(NOTE: Please See ALERT at end of post)

Meep-Meep,

spying on you!

Meep-Meep knows,

Wile E. Coyote is after him at The Holler, which is why he wisely lives,

all his days (and nights), inside our fences,

and considers us,

neighbors, if not friends.

As wise Robert said, ‘Good fences make good neighbors!’
Cheers to you from the very wily Meep-Meep~
ALERT: A Word Press glitch keeps unfollowing people from blogs. Many people don’t realize they have been unfollowed, and I only realized it was happening when people who have been following me for a long time, had to refollow. As a test, I started following my own blog. I am constantly unfollowed! WP Acknowledges this is happening to blogs. This problem invalidates your blog’s statistical and follower count, and results in you losing blog followers, and blogs you follow, without they, or you, knowing. WP has not yet been able to fix the problem. There is discussion of the issue by other bloggers online and in Word Press forums. So keep an eye on your followers and stats, if you are concerned, to ensure this isn’t happening to you. If it is. Speak up!
On a family trip to the LA zoo, my 4-year-old son (now 31) ran up to the road runners, grabbing the chain link fence. One pecked him on his finger. He STILL gets upset whenever he watches the cartoon! π π
Ohhhh, poor baby!! What a total let down for him. The Holler roadrunners are much better behaved!! π
Beautiful photos!
Grazie mille α
Prego!
α
Beautiful road runners. Stunning shots.
Thank you so much Rebecca. Much appreciated α
Thanks for the alert, Cindy.
Double-checked and I haven’t missed any of your last few posts, but this week, I notice it takes a long time for images to download on WordPress blogs I follow. I’m not talking about posts with just one photo. I’m talking about blogs like yours with several photos, Cindy. Maybe it’s just about the time of day I read my email notifications having higher traffic than pre-covid lockdowns?
Stunning bird shots (as usual) π
I was just at a blog I regularly follow and she had lots of beautiful photos I wanted to see. I gave up after around 5 photos because the load time was so atrocious! α
Marvelous bird pictures, Cindy! I’ve noticed the glitch too, it has taken me off the following list of blogs I follow. And, when I go to some blogs that have appeared in the reader for me, I get an the “follow this blog” offer at the lower left. Weird.
Yes. It is a significant problem affecting many blogs. No one wants to be losing followers without knowing it, or to be unfollowed from blogs they love without knowing it. α
Yes, but I think it has been happening for a while. I have lost touch with many longstanding followers and cannot find their sites as easily. Wonder if some have given up. I had even suspected that one or two may have sadly passed away.
I hear you. It is sad. I started learning about the problem when blogging friends I have known for a long time were suddenly refollowing me. I knew we have been following each other for years so it got my attention, and then people starting telling about being unfollowed. So I followed my blog as a test, and I keep getting unfollowed from my own blog!
From his posture, am I right in thinking this is a juvenile?
Yes, the puffy one on the driveway was a juvenile. Good on you to know α
Ahh…fencey seeing you here, neighbor! Great shots as always, my friend!
(β βΰΈ± ββΰΈ± )β€οΈβ€οΈ
Smiling and thank you very much…..Roadrunners are the best neighbors. α
ΚΈ(α΄Μβ‘ΰ₯βα·)β‘β
They are even flighty!!! α
ππ»π
Thanks for the interesting info re the WP problem with followers.
Reblogged this on A German Expat's Life in Texas and commented:
Some very interesting information by Cindy Knoke re WP’s recent problems with “unfollowing” people.
Thank you. It is distressing to have a glitch remove followers with one knowing, so thanks for spreading the world & take good care α
Thanks for the heads up about the glitch. You are still arriving in my reader. I have had this happen before where I have suddenly unfollowed someone.
I love the little roadrunners. They are so dear. I remember them well from when I lived in Arizona. Thanks for sharing your lovely photos.
Thanks for your kind and encouraging words Lynette. I am sorry it is happening to you too Lynette. I think it is happening to many bloggers who are not aware of it. α
Itβs not happening right now (that I know of but I am going to check), but it has happened in the past. A couple of years ago I kept suddenly unfollowing someone I had been following for about five years at that point. Very annoying.
