Month: January 1970

Some people think it’s cute when blogs are designed so things trail behind your pointer or stuff, like snow, is falling across the screen. I am not one of those people. It’s distracting and annoying. And so when I first came across Punk Rock Princess, I mentally prepared myself to be annoyed. In the end, the writing didn’t annoy me but the falling snow definitely did.

Nicole, the writer of this blog, is a student in Canada. She keeps a blog detailing the day to day of her life. She tells jokes that she hears, and little factoids that she runs across. The main part of her blog seems to be part personal journal and part news/factoid links. I find her “Beef of the Month” section much more interesting. While I don’t agree with some of what she says, the entries are longer and more entertaining than what is on her main blog.

The design of Punk Rock Princess is not really a match to the name of the blog or to the writing. Nicole’s About Me page says that she likes Bon Jovi and Loreena McKennitt, neither of which are remotely punk rock. The design features an off center lion and the above mentioned annoying falling snow. I didn’t see the words “Punk Rock Princess” anywhere on the blog at all. I’d like to see a more streamlined approach to navigation. As is, the navigation is cumbersome and clunky. Maybe a drop down box somewhere to get around? And the words “guestmap” break on my browser so “guest” is on the first line of navigation and “map” is on the second line. Some older links in entries are broken.

If you’re interested in what Nicole is reading, has on her desktop, or what her weather is like, you’re in luck – she lists those on the side. As mentioned, she has a guestmap and an About Me type of page. She also links to all pages within in her blog where she has done a quiz or a meme.

If you’re a friend of Nicole’s this would make a great blog to catch up on her life. I might come back to read more of her “Beef of the Month” entries, but I doubt I would read her regular blog. Most of the content is not original – it is links to news or jokes that can found on other blogs.

Punk Rock Princess

A weblog thrown into the New/Links section is one that’s tricky to review. The author here, however, does a very nice job of implementing his own ideas and his own thoughts, rather than stealing those opinions from another source. Putting informative news articles in with a knowledgeable opinion makes this weblog one that’s very educational.

The layout to the site is a very simple one. There are tables all over the place, but organized very well, making navigation and reading through its lengthy posts a pleasant experience. Nothing extraordinary about this design, but there’s not anything negative either.



The author does a good job of combining excerpts from actual news articles with other related links as well as his own opinion. This makes for thorough reading about several different topics ranging anywhere from politics.

Grammar, punctuation, spelling, sentence structure – everything in that aspect is nearly perfect. The only problem I had with this particular weblog is that I just couldn’t get into it. I’m sure it was the fact that I’m not up to snuff in the “GreekNews, GreekViews, GreekOpinions about Greece”, as the author puts it. I’m sure, however, that someone with interests in those topics would find this weblog to be quite useful and visit-worthy.

Sphaera Ephemeris

Comparing getting together with her vagrant-like father to the reasoning of the death penalty and the explanation of the contents of her wallet – these entries are two examples of the seriousness of some posts compared to the humor that can be found in everyday random things that Siera writes about. You can also read about dorm life, an American going to school in Canada (that’d be our author here), and other humorous tidbits about every day life. It’s what I would call a casual blog with the perfect amount of humor and originality thrown into the writing.

There’s not much to read here, simply because the archives aren’t available. You’ll only see a couple of weeks worth of entries, but Siera is making a conscience effort with this weblog to post as frequently as possible and it makes the site worth coming back to see if there’s been something new posted.

The layout, I believe, is another one of those standard, often overused Blogger templates. This one is easy to navigate and the colors throughout the site complement each other. Of course, an original template would have went much better with the original content here, but time is probably a big factor in getting that done for a full time college student such as Siera.

This is a good weblog. The site is only a weblog, but through the reading you get a chance to experience what kind of life the author lives and even experience some of the things she does or some of the people she comes into contact with simply through the details she provides in her writing. It’s worth a visit!

Blonde etc.

Ever wondered what the true definition of a weblog “untamed” might be? Had the idea that you knew everything there was to know about emotional pain? Think you have even the slightest idea what inflicting self harm actually means and what it feels like? Cutting into the mind and heart is one thing, but what about physically cutting up yourself knowing it is bad and finding it extremely difficult to resist an unexplainable urge? If these questions tickle your curiosity and you are really serious about exploring this somewhat morbid realm any further, then you have come to the right place. Just sit down, have a seat and prepare yourself for this blog. One warning though. Some of the graphic pictures as well as occasional detailed text might be too disturbing for the light at heart. So only tread here with both of your feet firmly on the ground and with an open mind. I hope this warning has made you even more curious.

The author seems at first glance to be a typical young man from the north of Wales. He views himself as the product of a wrecked home, living at home still with his one remaining parent. His many entries center around feeling good and then feeling worse (eg. depressed) and then feeling better again. The day in the life type stuff one usually finds on the Internet, but with a somewhat more personal and unusual variation of the theme. In his own words, “this site has been created to reflect my day to day life, and allow me to express my own thoughts on the things that happen.” Depression is a reoccurring theme, but the author tackles this morbid feeling with the help of the written word. Some of the entries can get pretty heavy and emotional, but that’s alright. Isn’t that one of the main reasons blogs were invented in the first place?

To quote, here are a few typical fragments I have picked out: silently screaming from the house, feeling worse alone than with people, Zinger tower burger and chips, faceless crowds, being cynical and paranoid, feeling good after a long night’s sleep, eating the entire jar of pickled eggs last night, ad infinitum. These provide the essence of this atypical diary on the web.

Through the modest picture gallery and an interactive video of him “nattering away” one gets a better feeling for who this person really is and what he is trying to communicate to us. Check out the short biography for more information. Also as an experienced programmer, he shows off his hidden talent through a free offering of various Basic, C/C++ and Java programs and games he has developed and designed himself. This is an interesting balance which you can tell puts sparkle in his eyes. Not bad, not bad at all.

If I were to judge this site merely on its element of shock, then it certainly would deserve the highest possible score. What with its frank and open discussion, soul searching passages. But at times it does get a bit too dark and cynical, even for so-called objective reviewers like myself. While the design is well thought out, the dark colors falling on the black background tend to weight on you after a while. Yes, it is fascinating and addictive reading, and I feel that because of this it deserves a rating of above-average.

Despite the author’s claim that you only have a 1-in-a-500,000 chance of hitting his site, hopefully this review has triggered your curiosity just enough to check it out for yourself, and thereby uppin the odds somewhat. “Stay awhile, you were meant to come here. It’s fate.”Untamed

Do you want to read a blog that tries to make friends with you? Try Steve’s Thoughful Spot. As opposed to the usual personal blogs that are seemingly written for acquintances only, here’s one that lets you know about the person behind names and doesn’t assume you’ve been a faithful reader from day one.

Steve has a passion for blogging, which is endearing. He blogs with a vigor, often sparing no details while describing what happened last week, last night or this morning. Unfortunately Steve apparently does not spell check his entries, for there are more than just a few spelling and grammar mistakes. While Steve talks about himself quite comfortably and openly, there are times when the entries just sound like all the others out there, and some of the jokes just fall flat. One unique feature: Steve quotes a few lines, usually from popular movies or tv shows, after every entry.

Now we come to the layout. I don’t know why, but this particular blog design really irks me off. No matter how many times I see it, I still furrow my brows when I come across this combination of blue, red, yellow and green. Also, pages which require readers to slide it left and right (too big to fit screen) are irritating.

All said, Steve’s blog isn’t exactly thoughtful, nor is it brilliant, but it is interesting. It makes you a friend of Steve. Kind of like a catchy j.lo pop song, if Steve will forgive my analogy.

Steve’s Thoughtful Spot