LIES - DAMN LIES - AND STATISTICS

My web stats record that last March this blog had an amazing 9542 page views and even 3096 last month, which was a slow month.  Wow, wow, and double wow, but - wait a minute - why only a handful of comments? 

My IT gurus fill my head full of  "page views aren't visitors", pointing out that I may have been "Spidered" and encourage me to up my "SEO" (Search Engine Optimisation) which, for the uninitiated, means to titillate, tantalise and lure spiders into you web, dangling before them the latest titbits to currently attract them. Add to that the fact that google pleads with me to join google+ and so on and so forth.

But without feed back in the form of your comments it means absolutely nothing.  So come on, give me hope that there are more than a handful of you out there reading this drivel - please leave comments.  They are gravy to my meat, socks to my feet and chocolate to my sweet.

So, how is life treating me?  Well pretty good really.  When Davy died four years ago I had to look for a focus in my life to get me through.  At the time the recession was in full swing so concentrating on the business took a lot of energy.  I also had family situations to deal with so I was fully occupied. 

So, I hear you say, what is the business?  Well in 1990 Davy and I decided to build a database of all the hotels in the UK promoting it as a marketing tool to member hotels.  Anyone looking for a hotel could 'phone us and we would match their criteria with suitable hotels. 

In 1994 we became the first company to offer this kind of fully interactive service on internet through our website www.infotel.co.uk.  We then went on to develop our corporate websites www.findmahotelroom.com and  www.findmeaconference.com.

Following the success of these websites we offered our huge buying power, negotiation skills and booking expertise to corporations who outsource their accommodation and conference requirements. This has been very successful and we now have several household names and multi-nationals as clients.  

So turning around the business in the worse recession in living memory was challenging but with an amazing group of people who work in the business it was achieved pretty much with me as an awe struck bystander!

My next project was the new house build which is now nearing an end (finally). I know that I shouldn't push my luck, but so far, so good.  My builder is a "one off", like marmite some love him and some hate him.  Me?  I love him.  Maybe we are two of a kind?  He is a first class tradesman who brings in other first class tradesmen and hasn't ripped me off for money, what more could I ask?  Far from being daunted (as I thought I might be) I have actually found the process very enriching. 

So what now?  Well, I have two short  trips planned, one to Rome in April and another to Southern Ireland in May and have friends visiting from abroad in June, July and September.  I have also become involved in an amazing Anglican Evangelical church, learnt so much and made many new friends.  In fact you could say that life is full on and that's how I like it.