Part 7 – More Traffic Sources

Getting links from other websites is not the only way to attract visitors to visit your blog. This time, we are going to explore alternative methods to attract high quality traffic with both free and paid methods.

The first thing you can do to generate traffic is to recycle all the content you have written on your blog. What I really mean is to turn your blog posts into little “manuals” or articles that help people solve their problems or offer valuable information and submit them to article directories. These article directories are like aggregators that collect articles of similar themes together in one place, so they receive thousands and thousands of qualified visitors every day.

When you submit your articles to these directories, you are exposing your name to the thousands of pairs of eyes visiting them for free! On most article directories, you are also permitted to include a “resource box” where you can include your contact details, a simple biography and so on. This is where you can truly leverage the traffic of the said article directories.

Some good article directories to get you started:
www.eZineArticles.com
www.ultimatearticledirectory.com
www.submityourarticle.com

Another excellent way to gain traffic is to join internet forums that is based on your niche. To find these kind of forums, just go to any search engine and enter “ +forum”, without the quotes. You would want the most focused forum with a substantial number of active members, and preferably always bustling with activity. Just check the dates of the threads posted on the forum.

When you join active forums that focus on your field of discussion and post very useful and valuable posts, your peers will start noticing you and paying attention to what you have to say. In most forums, you are also allowed to append a link to your site in the signature line, which is under every post you make on the forums. People will click and visit your blog if they find your posts helpful and informative. This way, your credibility is built even before they land on your blog, so traffic from the forums would be easier to turn into profits if your blog is selling your own products or recommending others’ as an affiliate since they are already convinced you’re an “expert” in the field.

The strategy we’ll discuss is word of mouth. Let’s say you already have a daily visitor count of 100. What if you compiled a small report or gift and posted it on your blog, saying that if a certain visitor can refer three of his/her friends to visit your blog the gift will be his/hers for free? If your small report or gift is lucrative enough, it will generate a small buzz among your blog readers and they will surely refer their friends to this blog that they frequent!

You can also utilize the “blog and ping” technique that everyone’s talking about. Basically, when you update your blog, you can let blog portals such as www.technorati.com know by pinging them. You can ping a lot of portals at once by using the free www.pingomatic.com.

Besides the techniques described here, there are also paid methods like buying links from high-ranking pages or buying banner advertisement space. A thing to keep in mind when buying paid traffic is to always weigh your profits generated from the paid ads. If your profits do no offset the expense, you will end up losing money, so choose wisely.

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Why Do We Dream of a White Christmas

In an earnest attempt to eclipse a number of pagan winter celebrations and the festivities associated with them of days long ago departed and to attract the masses away from their idolatry and into the awaiting bosom of Christianity, the commemoration of the birth of Christ which was ultimately called Christmas was permanently set on December 25. To the best of our knowledge, Jesus was never anywhere near snowy peaks and icicles.

Why then are so many of us dreaming of a “white Christmas”? Well, Christmas originated in Europe which is in the Northern Hemisphere where December 25 is, for some of the regions, winter white with snow. Needless to say, snowy weather on Christmas Day is far more common in some countries or parts of those countries yet it is an unheard of phenomenon in others. As a result of oceanic air currents, global warming and various other meteorological factors, even some of the northern area such as the Scandinavian countries, the Baltic States and northern Russia and Belarus do not always experience “white Christmas”. Western and southern Europeans rarely see snow on December 25 while those in the northern and eastern parts of the same continent see it more frequently.

The quest for a “white Christmas” is so compelling in the United Kingdom that even regions that have the remotest of possibilities of having snow on Christmas Day have been closely monitoring precipitation on that day. Whether it reaches the ground or not, if a single little snow flake is witnessed coming down in the twenty four hours of December 25, it is officially declared as a “white Christmas” and it is entered into the records as such. Other countries which are less zealous and perhaps more realistic require a specified quantity of settled snow before claiming it to be a “white Christmas.”

Let us, if you will, take a look at a few statistics pertaining to the probability of a “white Christmas” in several major cities of the United States as compiled by the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) and based on recorded information between 1988 through 2005.

