Google Analytics

I send reports to my guest bloggers if they request them so they can see who is reading their blog entries and how many hits they get. When I shared this report with Jamie, she asked how I got such a report, so I thought I would share.

Google Analytics is a FREE way to track websites. If you have a website, go to the Google Analytics site and follow the easy steps to track your website or blog, and within 24 hours you will have all kinds of data.

To give you an idea of the data you can collect, I thought I would give you some data from this blog. I started tracking the date on April 30th. I have had 1,658 visits. My highest spike in hits by day were the posts about my friend David Twomey, and second was the post about the Tonys. If you look at individual page hits, though, it would be David first, and then the post about working for the St. Louis Rep.

I average 21 hits per day and average 31 hits on weekdays. Most people that visit my site are from the U.S., but I get visitors from other countries as well, including the United Kingdom, Japan, Russia, Sweden, and the Philippines, just to name a few. I receive the highest number of hits from D.C., Missouri, Virginia, Maryland, and New York, in that order.

So go! Start tracking your website and learn who is looking at it. It could help you in marketing, or at least give you some fun facts to share when talking about your blog.

My Friends - David Twomey

Seems like just yesterday he was yelling at us all to not mess up his coffee table. He had a special place for everything in his house, and if you moved it an inch, he would know. He had a great love for history and loved to argue about politics with us.

Yesterday, we lost a son, a brother, a friend, and a great guy. When I first heard, I thought it was a lie. I couldn't believe someone the same age as me that was perfectly healthy last week would be in ICU this weekend. I rushed to the hospital last night when I heard there were only a few hours left. I got there in time to see his family leave his room. And then the nurse came out to say he was gone.

I had to leave.

I can’t stop crying because he was such a great guy, and it seems so unfair. All we can do is focus on the good times. Amazing what a role Facebook ended up playing in this. I actually first heard through Facebook because people were writing getting well messages. His wall was full of messages from friends all over the country. Then his younger brother started to post updates to keep us all informed. Everything seemed so hopeful. Last night, his brother posted the news as soon as it happened. Now his wall is full of memories that will forever memorialize the friend we all lost.

I am still in disbelief. I was speaking to my younger brother last night because he lost his best friend about four years ago. It sounds stupid I just don’t want to ever forget him, and I asked Brandon how often he thought of Cody, and he said, "Every day."

David - I know you are in a better place, watching over us. I will never forget the friend I lost yesterday. Rest in peace.