LIFT Blog 2014 recap: what got my readers excited this year

Hi guys, as it is already the 31st of December and I am putting the finishing touches to my tax return, I thought I'd do a review about what got you guys talking this year. You see, as a blogger, I write stuff that is interesting to me but I can never really predict which articles will go viral and others will only really be read by my real hardcore devoted followers. Sometimes an article can get a few hundred readers and sometimes, I can get several thousands in 24 hours whilst I have a few which are slow-burners that keep attracting readers year after year. So are you ready for a trip down memory lane and review 2014 with me through my blog (which has pretty much functioned as my diary for the year)?

What got your screaming at your computer this year?

January, Janvier, Ionawr, 一月

I started the year off with with a series of articles on fashion which did attract a fair amount of attention - I did wonder if this was the year if I would start blogging more about men's fashion. My January fashion articles on social analysis angle to them, discussing a lot more about what to wear and expressing one's personality through fashion.  Then came a young lady called Stephanie Koh and I soon got far more excited the controversy she was causing than fashion. I then went skiing in Salzburg and by the time I got back, everyone was talking about Anton Casey and I got on the Anton Casey bangwagon as well.  People couldn't stop talking about Anton Casey till he got hounded out of Singapore at the end of January. the notorious Mr Anton Casey is the most read topic on my blog this year.

February, Février, Chwefror, 二月

In February, I did a series of stories where I interviewed Peter, a former legal interpreter who gave us great insight into the world of illegal immigrants in the UK. I wrote some articles dealing with safety in sports as well as the art of getting the best out of your child in sports. I did enjoy retelling some of the funnier experiences I've had as a gatekeeper,but it was really at the very end of February that I really struck gold when discussing the difficult dilemma faced by TheRealSingapore, as they struggle to offer the authentic voices of real Singaporeans whilst dealing with the fact that some of them are the most inarticulate people who don't know how tell their stories, hence the conflict of interest.

March, Mars, Mawrth, 三月

I started March off with an article about fashion that I really liked but was disappointed that it didn't quite go viral. An article I wrote about visiting Japan proved to be really popular (though I didn't eventually visit Japan this year). Then came the mysterious disappearance of MH370 and that was all people could talk about for much of March. MH370 is still not found yet even at the end of 2014, who would have known. Apart from MH370, my response to a BBC article accusing Singaporeans of being miserable actually proved to be pretty popular as well along with another piece about the cost of living in Singapore (which turned out to be the fourth most read piece on Limpeh's blog in 2014).

MH370 still has not been found yet at the end of the year.

April, Avril, Ebrill, 四月

As April arrived, a story struck a chord with me as well as many of my readers: that of the Malaysian expatriate couple in Sweden who were jailed for smacking their children. Many of my readers had strong feelings on the issue, as I did and the discussion on smacking raged on and on.  I then did something quite out of character: I launched a personal attack on Gilbert Goh when I felt he had used very sexist language in a desperate bid to appear funny. Limpeh takes no prisoners and I don't suffer fools gladly. Gilibert Goh is a fucking retard who should shut the fuck up.  Then I had this period when I was working on the latest Mr Bean sketches with Rowan Atkinson for the Chinese market but wasn't allowed to actually talk about it before it was released: so instead I blogged about the various other aspects of working in showbiz, such as working with PRC and Hong Kong showbiz professionals.

May, Mai, Mai, 五月

I was pleased that one of my Hokkien vlog pieces actually went viral and proved to be really popular at the beginning of May. We were treated to some anti-PAP graffiti in Toa Payoh in early May but my Singaporean readers were most concerned about their CPF situation with the raising of the minimum sum threshold. It was a topic that would rage on and on through the month of May and this debate would continue into early June.  My readers were also equally interested about Roy Ngerng as he got into trouble with the government in May, as some contemplated whether or not he was about to seek political asylum abroad. Ngerng didn't eventually, but two Malaysians did later in the year!

June, Juin, Mehefin, 六月

In June, the CPF debate raged on amongst the readers of my blog and I provided some insight into the many complex issues. Education and degrees were once again very popular topics on my blog that month. I went to Gothenburg in Sweden, which gave me plenty of photos to share and a chance to share two lovely vlog on Gothenburg city and the beautiful islands tour.  Alvin Tan had fled Malaysia and nobody knew where he was (well, I kinda knew he was in America as we had talked about it before). My readers had lots to say about the new Jobsbank initiative to help Singaporeans find work. I also covered this year's Pink Dot event in Singapore and backlash against it.