It is frustrating. And it usually happens to me several times a week, but this includes only the blogs I know well and notice.
Beautiful Roadrunner.
They are handsome little dino-birds aren’t they! α
How lucky to have Road Runners in your backyard! These are beautiful captures, Cindy. My one and only photo of this bird is one running through a McDonald’s parking lot. π
wow! Maybe he was having a Big Mac Attack!!! π π
π€£ good one! Thanks for my morning chuckle!!
α
How beautiful is he? You really live in a beautiful area Cindy! Iβve seen several warnings about the glitch so Iβll keep my eye out.
Thanks my friend and glad you know about the problem. Cheers & be well α
Thanks for the heads up. I still see your posts!
Good news! Thanks for letting me know α
What fantastic photographs to look at first thing on a chilly morning here!
Awww, your kind comment makes me smile. Thank you! α
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Well, fortunately you are still in my reader which is amazing since I haven’t been around for so long! Love the little roadrunner.
Wonderful to hear from you! Hope you are safe and well. I shall check to see if I am still following you, or if the WP gremlins were at work! α
All good. I haven’t posted anything in a very long time so, unfortunately, there isn’t much to follow at the moment. I am having a fallow time.
Well, happy you are in touch. I have missed you and am happy to hear you are doing well α
Great shots of Meep-Meep, Cindy. Glad he can be safe with you! Weird about WP…I have noticed several long-time bloggers suddenly following me again.
That’s it. You notice because you know the long term bloggers. What you may not notice is others disappearing whom you don’t know as well. α
I have never seen a roadrunner up close. So cool.
So happy to make the introduction & thank you Darlene α
Heh. Cute Roadrunner.
WP is a hinky mess. Too many fingers playing with PHP & Javascript. And, the Java for the phone app is even worse.
There is statistics, and then there is Word Press statistics!!! π π
Exactly. π€π€¨π³
α
How lovely ‘meep meep’ is, It is good to have good friends! Thanks for the alert, I can’t even find my followers anymore though. I hope it all works out though.
That is so sad that you can’t find your followers. I’m sorry and I do hope they fix this α
Just as I looked more , I actually found them, all there, looking back at the first ones, some have left wordpress or even passed acay in those 9 years I have been doing the blog. I’ll have to look through them, now I found it. Thanks Cindy.
Yes, I will go and look as well. I usually sadly know or find our when blogging friends die. Our community cares! The problem is you won’t see in your follower list any followers WP unfollowed from you without your knowing α
Been happening to me for months Cindy and Iβve advised WP numerous times.
Frustrating and hurtful. People may think I unfollowed them and I didn’t, and visa versa. α
Exactly Cindy
α
https://wordpress.com/following/edit
Thanks Cindy
α
Thankfully still have exchanges with yourself!
Absolutely
α
It is a serious problem and I am sorry you have experienced it. I am so glad you we weren’t unfollowed from each other! Actually, I need to go make sure I am not unfollowed from you! α
Dear Cindy,
what a cute Road Runner, well photographed.
Thanks for making us aware of this WP glitch. We noticed that we get about 10 new followers per week and in the next week we loose them. Fortunately, this seems not to be our fault.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend
The Fab Four of Cley
π π π π
Yes, it is a problem, both ways; getting unfollowed from blogs you think you are following, and having blogs who think they are following you, being unfollowed. All of this happening without your awareness. Unfortunately, as you expressed, many people might end up feeling this unfollowing is purposeful, and this is why it is a serious problem to me α
Your usual fine photo story, Cindy. Thanks for the alert, too
You are most welcome Derrick & cheers to you my friend α
I love this young Meep-Meep! <3
Thank you for the alert, I will take a look at my followers list. WordPress is constantly developing – not always for the best of us customers…
Have a nice day, and stay safe, dear Cindy!
Visa versa 2UX2 my friend & stay safe and well α
The series of photos are a real beauty. As for your recommendation, I have not had that problem. Thanks for the warning. I will be aware. Good weekend.
Thanks so much my friend & happy you are glitch free! α
You are welcome
α
Love these road runner images! Thanks for the alert.
