Category: Uncategorized

Looking at the title of this particular weblog didn’t give me any idea what to expect. But seeing that it was listed under a personal blog, kinda did.

The blog itself loaded up into a basic template, blue background and links on either side of the main entries in the middle of the page.

Ashley, the author is 20, has a little boy and there are quite a few pictures of him throughout the blog as well as pictures of other things like when it snowed, pictures of herself and her partner and pictures from home. Her other entry’s detail private or at least personal happenings within her life, her pregnancy and work.

The author writes well, her paragraphs flow, the only issue I have is the fact that as I’ve stated before, personal blogs just don’t seem to have anything that engages me enough to want me to blogroll or even come back and visit at a later date to see what might have happened since my review.

There was no real “about” page for the author herself, at first glance I couldn’t find the archives. I then figured out that the links going all the way down the page on the right side of the blog were actually the archives listed as the entry titles. The only way I found how to go back within the entry’s is that there was a back 9 link above the main entry’s in the middle of the page. I just think that the layout of the blog could be a bit more user friendly. There is a link to her webpage that shows photos of her trips to Europe.

Maybe it’s just me, but I think the blog could do with a face-lift, a bit more of thought going into the layout so that it is easier to navigate. Apart from that, as a personal blog, it’s just like many other personal blogs out there. I didn’t find any entry that made me laugh, or piked my interest. But then, the author could be writing this for herself and not her audience. Which would explain the highly personal entries and not many other links.

The reason I gave this blog a 1.75 is because of the lack of navigation help, as well as the fact that the way her archives are set out wasn’t very helpful, nor were there any links or about me pages that helped to tell you a quick run down of the author. Plus the fact that I didn’t find the content of the blog to be anything apart from personal replays of days and events that happened to the blogger.

You can always check it out and prove me wrong!
sitdiary The Shadowlands

I thought from the title of the blog the writings might be more spiritual in nature. So I was surprised when the blog was a Malaysian female writing about heat and loneliness. It seemed a mismatch. I was also immediately put off by mispelled words. On the plus side, it’s visually attractive. The blue background really carries the idea this is to be a spiritual website and the sea scene in the header works. It really helps carry the idea of peacefulness. Unfortunately the content doesn’t carry the focus. There is spiritual content, but it’s thin.

The authors voice stands out. It is not an angry voice, but an every day whiney tone. I understand she is having a hard time in her life, and a blog is a way to express her feelings. IMO, the reader must also be considered.

All the above said, this is a unique website that is worth a visit if you are feeling depressed and want to know you are not alone.Messy Christian

Okay. I read the title of the blog and I think, ‘Hmmm. A sisters’ blog. I might be cool. It might be interesting to get to read a blog written by two sisters. Family stories can be funny. I know a lot of mine are. Let’s give it a chance’. Then I read the second line and I go, ‘Hmmm. A Christian blog. Maybe this is not for me after all, since I’m more into “secular” stuff myself’. But hey, I can’t just not read it, right? If I got to choose, I wouldn’t, but this is about a job I have to do. So let’s just do it.

I don’t know if it was me, – and it probably wasn’t just me-, but the whole blog is permeated by this JC-is-everywhere kind of mood. So I kept reading and reading, and, let me tell you, there is a lot of stuff there to read and if you dig their style and if you dig JC, you won’t stop reading. They tell these little facts about their lives and how watching a movie about a car that has a life of its own is fun, but mostly, they talk about their faith and how their lives are guided by it. Not something that is very appealing to me. It’s not appealing at all. But again, if it’s a subject that you take interest in, go for it.

Design-wise, this weblog is hideous. I’m sorry, but it is. The font color doesn’t help with the reading and it gets tiring after some time. I know, you might say it’s green over black and it seems simple and not hideous at all, but check it out and you’ll see what I mean. Everything works okay, though. I tested a lot of the links and they work fine. Also, you can read everything in their archives and they’ve got quite a lot of history there.

Now, you can read a lot about Sue and Katie. And not only their blogger profile, but also their wish lists and another profile they’ve come up with by themselves with the basic ‘likes & dislikes’ and other things. There are links to interviews and oh, I could go on and on. Although there’s lots of info on them, there’s not much more you can read apart from the posts themselves. And they are long. And sometimes, I’m sorry again, they are boring. Because, really, it’s not very interesting to read about someone retelling jokes or how this couple was mad for not being able to pay for whatever it was with a check. Not to mention the religious content of it, about which I’m abstaining from commenting, so I don’t seem disrespectful. And here, dear Editor, you can totally delete this last sentence (which I believe is more of a rant than anything else).

So, no. Not a good blog. Not interesting and the design is, hmm, bad. I know I won’t check it any time soon.
Sisters’ Weblog: It Bloggles the Mind!

I had no sense of what “What doesn’t kill you…” would be about, but the current post plunges the reader into some general ramblings. The next post on the page is rather more personal and is part of a longer story line about the writer’s current sex partner/love interest. The details are explicit, the tone is engaging and after just a few minutes, I was hooked.

The writing style is relaxed and personal. WDKY’s personality shows through his writing. He is a divorced 45-year-old man with a couple of kids living outside of London. He is frank and expresses himself clearly. The blog is his personal story. He occasionally comments on blogging in general and points readers to sites he enjoys, but the interest here is in the serial novel that is his life. I have a particular fondness for this type of blogging (it’s essentially what I do, minus the sex) and I was drawn to WDKY’s story. His enjoyment and discussion of blogging is refreshing.

Apparently, while the site has only been used regularly for a little less than two months, it has gone through a few redesigns. I’m not particularly fond of the current design. I’m not sure what the skyline at the top of the page has to do with the content of the site. Also, I don’t like white type on a black background; I find it harder to read than black text on a light background. The author has included a tag board on the sidebar and a few links and badges, but there is nothing remarkable here. However, the design is not the reason to visit this site. The reason to visit the site is the content, which is excellent.

For great storytelling and clear, interesting writing, this is a fine blog. There is a lot of writing about sex, but it’s not a sex blog. It’s about the author’s personal life and his thoughts on dating and the world in general. If you like personal blogs, I highly recommend it.NULL

When I first arrived at this blog, my thoughts were that it was just your average Blogger blog, but… with a deviously ingenious layout? And links that actually have a point? OK, so this isn’t just your average blog, and you can tell right away.

Let’s take a moment to think about the layout. As I said, it’s somewhat devious, but ingenious. Why? Well, it’s not your basic, everyday, run-of-the-mill Blogger template, and I love that. It’s got a dark edge to it, but it’s bright enough to not make me want to dye my hair black. Goth templates aren’t cool, no matter what anyone’s told you.

Then we get to the writing… while the lack of capitalization struck me as odd at first (I’m a stickler for spelling and grammar), it didn’t detract that much from the posts. The writing is quite intelligent, and much above the average blogger out there. There are some cuss words, which I don’t entirely agree with but also don’t entirely object to. It’s definitely not a blog for the timid.

The links and other whatnots we have are actually relevant… big plus there. There are links to the author’s favorite games, webcomics, other blogs, and various 80×15 banners that you could click to give referral points. Everything just fits so nicely together.

In the end, I loved this blog and have just now added it to the link bar on my own blog. It’s definitely worth checking out, so long as you aren’t easily offended by swear words. That’s the only thing that I didn’t find absolutely great about this site, in fact, and that’s not nearly enough to keep me from going in the future.NULL