Author: admin

I wouldn’t associate the word ‘Drakulita’ with the Rainbow Brite girl, however the author has decided to use her as the main site image imposed on a kitchen tablecloth-like background. My first impressions on the layout are good; colourful, structured, organised, easy to navigate, however I have an unnerving feeling that it may be one of those ‘candy pop-teen sites’ that dominate the web these days. I read through the first page; its not that bad, but its not that good either..

The first post I read states that she’s away for a week or so, and following that, a few non-substantial brief posts including links to quizzes, threads and also a page of ‘100 things about Drakulita’. A great vehicle to discover more about her. I skim read a few & they illustrated the life of a normal teenager; aspirations, music and quotes.. from artists; namely Alisha’s Attic and Norah Jones. There are also quite a few baby pictures of her which are also sweet, but I can’t say that there was anything there which particularly drew me.

The blog is laced with a few animated emoticons which makes a difference and goes well with the theme, however they can be slightly annoying after a while. In attempt to view the March archive (the other archive pages seem fine), I got a bunch of gobbledy gook before the actual entries, which implies that something has seriously gone wrong with the template or publishing program. This put me off reading the entries themselves as the format was destroyed but as I continued I realised that much of the content was the same. Obviously its all focused around the author and her friends however a visitor may find it difficult initially to settle in with the content as she mentions several different people with little indication of who they are at times.

I finally take a look at the ‘about’ page, and learn she’s an 18 year old girl called ‘Raquel’ or ‘Quel’ and where the peculiar name ‘Drakulita’ came from. (Some of this info is on the main page anyway, however this is in more detail). The page also contains a variety of group pictures & baby pictures and proves rather interesting. Also appreciate the basis of her layout ’18 and counting’, which I’d advise reading. I guess its easier to relate to her finally ‘becoming’ of age and expressing that on the layout by illustrating it with old and new pictures of herself and her friends.

General impression I have of this site is that although she’s come of age, she’s holding onto her childhood memorabilia, which is brilliant. In the future I’d like to return to the site and see some evidence of maturation in both her writing and layout. The blog proves great communication to those who know her (on and offline), but for any external visitor it’s not necessarily an incentive to return or even get involved in. Unfortunately some of the subjects I’ve read, I may have related to about 5 years ago, but now it is of little interest.drakulita: eighteen and counting.

I like the main images of this site, the author has used brushes very wisely and effectively, which almost gave me the impression of an american flag, regarding the stars and stripes. The font however, is small, and the colour red projected on black. This almost obscures the text and it doesn’t stand out as much as it should do, so perhaps using a different colour would help.

Having read the first entry, I note she’s getting married to her boyfriend, James, however delaying it by 6 months due to lack of funds. I later discover she’s only twenty (my age), but with quite a bit of life experience under her belt, for example, living in 5 houses and 4 apartments in her lifetime. She deals with mundane occurrences like buying a new phone plan, she studying for a web analyst/programming degree, works and is prepared to devote some of that life revolving around her boyfriend who evidently means a great deal to her.

The archives are grouped weekly which means that there are a lot of links to sift through. Perhaps organise them in months so that there are more entries to a page. The rest of the material is pretty much consistent regarding content, however prints a fairly vivid picture of the storyline of her life. (I’m wondering if we get pictures of the wedding, kids, grandkids etc..)

A short paragraph simply details who she is and what she’s doing with a few pictures. Its brief, concise and confirms what I’ve read in the blog.

Its a good read with some interesting content and I suppose I’d even come back out of curiosity to see how she will cope with organising the wedding, but I desired something more which I can’t quite put my finger on. I don’t know if everyone would identify with this weblog, and may be deterred by some of the long paragraphs with a font too small for some, but my verdict is a thumb pointing in the ‘up’ direction.thefictionalme… jenny

Wow, Buddha. Based on initial appearances, I figured I would be reading about Western religion. “The Emerald Buddha” really stuck out to me, and I found myself wondering why it was there, and why it is relevant to the site.

When I could finally stop staring at the Buddha, I got into reading the site’s actual content. The author takes us on a day-to-day journey through his life along with his experiences with web-programming. The posts are easy to read and I was quite glad I didn’t have to dig out my dictionary. What’s different about this site than other personal day-to-day commentaries I have read is that I can actually relate to thebwit. It feels like I am sitting down with an old friend, and he’s telling me what went on day-to-day. I feel the author’s purpose is to let people inside his life.

