to focus on this. I will give you a reminder for sure, but there won't be any harassing so you guys will have to pull your own weight for this year. I know you can do it! ~ karen!
Jen
Keep up the good work Karen, it is appreciated. I hope you're not highlighting too much in blue.
deanieday
Missed you! What a huge job!!! I had no idea that Google was so restrictive, but you can do it!!!
I just started following you on IG. Love the pictures. Also the cooking class looked great!
Take care :)
Karen
Thanks Deanie! And I don't blame Google, it isn't really being restrictive. It wants bloggers to make their posts so they have the most value to readers. I get it. :/ ~ karen!
Jess
I really miss blogs that pre-date all the requirements that are necessary now. I moved abroad in 2007 and started my research to do so in 2005. The blog posts were not necessarily pretty or professional, but they had so much great information on them. Very real experiences and tips and day to day life that wasn't sanitized for advertising or really for the purpose of doing anything besides sharing information they knew others might benefit from. I considered moving again in 2015, and it was impossible to find anything of a similar quality. Every moving abroad blog had been 'optimized' with snazzy professional quality photos that were obviously the result of an endorsement agreement.
I remember when I found your blog around 2013? and went back and read every single post that you had done earlier. It was nice to see the evolving style and focus as you became more knowledgeable and made bigger partnerships to help this be your full time job.
I totally understand that you need to do what you have laid out because this is your full time job, but it will be sad to alter the historical record that has been created.
Beth W
Miss your posts, but am dying laughing along with you on Instagram :)
Do you want any editing points on posts? I find things as I read and never know whether to mention them... but since you're on this big overhaul, I thought I'd offer. "If you can’t do either of those things you probably operate a phone or laptop either so I’m not worried about it" - it's missing a "can't" between probably and operate
Keep at it!
Karen
LOL. Yes things like that crop up all the time. I usually find them eventually, but sometimes not until yearsssss later. ~ karen!
Suzanne
I was so happy to see your latest post. I have wanted to write you for about two years now about the MOST WONDERFUL post ever written. Or at least the most helpful post I have ever read. It has saved us so much money and hours of my husbands time. It's the post about toilet paper. Cascades toilet paper. Our house was built in 1954 so we have old sewer lines. Plus we live in Lassen National park ..... lots of trees with lots of roots. We were having problems with the sewer line about once a month. My husband and brother-in-law spent one Christmas Day outside in the snow working on that line. And then one day I read your post and thought what the hell, I have nothing to lose. I'm so happy to say that we have not had one problem since we started using Cascades. All that being said I wanted to tell you my story because I don't think you should blue line this post. It really is the best. It could save the world and maybe bring word peace.
Karen
Thanks Suzanne! Don't worry, I would never get rid of that post. Anything that has valuable information won't get deleted. And THAT is valuable information. I spent thousands of dollars on new sewer lines before figuring out that different TOILET PAPER was all I needed. It's been years and I haven't had a single issue. I'm so glad you found my post before having to put out thousands like I did. ~ karen!
Janine Ranwez
KAREN WE MISSED YOU
Roz Ball
I wondered what happened to you? Did I miss the notice you gave?? Is this going to be your only post for the week now or is it just temporary till you get all this google work done?
Karen
Hi Roz. If you read the last post I published prior to this one, it explains everything. I'll be taking 6 months or so to go through all of my old posts. I will not be posting new information in that time, other than the odd post like this one you're reading. I WILL however start (soon hopefully) to republish my older content that needed to be updated and improved. ~ karen!
Dolores Fowler
Karen...been missing you. It's funny that I'm not the only one that doesn't want to miss any of the blogs you might delete. I've been on a bad depression cycle lately due to deaths in the family and illness. I seem to have lost my funny bone. But I still enjoy reading your blogs and of course reading the comments. The one that made me laugh so hard that I cried was the one on your trip to Thailand and the story about Fish Pedicure. That one still makes me smile. Please don't delete that one. I have saved on Pinterest. If you delete it, will it go away? How can I save it forever? I always go back to it to smile and see what happens when you get your way. One thing I wanted to ask was about TOMATOES. Lately when I cut into older store bought tomatoes, I've freaked out because they had squiggly thing that looked like worms. Turns out to be sprouting seeds. Internet says they're poisonous, throw them away. WWKD?
Karen
"WWKD?", lol. Well, Karen would eat that tomato. There's no truth to the tomato being poisonous. It is 100% safe to you. Here's confirmation from an extension office. ~ karen!
dee
I can't imagine deleting any of your posts!! And lesson to all of us......look beyond the first page in a Google search......I have found great material beyond that page.
Thanks for the update.
Lisa
Love all your posts! You are always full of inspiration and the best humor!
Cristie
Hello! Long time No hear from! So glad to hear your still out there in cyber space!
Just kidding around and look forward to your snippets
carla
I want to make an apron just like the one you are wearing at the castle stove. Is that yours or supplied by the castle? Probably simple enough to come up with design and dimensions, but I've been looking for a pattern to simplify the process. Haven't found one yet. Also, sometimes you just need to see stuff multiple times or at just the right time. Been wanting to make an onion drying rack like yours, hadn't gotten around to it. Seeing yours... again... I realize my sister gave me a shoe rack that is setup in a similar fashion and I'll be able to use THAT for my onions and garlic next year! Yahoo!!! Drying beans? I just figured they dried on the plant...guess I need to research that one now...we won't have a freeze for a while, so I think I've got a bit of time. Thanks for all you do!
Karen
Hi Carla. My pinafore is from Rough Linen who are now shipping to Canada for FREE. I'm not sure where you are but if you're in Canada it's a good deal. And beans do dry on the plant, but it was incredibly wet here for a bit and they were starting to sprout. So I pulled the entire plants up to dry on my porch in peace. ~ karen!
Barbara H.
All I have to say is GOOD LUCK! STAY THE COURSE! You inspire me all the time.
Karen
Thanks Barbara! That helps. :) ~ karen!