Conforming with tradition, I note here some of the hits & misses of this blog during 2011. There is nothing scientific in what follows; I write on the basis of my impressions.
The statistics that tell us most about the state of the mining industry in 2011 are those for the posting Mining truck driver wants job; do you have the right opportunity for Australia. Since its first publication about four years ago, the posting about truck drivers on mines in Australia has been read by more than 10,000 people. It still gets between 20 and 40 readers per day. I have kept it current, but not that current. My guess is that there are a lot of people looking for work driving trucks in the Australian mining industry. I wish them all well, but cannot help wondering if all the blog posting readers get the jobs they are seeking.
The second most read blog posting this year was a surprise to me. It is the piece MET Siegfried and Jay Hunter Morris. Since I posted it in early November, it has been read by nearly 2,250 opera lovers. The opera was amazing and Jay Hunter Morris hit all the high notes. Yet for a blog about mining, as this one is, it is still a question how my opinion about opera became a well-read posting.
As a group or category, the postings on this blog in 2011 that received most attention were those postings about salaries and wages in the mining industry. There is much interest via Google about what you can earn in mining. That I can understand. One example: since its first posting in 2010, Mining engineers’ starting salaries in top ten, has been read by almost 8,000 people. I have tried to keep the posting up-to-date by adding links to new posts on salaries and wages, but still this is, in my opinion, an impressive number.
One of the sadder aspects of mining is the posting Mining Jobs in Colorado and California. There are few jobs in mining in California or Colorado. Nevertheless, over 2,300 people accessed this posting in 2011.
The blog posting that has been most rewarding this year is Should I Become a Mining Engineer. It has been looked at by over 1,900 readers. I have also received a large number of private emails that refer to this posting. The emails have come from students, people thinking of entering the mining industry, and people thinking of changing jobs. Most have commented that the posting gave them some insight. Many have asked my opinion about their prospects for a career in mining. I have answered all their emails. And some have replied with success stories. That makes me happy.
Since first posting the piece About Me and the Blog has been read by more than 5,000 people. Mostly checking out if I am the genuine article. I am, I assure you. See picture below as taken by my four-year old grand-daughter.
And so let us proceed to 2012. Please keep reading, keep commenting, keep sending the private emails, and we will keep writing about almost anything that attracts our opinion.
In old-fashion terminology: Happy New Year.