The overall design of the site is lacking something. While the Buddha stands out to me at the top of the page, I feel that more could be done to make it look more attractive. Once I scrolled down, I was basically reading black text on a white background. While this is easy to read, it does make things a little repetitive. Most of the links on the site worked, but there was one site that wasn’t linked up that the author should know about, and that was the one marked “Wendy.”

If you are looking for more than a day-to-day commentary, I wouldn’t suggest this site. The site’s backbone ARE the actual posts themselves. Also included in the site is an exercise log, but it wouldn’t be something I would want to read on a daily basis. I checked out the sites thebwit links to, and many of them are worth reading. I enjoyed playing with the “My DVD List” box, but I was expecting the movies to actually link to something.

If peeking into other people’s lives is your fancy, I would suggest reading this site. It’s easy reading and would captivate audiences of the adult age. It is interesting, but I think it could get a little repetitive after awhile. I still find myself wondering why Buddha is there, and what purpose he serves…TheBwit

I can’t really remember how long I’ve been reading thebwit. It seems like it’s always been one that I’ve had on my list of daily must reads and have really gotten to know the author. Maybe the fact that I do talk to him on a nearly basis gives me more incentive to check back up on him from time to time. Even if I didn’t know the author, thebwit.com is still a site I’d probably frequent.



It’s neat to see the transformation the site has gone through. Initially, it started out as a weblog describing “Living with a Med Student” as thebwit goes on to give readers insight on what it’s like, well, living with a med student. And now, after nearly 18 months of archives, the author tends to focus quite a bit more on web programming, weblogs in general, and of course, touching base on current events.

The programming posts are perfect for those programming junkies who can’t seem to get enough of all those different languages out there. Reading about weblogs may not appeal to the general public, but thebwit’s research on the topic does nearly have it down to an exact science so those new in the weblogging world may find some advice in those posts.

The posts that have kept me coming back in the past and will continue to draw me to thebwit.com in the future are the ones that tell me what’s up with his life. I like learning about changes in his work, different projects he’s working on, or what type of weekend he’s had with his loved ones. The personal touch that you can find here is very nice.

A newer addition to the site that I’ve found not only interesting, but motivating is the mini exercise posts on the left hand side of the site. Readers can keep tabs on thebwit’s progress in working towards those washboard abs he’s shooting for by his summertime vacations.



Lately, the new designs have been popping up one right after another. The majority of the latest layouts have included pictures that thebwit has actually taken himself. The layouts are all very simple, they’re naturally uniform throughout the archives, and they’re nice to look at it. You can’t beat that.

In all, thebwit.com does really have a little bit of everything. Maybe if the latest post on PHP doesn’t appeal to you, a few words about the world’s current state might spark your interest. You’ll find something you like here – guaranteed.

TheBwit

From time to time I’ll find a weblog that has a title I’m insanely jealous of and Journey to Confusion just happened to be one of those titles. Needless to say, I set some pretty lofty expectations before even reading a single post at this site.



The layout that’s used belongs to the current list of standard Blogger templates. It’s one of the milder designs available, and it’s used very well. The author entertains us along the sidebar of the site with every thing from a bit about her (“The Confused”), a brief quote that’s currently one by Oscar Wilde (“For the Journey”), and a whole slew of links to her archives and many other external links to the internet. “The View Beneath the Lavender Sky” slogan that’s used at the top of the site is carried out with the lavender color that’s used in the layout. Overall, there are no complains on the design at all as it all goes well together.

Journey to Confusion is still a relatively new weblog. Making its jump into the wide world of weblogging in December 2002, the different entries give readers the impression that the author’s been writing her feelings and her thoughts for a long time.

The biggest number of the posts in “Journey to Confusion” are based upon the author’s day-in/day-out routine. It’s more than just a constant “I did this, and then I did this” type of writing, but more a witty repertoire of how even every day life can be entertaining. The author’s got quite the knack for entertaining readers and it’s definitely something that would draw a person back to this Journey to Confusion.

I’m glad someone else finds John Madden to be the Captain of the Obvious like I do, and it’s refreshing to read the FUN instances of being a parent.

As I initially said, I was jealous of the title of Journey to Confusion and I’m now jealous of the wonderful writing Tam puts out on this site on a daily basis. Definitely check this site out.


Journey to Confusion