I might have mentioned this on a previous occasion, but I have a stats package attached to my website that analyses the geographical location of visitors. Don’t panic! It doesn’t tell me your name and address: just your general location. I find it interesting to look at this every now and then, and try to imagine who are these two people in the Ukraine, for example, who have been following me for some time. Who is my regular reader in Seattle …. or the one in Buffalo …. or the ones in Gateshead and Swindon. None of these people are known to me, but the regular occurrence of their codes in the stats does set my imagination going. The phenomenon that really excites my interest is the cluster of regular readers I seem to have acquired in Ashburn, Virginia. Who are these lovely people who are sufficiently interested in what I write to keep coming back with regularity?
Then a couple of days ago traffic from Ashburn very suddenly took a steep dive. I couldn’t help but ask myself “Why?” Had I said something to offend Virginians mortally? They seem to be back again (Hi! Welcome back!) but what has been going on here? Then an idea occurred to me. Our news bulletins have carried a lot of reports recently about the impact of hurricanes along the east coast of the USA, and I did wonder whether you had all been in your cellars, or even had to evacuate. I hope you are all OK, over there in Ashburn Virginia. Let me know how you are getting on.
Talking of the weather, autumn (fall, if you live in Ashburn) has arrived suddenly and pretty definitely, with boisterous winds stripping the leaves from the trees, and pouring rain. (I think it is the tail-end of one of those hurricanes.) Fortunately this has coincided with a return of artistic inspiration, and I have been glad to stay indoors, finally managing to put the finishing touched to a picture I’ve been working on for some time. There was a clear sense that something about it just was not right. Today I twigged. It’s interesting how a few minor changes, developing the strength of a line in composition, or altering slightly the balance of colours in a small area, can have a major impact on the quality of a picture.