It was 18 years ago today (March 31) that Bits and Pieces was born with a single post. Miss Cellania left the first comment. I started B&P over on Blogger and after a little while I moved it to a self-hosted WordPress site where it still resides to this day.
A couple of years after that people kept urging me to monetize the site with ads. It was gettting more and more expensive to keep the site going. Domain costs, hosting costs, security costs, blogging utilities costs keep rising so the need is there for revenue. We changed hosts just recently and the new host is several times more expensive than the previous host but I have no doubt that it was the right move and is worth the cost. While the ads help we depend on the generosity of the readers and their donations to stay afloat.
B&P has been a big part of my life for these 18 years. It’s been a labor of love. While B&P isn’t as popular as it once was it still gets over a million page views a year. We’ve had some ups and downs over these years, the worst of which was a hack in 2010 that caused the loss of two or three years worth of posts.
Thank you! I’ve met a lot of really nice people both online and in person who I consider good friends if not like family members. Thank you for stopping by, whether you do it daily, weekly or just every now and then. A special thanks to those who comment for I think you’re the lifeblood of B&P. I don’t think the site would still be here without your input. Thanks to my fellow bloggers whom I “borrow” from and to those who send me things to post. I don’t know how long we’ll continue here but I still love doing this and having people from across the globe be part of our little world-wide neighborhood. Thank you!
I wandered in here about 10 years from Miss Cellania. It has become a part of my daily ritual. I wish that you would bring back “What Is It?” Thanks, Jonco…
Richard, I imagine you’ve been here longer than that since you were at the first B&P Big Ass BBQ in 2010.
A home page for me that always makes my day better. A huge 18 year THANK YOU !!!
Happy Birthday B&P. ???????18 WOW!!! I thnk I started joining in around 2009. Roll on next year when we can have the BABBQ postponed from this weekend. Thanks Jon for brightening my day every day?
B&P somehow appeared in my life just as my world was caving in around 2007 or so. This site was one of my tenuous lifelines. Meeting you & some great B&Pers in person has been one of the side benefits of hanging out here. Congratulations on 18!
Congrats on 18 years. I’ve been reading B&P for at least 14 of those years and want to thank you for all the laughs you have provided my family and friends during that period. Lesson #1 from COVID-19 has been that we will need a strong sense of humor to survive — and in that respect you are a lifeline to many of us out here.
Cheers, John!?
Well said, Bill and I’m sure many of us agree.
https://www.bitsandpieces.us/2010/09/22/mating-for-life-you-need-a-penguin-ring/
I ended up buying this ring as a gag. Still have it!
It was a long time ago when radio hose Neal Boortz emailed out some funny links. One was to a post here on B&P. That’s how I got hooked!
Thanks Jon for keeping us entertained for all these years!
Bill
LOL. Thanks, Bill!
I’ve been lurking around since the very early days, off and on. Sometimes get busy and don’t find time for weeks, but catching up on rainy days is great. Haven’t made too many comments, but enjoy the blog nevertheless. Thanks for what you do, it is appreciated!
Happy anniversary! You’ve always been an inspiration to me!
Awwww, thanks. The feeling is mutual.
Happy Birthday!! Wow, B & P is old enough to vote!
I think I must’ve stumbled into here about 15 years ago give or take. I haven’t made it to a gathering yet, not for lack of trying. This year would have been my first. Hopefully it still will. I still stop here every day after work, although I don’t comment as much as I used to, I’m still here.
WIHI?
What ever happened to Infidel?
Still here just not on the net as much and using my real name now ,Happy 18th Jonco
Found B&P late 02 or early 03 by the way of The Presurfer. Might have missed one or two post, but don’t remember missing any.
Thanks! I look forward to your page every day!
Happy Anniversary!
What’s a celebration without a donation so I’m sending a little something your way right after this post. Life would be less spectacular without my daily read of Bits & Pieces, Bits of Wisdom and Naughty Bits. Congratulations on your 18th anniversary.
Thank you very much!
I don’t remember how I found your site, but it has been one of my go to pages for years. Thinking about it now, my daughter is 18yr old so I’ve probably been around for at least 17yrs.
I don’t comment a lot, but I Love what you do Jonco. Thank you for everything!
Thanks for all the nice comments.
Me: What no cake?
Jonco: From the looks of it you don’t need any
Me: …
Jonco:…
Me: Ok, fine, I’ll just raise my cup of coffee and say congrats.
Me: Here’s to another 18, or so.
Me: Now back to monitoring the earthquake here in Idaho.
Jonco, I often steal stuff from B&P and share it on my FB page, always crediting B&P. I really look forward to reading Mike Firesmith on Friday’s. You and he have provided so much thoughtful and funny entertainment for years. Thanks so much for what you do. If bring a few laughs to folks daily, you contribute so much more than you know
Bob Croslin
Happy Anniversary, Jonco!
I had the privilege of meeting you about 7 years ago: https://www.bitsandpieces.us/2013/02/05/meeting-me-meeting-you-4/ so I must have been browsing by here for probably close to 10 years now, I would guess.
I hope to meet you again–maybe in Las Vegas when that meet-up happens.
Happy anniversary Jonco! It’s a great thing you’ve done! I start off EVER MORNING looking at your site, and it always puts a smile on my face! Here’s to the next 18!
Happy Blogaversary! I visit every day so thanks for the posts.
Happy birthday, B&P! Congratulations on becoming an adult! And thanks, Jonco – you’re part of my “daily bread.”
Y’all warm my heart with your comments. Just sayin’!
…
Okay, that’s enough social interaction, now back to isolation. Stay safe! 🙂
Sorry I missed the party, or at least I’m late to it. This has been a wonderful trip. Thanks for keeping this thing going, Jon!
Thanks for 18 years of laughs, groans and entertainment! I have been around for around for at least 10 years. I even came to the last BABBQ in Las Vegas. I used to comment regularly, but haven’t commented much recently, though I’m not sure why. Nevertheless, B&P has been a constant source of fun, entertainment and virtual community that I am very thankful for. Thank you for all that you do for us Jonco! You will never know how much your dedication has meant to us.
I came from Miss Cellanias blog myself. Gosh, I can’t even remember how long ago?
Congratulations on 18 years, Jonco!!
Sometimes people have mentioned where they are from when responding to your Blog. I’ve noticed other Canadians besides me, Australia, and of course, all over the US. It would be really interesting to know how many countries or areas you reach!
What a relief it is to visit B&P. All the news is so sad and depressing it is really refreshing to see the lighter side of life. Thanks Jonco, for today’s entertainment and for 18 years of dedicated service to the B&P neighborhood.
A little late here but Thank you so much for your 18 years of dedication to making us laugh. Much appreciate your blog and Mike’s weekly posts.
Thanks Jonco! Still one of my favorite bookmarks on all my devices. Your work is much appreciated.