Author: admin

Little James Short may have one thing up on other kids his age. He’s got a dad that’s not only crazy about him, but also journaling his life. This probably acts as a tremendous release for James’ dad, Paul, but also a helpful tool with other parents coping with Autism and Pervasive developmental disorder.

The posts are well written and informative. Not only are they full of information that deals specifically with Autism or PDD, but they also let people, like the vast majority of readers that may stumble upon this site, know that kids like James are just as precocious, mischievous, and entertaining as the next kid.

My favorite post featured some pictures that were taken by James when his dad inadvertently left the digital camera in the backseat of the car, which happened to be just inside James’ reach. The result? Some really neat picture, for a kid his age! The self-portrait is my favorite.

The layout of the site is my biggest complaint. It’s one of Blogger’s infamous templates that gets used on a way-too-regular basis. The light text on the black background is a bit hard to read. Paul keeps the information on the sidebar to a minimum, which makes the site easy to navigate and seem more open, rather than cluttered.

I’m a sucker for kid stories, and kids in general, so I was able to easily relate to and enjoy the stories and information Paul shares in his writing. He doesn’t have time, as a single parent, to post on a very regular basis, but I think it’s safe to say his readers would rather have him spending time with his son, than posting on his weblog.

As I mentioned earlier, this site is undoubtedly going to appeal to people that have a direct tie in the world of autism or people just looking to learn what a real life is like when there’s a child like James involved.
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My first impression–I have no idea what this blog is. Are they selling something? Is one person writing it? Why do I have to register? Ah, I see, the blog is part of a larger web community called “Seacoast Online” in New Hampshire (?).

The weblog is written by Kelly Halldorson and is a collection of pieces on (mostly) politics and social issues. I do not agree with Ms. Halldorson’s views, but I feel like I’ve heard it all before–the thinking here is not particularly original. The arguments are simplistic. While I don’t agree with her perspective, stronger arguments can be made than simply accusing all the world’s evils on the “government.” We, the people, are the government, after all. The author is a libertarian, as well as a wife, mother and student. There is no particular attempt at humor. The quality of the writing is good, but the author occasionally uses shortcuts like “:)” instead of expressing herself through her words. “Smileys” are an acceptable shorthand in email, but I find them off-putting in a blog; especially one that wants to be taken seriously.

The design is acceptable, but I’m not crazy about it. The banner is very busy–it’s full of links to other parts of “BlogTheCoast.Com.” There was a calendar for easy navigation on Kelly Halldorson’s blog, recent entries, archives and categories. There is no blogroll.

The audience for this blog is probably other libertarians in the New Hampshire area. Or for people who would like to fight with a libertarian. Not me, that’s for sure.NULL

Weaved.net is purely a photoblog. This site proves the old adage, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” His pictures are great, with many layers of emotion and vitality.

I am not an art connoisseur. I have limited background experience on how to judge a piece of artwork. However, I found Michael’s pictures to be amazing. Most of his pictures are portraits of everyday people doing everyday things. He captures various emotions so well that just by looking at them, I get an idea of what the person portrayed must be feeling at the time.

There is one picture posted each day and there are now many pictures for each person to go through. I think they are truly amazing. What I also like about his art is his claim that he doesn’t crop or digitally enhance his pictures. As he says, “What you see is what’s on the negative.” It’s nice to have someone return to the traditional way and still make great pieces.

Overall, I enjoyed the blog. I spent quite a while just looking through his archives and I really enjoyed myself. The site is easy to navigate through and it was certainly worth my time.NULL

…I loved it. The entries were just wonderful. They were short, concise, and just so witty. The author, Cindy, gets her point across as quickly as she can, and if she doesn’t offend you, then she leaves a smile on her reader’s face.

Her entries are mostly journal entries – whatever happened today she deemed worthy enough to write about. But she writes so well and she injects her witty comments and opinions so well that it was just so entertaining to read about her life and her thoughts. They’re not necessarily funny, but they’re definitely enjoyable. I don’t really know how to sum up her whole blog because of the diversity of her entries. I mean, jeeze, she even talked about the Jesus Action Figure from Christmas. That was good.

Maybe I’m biased. Maybe when I start hearing this voice talking in my head as I read through the entries of a blog, I start thinking better and better of whatever it is I’m reading. Well, whatever. That voice in my head started talking and it said this was good. The layout isn’t flashy, but when the words are entertaining enough, no one needs flashy. Kudos, Cindy, on the great blog.

Really, I recommend it to just about anyone. If, on the first entry, you feel your hackles raising, then please, press the X button. Otherwise, you’ll see that what she has to say is worth hearing. Or rather, reading. NULL

Who needs Therapy? All therapists do is sit there and say “Uh huh.” and “Go on” and “So how did that make you feel?”. For many, their web log is form of therapy where they can vent their frustrations and shake their fist at the world, or simply write knowing that someone, somewhere is reading and this is comforting indeed.

Sicker Than Others reads this way, and with sections such as Baby A, Teenagers, Day to Day, Depression, Work, Coping and Ailments our author navigates us through the trials an tribulations of motherhood. The introductory “Birth Story” tells us the painful and harrowing experience of birthing complications and is beautifully punctuated with honesty and profanity throughout.

Green pillars frame the edges of the blog and a bright red header giving it a very christmas-like feel which I’m not sure is intentional as primary colors such as these don’t sit well side-by-side but then maybe thats just me. Next to the sparkly title “Some are Sicker Than Others” is a raccoon with a photoshopped tongue which immediately looks like some kind of dodgy internet site maybe I shouldn’t be looking at, before I begin to read and realize this is an innocent motif. Although the boxy template doesn’t appeal to my basic sense of design, it is easy to navigate and our author has setup the right hand menu system nicely.

It would be easy to dismiss this blog as a rant-driven site except for the fact that a lot of its content is very relevant and probably helpful and comforting for others in her situation. These people may find solace in the words therein, as the author does by writing them.

The language is simple, although often verbose, and doesn’t hold back. It shows a no-nonsence, straight to the point account of motherhood and although is necessarily cynical, shines with sarcasm and wit also. An easy read. NULL