You are most welcome and happy you enjoyed the Meep-Meeps!
Fantastic close-up images of this road-runner! Thank you so much for sharing them.
Thank you more for appreciating them & cheers to you α
Meep-Meep looks so fluffy! Do his legs elongate when he runs?
As for WordPress, after I finally realized that they weren’t fixing the unfollowing problem, I refollowed the blogs I follow, so that a complete list of blog titles would appear under manage subscriptions. I then took screen shots and printed out the list. Now, once a week, I go through the entire list to see if I missed posts or got unfollowed. (I had submitted multiple help tickets and follow-up emails to WordPress.)
Yes. He has quite long legs for his body size. What a clever idea Liz. All the data we can gather is important. I am monitoring the n my total followers. This statistic seem hinky too, how could it not be, when people are getting unfollowed from each other regularly. α
It’s worrisome that WordPress either can’t figure out what the bug is or won’t.
Yes. Is it a glitch, or a number shaving algorithm?
According to one of their Happiness Engineers, it’s s low-priority bug.
Now that bugs me!!!!
Precisely!
α
The meep meeps are very interesting birds. Some of them have their feathers roughed up, do they fight a lot? π
You are perceptive. They are carnivorous birds. They eat snakes, lizards, gophers, mice etc. They puff up to appear more intimidating and larger when they are, when trying to kill something. α
Meep-Meep is just gorgeous, and a very wise bird indeed π
PS I still seem to be following you, Cindy, but thanks for the alert. I will go and check out “manage subscriptions”, especially as I’ve been away from WP for a couple of months. Anything could happen in that time!
Anything could. I for example, have no idea how many blogs I follow, that have been unfollowed. I just don’t see their posts in my reader, They may feel I unfollowed them on purpose which is not okay α
I hope you’ve managed to sort out the technical issue that you had with WP and your followers’ posts are showing up in your reader now.
Thank you Sarah. Unfortunately it is still not sorted out and the WP glitch continues to unfollow people regularly from my blog.
That is so frustrating. Hopefully, now it’s the New Year, WP has got its act in order.
Hope springs eternal……. π
Lovely photos. I haven’t seen road runner in years – from when we lived in California. We would see several of them in a line, running down a road (!) on the UCI campus.
I have friends who live on campus. I’ll ask if they see them α
Great photos per usual, Cindy. Also so random about the unfollows.
Thanks Pam & the unfollow problem is troublesome glitch α
Meep-Meep is just too cute for words! Thanks for the heads-up, Cindy, on the unfollowing situation. I hadn’t heard about it, but I’ll definitely check.
The unfollowing problem can cause blogging friends to feel rejected when it is not the case, so I think it is serious α
The birdbath is a great place to attract our feathery friends. Some birds come to take a sip, others to frolic in the water. Great shots, Cindy!
In our heat and drought, birdbaths are avian lifesavers α
Ugh, not good about the unfollows. Trying to get back into this and it’s been a glitchy few days. Much rather enjoy pics of roadrunners! I’ve been into birdwatching for the past two years and it’s addicting!
I am so happy you are jumping back in to blogging and birding!! α
Thank you! I’m finding birdwatching both exciting and relaxing. Of course being relatively new, I constantly find new birds so loads of fun.
And the great news is, since there are around 18,000 or so bird species in the world, you will constantly be finding loads of new birds!! αα
I best get cracking then! π
The early bird catches the worm…….But, I like to sleep later, and leave the worms to the birds! π
Me too! My friend who got me into birdwatching tried to convince me to get up about 5am. I declined. LOL
Yep. 5 am in the middle of the night for me.
π€£
Cute neighbors you have Cindy!
They are the best neighbors ever Brad!! α
Thanks for the alert. I was thinking that I wasn’t seeing as many email notices of posts lately (although I follow a lot of blogs – probably too many – so it’s hard to know for sure). I’ll also check my followers. Meep meep!
Yes, if you follow lots of blogs and visa versa, it makes it more difficult to quantify. α
I’m sure he knows when the Acme truck is in the neighborhood. π
He knows everything we humans and Wlie E. are up to! α
A good neighbour indeed Cindy.
