If it wasn’t already clear that I blame the Internet for everything, now it’s trying to rob me of my views.  AGAIN.  Blog City has announced that they will shut down in January 2012.  I suppose I can renew my subscription if I want, or I can go now while my archives are still manageable.  I couldn’t do this with my old blog because there were three years of near-daily entries to export, but maybe this time I can start working through it.

This is a gigantic pain in the ass and ego because a) it’s a hassle to build a blog from nothing again and b) apparently it’s difficult for people to bookmark a new link.  I get way fewer views here than I was getting on my old blog, and it’s partially because people couldn’t digest the new location (I know this because they told me).  I’ve been at Blog City for just shy of a year and now they want to take away my paltry 45,000 hits?  For serious?

And apparently there’s already someone named Ephemera Etc. on WordPress?  Because they’re copycats is why.  Which sucks because it’s hard enough to get people to follow you to a new domain*, but one that doesn’t even have the same name is almost impossible.

Also WordPress doesn’t export directly from Blog City, and it’s way too much of a hassle to do it myself.  I mean, I guess I could, but none of the links would survive, I’d have to re-locate all the photos, and who has the kind of time to sit there clicking for several hours at a time?  (Fine, I have exactly that kind of time, I just don’t feel like it.)

The smartest tech-ish person I know is my friend Mike, and I really hope he drinks beer.  I’ve offered a case of it plus up to $60 to anyone who can help me with extracting my shit from here, possibly converting it to a WP-supported format, and then exporting it.  Even though the WordPress dashboard looks unnecessarily complex, and even though their customer service will never be as unintentionally condescending as the Brits behind Blog City.

What I’ll do depends on who I can get to help and in what period of time.  My subscription is up on September 6th, so if some blessed nerd can extend their brain magic before then, fantastic.  I’ll let you all know where I end up.

*But I have one just in case.  Bookmark erineph.wordpress.com now, everyone.  Please bookmark.  Five seconds.  Lifetime of amusement.  Internet validation for me.  Please?