Potpourri

This is either a post about nothing in particular or about six posts in one. I'll let you choose.

This post is #1100 for MBS. That isn't a particularly noteworthy milestone, but it does seem like a lot of words. Every once in a while, a reader tells me that they have read the entire blog. It makes me tired to even consider such an endeavor, but I have to appreciate their devotion and tenacity!

I was pleased by the excellent turnout and great responses at brunch. I knew, based upon a previous poll, that many readers were concerned about maintaining their security and privacy on the internet. I felt as though their worry was legitimate, but not proportionate. As our brunch crew confirmed, with the aid of a few reasonable safeguards, blogging can be safe.

So, for those who yearn to be a spanko blogger, the door is open and the welcome mat is out. We'd love to hear your exciting stories, thoughtful poems, midnight inspirations, and random musings.

Speaking of which, I've had the pleasure of talking with a number of great new spanking bloggers lately. Our community truly has something for every spanking enthusiast! I encourage you to investigate some blogs you haven't visited before. I wouldn't be surprised if you discover a new favorite.

Back in the first year of this blog, I had a feature called the Spankologue. Basically, I would introduce three or four spanking blogs every week and provide brief descriptions. I am considering reviving this idea in some form. There are some truly excellent blogs that just don't get much traffic. I worry that these bloggers will grow tired of feeling as though they are writing for no one.

A friend asked me a question recently for which I don't have an answer. The subject is a diabetic spankee. Specifically, should she limit her play and if so, in what ways? What special health and safety considerations apply? If anyone has knowledge in this area, please let me know and I will pass it on.

I enjoyed the discussion about links. About 90% of the readers who answered the poll thought that 282 links was not too many. Presumably, the current count of 287 is also all right. This verdict backs up both past survey results and my decidedly unscientific impressions of e-mail on the topic.

There was a lot of interest in organizing the links. I concur, but I haven't devised a scheme better than the simplistic and labor-intensive one I currently use. What I would really like is what I had for a couple of years before the Blogrolling service spontaneously disintegrated. I would like an alphabetized list that is easy to maintain and shows when a blog has been recently updated.

As it happens, Blogger provides just such a facility. Unfortunately, I cannot use it without upgrading my ancient template. This change would force me to basically rebuild the page contents. This task and even a remote prospect of losing nearly four years of content are enough to scare me off.

For the time being, at least, I plan to continue with the status quo.

Have I ever mentioned that I really like a good hard spanking? I did? OK, never mind...

Dante published a very interesting post recently about attracting readers to a blog. I like his suggestions and recommend his article. But my viewpoint is slightly different. In terms of building a readership, getting people in the door for the first time is the easy part. The bigger challenge is to keep them coming back again and again. The three best strategies here are content, content, and content. Readers like quality features that are on topic and refreshed regularly.

Thomas recently touched the proverbial third rail of adult blogging. We all know, but few of us ever discuss the reality that there are underage readers. I salute his courage for taking on this touchy topic.

I suppose I could try to mitigate my complicity by observing that nothing here at MBS is obscene. There are no photographs of naked people copulating, or doing anything else for that matter. The tutorials are intended to keep people out of trouble and not lure them into it. Even the risque stories depict people who love and care about one another. The descriptions are no more graphic than those found in many romance novels.

But that's a cop-out. These are kids we're discussing. In many cases, they are not ready for adult conversations, no matter how constructive they may be.

Parental controls are too easily circumvented. Censorship is far worse than the problem we seek to address. Kids are unable to police themselves. So what can we do? I think the ultimate responsibility falls upon parents. Just as in the real world, parents need to know where their children are going online and with whom. As with every relationship, there is no substitute for talking.

OK, here's the hard part. If you're underage and reading this, please know that this place is not for you. It's not that we don't care about you. In fact, it's precisely the opposite. It's OK that you have sexual feelings. Everyone does. At this stage of your life, the best way to deal with those feelings is to talk about them with someone responsible. If some of the details are too embarrassing, then leave those out for now. But by all means, find an adult you trust and confide in them. Most likely, they will tell you that the way you feel is normal and just part of becoming a man or woman. Above all, please be safe. Your future is too important to sacrifice for a momentary thrill.

On a lighter note, a man e-mailed me yesterday wanting to know whether he could “enterview” me. My first thought was, “No, that's Randy's domain.” My second thought was, “Anyone who can't spell a common word isn't likely to get my story straight.” Next, I wondered whether this person was not a native English speaker and perhaps made a simple mistake. Finally, I decided that since we're going on vacation in a few days, I don't have time for an enterview right now.

Yes, we're taking a vacation. We have tickets for a summer theater festival. No B&B accommodation this time though. The walls are way too thin! So if things seem a little quiet around MBS, fear not. We're still spanking.