Commentary--why don't I follow the blog flow? short posts and cool designs

Why don't I customize my site? And why do I write such long posts?

Yes, AHA BLOGOLICIOUS, is a fairly new blog. My old blog was more a mishmash of learning experiences. So if I want to join the blogorati, why don't I customize my site into something unique and cool, rather than stick with the current template.

Good question…well, for one, it's a new blog and second, I'm not sure that I want to change it. I rather like the template and current presentation. Too many blogs I see that have all the cool new widgets look more like websites to me and not blogs…the blog part seems lost in the overwhelming often advertising heavy, portal like website format. So for now at least, I'll stay with the simple and direct.

If you want complicated javascripts, CSS, frames, Photoshop designed graphics, Excel and SPSS graphs and everything else except Flash, including a symbolic beating heart—all working best with active content and a fast bandwidth modem, then check out my website. Yes, I did it all myself…though I did borrow (with permission and acknowledgements in the code) javascripts and modify them to suit my own purposes.

And this is the toned down version…the academic stuff I did over the years was way cooler and a lot more provocative. (Social Identity, Racial Tensions, Media Law, CyberLaw, Porn, Women as Objects, Rape, Child Porn, Online Identity…lots of stuff that probably disappointed quite a few people who might have typed in 'porn' or shudder 'child porn' and gotten my site on data, effects and commentary about predators rather than what they were really looking for…) But that site is down now and just the skeletal remnants can be seen in the new official face of me. (sigh)

As to why I write long posts more often than not…well, let's just say I don't like being told that this is the way you do a blog, and this is not…the whole point of blogs is that they are variable, personal and evolving. I happen to write long a lot, because that reflects (quite honestly) the way I talk as well. (So at least I'm following the other blog rule about being yourself and being honest!!)

There will be the occasional short post, probably more as time goes on, but rest assured, I won't be talking about how my dog peed on the carpet or my hair got messed up in the rain. In fact, one of my dogs is very old and dying right now, so yes, she is peeing everywhere…but she deserves a comfortable place to sleep, drink water and eat, so I just get out the neutralizer and the shampooer and wash her blankets as part of the price of such a loving, albeit Alzheimer-affected companion.

And yes, there was a deluge of rain today and it did mess up my hair and soak the rest of me as well…more about that in an upcoming post called "A tale of two restaurants" coming in the next day or so.

So hug your pet, dry your hair and don't worry so much about whether you're meeting others expectations about what is COOL and what is NOT. I don't.

Cheers and have a good weekend.

CG Anderson is a 10 year market researcher and web strategist involved in technology, science and the online world. Also a writer, blogger and novelist. CG's comments are personal and opinionated and solely the responsibility of the author, so there. Don't like the opinions, disagree, agree, don't know? Great, make a comment—clean ones will be allowed, netiquette-challenged ones will be ignored!
Blog sites: http://ahablogolicious.blogspot.com/
URL: http://home.myuw.net/cganders/