29th November, 2009
The Day I was Back for Realz This Time
Why, hello you! No, this isn’t a mirage or a sick, sick joke – it really is me, updating and everything! Come on in! How have you been in the zillions of months since we last spoke?
There are loads of reasons I haven’t updated, but none are particularly satisfactory, unfortunately. I suppose the main reason is that I got sick of self-editing; too many real-life people have this URL, and whilst I’ve never been anyone but myself in the confines of this journal, it does make it a tad more difficult to slag someone off when you know they’re probably reading. I also got a bit bummed at the lack of comments, and I’d become aware that my entries weren’t particularly engaging – which potentially explained the former fact, of course. So I took some time off, worked on other stuff whilst, as always, balancing my clients, too. (Work has slowed right down in the last six months or so, but I still have just enough dripping in to keep me ticking up. Just). I also, finally, finished up SHH.com in July which was not only a fucking miracle, but also infinitely satisfying, too.
And then, a few months back, I got an idea for a new layout. It’s so hard to work on something for yourself when you have to design to order (I don’t think it’s just me – lots of other designers seem to say the same thing) so this nugget of an idea took me by surprise, quite honestly. So I mulled it over a bit and half-heartedly opened Photoshop and then, a few weeks later – voila! A brand new look. (Hit the link to reload the theme if you’re still seeing an existing layout, BTW).
So, I’m hoping that the new look inspires me. My last theme had been up for three years – THREE BLOODY YEARS – but, unfortunately for you lot, I really liked it (I still do, actually!), so I wasn’t ever particularly motivated to change it. But the code was aging and there was little scope to include new stuff like Twitter updates etc., so I went back to the drawing board. What you see now is the sum of several months worth of chopping and changing but I’m really pleased with how it’s turned out and am glad that I took my time with it, even if the WP loop utterly kicked my ass for a while there.
It’s not perfect; known issues include a weird footer FUBAR in Opera on OSX (bizarre – usually Opera renders EXACTLY the same as FireFox) and a bizarre header misalignment in IE6. I could get sanctimonious and say that it’s a deprecated browser that was crap to begin with, let alone now in 2009, and insist that people using IE6 should REALLY get with the times and update. But since 40ish% of you guys seems to still be using it, I did go through and hack as best I could to make it legible. So whilst it’s readable, it’s not ideal and I will go back to it with fresh eyes. (And no, I’m not too proud as to refuse help. If any of you wish to take a peek at my CSS and suggest where you think I’m going wrong, please do!). Update 30/11/09: BALLS. There’s a header error in IE7, too, according to my work PC (even though it’s okay on my PC laptop at home – must be due float class and the screen resolution?). Have obviously arsed up some coding somewhere. Anyone got any ideas?? I think I’ve fixed the error now(?). I only have access to IE6 and IE7, the latter of which is stuck at a shitty resolution so may still be telling me all in a-ok when it’s not, but I’ve gone back to the code and think I found and fixed the error. Please let me know if you’re on IE and still having problems!
Otherwise I’ve tested it on FireFox (PC and Mac), Safari (Mac) and IE7 (PC) and I think everything is okay besides a stray code sitting expectantly on my links page that I can’t remove as it has something to do with WP’s auto-listing of links. I don’t have access to IE8 or Chrome (which is still PC only – boo), so please do let me know if you’re having problems viewing on those platforms – just drop me a comment and I’ll try to fix the place up. :) In the meantime, please be patient if things go screwy but do let me know if you think you’ve stumbled across something I missed!
