I find it hard to tell you 'cause I find it hard to take (Tears For Fears)

Photo by Boris Smokrovic on Unsplash

What makes a popular post on Baggy Trousers and Wozza's Place?

The answer is, "Who knows?"

Here are the popularity stats for these two blogs:

Above: Baggy Trousers

Above: Wozza's Place

They reveal two clear cut winners in the popularity stakes. So let's have a look at them, shall we?

First up: Wozza's Place and a post called A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.

Written while living in the Middle East, this was about mentors and some key people who have influenced me.

Only one of the three is still alive - Warwick Gibbs who is still teaching at the same school. His first year there was 1972 (my Year 10 or fourth form year in old money). He is still a huge influence!

What was it about this post that struck a chord with 3,428 readers? Who knows!

Wozza's Place has bags of posts about my personal life and how I feel about people. Mitch Albom is not that well known I wouldn't think but maybe he is. I just don't know.

Over to Baggy Trousers - I still haven't found what I'm looking for was the third most popular post on both blogs but the runaway leader on Baggy Trousers. It was also written during my experiences in the Middle East, detailing my conflicted reaction to teacher evaluations. 

Nearly a thousand people have viewed it so it must be doing something right but I'm not sure what. Like Mitch Albom, John Hattie is not that well known outside of education circles and he does polarise opinion so, again...I just don't know.

I think the lesson here is not to overthink it! Just write and let the chips fall where they may!

Keep on the sunny side (The Whites)

Shot myself in the foot this week didn't I!

It seemed like such an innocuous thing to do but I clearly didn't thoroughly think things through (hey hey, alliteration kids).

We have a student learning system at school called Schoology. It started a few weeks ago and staff and students are getting slowly into it together. Usually technology + students means they are way ahead of teachers but in this instance we seem to be slowly learning about the possibilities of Schoology together.

I placed a photo on my profile page that Adam had taken of me in San Francisco (below right) and placed on his facebook page.

Wozza creepily contemplates how
stoopid he can be!

Unfortunately my Year 9 students told me that the picture was 'creeping them out' and they asked me to change it. Sure I said - how about of our cat, 'Waffles'? Yes they said.

I was at school without my picture files so I went to my blog to find a picture of Wafi. As I was doing so the girls spied the title to the blog - Wozza's Place. "Who's Wozza?". they  asked innocently.

At that point I swallowed hard, made noises like a blocked drain, and said, "Um...actually - that's me".

BAM!!!! The genie was out of the bottle and I have had to face some WOZZAAAAAH type comments on their Schoology messages to me over the last few days..

My baad!!

I had to have 'the talk' and explain to the girls that calling me Wozza from now on was NOT going to happen. They are a sensible bunch and they knew what I meant. More sensible than me as it turns out.

Moral of the story? Don't you eat that yellow snow!