I continue with the list of my blog posts that receive the most number of unique visitors, as revealed by Statcounter for this year. (The top 6-10 posts were revealed yesterday, here.)
#5: How To Wear Biker Boots (November 18, 2010)
I should have posted this a long time ago. Of course I should have known that few people know how to wear biker boots, which is the reason that question must be entered into Google so often. That can be the only reason -- only us bikers know the secret handshake, the concealed location of the privacy pocket in a leather vest, and the intricacies of precisely how to wear biker boots. (As I said yesterday, sometimes I wonder why someone has to ask that question... perhaps they need to revert to wearing sneakers or loafers and refrain from operating a motorcycle.)
#4: Wesco Boots -- Gay? (December 11, 2009) [This was ranked #6 last year]
As I said yesterday about this year's post #6 (Wesco Boots and Gay Culture), there is a rather frequent misconception that guys who do not work in rough blue-collar trades (such as linesman, loggers, or woodland firefighters) and who choose to wear and display Wesco boots (or, heaven forbid, make a video about them!) -- therefore must be gay and the boots are gay too. While the West Coast Shoe Company (Wesco) does a lot of marketing to the motorcycle rider market, that marketing does not seem to penetrate among the bikers with whom I ride in the U.S. State of Merlin (that's how you pronounce it, fellas). I am the only guy in my outfit about which I am aware who wears Wesco boots while riding. I am gay. Therefore, the obvious leap of logic is that Wesco Boots are gay, or wearing them makes you gay, or that only gay men wear Wesco Boots. Bullshirt. Read the original post.
3. Where Do You Find Masculine Gay Guys? (July 10, 2010) [This was ranked #4 last year ... so the ranking indicates sustained and growing interest in this topic.]
I see sooooo many inquiries entered anonymously into search engines such as: "where to find masculine gay guys" or "are there masculine gay men" or "where to meet normal masculine guys" or even, "are there masculine gay men?" (as in, "do they exist?") There is a large interest out there from single guys, mostly younger, who are looking for a guy who doesn't behave effeminately. Perhaps there is some curiosity, too, that I am a masculine gay man who is in love with another masculine gay man.
The challenge is that most masculine-behaving gay guys have learned skills to hide that they are gay, and remain firmly in the closet. Society has taught them (incorrectly) that "real men aren't gay" and that there is something wrong with guys who like guys. I could go on and on... the point is that stereotypes and heteronormative expectations are out there. Thus, it is very hard to find a masculine gay man. This post has some ideas about where to look ... and this post explains why they are so elusive.
2. Gay Leather Breeches (November 1, 2010)
It is likely that this post's rank so high in readership on this blog is an anomaly, in that while this post gets a lot of unique visits -- sorta off the charts since it was posted -- it may also be ranking so high because it is recent and serves as a topic of interest to gay men who are planning to attend upcoming gatherings of the Gay Men's Leatherclan (Mid-Atlantic Leather in Washington, DC, in January and International Mr. Leather in Chicago, Illinois, in May).
I took the approach in that blog post to dispel the notion that leather breeches unto themselves are not gay, though well over 90% of visitors to that post have entered "gay leather breeches" into a search engine which directed them to this post. I think what they were seeking were answers to any of these questions: 1) where can I find leather breeches to wear to a gay men's gathering? or 2) are people who wear leather breeches gay (as in 'always')?
Well, whatever, this post gets a lot of readers directed to it from internet searches. Not a surprise -- so many people like to search anonymously for information to resolve curiosity.
And ... dah-dah-dum! Here's the Number One blog post this year:
#1:
Bulges and Breeches (July 18, 2009) [This was
ranked #2 last year, so again, by an increase to ranking #1, it shows a sustained interest!]
Why such a high, sustained interest? Just go to Google images and enter "Tom of Finland." You will see a LOT of ToF images on blogs, including this one. I grabbed this image from the net, that links to my blog post. The post was written as a review -- admiration of superb artwork.
Perhaps, as well, images like this is where the perception of "gay leather breeches" and gay men in tall black boots comes from.
Life is short: keep reading and I will keep blogging!
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