I didn’t know about this “unfollowing” aspect to WP. I do hope they get it sorted out.
Leslie xoxo
I hope so too Leslie & cheers to you! α
Thanks for the alert, Cindy. I’ve noticed that posts from bloggers I follow don’t show up in my WordPress Reader feed.
Yes. It is a serious problem α
Great close-ups! It has a very nice long tail!
Thank you! I had to include one tail shot. It is sooo long! Cheers & thanks for stopping by~ α
A wonderful neighbor to have! Wonderful photos, Cindy. And thanks for the heads up about WP, I wasn’t aware of that.
Thank you so much Eliza. Roadrunners are friends in your garden α
Cindy, theses are some amazing shots. πΈ I love them. I never saw a road runner in person. Are those Aloe Vera plants in the background? π€
Yes they are. The aloes are huge now. I love that you see such detail and thank you for telling me α
Girl, I wish I had some of those different colored succulents. In my area we only have green colored aloes. Cindy, I am all about color…the more the merrier! Great photos once again. π·π»πΊ
You and me both. I love COLOR!! When I come back from countries that embrace colors in all aspects of their lives, I am always chagrined by all the beige on beige in the states. Bring on the joy of colors!!! α
Cindy girlfriend, you’re speaking my language…the universal language of color! Yes!!! While neutrals have their place, they could pose to be a bore and rather depressing at times. πΈπ»πΊπΉπ΅ Lots of color on any day for me is fine! π₯³
Bring on the colors!!! αα
AMEN!!! The colors!!! π
π
the details of the feathers are incredible and the plants in the background look like extensions of the feathers Cindyπππ
How perceptive and lovely that you see this Cindy. I went back for a look and I see what you see! α
oh thanks….. I’m at the beauty palor right now to get the same dew….. lolπ€£
Smiling…… Good for you!!! α
hahahhaha.. xππ€π€£
Firstly, that is one handsome bird! π Secondly, what an annoying problem with WP. Twitter does that, too. I was just telling a friend that the internet is run by drunk gremlins. LOL!
Yours is one of the few blogs I still follow, so hopefully I’ll notice when I’ve been unsubbed because I don’t want to miss your posts! I recommended your blog in my blog today. π
Oh, I am laughing….. hard! I think the internet is “run by drunk gremlins!!!” This explains everything. We need to send them to gremlin rehab! I am so glad to have you for a friend Teresa. Thank you for your thoughtfulness α
Your ALERT explains a lot. People refollow me and I seem to be missing some wonderful posts. Thank you and the sweet birds are gorgeous and so sweet. <3
Exactly the same things happen here. It is like being cut off from friends without your knowledge and it makes me sad α
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I have been unfollowing your blog numerous times, not by choice and it always makes me mad.
It makes me sad and mad to hear it. I’m sorry. There is no way for me to know this happened. α
Well, I found you π
I am so glad you did αα
So cute!
Grazie mille α
Great shots! And thanks for the hint.
You are most welcome and thank you! α
Was fΓΌr ein schΓΆner und lustiger Vogel dieser meep meep ist, liebe Freundin. Ich studiere, welcher EuropΓ€er zu ihm am Besten passt. Schwierig, smile. Eine feine Umarmung
Umarmungen an dich in der schΓΆnen Schweiz, mein Freund. Ich hoffe, Sie und gesund und munter. Der roadunner und ich senden Ihnen GrΓΌΓe! α
The real life one does not look fast as in TV shows but it is much more cute than the one in the show π
The one on TV really does not look anything like the real life one. α
Dear Cindy, as one of your followers not receiving any notices any more, I thought you were to busy with other matters than posting articles on WordPress. Though reading this article now I notice that you got similar problems as I have. Also to subscribe to blogs I was previously subscribed now often seems to be impossible as well. The same for subscribing again for your blog I got this message (which I also received on some other blogs): Your subscription did not succeed, please try again with a valid email address.