* Cities in the United States that have 50% or more probability of having a “white Christmas” with at least one inch of snow on the ground are:

Anchorage, Alaska (90%); Fairbanks, Alaska (100%); Denver, Colorado (50%); Hartford, Connecticut (57%); Des Moines, Iowa (50%); Portland, Maine (83%); Detroit, Michigan (50%);Marquette, Michigan (100%); Duluth, Minnesota (97%); Minneapolis, Minnesota (73%); Helena, Montana (67%); Concord, New Hampshire (87%); Massena, New York (77%); Fargo, North Dakota (83%); Cleveland, Ohio (50%); Akron, Ohio (50%); Salt Lake City, Utah (53%); Spokane, Washington (70%); and Milwaukee, Wisconsin (60%).

* Cities in the United States that have less than 50% probability of having a “white Christmas” with at least one inch of snow on the ground are:

Annette Island, Alaska (17%); Phoenix, Arizona (17%); Little Rock, Arkansas (3%); Los Angeles, California (1%); San Francisco, California (1%); Wilmington, Delaware (13%); Washington, DC (13%); Savannah, Georgia (3%); Boise, Idaho (30%); Chicago, Illinois (40%); Indianapolis, Indiana (30%); Topeka, Kansas (23%); Louisville, Kentucky (13%); Boston, Massachusetts (23%); St. Louis, Missouri (23%); Omaha, Nebraska (44%); Reno, Nevada (20%); Newark, New Jersey (23%); Albuquerque, New Mexico (3%); New York, New York (10%); Charlotte, North Carolina (1%); Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (3%); Portland, Oregon (1%); Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (10%); Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (33%); Providence, Rhode Island (37%); Charleston, South Caronia (3%); Rapid City, South Dakota (47%); Nashville, Tennessee (13%); Amarillo, Texas (7%); Dallas, Texas (8%); Richmond, Virginia (7%); Seattle, Washington (8%); Charleston, West Virginia (30%); Huntington, West Virginia (23%); Casper, and Wyoming (47%).

Meteorologist Dale Kaiser, a researcher for the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC) which is the database for global environment research, has concluded that, particularly in its northeastern regions, the United States has been facing a significant decline in frequencies of a “white Christmas.”

The statistics I have shown you of probable a “white Christmas” in the United States merely reflect the probabilities of a “white Christmas” around the world. It is obvious that many more places will not have a “white Christmas” than those which will. Why then do we dream of having a “white Christmas”? Why not? After all, so many of the Christmas traditions that we hold so dear today are just compilations of bits and unrelated pieces of folklore, of superstition and of heresy from around the world. And a very small portion of them, any at all, have anything remotely connected to Jesus of Nazareth or the true date of his birthday.

Merry Christmas to you all and a very happy new year!

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Do Santa Claus and His Entourage Really Live in the North Pole

Let us contemplate the question of whether or not Santa Claus and his entourage really live in the North Pole as we take a closer look at the North Pole and weigh a few facts against reality:

* The North Pole is the northernmost point on earth which is located in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, where the waters are perpetually covered with ice. Since this ice is in constant movement, it cannot sustain permanent structures. If Santa Claus and his entourage really lived in the North Pole, Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus’ home would be in constant motion and shifting right along with the ice on which it would be standing and so would Santa’s toy workshop. Under such circumstances, I envision a life time of motion sickness. Ooh! Not a pretty picture.

* In the North Pole the sun rises in March and sets in September. That means that the North Pole has six months of daylight and then six months of night and only one sunset a year. That couldn’t possibly be a very romantic setting for Santa Claus and his wife.

* Local time is usual coordinated with the position of the sun in the sky and each location has been assigned a particular time zone. Since the sun is fixed in the sky for the duration of six months in the North Pole, there is no logical reason to coordinate local time or to assign a time zone. Santa Claus would find it impossible to figure out the time and may, therefore, be late for his Christmas Eve deliveries.

* Although the North Pole is warmer than most may think, its winters range from about -45° F (-43° C) to -15° F (-25° C) while its summer temperatures average at around the freezing point (32° F / 0° C). Sure, Santa Claus is wearing a winter suit. But for these kinds of temperatures he would need a few more layers of clothing which he doesn’t seem to have.

* I know that most everyone attributes snow, lots and lots of snow to the North Pole terrain but I have news for you, there is no snow in the North Pole. The North Pole has nothing but ice and more ice. Santa’s Christmas reindeer better have good traction on their hooves.

