The Most Viewed Blog Posts of 2012

The International House of Spicer achieved record high visitors in 2012.  This is a rather nice thing considering I didn't have the same output as I did in 2011 or 2010.  It seems I've snagged a loyal reader base and also have a small presence on the search engines that occasionally tricks a few people to stop by.  I'm definitely glad at where my blog is at with viewership and I'm looking forward to trying to make it grow in 2013.

Here are the most viewed blog posts of 2012.  You'll notice there are some differences compared to what I deemed the top blog posts of the year.

Hey Spam Bots and Marketers, You're Failing at Blog Comments: This post had about two weeks of incredible traffic, and it all is due to me innocently posting a blog with the word "spam" in the title right around the anniversary of the somewhat edible canned pork-like substance.  It still occasionally gets hits, but I have a sneaking suspicion it is often just disappointed manufactured pork enthusiasts having to put up with one man's rant against disingenuous marketers.

21 Reasons Why Being Single is More Awesome Than a Relationship:  This blog post went viral, or at least, as viral as anything has gone on this blog.  This post ended up being linked from a few significant sites, and even this past month it was the second highest viewed thing on the blog.  This was written back in the summer, and essentially, just as something to pass the time one afternoon.  It appears people do find me occasionally funny, or my humour was so subtle people are taking this as a legit list to live there life by.  Don't, because being married is pretty swell.

Craig Keilburger: Inspiring Others for Greatness:  Written in 2010, and still one of the most viewed things on the blog.  I like this post.  I really do.  But a part of me is a little sad this is the post that has endured when there were so many other articles I was very proud of. 

RIP Macho Man Randy Savage 1952 - 2011: Apparently, in 2012 there were many people on Google wanting to find music videos done by a cowboy, a police officer, an electrician, a Native American, a soldier and a biker.   Or after a year, people were so touched by my Macho Man tribute that they still come to read it every day (but can't remember the address so they always use Google to get here).

A Dog, a Boy, and a Play Mat:  I've done several blog posts this year of Summit and Everett.  But apparently, what everyone really wanted was for me to include my son's play mat.

Debunking the Latest Crazy Internet Meme:  I'm pretty proud of this piece, and back at the beginning of the year, this post was linked by several social media sites.  There are a few blog posts that are high on here because I did the marketing effort.  This one is extra cool, because it grabbed the views from other readers marketing it for me.  I'm glad that so many people enjoyed it, and made it into its own kind of meme.

An Awesome Quote Comparing Twilight and Harry Potter, Plus My Own Thoughts:  This was one of those "I don't have a lot of time, so I'll throw up something quick" kind of posts.  I never really thought about it much after posting it on here.  I was pretty shocked to see it attract such a high amount of readers.  To be honest, I'm not sure if it is due to other sites linking to it or just one person liking it so much he asked his friends to read it several hundred times.

The Greatest Boxing Day Surprise Ever: AKA the Most Wonderful Excuse for not Blogging for Several Days:  This one has my highest views ever coming out from Facebook, which means several of my friends were hoping for a deal on a good laptop.  Sorry everyone, it was just the birth of my son.  I was actually surprised it ranked so high in 2012, since you know, it happened in 2011.  I guess those Facebookers can be slow to click on links.

RIP Michael Clarke Duncan: Hollywood  Has Lost a Real Big Friendly Giant:  I'm not really sure why this tribute piece ranked higher than every other one I wrote in 2012 including big names like Whitney Houston, Dick Clark, and Ray Bradbury.  It actually only had average views the day I posted it, and it skyrocketed around the day of his funeral.  I'm guessing it was a matter of record Google searches for him on that day but Clarke wasn't a mega star, so it allowed my small site to rank particularly high.  This is another one where I'm not aware if this was linked on another site, since I wasn't tracking it at the time.

My Letter to Katie Holmes to Tell Her She is Too Late:  This post may have been a strategic post to get higher than average views, since I knew everyone would be Googling Katie after the big divorce.  Or it was a sincere and real letter to an actress that is completely unaware I once had a crush on her.  The play date between Everett and Suri is still open, Katie.

RIP Crosby:  My Lap Will Never be the Same:   I miss my lap buddy so much.  I think about him every time I write, because my lap is just a little colder now.  Plus eating ice cream and cheese just isn't the same anymore.  I'm so humbled that hundreds of people wanted to read a piece that was just one guy eulogizing his cat.  It meant a lot that so many cared, especially the sites that linked to the tribute.