Tuesday, August 06, 2013

Happy Birthday!

I’m going to blow the four candles, my own trumpet, and cut the cake right away. 

The 3Cs completes four years this month. I’m not sure of the exact launch date because I deleted my first post some months ago. But I think it was August 24, 2009. It was a Monday, probably a rainy day. Since then I have removed numerous posts that didn’t quite fit in with the blog’s new identity, not that it has one. I narrowed down my interests to a few like books, films, and music, in the hope that a refined and redefined blog will have focus and garner more votes, honours, awards, laurels, and medals. It did more than that. It brought me in contact with a blog’s most important asset—other bloggers—most of whom are established writers or experts in literature, cinema, and music, and who have been gracious enough to visit this blog and comment with unerring regularity. Today, they're my blog friends and I’m richer for knowing them.

Over the past four years the 3Cs has accumulated 404 posts not counting the deletions, 2,066 comments that include my replies, and 176,306 visitors, hopefully, minus my own pageviews.

It has been a fun journey so far and I intend to go on for as long as there are books to be read, films to be watched, and music to be listened to.

I will leave you with that first post I wrote forty-eight months ago.


The beginning of a journey

Welcome to Chess, Comics & Crosswords! This blog is not going to be just about the 3Cs. It's going to go far beyond these happy pursuits. To give you a fair idea, it will traverse the spiritual and the mundane, in unequal measure, and everything else in between. It will convey news and views, stories and histories, verses and rhymes on topics that inspire, enliven, and even provoke. Hopefully, what you read will touch you, make you smile, even laugh, make you sad and angry, and exult... Maybe it will do nothing. Never mind, so long as you come here often—to read, reflect, and react.

From the Word file

28 comments:

  1. Congrats. I've certainly been enjoying reading the three Cs.

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    1. Thank you, Charles. I appreciate your regular visits to my blog. I've "met" a lot of interesting people on the journey so far.

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  2. Congrats! That's an impressive amount of years--may there be many more :-)

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    1. Thank you, Fleur. The years have just whizzed past. It has been an enriching experience and in future I hope to post more book reviews.

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  3. Indeed, congratulations! These roadmarks are always fun to take in...

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    1. Thank you, Todd. The blog has helped me widen my knowledge of books and their authors as well as films and their makers. It also prompted me to read genres I'd neglected before, like sf, for instance.

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  4. Congratulations, Prashant. I am glad you started the blog and that you have covered so many topics. I have enjoyed your posts so much.

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    1. Thank you, Tracy. The blog has definitely helped in many ways, most of all instilling discipline in writing. I have enjoyed writing on various topics though I'm now trying to focus on books and films and post reviews as often as I can.

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  5. Happy 4th Blogoversary, Prashant! Four years is an impressive achievement...here's to many more! Always enjoy reading what you have to say about whatever strikes your fancy.

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    1. Thank you, Jeff. Four years ago, I didn't know you or any of our fellow-bloggers on this page or in the right-hand column. That more than my posts has been the most impressive achievement of this blog.

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  6. Congratulations, Prashant. And many more to come, I hope.

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    1. Thank you, Patti. I sure hope so too. I intend to keep the blog going as long as I can and "meet" many more interesting people along the way.

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  7. Prashant: Congratulations! I wonder if there will come to be a specific way to celebrate blog anniversaries.

    You left out one important aspect about yourself. You travel the world leaving interesting comments on so many blogs. Thanks for dropping by my blog so often.

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    1. Bill, thank you for your generous words. It didn't occur to me that as readers and bloggers we travel the world and "learn" new things and "meet" new people. Blog-trotting, as they say. It has been my pleasure to visit many excellent and well-informed blogs like yours, Bill.

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  8. Prashant, 4 years well done - you have about a 3 year head start on me! I hope to enjoy many more interesting posts and look forward to many recommendations, cheers Col

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    1. Thank you, Col. Your blog seems like it's more than a year old. In spite of being a recent visitor, you've introduced me to several authors I didn't know about. I like the different ways bloggers write about books and authors. I used to visit some of the blogs listed on the right before I decided to have one of my own. It has been a pleasant trip, at times overwhelming. I have realised staying focused is the key to a readable blog.

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  9. Happy Birthday Prashant. Four years blogging is no mean feat. I hope you continue to get the joy you so obviously do, for another four years!

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    1. Thank you, Rebecca. These four years have been a period of learning about blogs and blogging. I wish I'd focused more on books during this period. I hope to do so over the next four years. Yes, I enjoy blogging and visiting other blogs.

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  10. Well done chum - as we say in Italy, "buon anniversario" - keep up the good work chum, I'd hate to do without your blog!

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    1. Thank you, Sergio. That is mighty generous of you, and likewise! You were one of the earliest visitors to this blog and I'm, indeed, grateful to you, as I'm to our fellow-bloggers above, for coming back.

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  11. I've said this before. Your blogging and your thoughtful responses to other bloggers' posts have made CCC worthy of all those laurels you mention. Keep on keepin' on.

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    1. Thank you, Ron. I appreciate your kind words. The bit about "laurels" was a joke, really, but our fellow-bloggers have been consistently generous with their impressions of 3Cs and its content and I'm thankful to them as I'm to you.

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  12. Congratulations on the anniversary Prashant - some impressive stats there - keep up the good work.

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    1. Thank you, Colin. None of this would have been possible without support from you and our fellow-bloggers above. I have learned much, gained much through this blog.

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  13. Happy 4th Birthday! Sarah

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    1. Thank you, Sarah. The blog has helped in many ways, most of all pushing me towards some serious writing of my own, perhaps, a book of short stories to begin with.

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  14. I'm so sorry I missed this earlier.... Happy Blogoversary!

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    1. Not a problem, Ryan. Thanks for the good wishes. It's just a number — thought I'd holler about it from the rooftops!

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