* When food is scarce, polar bears are seen occasionally at the North Pole, as are the arctic foxes and the ringed seals. Birds are only seen at or near the North Pole when they follow an expedition and those are the snow bunting, the northern fulmar and the black-legged kittiwake. There are virtually no sea creatures living in the waters of the North Pole and there is no vegetation growing there either. If Santa Claus and his entourage lived in the North Pole, Santa’s Christmas reindeer would have nothing to graze and Mrs. Claus would have nothing to cook for husband and his helpful little elves.

* With all the expeditions and researchers who cast their curious eyes throughout the North Pole environs there had not been a single sighting of Santa Claus, of Mrs. Claus, of Santa’s Christmas reindeer or of Santa’s helpful little elves. Nor has the Claus home, the toy workshop or the sleigh ever been seen in or near the North Pole.

In light of all these fact, I do not believe that Santa Claus and his entourage live in the North Pole. But I have heard a few rumors which put Santa Claus and his entire entourage in Lapland, Finland. And Lapland, Finland is not too far from the North Pole but far enough to make living there much more credible.

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Why Do We Decorate With Garlands and Wreaths

A wreath is a hoop or a ring made out of various flowers, leaves, branches and, at times, fruits as well as ribbons and bows that is used as an adornment on festive occasions. A wreath can be hung on a door or above it, on a window or on a wall. It may be laid on a table or another horizontal surface or, in a much smaller version; it may be worn as a crown on top of the head of a man, a woman or a child.

A garland is essentially a wreath that is opened to an arc or a half circle and it is usually made up of similar components to be used similarly as an ornament during festive occasions.

Wreaths come in a variety of styles and are used for many different occasions. To symbolize long lasting life, most wreaths are made from evergreens and those using bay laurel as their evergreens are called laurel wreaths. In addition to evergreens, wreaths also include pine, holly or yew to symbolize immortality and cedar to symbolize endurance and healing. Apollo is the god of long life and good health in Greek mythology. He is often associated with wreaths and is depicted as either wearing one on his head or holding one in his hand. The Greeks also used wreaths made of laurel or olive branches with added white flowers to crown winners of the Pythian Games which were the ancient predecessors of the Olympic Games as we know them today. The roundness or circularity of the wreath symbolizes eternity or immortality. Wreaths made of conifer trees, above all the firs, were originally used in Northern Europe to symbolize the remembrance of the dead. They are, therefore, used to place on coffins or at gravesites as well as for burials-at-sea. Furthermore, such wreaths are often used at memorial services and anniversaries of battles, skirmishes or wars.

During the Roma Empire wreaths symbolized pride and they were usually made of multicolored flowers, tree branches, twigs, colorful thread and laurels. They were mostly worn by women for holiday festivities and ceremonies such as wedding while the men wore crowns. Roman officials, consuls and senators wore wreaths of olive branches and leaves when appearing in public. Wreaths are also used by Canadians on Remembrance Day to pay respects to those who fought and died in the Great War.

An advent wreath includes four candles to symbolize the four Sundays which come before Christmas Day, while a Christmas wreath tends to be more decorative and is usually made of holly leaves, berries, bows and ribbons. Both, the advent wreath and the Christmas wreath are used to symbolize the never ending love for Jesus Christ.

In light of the fact that wreaths and garlands are so commonly used during the Christmas season and in light of their symbolism, one might expect that they were always used as they are today but that is not the case. There was a time when wreaths and garlands were greatly opposed and condemned as idolatrous by many church officials. However, no one was as avidly as Tertullian, a theological writer in the early years of the third century. Needless to say, Tertullian’s protests fell on deaf ears because wreaths remained in use. As a matter of fact, their popularity increased most particularly during the Christmas season.

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Do-It-Yourself Christmas Decorations

Christmas is just not the same without decorations because they add festivity, color and an aura of holiday which lifts spirits. You could go out and buy some very beautiful decoration this Christmas season, but why? Do-it-yourself Christmas decorations are so much more memorable and certainly a whole lot less expensive.

