Category: Uncategorized

I hate being honest sometimes… but, well, here you go: My first impression on this one was plain and simple “Jesus, not one of *those* again!” – what I saw was a very basic blog using one of the most used (but still boring) standard templates, with a few links and a small archive that somehow told me “this is not gonna last long”. Another major thing that annoyed me is I couldn’t find an “About Me” page, so I had no idea who my host might be (besides what I guessed from the title and tagline).

Anyhow, you know what they say about books and their covers, don’t you? I do, and so I forced myself to actually read the entries by that “girl living on Cape Brenton”. As she states in her first post, there’s a lot of ranting, rambling and raving going on, spiced with a high density of typos.

A lot of the bitching is very personal, and although this is sugar for all slightly voyeuristic blog hoppers, it’s getting a bit old after a while since I often had no idea what she’s talking about (and, as I stated earlier, had know idea who/what) she actually is. It was funny and entertaining at times, but got old soon.

So let’s be done with this: I really think the author could turn this into an above-average, even quite good blog; she’s funny, and there’s things going on in her life that would surely make good stories. This transformation, however, is going to be hard work (especially considering the design issues), and I assume her “blogging-style” just needs to evolve.

Numerical, it’s just a 3 for me now, with the option to make that a 4 or even better when Jamie decides to stop underachieving.capergrl.blogspot.com

My first impression of this weblog, was a good one. I was faced with a very clean, neat layout . There was really nothing outstanding about the page, but it just had a nice look to it. The first thing that caught my eye, was a little animated pic at the top left hand corner. It was of a cartoon character playing a musical instrument, giving the blog a nice touch. Once I started reading the entries of “Songrut”, I basically got what I expected. A blog about music.

The entries are written by a girl named Bev. After reading her main page, I went looking through her archives. I discovered that the weblog has only been around for a month and a half. It was created on March 18, 2004.

Apparently Bev has put a lot of time and thought into her entries. This is not just a blog about music in general. It is dedicated mostly to song writing. It’s obvious that Bev has a real love for music.
Each entry, is very interesting and informative , especially for anyone who takes a real interest in writing songs.

She gives tips and information on how to be a good song writer , things you should and shouldn’t do when trying to write a song, ect. Her readers even participate every now and then by sending in their own tips and tricks on writing songs. You will find things like that in every entry. A very interesting read by far.

The page itself was just an ordinary simple design. But it seem to work well with the title of the weblog.It had somewhat of a professional feeling to it. Nothing fancy , but the little animated cartoon playing the musical instrument, did give it a nice touch as i mentioned earlier. On the left side panel, there are several links which are music related, . There is an “about” page, but it is mainly about music .

Overall,the entries were well written, very well spaced and easy to read. It has been updated frequently. Basically, I enjoyed the weblog and could not find one fault with it. If you are a music lover, I would suggest you drop on by and vis Bev at “Songrut”. You won’t be disappointed.songrut

Stupidtom.com is, funnily enough, about a guy called Tom. Whether he’s stupid or not is up for you, the reader, to decide for yourself.

I rocked up to the side expecting some whizz-bang stuff from someone who has his own URL dedicated to his blog. I was to be slightly (just slightly) disappointed. There’s not much going on there, save for the blog. For the minimalists among us, you’ll love this. White, with a hint of a grey and black. A smattering of links out and links to Amazon.com showing what he owns (lucky man has an iPod – I think I’m the only one left in the universe who doesn’t own one, thanks for rubbing that in a little more, Tom!) and the odd picture in his daily ramblings. As I said, pretty sparse, and though I don’t think it detracts from the content of the blog in any way, I think sprucing it up just a tad would certainly not hurt either.

So onto the blog itself, or more precisely, the effervescent “About Me” page where I thought I was going to get to learn all about Tom. Not so…

I am interested in why you would come to this page. I have never read an about page that told me one thing “about” the author or owner. I guess I could post my home address and phone number like a dumbshit but what would be the fun in that. The best way to find out about me is to read the nonsense I write on this site. Other than that I can’t really help.

Alright, I know I’m lazy, but in all honesty, I hate stuff like that. If you’re going to go to the trouble of having an “About Me” page, then have something written there about you, or re-label it to “Disclaimer” and be done with it. In said disclaimer however, it was good to know that Tom prescribes to the “once it’s there, it stays there” way of blogging. It takes a lot bravery to keep something that might show the not-so-good sides of ourselves on public display to the world at large.

The actual content of the blog was quite interesting, with general meanderings of daily life or moments within the daily routine. The most recent post on the decontamination of the house due to the somewhat gross activities of a certain animal and a certain kitty-litter tray gave me the giggles. Same with the mowing barcodes into the lawn stunt – and I have to say I’m on Liza’s side there, Tom. No good. Nix to the checker board idea too. Each entry is a pleasure to read as they focus on different areas of Tom’s life rather than just a running commentary of life at work or home, or even with his animals. He stops and reflects on certain subjects – ones that we normally wouldn’t even blink twice over. There was one particular entry earlier on in my blog which had me chuckling quietly and another that gave me pause for thought.

