Crunchy Mustard

The thought of editing comments after one has posted on any of my blogs has never been an issue. There just hasn’t been a convenient feature on WordPress for it yet. However, that’s all changed. Thanks to my good friend, Robbie, I’ve found this nifty “WP Ajax Edit Comments” plugin.

Now, one must beg the question: Should I or shouldn’t I allow the luxury of editing comments after they’ve been posted to my readers? On one hand, ugly typos, bad grammar, and incorrectly referenced links could be removed. On the other side, readers could back down on a view-point after they’ve seen a particular reaction, or change their previous words altogether. Where would I be without the ridiculous flame wars of “WELL YOU CAN’T EVEN SPELL ‘THOUGH’ RIGHT SO THERE!”

What do you think?

There’s a new project over at Successful Blog, and I thought I’d give it a shot. It’s a group writing project and the question is: What’s Your Blogging Metaphor?. Edit: More of a simile, actually.

Blogging has always been a hard thing to explain to the generation before us. “Web 2.0″ and “blogosphere” are things they just don’t know about. Rather than ignore this fact, I’ve come up with the perfect metaphor for blogging.

Blogging is like a county fair. You know… funnel cakes, completions, and all. Everyone gathers around - your family, your neighbors, kids, grand parents, friends. Each person brings something unique - money for amusements, pies to sell, or BBQ equipment to compete with.

All of these different attractions at a fair make up the diverse spectrum of topics in the blogosphere, or the entire “blog world.” Although food dominates at a county fair, Aunt Suzie’s pie represents a gadget review blog while Uncle Tom’s secret BBQ technique represents a fiery political blog.

Aunt Suzie proudly brings her pie to the table. She takes look at every other ladies’ pies (even though she knows hers is the best) and shares recipes, comments on the shape and style of each crust, and new ideas for next year. Think of this small congregation as a blog. Whether its a gadget or a pie, there’s constant review, commenting, and chat going on.

Now Uncle Tom… he’s a little more competitive. You see, he represents the fiery world of political blogs. Uncle Tom knows he’s got the best BBQ recipe, and he’ll fight to prove it. The men gather ’round and openly critique each others’ rigs and styles. No holds barred: review, commentary, and discussion still occur. Although none of the men want to admit it, each of them are learning new techniques, styles, and ideas during this event.

Catch the underlying theme here?

In both of these examples, discussion and feedback are the defining point. This is exactly what a blog represents. The blogosphere represents a world of discussion and commentary… just like your local county fair competitions

So, I am purchasing a new personal domain (lalaladylara.com) and I really want to go with a funky design on this one. I want a design that will stay there. Not something seasonal… I’d really like it to be my branding so the option to just change a few things every so often is there.

Obviously, it makes sense to weave photos into it for a dynamic feel… but I’m really not into displaying my personal life and that sort of thing. Personal flickr displays on my blog just aren’t me. Anyways, here’s what I’ve come up with:

• Candy - lots of web 2.0ish, glassy, shiny, bright colors
• Wild West - a la a bit of this.
• Diner - you know. Classic 50s sort of look.

Obviously I’m going for something on the artistic side here, but I’m afraid that these styles are played out. Perhaps… a Ukrainian dance theme? Hmm…. Come to think of it, I wouldn’t mind sharing those photos of myself. I mean, we wear traditional clothing while the guys do old-world break dancing and we look sexy switching our feet in combinations you can’t even comprehend. All while doing hand stands on our guys’ shoulders…