As I sit here in front of my computer monitor to key in the letters that will comprise the words, sentences and paragraphs of this article, I take a mental inventory of my own Christmas decorations and smile. They are bright, they are sparkly and each one of them conjures up a memory from the past. Some of these memories are precious and I shall cherish them for the rest of my life. For example:

* There is that irregularly shaped ornament that adds so many fun colors, it is really impossible to describe and dates back to my own childhood. It was a warm spring day, I remember, and I was to help my grandmother with her spring cleaning. But instead, she took out two boxes marked “Christmas” and asked me to sit next to her at the kitchen table which was unusually cluttered with a jar of glue, a few small paint brushes and a whole lot of rags. We sat down and my grandmother spilled the contents of the two boxes directly onto the table. There, before us were mounds of old clothe-pins which she hadn’t used for years because we had gotten her a clothe-dryer and odd buttons of every shape, size and color. My grandmother then showed me how to glue the buttons onto the clothe-pins. We completed about two dozen of them and my grandmother told me to pick my favorite to be used as a tree ornament for the following Christmas and the rest would be distributed among other family members and friends. My grandmother passed away before that Christmas but I have this wonderful memory to hold on to.

* I see it in my mind’s eye as if it was just yesterday. Every year just before Christmas my favorite uncle would come over with a camera to take my picture holding up my favorite toy at the time. He would then have it laminated, attached to a ribbon whose color I got to choose and hang it from our living room chandelier. I had done that with my own children and continue to do it with my grandchildren. These decorations seem to be everyone’s favorites and they open subjects for wonderful conversation and reminiscing.

* My kids loved play-dough when they were young and when they were especially proud of their own creations, we saved them for the Nativity scene. I can see a few in my head right now as I recall my kids’ joy and my heart swells with pleasure.

Feel free to emulate the ideas discussed above and here are a few more:

* Use old leftovers from your sewing kit. You could make wonderful bows from scraps of ribbon and lace.
* Use Christmas cards from previous years. Cut them up into any number of shapes and stitch colorful ribbon around their edges.
* Use pine cones. You could paint them, attach colorful little flowers and ribbons or sprinkle gold and silver glitter.
* Use multicolored paper to make paper chains.
* String popcorn and use it in its nature color or paint it.
* Take the pictures off your walls and wrap them in colorful gift wrapping paper and ribbons and hang them up again. You have never seen your wall this festive before.

Enjoy the savings, enjoy the process and enjoy the memories for years to come.

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What is the Christmas Crèche

If you are French you will call it crèche, if your are Italian you will call it presipio, if you are German you will call it krippe, if you are Spanish you will call it nacimiento and if you speak only English as I do, you will call it the “crib.” But what is the Christmas crèche or the Christmas crib? Well, it is an artistic three dimensional depiction of the birth of Jesus Christ in the manger and it is one of the oldest and most favored of all Christmas traditions. Artists of Christmas crèches naturally put most of their emphasis on the baby Jesus Christ and his mother Mary but they also add earthly as well as heavenly participants such as shepherds, animals, angels, wise men and common folks.

Pictures of the Baby Jesus Christ in the manger and other such pictorial stories of Bethlehem have been used in churches during services from the first centuries. However, the tradition of the Christmas Crèche as we know them today started and became so very popular with St. Francis of Assisi. While traveling to Italy in 1223 to celebrate Christmas in a small village named Greccio, St. Francis who was a deacon at the time approached a grazing field where he saw shepherds herding their livestock beneath a moonlit starry sky. This scene brought the first Christmas to his mind and he was inspired. Fearing that he may be accused of frivolity, he obtained the reigning pontiff’s permission. St. Francis then prepared a manger with hay and by Christmas Eve, St. Francis invited the villagers of Greccio to bring their lit torches and their animal and join him in a re-enactment of the Nativity scene of over twelve hundred years ago. At the same location, St. Francis also held his Midnight Mass, chanted the Gospel and delivered his sermon.

Since St. Francis’ live Nativity scene, the tradition spread from Italy to France and then to Germany and the rest of Europe. From Europe it then spread to other parts of the world. Christmas crèches were soon found in just about every Christian home, among the rich and the poor around the globe. Churches, cathedrals as well as public squares displayed Christmas crèches of one kind or another. Depending on the artists who created them, depending on local cultures and traditions, depending on economic and social standings, each crèche was distinctly differed yet the same as they all depicted the newborn Christ and his mother Mary.

Christmas crèches can be homemade by novices or commissioned by great artists, they can be purchased at thrift shops or at Christian stores. They can be made simply of wood, molded into clay, or made of fine metals and bejeweled with precious stones. They can be large or they can be small. Only one thing matter in Christmas crèches, they have to depict the Nativity scene with the spotlight on the Christ Baby and Mary his mother.

