After 2020, I thought 2021 HAD to be better, but NOOOooo . . . six days in, a mob attacked our Capitol, trying to interfere with the certification of the election results. Then, many states enacted laws making it harder for people to vote. Covid almost dwindled down to nothing, but people tried to go back to normal too soon, and it came back with a vengeance. This time last year, I knew of only one person close to me who had had the virus. Now I know of seven, and two of them died. And my brother-in-law had 13 people over to his house for Christmas, and the next day two tested positive for Covid. We’re all sick of Covid, but if you’re not following the protocol, you’re spreading the disease. Please stay away from me in 2022.

As far as ARHtistic License is concerned, it’s been an okay year. I published 560 posts, not a record for me. I missed a few days here and there, and forgave myself. My average likes per post was 12.2, and that was a record for ARHtistic License. Thank you for the love! My followers grew from less than 1100 to almost 1300, not staggering growth, but I’m grateful for every one of you and hope to earn your loyalty.

Like last year, my most viewed posts this year were all articles posted before 2021. Part of me is a little hurt that my current articles aren’t getting as much attention. Most of my traffic comes from search engines, so I guess these articles have good search engine optimization (SEO). Here are the top ten (Have you read them yet?):

1. Jan van Eyck’s Crucifixion and the Last Judgment: Painted by a Committee This 2016 article explores the painters’ workshops and apprentice programs of the Renaissance. It was viewed 673 times last year, for a whopping all-time total of 2,705.
2. 10 Best Zentangle Sites on the Web I wrote this in 2018. 
3. Video of the Week #274: Ben Pratt sings “River” This post first appeared in 2020.
4. How to Practice Piano: Doh! Dohnányi I wrote this article about the unplayable exercise book that is the bane of every pianist’s existence in 2017.
5. How to Make a Meme on a Mac Step-by-step instructions, first published in 2017.
6. Ballet Feet They’re not cute and dainty. Ballet dancers literally suffer for their art. This article was written in 2016.
7. Hawaiian Quilting with Pat Gorelangton was posted in 2018.
8. Tangles for Christmas came out in 2019.
9. Interview with Author Paul Mosier was written in 2019.
10. Smarty Dance was originally written for Doing Life Together in April, 2015, and then reposted on ARHtistic License that October.

My most viewed posts of 2021 (written in 2021):

1. October Challenges Don’t ask me why 80 people looked at this, more than any other article I wrote this year. Maybe creative people look for challenges?
2. 19 More Best Zentangle Sites on the Web An update of the 2018 article above.
3. Meet Donna Kramer, Blogger Extraordinaire If you like my blog, you’ll love hers, so take a peek.
4. When Blogging Becomes Expensive What to do?
5. Back to South Mountain Photographs taken in a desert park where I like to hike.
6. Ideas for Valentine’s Day During the Pandemic Just a brainstormed list.
7. OctPoWriMo2021 Day 9: Retirement A poem written for a challenge.
8. Smell the Roses Photography
9. The Sculpture of Donatello Art history lesson.
10. Creative Juice #236 An edition of my weekly (Friday) curated list of links to articles on the web that deal with the arts, creativity, or something I find interesting or humorous.

In my opinion, this is a diverse list of articles, covering a variety of topics. I think I’m supplying something for everyone. I hope you’ll take the time to read a couple of these that maybe you missed before.

2021 wasn’t a total loss. Some good things happened in our family. My son whose job dried up when the pandemic started found a new job this summer, and he’s doing well there. And my daughter, who got engaged in 2019 and planned to marry in 2020, but, you know, Covid, finally tied the knot last week on December 28 (I hope to share more about that soon).