Review 2977

To be honest, I am not a fan of religious blogs at all. In fact, I am not a fan of religious people who go about preaching and thinking they are above me just because they do something different on Sunday. I really do not like it when people tell me things like “I know I am going to heaven so I don’t have to worry any more” and “My God is better than your God.” With that said, I figured this blog was going to be something along those lines, even with the title.

Thankfully I was wrong. This blog isn’t about someone preaching their ways to get you to convert, it is as the title says, A Christian who is gay and is confused. The most recent post at the time of this review (entitled Love the sinner, hate the sin) probably sums this blog up the best. The post goes on to explain how some Christians will “Love the sinner, but hate the sin”. It is ok for a Christian to forgive sins such as watching porn, swearing, and others, but if you are gay, that is unforgivable. And thus they came up with “Love the sinner, hate the sin.” The author makes an excellent point in this post when she says:
..so many Christians see being gay as sin… so when they say “I love you, I just hate the sin”, what they end up saying is “I love you; I just hate this massive part of your identity.”

The rest of the posts are of similar nature. They deal with her conflicts of being both a Christian and being gay. This makes for a very interesting look at Christianity. I actually enjoyed this look on it because it actually points out the loopholes with Christianity. Rather than trying to make us, the reader, into Christians, it is simply a place for her to sort through the issues that she is faced with.

The design of this site is a simple blogger template. While its not the greatest it does serve its purpose with this blog. I would like to see this blog expand its content as it is just a blog with nothing else. Sure it is hard to expand, but maybe something like a scripture a week with her take on it and how it affects her.

The site is a newer site with only 22 total posts ranging from August till September. There is room to grow, but then there is also room to get stale. There are no extras on this site as I mentioned and hope that she branches out a little bit. Even for such a young blog, I still was captivated by the content. I give it a 4.25 because it isn’t perfect, but it is definitely worth checking out.
NULL

Review 2960

I have Seoul. It reminds me of adventures and maybe pirates and those incredibly huge ships crossing the ocean while sailors pray so no horrific aquatic creature would emerge from the deep waters and swallow them alive, back in those days where Earth was so obviously flat, when people would kept journals neatly illustrated with ink sketches. So I expect to see just that. A thorough description of a country and pictures of interesting things the author, a Canadian 27-year-old guy currently teaching in Korea, has to offer.

His posts go back to February, 2005 when he was getting ready to go to Korea. He makes clear that his purpose is merely keeping friends and family posted on his life there, which struck me as a ‘don’t expect much’ warning. And maybe it was. I take interest on the subject — adapting to a new country and having all these notes about its culture. I also happen to be an English teacher (although taking my poor English you might think I’m telling a lie or you’d feel sorry for my students), which could make this blog one of my favorites. There is a fair amount of entries on how life really is there or how he interacts with locals. You can check some videos and lots of pictures, which makes the blog interesting after all. Also, I have this feeling that he tries to be humorous, but doesn’t quite succeed. At least the entries are not that funny, but it could be due to the cultural gap here (me being Brazilian), or perhaps I’m just not in a good mood. You know how we girls are always subject to these mood swings. I have to admit I smiled a few times though.

The design of the blog is really simple but that is not a negative point. I myself believe that content should matter much more than looks (and that goes for blogs, books and guys, ha!). You can also check his flickr photo albums. Everything works fine. Archives, comments, links. The only thing missing is a Shaun’s profile (and it’s hard to find his name there).

Overall, it is a good blog as in ‘I could check it monthly or at least every fortnight’. He writes okay, he’s somewhat funny and getting to share his experience in Seoul gives us this sense that we are, as readers, close to him. I’ll give it a 4.
I have Seoul

Review 2968

What first impressed me about this blog was the simplicity of the design. A graphic of a strip of lawn tops the page just below the one line tag: “Poking pop culture’s soft white underbelly with a sharp-witted stick.” It gave me the (accurate) idea that the blog would contain the author’s reflections on pop culture.

The blog contains the author’s opinions and reviews of movies, tv and music, combined with some personal anecdotes and a few political rants. I agree with the author’s politics but these posts don’t seem to . On the front page (as of July 2005) there is an exceptionally long and comprehensive overview of Randy Newman’s career, complete with descriptions of all his albums and links. It was an interesting and well-written piece. Digging into the archive a bit, I found a few other “Complete Idiot’s Guides” to different artists. These entries are different from his other posts and might be gathered together in the sidebar for ease of reading. The music reviews are interspersed with reflections on politics and an amusing tale of bad roommates (I found this the most engaging piece on the blog). There are also occasional time-limited downloads from the author’s extensive MP3 collection.

I enjoyed the author’s self-deprecating sense of humor and no-nonsense writing style. Almost all of the posts are well-written and well-thought out. You know where you stand in relation to the author and what his perspective is (at least after reading a few posts). He does not purport to do anything other than offer his own well-honed opinions, but he does so without reserve or second-guessing.

The design is simple, easy to understand and emphasizes content. The sidebar has a search box on top followed by categories, archives, links, and a flickr badge. (There is something called “Themes” on the sidebar that appears to be a heading but nothing follows it.) The content is on the right and takes up about ¾ of the page. The design is intuitive and easy to navigate. An “about me” section might make it easier to get oriented. You do have to register if you want to leave non-anonymous comments (why?). There are two Google ads placed unobtrusively at the bottom of the page. I found html problems through March 2004. The entries show the html language rather than hyperlinked or formatted text. These issues are resolved after April 2004 but it makes reading the archives a cumbersome task.

This is an interesting site with an emphasis on popular music. Music posts are interspersed with personal stories. Movies, tv and politics are touched on but music is the main focus. If you read the blog regularly you will get to know Jeff, the author, and something about a few of his favorite musicians. I recommend the blog.
jefitoblog

Review 2959

From the moment I entered this blog, I felt a warm “family-like” feeling about it. As I began reading posts, it appeared as if my intuitions about the blog were true indeed.

The Sisters are actually fairly humorous when you attempt to visualize the stories being told in several of the posts. After a long, busy day at the office, it’s a refreshing read.

I really enjoyed Sue’s post about her “watermelon mishap” because I could actually visualize myself doing exactly the same thing in that situation.

However, I feel that the design leaves a lot to be desired. I mean, it’s very practical and has a clean appearance but maybe using lighter colors and adding a header graphic would do it some justice. Overall, I would recommend this blog to others.

Sisters’ Weblog: It Bloggles the Mind!

Review 2959

When I first read the title of this blog, Sisters’ Weblog, I thought it would be a blog by an African American. I was somewhat disappointed when I saw two middle aged white women in the photo. I’m the same race and age, so that isn’t a slam against the bloggers, just commentary that I would like to see some African American blogs.

The site is easy enough on the eyes, even though it uses a lot of strong colors for text on a black background. I always appreciate seeing a photo of the bloggers, and it’s even better when the site has ample contact links like this one does.

The tagline for the site is “We hope to glorify God by sharing all He is doing in the lives of two sisters in Christ.” Currently the site has some review type posts on “The Jesus Creed; Loving God and Loving Others” by Scot McKnight. As a single, I appreciate a post stating that they were put off by a Marriage series at church. I also liked the blow by blow of the Extraordinary Faith Conference.

Overall, the site is easy to read and is a great addition to the list of Christian bloggers.Sisters’ Weblog: It Bloggles the Mind!