What happened? How to prevent it from happening again?

This is in answer to some questions I'm getting about the short disappearance of Meanderings and Muses, and how it was retrieved.

 Chances are you received a newsletter or saw my post at Facebook regarding the short disappearance of Meanderings and Muses

At the very real risk of being very repetitive, here it is again -

Hi, everyone!

You may have noticed that my blog of 16 years, Meanderings and Muses, disappeared.

Sixteen years.

That blog has served a lot of purposes over the years.

I’ve shared good news and bad. Shed tears. Shared laughter. Pitched a few fits. Hosted good friends. Recommended a few books and authors. Shared some beauty and spotlighted some ugly.

The thoughts of losing it were devastating and incomprehensible.

But—it’s back!

With the help of Maddee, Ryan, and Riley of the amazing and magic-making xuni.com, my Meanderings and Muses is back. I can get back to using it as my journal, my conscience, the place for spreading my news and I hope you will continue to pop in from time to time.

It’s now accessed by this link: kayebarleymusesandmeanders.com

Please bookmark the new link! See you there!

Take care,

XXOO

Kaye

I have received notes from some of you asking what happened - My friend Ann sent this:  "Kaye—What a nightmare. What the hell happened and do you have any advice to others to avoid such a disaster? If my website went down it would be… can’t even go there."

So.

the question "What the hell happened?"

The short answer to that is "I'm really not sure."

Last Wednesday, Feb. 28, I was just working on a post, closed it out for awhile, went back about an hour later to complete it and was met with an ugly screen telling me that Meanderings and Muses had expired.

No prior warning.  

None.

 the question "do you have any advice to others to avoid such a disaster?"

HA!

I jumped through all the hoops placed in my path to no avail.

Each hoop directed me to a different hoop etc etc etc and around and around we went.

And here's where I say, "Thanks Be For A Woman Named Maddee James, her amazing team of Ryan and Riley, her adorable pup Ripley, and the magic of xuni.com.

Seeing as how I successfully managed Meanderings and Muses for 16 years pretty much problem-free (not totally problem-free, but I was able to work through most of them by myself), my best advice to other bloggers is this.  Turn it over to an expert to watch over.  

Find you an expert!

I will continue doing the writing and the publishing, but now I know if I ever see that hateful ugly screen telling me I'm expired (don't you hate that word?!) I can run to Maddee and crew for a fix by experts.  Yay, xuni.com ! 

Y'all, blogging technology has changed.  I now know I am not qualified to troubleshoot, let alone fix, problems I might have been able to do a few years ago.

Find you an expert.

(Speaking of my friend Ann, that would be Ann Medlock, who I ADORE.  Ann is a poet, a novelist, an essayist, a speaker, a storyteller, and a woman who, at age 90, is someone  we can all look at as a role model.  If you haven't read her SILENCE OF THE SEAMAID, I encourage you to do so).