How do you like the new wallpaper and drapes?  The grapey-purple is kind of soothing; it's jogging a memory that's not fully accessed (grape Kool-Aid? Estee Lauder eyeshadow? Japanese eggplant? what is this color?).

It's kind of a "Martha" moment for me.  <patting my back> Think I'll have a cup of green tea and assess this change for a bit.  But I'm not certain if I'm going to keep them just yet, don't settle in and get too attached.  Keep the dust cover on until...

Next big remodeling effort: how to add lists of other blogs and favorite websites.  If you have helpful hints, feel free to advise.  I'm admittedly still virginally ignorant about this Radio and blogging stuff.  It does look like I'm trainable, though.

P.S. I would be remiss if I didn't send a big THANK YOU to Paul at Playing with my food and other things.  His blog inspired me to give this a shot.  Feeling hungry?  give his blog a tour.  Doesn't Chicken and Apple Sausage sound tasty?

3:35:14 PM    comment []

Scott Rosenberg’s leader on Salon’s main page indicates he’ll be looking at the concept of blogging again later today. I’ll add my two cents (what the heck, it’s a blog here, isn’t it?).

No, hell no, bloggers are not ALL frustrated journalists. I’m certainly not. I’m just a collection of day-to-day issues in need of some airing. While some bloggers might feel otherwise, I’m not really worried about driving up my readership. Personally, my concern is finding a place to set free this stuff in my head so it’s not stagnant, not locked on paper or a hard drive; I want to catch-and-release this content to a place where it can be free to have a life of its own. A couple of comments from others validates and bestows life to this stuff; a few crayon scribbles from my youngest doesn’t. (Nice fridge art, but it’s in the recycle bin tomorrow when locked onto paper and blessed with Crayola.)

As I’ve posted elsewhere in the world (sorry, TableTalk), blogging isn’t a new concept. Humans have been chronicling for as long as there has been media to support our need to create, to capture expression. The first guy journaling his hunt on the cave walls must have been gratified by the act and surely got a lot of attention from his cavemates; others within the cave community must have rushed to copy this effort once they found their own personal value in this effort. Some efforts were singular, some collaborative - but all gained a larger life through observation and participation.

The diary/ journal/ chronicle adds value at least twice -- as observers, we appreciate the content and the context both, while the diarist enjoys the catharsis of creation. Blogging can add a third dimension, allowing for the enlistment of the observer into the process. The concept of enlisting the observer isn't entirely new; remember what happened after leaving your diary out when you were a teenager? once your sister gets to it, it's definitely a new thing, not what it was before!

A key point about blogging is that it is an art medium, and art imitates life. Blogging isn't my life, it mirrors a part of it, bearing a sometimes silent witness. And the reality of my life isn't the same as yours or anyone else's.

On further consideration I might have to re-think this. Is Ozzy Osbourne "vlogging" with MTV (video logging)? is that really a mirror of life, is "vlogging" really art? No offense, MTV, Ozzy and fam, but, eeewww...

Guess I'll meditate on that not-so-pretty concept while I cut the grass now.

12:52:17 PM    comment []