Overall, I found that whilst this is one of the nicer personal blogs out there in the great blogosphere, it’s not a particularly meaty blog. For people who might like full-on drama in their blogs, you won’t find it at Stupidtom.com. What you will find is a well rounded, easy to read, and pleasant offering of personal posts that describes the guy behind the amusing URL.


Between you and I, I don’t think he’s stupid at all. Thanks Tom!stupidtom.com

Hmm. No graphics, no pictures, no links, plain design – just text. I guess the writing better be good. The blog is written by a woman named Kim Hemmingway, so I was optimistic.

The Ktraveldan Network is a new blog written by an obsessive writer (who says she has writings dating back close to 30 years! And I certainly don’t doubt that one iota ). ‘I must write! Give me a pen, or give me death!’ She seems excited to have found blogging as a medium to dump her many, many thoughts, stories, essays and words into. Her goal is ultimately to be a published writer and after reading KN I’m sure it will happen.

You don’t have to read many of Kim’s entries to recognize there is something special here. Every entry has a point, a passion, a flavour, a take, a message… and the entries are all wrapped with her introspective and enjoyable narrative. Every entry, in some way, shows off the craft of a good writer. Kim’s writing is very witty, articulate, entertaining and full of atmosphere. It is quite apparent that writing for her is a well honed craft. She is one of the best story-tellers I have read online in a blog (or anywhere for that matter). There would be far too many quotes included here if I was to share with you the many lines that brought a smile to my face. But here is one of many, that shows a very honest writer, ‘They say little girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice? I am made of butter, Crisco, and Twinkies.‘. She also has more serious reflections such as “Status Seekers” which ponders our materialistic society, or the touching ‘Waving Goodbye’. She also has threatened her readers with audio blogs… I listened to the one on the site, and she has some lofty ideas for her blog and her website, with more audio blogs coming and possibly a section with her massive .wav collection. Good luck with them Kim!

I think it would be nice to be able to leave comments and assist her friend Kathy in critiquing her writing. Clearly she wants the feedback. There would be lots of opportunity, especially with entries such as “right to Bear arms” which I would have $0.02 to share.

In spite of the very average esthetic of Ktraveldan Network the writing pulls the grade of this site way up. A remarkable writer with a remarkable insight into human behaviour. I enjoyed reading KN. This is one blog I will undoubtedly visit numerous times, I highly recommend you do the same if you enjoy a good read. Hemmingway? Quite possibly.
Ktraveldan Network

Upon entering Counting Sheep, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Blog descriptions are something I usually appreciate, as this blog had none, I was left to a silent reverie on what it might contain. The diary of an insomniac maybe?

In any case, a simple, easy-to-the eyes, blue-beige design greeted me. Nothing spectacular. But nothing to complain about either.

As I scrolled down I encountered some pleasant surprises.

The much appreciated “About” section I found to be very complete, you can tell the author feels comfortable revealing facts about herself: Jo is a 30 year old woman married to a “Brit” (her words). She lives in Massachusetts and works as an applications developer. She goes on to mention the characters that have a say in her blog (Cast of Characters) and she finally ends with a paragraph on her hobbies and interests. More information on Jo I found in the “Some things you might want to know” section. She lets you in on the fact that her husband is older and she probably will not have children plus some other things of interest. Immediately a type of intimacy is created between the reader and the author. The blog also features a gastronomy site with her recipes (she is a marvelous cook) and another site dealing with her gardening. This is the type of blog which could never be criticized for lacking information on the author. The rest of the sidebar includes links to other blogs (many of them), a photo album, what she’s listening to and reading, recent posts and recent comments.

Then it was time for the archives. I dived right into them (the oldest archive was February 2004). As I read Jo, I felt pretty much at ease. Her writing is precise, intelligent and flows naturally. She discusses issues that range from house decorating to amusing stories on her husband’s hard time with American idioms and expressions. She opens a door into her life and we learn of her plans to travel, her views on work, anecdotes of her marriage, her ancestors, and her opinions on music. Jo is a well-read woman who knows how to deliver. The lengths of her entries vary from very long ones to some that contain barely a few lines. In my opinion, she is usually at her best when she speaks of “husband” (as she so tenderly calls him), her home, family and work life and her thoughts on music. Some of her other posts on random issues such as news, the internet, etc. (which are difficult to describe as they deal with miscellaneous topics) I found to be rather uninteresting when compared to the highlights I mentioned above.

I finished reading her blog with this thought in mind: “What would it be like to be Jo for a day?” I seldom ask myself this question when reading blogs. But Jo has painted a very unique picture of a simple, peaceful life with husband, dog, music and cooking. I give Jo a 4.5. A good, out-of-the-ordinary, well-written blog. If it hadn’t been for the shorter posts, where I sometimes felt lost and/or disappointed, or the fact that I never really did understand the name of her blog, I’d have given her a 5. But 4.5 is really good anyway. If you like intelligent and tenderly amusing blogs, I suggest you give Counting Sheep a try.

Counting Sheep