Facelift

I started this blog in 2005. Four years of the same look probably cries out for a redesign.

I've been learning a little about user-experience-oriented web design, and thought I'd try a more crisp look. The banner is still a bit large, but I'm good with that. I don't think the white background is too hard on the eyes, since the entire page isn't a blinding white. Instead of a black page background, I went with a dark gray to tone down the white a bit (less contrast). The dark gray, blue, white, and black color scheme seems to work.

I'm happy with it. (Though that doesn't mean I won't tweak the hell out of it.)

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B&N Fail

Really?  They didn't! 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  

Oh, and I think at work I may request my own office.

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Cool Site: The Art of Nonconformity

Chris Guillebeau (no, I'm not quite sure how to pronounce it) is a new name to me. I happened to stumble upon it through an article on Seth Goddin's blog. I clicked the link, and ... wow!

This is a great site. I mean, come on, how can I (of all people) not get the excited-fuzzies from seeing a PDF entitled "A Brief Guide to World Domination"?

So far, Guillebeau's site is impressive. Ultimately, his message is to find a way to follow your passion and milk the most out of life. Don't let the world dictate to you how you will live. Your destiny is just that: yours. It's time to take it back with your own hands.

Or something like that.

I haven't spent a whole lot of time on it, though that will surely change. Not surprisingly, the "nonconformist" writings appeal to me most. He has a great article on "The Anarchist Professor." Someone needs to tell the stories of those who do things "differently." They help us go claim a new perspective on on standards that we simply take for granted.

The Art of Nonconformity inspires me. Perhaps some day I, too, shall have such a cool site.

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Baptism Liturgy

It's Easter. Traditionally, this has been a day for baptisms. As Christ is risen, so too are we risen with him. It's a significant day in the life of the church and in the lives of many individuals who symbolically express/experience their participation in the Divine Reality.

I've recently been reading Nancy Chandler Pittman's Christian Wicca: The Trinitarian Tradition. She offers a wonderful portion of a baptismal liturgy.

From Sinner to Saint, From Darkness into the Light
You are baptized into the Waters of Life
To be submerged once again into the Mother of All the Living
To Rise and Be Reborn to this World
To Walk in the Newness of Life
You are baptized in the name of
The Father, the Mother, and the Blessed Son, Jesus Christ
Through The Divine, all things are possible
Arise to be a living Testament for Their Namesakes. (p.63)

As I came across this passage this morning, its beauty struck me. Indeed, it takes me back to the day of my own baptism.

It's a good day!

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PTO

I'm taking some paid time off Wednesday and Thursday. It's going to be nice to wind down with a 4-day weekend. It's amazing how quickly the time fills up. It's Tuesday, and already I have a million things that I want to fit in.

~Work on RPG
~Play EVE
~Read a friend's story
~Read some theological texts
~Read about emerging systems
~Sketch
~Play with Annabelle
~Try to finish watching Millenium
~Cook corned beef and cabbage
~Visit friends
~Post a blog or 2 on ECF-Net
~Clean the appartment
~Do laundry
~Slowly go through my Revenge of the Sith art book.

It's almost exhausging looking at the list. I may need to go back into work to catch a break.

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