Month: January 1970

Weevil Stepmother opens to a very plain white page with a small cartoon drawing of a weevil that we are told was executed by Ed, with a link to his email address in case we would like to get a logo made by Ed too, one assumes.

I was pleased to see that the author chose a large font for her entries. Why we should be putting out web pages with microscopic fonts remains a mystery to me. That’s what customizers are for my friends. And a larger font gives me the impression that the author is welcoming you to read, not daring you.

I liked the simplicity of the page and appreciate not having to plow through some encyclopedic list of links. She has a list of 100 things about me and a truly impressive cast of characters list with corresponding links to posts where said characters are mentioned.

She writes in a light, humorous style of family goings on, childhood memories and some very British pop culture references that I got a little muddled over, not being familiar with the terminology used. Which by the way is a lesson to all us bloggers. If you have a rather wide audience outside your own country, it might be good to define some terms now and again. (I’ll make a note to myself on this one)

This blog has only been in existence since April of 2004, but the author has posted frequently and has already amassed quite a backlog. In her links she includes some oddball places to go on the web for quirky flash sites and goofy information. Though I’d stay away from the “pie” site with the weebles if I were you.

All in all this is a lighthearted place, and I was mildly amused with the author’s entries. It would probably appeal most to parents considering the many entries about the children in her household, and to those who want to know where to go on the web to find out that there are 170 feet of noodles in a package of ramen.

Weevil Stepmother

I really loved Weevil Stepmother’s blog description: “Let’s see what do we have? A son, steps (daughter and son), partner, pesky cat, pond full of newts, loft full of junk, two motorbikes. And the Ex just down the road. Oh, and no job at the moment. Blimey.”

As soon as I read it, my curiosity level soared. I wanted to know more about the author. So I headed to the side bar looking for the about page. No about page, but two links made up for it: 100 things and Who’s Who. Weevil’s hundred things was quite easy to read and most fun. Her Who’s Who, I found to be almost brilliant, with her amusing way of giving her family members aliases and her descriptions. Many of the Who’s Who cast members also have a link to the post written about them. This was fun to browse through. You read amusing anecdotes about Weevil’s husband, her ex, her son, her stepchildren, her ex’s ex-wife, mother, brother, pet and even her neighbor a.k.a “the Brazil Nut”.

Besides the links mentioned above, there are other links to blogs she reads, sites she enjoys and games she likes to play.

The blog is easy to browse through: a tidy blog. The template is white and purple, nothing very fancy in terms of design. Simple. Perhaps too plain in visual terms. I feel it could use a little make-over.

Overall, the blog is well thought-out. You don’t get any surprises. She blogs about what she mentions in the description and her Who’s Who page. Most of what she writes deals with daily family anecdotes or the thoughts inspired by them. It may sound simple but her writing style is very effective and she can make even the most trivial things seem amusing.
Weevil Stepmother

I loved the title. The man who… the man whore… an interesting play on words. I loved the look too when I arrived at the site. Red, very red. There is an interesting banner and a left hand side panel which is uncluttered. I like straightforward designs. There is a blogger profile, details of his website, previous posts and a smattering of links. Not enough to put you off trying one or two.

There is comment facility and he uses links from his posts which are all in working order. He also uses an audio post which is functioning.

I was expecting a seedy trawl through a red light something which is what I got but it left me feeling uneasy. He uses mobile phone photos which work well in the setting. Better photography would not have sat so well amongst his literary meanderings.

The weblog began or at least has archives dating back only to the end of May this year. Thus far we have two central events which pervade his posts. Initially the break up with Melissa and latterly the coming together with Kelly. His success with Kelly – his words!

Zaque, and he wins an award for the most pretentious spelling of his name, is a self-centred arrogant pig. His writing and pseudo poetry reflects this. He wallows in self-pity following his break up from Melissa and his words ooze that most putrid of emotions. I couldn’t feel sorry for the guy; I just wanted to scream… “broken hearts are for arseholes…” He is arrested for DUI and compares the experience to being raped. How sorry for yourself can you be?

His subsequent detailing of his romance with Kelly is so full of self gratification and bravado that you might conclude that there are two people writing this, if it wasn’t for the accompanying overblown poetry. Indeed for “a writer”, again his choice of words, his poetry or prose ain’t up to all that much.

We were promised more poetry, more pictures, “girl drama”, 100 songs that move him and a ‘big secret’ for July. We’ve had all but the secret thus far. The 100 songs would make Mr Happy depressed and are an ideal musical accompaniment to his sad laboured detailing of his ongoing experiences of life, love and college life.

There is something very sinister here… like the beginnings of a movie about someone and something that ain’t gonna turn out all sweetness and light. How creepy… I’m not sure that I wanna know the truth. I won’t be back. One out of five for an interesting design.tale of the man who(re)

giencke.net opens to a very peaceful and clean looking blog. The pale colors go with the blog very well. When I first enter a weblog, I like to see something that tells me a bit about the author, not to mention some insight on what the blog is about. Well to my satisfaction, I found exactly that info at this blog.

This blog has been around from October, 2002. The author “Pete” is a college student from the university of Minnesota. He has a love for playing softball among several other hobbies etc. Now on to the posts.

I have read several entries in Pete’s blog. It is of a personal nature, but not too personal. He basically covers his everyday life but nothing too personal. He speaks a lot about his friends, where he and his friends go and what they do. Things like that. A lot of his posts are just one line , and several of his entries just have a quote etc. from a song.

Even though his entries are not too much of a personal nature, somehow they give you the feeling that you know him somewhat and they make you want to know him a bit more.
His entries are very well written. He has a way of telling a story that makes you feel as if you’ve been there at the time. He even lets you see the emotional side of him as he talks about the “Reagan” funeral coverage on tv.

Pete’s blog is a two column lay-out. He has several links on the right hand side which all seem to be in working order. He has several links to photos in his entries as well. The design is very clean and as I stated earlier, the pale colors go very well with the entries.
To conclude the review, I couldn’t find one fault with Pete’s blog. I found it to be very interesting and entertaining and I would recommend it as a good read. So Pete, keep up the good work and I hope you continue to keep your blog going for a very long time.
giencke.net

Surprise, surprise. ‘Tales of the man who(re)’ was not as sexually explicit as I expected. I was prepared to read a site peppered with porn or at least a vanity site belonging to a shallow, narcissistic owner. Tales of the man who(re) is neither of those. Maybe his interesting writing belies an extremely pretentious human being? Who knows? Damned if I could tell.

What sets this blog apart from the others? At face value, not much. Digging into the archives you’ll find the usual weblog fare: quiz results, opinions on pop culture, photos of friends, poetry, etc. The saving grace (a big one) is that the author writes well. Whether it’s complex thoughts or banal minutia, Zachary (the siteowner) knows how to wrap them up, shove them down your throat, and leave you satisfied. Some of his most recent posts are stories about a seemingly perfect woman he just met two weeks ago. Is he in love? Let’s just say that if your posts to your site begin playing out like a paragraph out of a Nicholas Sparks novel, you probably ARE in love. Anyway, you can read his site and decide for yourself.

The design looks like another blogger template. The only complaint I have about it is that the posts are not easily distinguished from the comments.

There’s not many other features besides links which include his other (non-blog) site and other blogs. The weblog itself has only been around since May and it looks like it’s headed in the right direction. Zachary’s posts are fun to read, but they’re not that different from posts by other exceptional bloggers.tale of the man who(re)