So distressing Marcus and exactly what I fear is happening. People are disappeared without your knowledge. They think you unfollowed them, or they unfollowed you, when the algorithm or glitch did it. I am unfollowed from my own blog weekly! Also posts from blogs I do follow often don’t appear in my WP Reader. I don’t always remember every blog name and so it is very hard, if not impossible, to go and find them. I hope this is not some number shaving WP algorithm. I will go and check and make sure I am following you now Marcus. Thank you for letting me know this is happening and I am sorry you are experiencing this. It is no my intent or actions. α
After I could post a message (which recently I did not succeed at several blogs) I noticed the green pop-up in the right corner that I would be “Following” you again.
Yes. A serious problem. Thank you Marcus.
Hopefully it shall be solved soon (by WordPress).
α
Cute little road runner! We see one occasionally around here.
Thanks for the notice! I’m having other glitch problems that WP helpers are not able to fix – they say they check and all is good, but it’s not good.
Hope your weekend is a good one. π
I am sorry that is happening to you. It is quite frustrating, I know. α
I never followed you, but thanks to Rethinking Life, I do now! Pleasant to find and meet you!
Oh, good. Your comment is no longer anonymous! This is another occasional glitch I think, but a minor one. Lovely to meet you, and any friend of Gigi’s is a friend of mine α
Maybe it’s a good thing to periodically clear out the dross. Reset to 0 and those who are true, will seek and find.
I think if there was a algorithm you could choose to clear out blogs you never interact with, it would be extremely helpful and I would use it, but many of the blogs who I get unfollowed from, or who get unfollowed from me, are friends and they or I didn’t choose to do this and have no idea it happened. I think the lack of choice and transparency is the problem. α
I never followed you, but thanks to Rethinking Life, I do now! Pleasant to find and meet you!
Well, thank you Gigi and Rethinking Life! She’s awesome and it is lovely to meet you, even anonymously α
Sweet bird! Meep! Fab shots!
I’ve had the follow issue before. I will keep my eyes open!
Hopefully, it is not some number shaving algorithm. Lots of people are telling me they have experienced this α
Hi Cindy, thank you for the beautiful photographs and for the information about followers. I have experienced the same problem also.
I am sorry to hear you have Charles. It is not cool to be unfollowed without consent! α
Meep meep Cindy! Thanks for the alerts and your own beady eyes π
Smiling. My spy eyes are at your service Val! α
Seriously??? That’s messed up. I remember saying something about that glitch, back in October, and they STILL haven’t resolved it. Makes me wonder if the other annoying glitches are still there. Like when WordPress unlikes posts and comments. Or if it still would delete all your saved posts without you knowing, or turn off post notifications. There’s a couple bloggers I thought were on a hiatus. Now I got to check if glitchy WordPress unfollowed them on me.
Yikes! Those are some serious glitches, deleting your saved posts, scary. I don’t like people thinking I unfollowed them when I didn’t. Not cool α
Your post is a very disturbing one because it points out how it is possible that forces outside the blog writer can apply censorship.
True, with no transparency.
A very wise Meep, Meep! Robert Frost should be required reading for all Meep Meeps!!
Smiling! He should α
Meep, meep! I don’t know if I lose followers, but I often have to go out and find friends I haven’t seen for a while. I seem to be following you. π
Well this is another WP glitch. If you follow lots of blogs, WP won’t put all the posts in your reader, forcing you to “go and find (your) friends.” This happens to me too and it is not trivial, because even though I know the person well, I often forget their exact blog name. I lose track of friends because of this. Anyhoo, I am glad you came and found me! α
They limit how many you can follow. π
Lovely shots Cindy. π You have lovely neighbours.
Thank you! I do have the best neighbors α
Thank you so much for the information. WP has had these kinds of things happen in the past and they are not real quick to fix them.
Very true and you are most welcome α
Thanks for the tip !
You are most welcome α
Love the meep meeps! I haven’t noticed any glitches but will keep my eyes peeled. π
Good for you and the meep-meeps think you have excellent taste!! π
LOL!
α
The ‘side eye’ does not hold the same meaning when coming from a bird.
Laughing…… it certainly does not. When a bird looks at you with both eyes, it is quite comical looking! π
I would think difficult as well!
