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Fembat.Net
This is a re-review of Fembat.Net
Eliza’s has been running Fembat.Net since 2001 and she owns a horse! She has two of
them, in fact. I know that’s a strange way to start a review, but it’s not exactly
common (at least here) to have horses, so that’s an intriguing bit about her I read in
the Bio page. Eliza’s weblog is a personal one, and the site has a lot of custom
tweaks that makes it stand out from other Movable Type blogs, which can look
generic after a while.
The entries start from April 2001, though Eliza has been blogging a month
before that. The earlier posts were lost due to a Blogger problem. I started reading
the site from the beginning and one of the first posts goes into how she got her horse
and the month’s archives ends on a sad note, and I can’t help but feel sorry for her,
even though I’m consciously aware that the events depicted here happened two
years ago. Eliza’s writing has that effect on the reader.
The first few months entries are a bit sporadic and the posts in 2002 aren’t
regular as well, but that’s not to say that what’s there isn’t interesting. Eliza posts are
mostly personal, but she has a lot of different aspects in her life and with her
commitments, it’s understandable that time is in short supply for updates. The first
two year's posts seems to happen when something happens in her life – be it her pets,
or something more unfortunate like being mugged and having a car broken into.
However, the pace picks up in 2003 and the posts start to become regular. Eliza
has many facets in her life, and that’s what makes her blog interesting…she’s
involved in many things – she even mentions writing her first novel, something I’ve
wanted to do but keep on putting off. Her archives are organized well, giving the
reader the option of reading chronologically (year, month, date) as well as within
specific categories.
Navigation wise, Fembat.Net is structured well, with a persistent sidebar menu
which changes according to the context. The site also has a photoblog and I’ll have
to say that Eliza takes great pictures, which would be something of interest to people
interested in photography. I enjoyed the “City Views” category, I reckon that’s one
of the good things about photoblogs…you get to see another country’s sights, from
the perspective of a local. These usually show you things the travel brochures leaves
out – the daily things, simple but beautiful.
There is nothing to find fault with on Fembat.com. I’m amazed that she can
maintain consistency with her posts and handle so many other commitments at the
same time, without burning out. The layout is great – the custom modifications to
her MT blog makes the site looks neat, I liked the “Recent Comments” and “Blogroll”
that's minimized by default and only shows when clicked on. There is a minor HTML
tag error in the About page which doesn’t link correctly to her photoblog, but the
photoblog is accessible from the sidebar so this shouldn’t be an issue and can be
easily rectified.
Head over and see for yourself. I was going to end with a quip about guys
owing themselves to click on “Picture Yourself” in Eliza’s photoblog, but on second
thought, that would sound offensive, demeaning and totally inappropriate, so I will
refrain from mentioning the photos of herself, which I swear I didn’t click on until
after I read the blog and did not bias the review in anyway. It’s a 5/5 site, easy
navigation, flawless and customized design and good writing. This is one of many
personal blogs out there, but Eliza’s life is anything but ordinary, so this makes her
blog stand out.
Right. Moving on, I did not know horses can drink Stout until today.
This site was reviewed on 2003-12-06 by sixthseal.
They felt this site belonged in the Personal category.
sixthseal felt that Fembat.Net deserved a rating of 5.
This is a re-review of Fembat.Net
When they say that first impressions count, they really mean it. Take a classy looking blog like Fembat.Net and slap it on a screen in front of most people and you are likely to get a favourable response as it is easy on the eye but offers no clue to the content, so you just have to get on in there and start reading. It's not often that a site is striking simply because it doesn't actually slap you in the face.
The blog itself has been in existence since March 2001 and the 'about' page gives even the most curious of readers plenty of detail about how it came into being and why it exists, so I won't bore you with that here. Suffice to say that the pages about both the site and the author, Eliza, give just enough information to answer questions without becoming at all tedious. The Fembat.Net blog archives are extensive and prove that Eliza was not always the prolific poster that she is now, but her writing has always been of the same quality. There are plenty of stories from her day-to-day life but they are delivered in such a way as to never fall into the trap that grabs so many who begin posting the minute dull details of their lives. There are also plenty of musings on wider subjects and all is both carefully written and engaging.
The design of the site is fantastically minimalist with no banner, a static background image and a soft colour scheme. However, if you prefer something a bit brighter, there are a few 'skins' to choose from that offer alternative layouts with more colour and even celebrity photos, should you desire. This is a great idea that I have seen on very few other sites, and is used to great effect on Fembat.Net.
In addition to the weblog, there is also a photoblog on this site. The photos are very interesting in themselves, but adding them to the site in this format, rather than by using a straightforward gallery, is a neat touch and rewards regular readers with a new photo as well as a new post whenever they visit. Aside from that and an awful lot of links to other blogs and webrings, that's pretty much all there is. Mind you, with the amount of writing there is here, you wouldn't have time for anything else!
I was very impressed with this site. It's personal but doesn't only hold the interest of those who know the author personally and there are a lot of nice geeky touches. Definitely one for the blogroll.
This site was reviewed on 2003-12-06 by Lori.
They felt this site belonged in the Personal category.
Lori felt that Fembat.Net deserved a rating of 4.5.
Every time I see the word Fembat, I can only think of the “fembots” from the Austin Powers movies and hearing Frau Farbissina’s piercing shout for them. Sure enough, that’s partially how the name came to be.
I started from the beginning of available archives and immediately found myself genuinely concerned about Jezebel, one of Fembat’s two horses, who at this time was just finding a home with Fembat. The way each weblog entry is written had me feeling more and more like a part of the every day situations and instances that Fembat writes about. Maybe I wasn’t right there and an actual part of it, but there was many times where I felt like I was just off to the side and could perfectly picture everything that was going on.
Between the endearing stories of all the animals living with Fembat, readers are also treated to several entries that are based on reviews or opinions. Any fans of the Lord of the Rings would be proud, because anytime there’s a release coming up - video, in the theater, or otherwise – Fembat posts all the good stuff: links, rumors, possible spoilers.
Fembat is a unique “handle”, if you will, and I like it. I was curious where the name came from, and was pleasantly surprised to find that out by reading through the site.
Fembat’s been keeping an online journal since before April 2001. Entries from the date forward are all available to read, but entries before that were unfortunately lost. The nearly two years of posts, though, are just as equally entertaining from start to finish.
The layout is that of the ever popular three column layout. Other links to weblogs listed as “noted ones”, webrings, and other links run down the left hand side, and on the right, Fembat updates readers with what she’s reading, watching, listening, etc. The weblog content is in the center column, and atop it you find a small navigation menu that provides you links to a bio section of the site and a chance to guide through the older entries should you chose to click on the archives link.
You can’t really predict what you’ll get to read about when coming to this weblog and with the variety you get at Fembat’s journal, it’s safe to say that nearly everyone dropping by for a visit will find something they’re interested in.
This site was reviewed on 2003-02-23 by Wendy.
They felt this site belonged in the Personal category.
Wendy felt that Fembat.Net deserved a rating of 4.5.
3 reviewers gave Fembat.Net an average rating of 4.6667
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Site Category: Personal
Reader Rating: 1.0000 based on 5 votes
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