> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://birchtree.me/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Recession…Revitalization - URL: https://birchtree.me/blog/recessionrestoration/ - Published: 2019-12-31T16:07:55.000Z - Updated: 2019-12-31T16:07:55.000Z - Author: Matt Birchler - Tags: meta, #Import 2023-06-01 22:41, #Import 2025-03-29 19:29 2019 was the first year ever that BirchTree saw fewer visitors than the year before. Needless to say, after 8 years of uninterrupted (sometimes exponential) growth, this was a bit of a change. I could blame the decline in general blog readership everywhere. I could blame the big link bloggers out there getting more insular and linking the same dozen people everyday. I could blame things like YouTube and TikTok sucking up all of people’s free time. I could blame all of those, but the real reason is obvious: me. In 2019 I went through a bunch of changes, most publicly getting a dog for the first time in my life, but also some more personal things I don’t share online. Because of that, I posted less to this site than I have in years, and the stuff I was posting didn’t get as much love before I published it. Things like my phone reviews and watchOS stuff was well received and I put a ton of work into those, but the stuff in between suffered. Maybe you personally noticed, and maybe you didn’t, but I definitely noticed. This didn’t just hit me, it hit me back in October when I started investigating WordPress alternatives, and it [culminated December 13 when I moved the whole site over to Ghost](https://birchtree.me/blog/the-biggest-change-to-birchtree-in-5-years/). This will be my 26th post in the 18 days since making the switch. And while quantity does not equal quality, I also think the things I’ve written some of the better articles of the year in that stretch. - I wrote about [how I use Things](https://birchtree.me/blog/how-i-use-things-3-to-keep-track-of-christmas-shopping/) to manage my wish lists and Christmas shopping. - I wrote a [review of AirPods Pro](https://birchtree.me/blog/airpods-pro-mini-review-cold-weather-and-travel/) from the perspective of someone who lives in the Midwest and has to deal with cold. - I wrote a [very short piece](https://birchtree.me/blog/todays-podcast-take-a-minute-to-think/) about reminding you (and myself, honestly) that you don’t need to fill every available second of silence in your life with someone talking in your ear. - Instead of a tweet storm, I wrote up [my overall thoughts on the new Star Wars trilogy](https://birchtree.me/blog/the-new-star-wars-trilogy/), which received lots of love, even from those who disagreed with me. - And I wrote about the [books](https://birchtree.me/blog/21-books-in-2019/) and [video games](https://birchtree.me/blog/my-favorite-games-of-2019/) I loved in the past year, hopefully giving people ideas for how to enjoy their free time. I’m doing quite a bit this coming year to improve several aspects of my life, and I’m hoping to make 2020 a banner year for BirchTree. The site is turning 10 this October, so it only makes sense to try and blow the doors off. \--- This is also the place where I remind you that the absolute best way to support the creators you like is to share their work. If you blog, write a link post to the people you read. If you make YouTube videos, put a link in the description. If you use social media, retweet the things you enjoy. It’s a small action, but it means so much to people like me who want to get their work in front of as many people as possible.