αα
Wow, your note at the end has got me thinking. And investigating! I’ve certainly been unfollowed from my own blog and wouldn’t have noticed if you hadn’t mentioned it. Must check if I’ve been unfollowed from other blogs.
Alison
It is hard to know if you follow lots of blogs. I have devised some methods to monitor it. I wonder if there is some number point at which this starts to happen. α
I only know that I follow something over 100, and that many are from years back and may not even exist. It’s funny, but a couple of days ago I thought I should bit by bit check them all and delete the “expired” ones. On the other hand if I’ve been unfollowed it’s not likely I’ll remember who unless it’s someone I’m frequently in touch with like you.
Thats odd that it happens to you and you only follow 100 or so blogs. I thought it was a function of a large follow N. Curiouser and Curiouser….
Actually I’ve not been unfollowed from my own blog, just that the follow message is incorrect (saying to follow this blog rather than you are following this blog) – but it shows that I’m following it in the reader. I’m following 191 blogs and I don’t seem to have been unfollowed from any.
A.
Odd…..
Itβs great to see their details up close in your terrific photos! I see roadrunners oftenβ¦..but theyβre always zipping by and into the brush! These fellows are also pretty big, so following to get a better view doesnβt feel like a great plan. Thanks for the alert! I did notice some oddities and am glad to have an answer!
I am happy you live with the Meeps. They are awesome neighbors. Cheers to you Liza and thank you for stopping by α
I don’t know that I have ever seen a picture of a real “meep-meep.” Only cartoons! Thanks for the alert about blog followers.
You are most welcome & glad to make the introduction α
Roadrunner, I presume.
RE your alert, it’s never worked for me when they added it as a feature long ago. So, I don’t follow anyone. Of the 730+ who follow me, I read around 10-15 on a regular basis. It allows me to figure out posting frequency. This problem, though, I do not find surprising. Whenever WP adds something new, it makes existing problems worse. In this case, the block editor is the new.
They limit the number of blogs you can follow but never told me this. I pay for a business plan to exempt myself from this limitation but apparently I am throwing away my money. If I actually was running a business with my blog, they would be incurring damages from loss of revenue and customers, at least in the US.
Really??? This is the first time I’m hearing WP limits the number of blogs you can follow. The ‘follow’ feature has never worked for me from the very beginning.
Yes. It was news to me too.
I am so pleased to see your Road Runner! My younger daughter loved the cartoon when she was tiny but couldn’t pronounce Wily Coyote and Roadrunner. We still call it Wally Goatee and Rodgener.
That is so sweet! Meep-Meep speaks an international language αα
<3 <3
Meep-meep! (Beautiful!)
He (and I) think you have excellent taste! π
Beautiful pictures
Grazie mille α
Thank you for the alert! Yours is unfollowed on my site! π§
Lots of bloggers are experiencing losing followers. Thanks for letting me know Amy α
I always liked road-runners π
And thanks for the heads up about WP glitch. I tend not to pay attention to my follower number but maybe I should. I’ll make sure they don’t unfollow me from you π
Awww….. thank you Christine & glad you are paying attention α
Just checked, and they did unfollow me, so I signed up again. Computer issues – gotta love ’em :/
Yeah. Just what we need. A computer program hurting our friends feelings. α
These are such delighful photographs. Thank you.
Oh, so appreciated Micheline, be safe and well α
Maybe we should call up the ACME tech support crew and have them figure this out. Wile e Coyote can put together a plan, but we both know he’ll just fall off a cliff π Good to know this is happening though, I’ll watch for it. Beep Beep πxK
Laughing…..Just be careful of Beep and Meep. They look harmless, but are devious, always thinking, watching, spying, and killing rattlesnakes. They are the best neighbors π
Thank you so much for following my blog!
I have followed you for a long time and love your blog. I don’t know what’s up with this, but you are most welcome α
Loved the ‘I Spy’ sequence – and thank you for the WordPress alert π
Happy you enjoyed Polly & thank you my friend α
I am having to constantly refollow bloggers.
Yes. It is a significant weakness in the platform α
Incredible bird and hope it remained safe. Thanks for the word press note it has happened to me too and over quite a long period. But not I think recently.
Wonderful to hear it eventually stopped for you!