July,Juillet, Gorffennaf, 七月

I revisited one of my favourite topics: foreign languages with posts on topics like what is the best way to learn a foreign language, if age is a factor when it comes to learning foreign languages and how to use your new language skills. As we rolled into summer and the temperature rose, my readers got worked up as a book about gay penguins and a comic book with gay characters led to another major censorship row in Singapore. But in mid July, tragedy struck again as MH17 was shot down over the skies of Eastern Ukraine and we were left once again searching for answers. I then traveled to Greece and Albania for the last week of July and returned at the end of the month to provide this scathing review of the terrible state of tourism in Greece.It turned out to be a long and very hot summer.

August, Août, Awst, 八月

The topics that got my readers excited in August were the classics: such as the art of balancing work and play for students, particularly for those who were not academically gifted.The issue of IPPT and NS came back to haunt us again in August as did the issue of overpopulation in Singapore. I couldn't resist talking about the hot weather but by mid-August, the trial of CHC came back to entertain us.Oh boy, it was a gift that kept giving and we couldn't get enough of Sun Ho's China Wine. Yes we missed talking about Kong Hee and Sun Ho as the trail dragged on and on. More obnoxious PRCs made the headlines again and I conducted an interview to try to understand the situation.

September, Septembre, Medi, 九月

I went to Tunisia in early September and my adventures in this fascinating North African country gave me plenty to blog about as I shared so many stories with my readers. Of course, I picked up where I had left off with Kong Hee's trial and the Yang Yin trial held our attention for a few days but my big scoop in September was when Alvin Tan granted me an exclusive interview about his journey to America - that interview was the third most read piece on my blog in 2014 and it was a topic that sustained a healthy debate. Towards the end of September, the political street protests in Hong Kong were in the headlines and it was also a topic that my readers had plenty to say about.

October, Octobre, Hydref, 十月

I started the month of October off with more discussions about Alvin Tan and the political situation in Malaysia, but I couldn't resist talking more about showbiz as well now that my Snickers ad with Mr Bean has been officially released. The political turmoil in Hong Kong was still a pretty hot topic, along with the issue of sex education in Singapore which was always going to be a very divisive issue. Ivan Heng and his partner meeting the Queen in London provoked more questions about the state of gay rights in Singapore, whilst the world marveled at the fact at Mark Zuckerberg can actually speak some Mandarin. Duh. Get over it people, it is really not such a big deal.

November, Novembre, Tachwedd, 十一月

I actually spent much of November working in Paris and Hamburg, so I didn't blog as much but still managed to cover topics like the role of technology when it comes to learning foreign languages and gay rights in Singapore. I also revisited old topics being an ethnic minority in the West and did more travel writing inspired by my trips (including a free S$32 voucher give away). I then found out that I would be returning to Germany in December as I had landed myself a big part in a long running German TV series and I talked about actors who have to work in a foreign language. I also got a lot of love and support from my readers when I confessed how I was afraid my parents in Sngapore wouldn't realize just how great an achievement I have pulled off in making my big German TV debut.

I had a lovely time in Paris in November.

December, Decembre, Rhagfyr, 十二月

Finally in December, as the weather got cold, I started getting a lot of hits on an old post I wrote way back in 2012 about winter wear! This led me to write two more posts on winter wear - one specifically dealing with footwear in winter. I had spent some time filming in Germany in December which gave me plenty to talk about upon my return to London. I still had a lot of unresolved issues with my parents to sort out and once again my readers were there for me when I needed them most. And just as I thought the year was drawing to an end, we had the huge Xiaxue vs Gushcloud controversy over Christmas which led to a massive spike in traffic to my blog as many people were looking for answers on just what happened. This is already the second most read topic on my blog this year despite the whole episode being just a few days old. The staggering amount of interest in this story has taken many of us by shock.

So that was a year in blogging with Limpeh - all in all, it has been an interesting year for me: loads of travels, working in Paris and Hamburg, working with Rowan Atkinson, making my big German TV debut and having four stories on my blog this year go viral in a big way. What were the biggest stories for you this year? What was the most significant event for you this year? Please feel free to leave me a comment below - thank you so much for reading and all your support this year. All my best wishes for a successful 2015. Allow you to leave you with my 2014 short film: Panda.