Traditionally, crèches are unwrapped with fanfare and ceremony on Christmas Eve as families gather around them. The older children of the families read from the Gospel of Bethlehem [Luke 2] then prayers are said and Christmas carols are sung. This tradition concludes with the gathered wishing each other a blessed and merry Christmas and it essentially marks the beginnings of the Feast of Christmas and its highlights will be Mass and Communion at midnight.

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Christmas Symbols

It has recently occurred to me that Christmas is endowed with more universally recognized symbols than any other holiday. Considering the fact that Christmas is the holiday that is celebrated by more people in many more parts of the world than any other Christian holiday, one should not be surprised with the wealth of easily recognizable icons that represent it.

Below you will find a list of Christmas symbols that any child will recognize along with a brief narrative of their origins or meanings:

The Wreath: The wreath is traditionally hung on the front door of homes during the winter festivities and it has pagan significance as well as Christian.

During the Middle Ages the red berries of hollies were thought to have the power of keeping witches away from homes and the evergreen boughs were thought to chase away evil spirits. Furthermore, the wreath was used to celebrate the god Bacchus who wore a circular ivy crown.

The wreath is typically laced with red ribbons which express festivity and the evergreen leaves represent the everlasting life promised to those who are faithful to Jesus Christ. The circular shape of the wreath symbolizes the crown of thorns that was places on His head by the Romans who ridiculed him for claiming to be the “King of Jews.”

The Bells. It is claimed that bells were rung for a full hour to ward off evil spirits on the eve of Christ’s birth and at midnight their pitch changed to joyous. Traditionally, bells were tolled to announce a death and these Christmas bells announce the death of the Devil and all evil spirits who are repelled by the noise.

The Nativity Scene. The Nativity scene represents the manger in which Baby Jesus was laid after his birth in a stable in Bethlehem. After receiving permission from the Pope, Francis of Assisi built the first Nativity scene for Christmas of 1224 in a cave outside the town of Greccio in Italy. This Nativity was a live scene that retold the story of the original Nativity as Francis recited the Gospel and delivered a sermon.

The Holly. The evergreen leaves of the holly symbolize eternal life while the red berries represent drops of His blood on the cross. Its thorny leaves bring to mind the crown of thorns places on His head by the Roman soldiers who tormented Him.

The Poinsettia. Poinsettias are indigenous to Mexico and legend has it that it became the Mexican Christmas flower when a poor peasant girl wanted to bring a gift to the Virgin Mary on Christmas Eve. As this girl had nothing to give, an angel told her to pick some weeds but those weeds that she picked turned miraculously to bright scarlet flowers.

Poinsettias got their name from Joel R. Poinsett who, from 1825 to 1829, was the first US ambassador to Mexico and sent specimens of this plant back to the United States where they thrived.

The Yule Log. One legend says that Yule logs served as fuel for the sun; therefore they symbolized the sun’s light, warmth and revitalizing power. Another legend claims that “Yule” refers to the ale drunk a long time ago.

Yule logs were put into fireplaces to burn for at least twelve hours but there were strict rules about their use. They could not be purchased but must have been received as gifts; they must come from a tree that was grown on one’s own property; they must be kindled with fragments of previous year’s logs and their fire must never be allowed to go out on its own.

Christmas Gifts. The exchanging of gifts dates back to an ancient Roman custom of celebrating Saturnalia, their pagan festivity. When Christians adopted that gift-giving custom, they claimed that it represents the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh that the Magi carried from the East when they came to pay homage to the newborn Jesus Christ.

The Christmas Rose. The Christmas Rose is native to the mountains of Central Europe and is also grown in England. Unlike most other roses which bloom in the summer, the Christmas Rose blooms only in the winter.

A legend tells about a shepherdess who saw the three wise men bearing gifts for the New Born King and she broke down in tears because she had nothing to give Him. An angel took pity on her and turned the snow at her feel to lovely white flowers tipped with pink which were ultimately named the Christmas Rose.

The Christmas Colors. There are many colors associated with Christmas but the most prevalent among them are red, green, white and gold.

* Red symbolizes festivity and excitement as well as fire, blood and charity.
* Green symbolizes nature, youth and the hope for eternal life.
* White symbolizes light, purity, joy and glory.
* Gold symbolizes sunlight and radiance.

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