The Art of Blog
So in an effort to motivate myself to update more often, I’ve been rejigging the look of my site, trying to get it to a point where it is visually interesting, as well as interesting to read. This has caused me no end of headache, given that my HTML skills are about 15 years out of date. I still remember my old friend Amanda teaching me my first basic codes back when we were Freshmen in high school. How to create a link, how to insert an image, how to change the font stylings… I wrote them all down on a little scrap of paper and headed home for to create my first website on Geocities… But now I am dating myself…
Over the years, I never gave up my passion for web design, often finding sites I like and blatantly ripping off their source code, making minor tweaks here and there to give the illusion it was self-created. Obviously I dont’ condone this behaviour, but back then, I didn’t really understand how much hard work went in to coding amazing sites. I’d simply want something specific on my own site and troll the net until I found someone who had it. Then I’d rip apart their code, analyse how they made it work and commit it to memory. As time went by, I had quite an arsenal at my disposal, and I was the go-to girl for all of my friends and loved ones whenever they needed help.
But times they do change, and nowadays it’s highly unlikely that the average blogger creates their own code. Mostly, they will find a platform they like, choose from a set list of pre-designed themes and skin up their page. It works, it’s easy, and it means anyone can be looking like a pro in an instant.
I’ve fallen into that trap. It’s nothing to be ashamed of, but the problem that I keep having is I find amazing themes, usually premium themes I have to pay for, and I try to implement them in a few simple clicks. But unfortunately, many of the bells and whistles (which attract me to the theme in the first place) are not standardly available and involve downloading plugins, widgets or specialised codes to make them work.
Meaning I have to put in a lot of time researching, digging up codes, and reading FAQs and forum posts.
Le sigh.
The point of this little post is really just to say that if you’ve stumbled across this page and it looks weird, or if you are returning and think you are in the wrong place, or if you click refresh and everything is totally different than 10 seconds previously…
it’s because I’m trying to figure out codes.
So please bear with me while I do a little work. Being a full time mom doesn’t leave me with much opportunity to play around, and just about the time that I figure out how to implement a new bell or whistle is just about the time that my little man wakes up from a nap. By the time I get another few minutes to try, I’ve usually forgotten the solution to the problem.
Anyway, this post has little to do with anything, but I felt it important to address my ongoing need for perfection in the blogging world. Now if I could put the same attention toward the quality of my writing, I’d be all set…
This post originated at A Mother Thing (http://www.amotherthing.com). If you want to leave a comment, please do so here: http://www.amotherthing.com/2011/10/the-art-of-blog/#comments