Site aside, I’m doing pretty good. We – and by that, I mean all three of us – have just come back from a long weekend in New York City, which was – as always – thoroughly awesome. I started my MSc last month and while I’m crapping myself and struggling to find the time to do all the reading, I am enjoying my first module. Work is . . . well, work is work, but let’s cover that in a passworded entry another time (there’ll be more passworded entries – I’ve decided it’s the only way I can still write here without stressing about who’s reading it). I’ve shifted almost 40lbs since this time last year, which I’ve managed to do whilst balancing my desire to be thinner at the same time as never fully restricting myself. I don’t go hungry and I’m doing my best to be a little more active and it all seems to be working right now. Keep your fingers crossed I can keep it up! Sam lost his first tooth, and then promptly lost another. He also went through a horrible spell of being picking on in school where I’d never felt as helpless as a mother as I did right then. I think it’s mostly settled now, but it was a shitty time and one I hope never to experience again. Kids are so fucking mean sometimes. But otherwise I still completely love being his Mum and spend all the time we’re apart wishing that we weren’t. Heh. He amazes me every day and I’m so, so proud of the little boy he’s become.
Let’s see – what else? I’ve also picked up a writing gig at aeropause.com, a kick-ass site by gamers for gamers, and I’m loving every second of it. I went to the Eurogamer Expo in London last month and even though I went alone and was gawped at most of the time I was there (thirty-something blonde gals don’t really fix the gamer stereotype) I had a riot. Look out for Bayonetta and Heavy Rain – they rock.
So . . . yeah. I’m back. I’m sorry I disappeared. It wasn’t cool to up and leave like that, I know that I’ll regret this in years to come; my journal has always been about me and for me, and the moment I started worrying about other people was the moment I backed the hell off. I’ll now have five-month gap where I won’t know what happened, and all because I’m a prat. Pft.
Anyway, that’ll do for now. If you think I’ve missed something critical do feel free to drop me a question in the comments and I’ll bring you up to speed!
Posted: November 29, 2009 at 8:06 pm | Comments (15)
24th July, 2009
The Day I Doth Coveted Stuff
Not sure how professionally I’d be taken in the day job, but – seriously – who gives a crap when your business cards look THAT FUCKING COOL?!
Posted: July 24, 2009 at 8:58 am | Comments Off
21st July, 2009
The Day Before The Day After WordCampUK
I don’t think I told you that I headed back to France, did I?
In my defence, the decision was kind of last minute. And, um, impaired by alcohol. On the day we were due to fly home we were all sat outside, drinking wine and lamenting over the less-than-perfect weather, and D decided that we should ditch our return flights and stay on for a couple of days.
I wanted to. Oh Lordy, how I wanted to. The weather had been crap and work had been tiresome and the thought of sitting on their porch for a few more days, listening to the birds and the wind in the trees and venturing from the house only to Bonjour Madame! our way through the supermerches for more du vin… well, tempting wasn’t the word. But work commitments were too great and my annual leave record too bad, so I had to sadly decline.
D was undeterred. D’accord. C’est tout bon. In that case we should book a return journey to stay with them one more time before they moved back to Blighty in August. And so we did.
I’m so glad she talked me into it. Not only did it make the thought of leaving them at the beginning of June more tolerable, it gave us something to look forward to. And yes, in my inebriated state I’d forgotten all about WordCamp UK and all it entailed, but I still don’t regret booking it. Even though it pissed down all weekend – again (just wait till I get the pictures up at Flickr) – we had a blast. I gained 4lbs in seven days thanks to D’s insanely gorgeous home-cookin’, and I couldn’t give a rat’s ass – it was exactly what we needed and a wonderful celebration /au revoir to their life in France. The kids adored and fought with each other in equal measure. G and I had a drunken but glorious discussion about equality and human rights. The men – both big and small – ran around the garden in the pissing rain, collapsing in a giggle fit on the porch when they returned. On a visit to the Pharmacy D had the pharmacist rifle uninvited through her shopping bags and then given a hefty lecture on healthy living and eating. (HA!) And even though the rain and lack of transport for six people meant we were kinda housebound in a small, country cottage, it was impossible to care. With copious wine and great food and wonderful conversation, I honestly can’t imagine having more fun anyplace else or with anyone else. C’est magnifique. :)
Posted: July 21, 2009 at 12:03 pm | Comments Off
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