“Update Now” the button said innocently.
Another update? I thought. Seems like I’ve done this several times this winter, always without a problem.
Push.
Crash.
Fatal error.
Such was my life last week when I went to update WordPress, which for the non-bloggers out there is like an app on which I write my blog. And when I got the fatal error, I then spent 2-3 days searching for answers, crying off and on, thinking about quitting, and talking to various people who could help.
The fact that you’re reading this means that I didn’t quit blogging and I revived my blog (with help). Here’s what I learned from my blog crash:
1. The crash made me feel like this:
2. Even if you have a plug-in called “Complete Central Backup”, that doesn’t mean you have a complete central backup of your blog.
This was a tough lesson to learn. Once upon a time my blog was rebuilt and I got the complete central backup plugin. I honestly thought that having the magical complete central backup plug-in activated meant that it was backing up my blog.
It wasn’t.
My bad.
So this resulted in a $50 payment to Go Daddy, my host, to recover my blog. Whatevs. Now I know how to back-up the blog files on Go Daddy before I ever update anything again. At least I think I do – ha!
3. Keep calm and have a sense of humor.
At one point in my amateur attempts to fix my blog myself, I got it revived to December 17, 2013. The post that was published on that day was about how I wanted a salami for Christmas. So I’m on the phone with Go Daddy begging for help and the customer service dude tells me (later) that when he saw the salami post, he put me on hold, turned to his colleagues and announced, “This is going to be a fun call.”
He told me this after he restored my blog and the crisis had passed. He and I laughed and laughed about it. And you know what? The fact that I made the Go Daddy guy laugh was the biggest compliment he could have paid me. Because I don’t make money blogging and I’m a complete failure when it comes to securing sponsored posts, but if I can make someone laugh? That is my success. That is why I blog. That, dear readers, made my day and is why I’m back.
Hardened.
Bruised.
Economically-challenged.
But still here.
Thank you for reading and sticking with me!
So glad you got it back! It really is the worst feeling. And making the GoDaddy guy laugh is priceless!
Colleen @MommieDaze recently posted…Simplify Your Life with Simple Meal Planning | Part 2: The Two Tools You Need to Implement a Meal Plan
Terrible feeling. Ugh. And now that I’ve dealt with it twice in a year it makes me wonder why I keep going!
Katy @ Experienced Bad Mom recently posted…Things I Learned When My Blog Crashed
OH NO! I had no idea you were having to deal with a CRASH- oh gosh, that is the SCARIEST and WORST and MOST FRUSTRATING thing EVER!! Ugh.
I LOVE that you made the GoDaddy guy laugh… PERFECT timing for you to be encouraged to keep on keeping on girl!!
You ARE funny. And I so get you, Katy. I keep thinking and praying for patience and God’s perfect time in all this… lets just keep walking this road together. 🙂
Chris Carter recently posted…Mommy Bloggers
Thank you for your encouragement, Chris! And anyone reading this right now go and read Chris’ fab post on Mommy Bloggers and be inspired!
Katy @ Experienced Bad Mom recently posted…Things I Learned When My Blog Crashed
Oh no!! I just emailed you…I had NO idea you were dealing with this! I would have been a complete mess. I was when my blog went down…but I haven’t had it crash yet. (And I am praying it never does). I’m glad you didn’t pack it in though, I enjoy your space here too much! And the fact that you made the GoDaddy guy laugh…that is awesome! See, we need you. Laughter is the best medicine!
Michelle @ A Dish of Daily Life recently posted…The Stress Buster Edition {Ladies Only Blog Share}
And it was very fortuitous that the #LOBS theme this week for the link-up is STRESS! I put this post right on that linky, I tell ya!
Katy @ Experienced Bad Mom recently posted…Things I Learned When My Blog Crashed
I’m so glad that everything worked out! I still haven’t reactivated my problem plug-in, even though they say that it’s fixed. Ha…Not falling for that again so soon people!
Erin @ My Mommy World recently posted…The Ultimate Homemaking Bundle: Your chance to get over $600 in eBooks at big savings!
Thanks for your help. I’ve filed your tech guy away. I’m still nervous about stuff behind the scenes in WordPress. Fingers crossed it’s okay moving forward!
Hi Katy – I am new to your blog and love the blog name. I can totally relate! That is terrible that your blog crashed (eek!). While not funny, pictures of Grumpy Cat always make me crack up. Glad you are back up an running.
Tara Newman recently posted…Practical Communication Tips to Build Healthy Relationships
Hi Tara and welcome! Thanks for dropping by and commenting. Grumpy Cat always makes me laugh, glad he made you laugh, too!
Coming over from LOBS. Computer problems are the worst! Sorry you had to go through that. Love your blog – I’ll be back to read more. Have a great weekend!
Lana recently posted…Five Favorite Finds From Amazon
I am hosted through GoDaddy and have been having tech difficulties all week. I’m terrified that one of these days I’m going to find my blog crashed. I spent a few hours on the phone with GoDaddy this week and can tell you, no one was laughing. I thought for two minutes about hanging it up but I’m just going to wait and see. I’m sorry this happened to you and I’m sure it was stressful but at least if something happens to my blog, you have given me some hope 🙂
Sandy Ramsey recently posted…Keep It Simple And It Becomes Extraordinary
It’s just a soul-crushing experience, isn’t it? I felt so helpless/hopeless/stupid all at the same time. Something I didn’t put in my post, but should mention to you, is that the laughing Go Daddy guy was the 2nd Go Daddy guy I’d talked to. The first one gave me a creepy used car salesman vibe and I felt like he just wanted to sell me more products to “fix” my blog. I purposely called back another day and started over with someone else, who helped me immensely. Good luck. Thanks for sharing. It gives me some comfort to know it’s not just me.
Visiting from Small Victories Sunday. Oh my, that is my nightmare…I’m glad it worked out OK for you. You know you made that reps day!
Visiting from #LOBS. I feel your pain. I get a sick panicky feeling in my stomach when I lose files at work (like a PowerPoint I haave spent the day working on, or the response letter to a complaint that took all my brain energy to write tactfully). I can’t even imagine the feeling of losing my blog. I think the cat photo is an understatement for that moment. Really glad things worked out and that your blog is back. And hey, the support guy really needed the laugh, so you made his day better. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the visit and comment – AND sympathy!!
Fingers crossed for no more blog shenanigans from the technical side. 🙂
Sisters in arms. I’m a GoDaddy/Wordpress girl too. I hope this never happens to me as I would probably have a stroke trying to fix it!
Lou Lou recently posted…iPhone be blown
Oh no! I am always afraid of that happening to me. Glad you made the GoDaddy Guy’s day, he probably needed that after dealing with frantic mom bloggers all day 🙂 Thanks for sharing with #smallvictoriessundaylinky last week. Sorry I’m late commenting/pinning but do hope you link up again this week !
Tanya @ mom’s Small Victories recently posted…Small Victories Sunday Linky {18} – The One with 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea…of Toys and Comics
Great post! I have had some moments where everything on my blog is going wrong and it is overwhelming! Thanks for sharing! You were able to bring some humor to this frustrating experience! Also sharing some Sverve love!
Amy Kathleen Kelsch recently posted…It’s A Mindful Life: Beautiful DIY Flowers