As previously stated, I have found a new host for my domain(s).

As time permits, I am going to be moving the domain over there. Right now, the nameservers are still pointing at the old domain location and will be until I get enough of the fan fiction archive up and running to be happy to redirect the site. (That's my big 'un. The archive. Everything else is an easy no-brainer.)

The archive was looking quite daunting to me (OMGWTFBBQ! 88 Stories?! Yikes, and that's still not everything that I've ever written), so I decided to take a different approach:

• Add all the most recent (last 3 years going from newest to oldest) fic first
• Add the popular stories next
• Add the last little bits in last

That plan is not overwhelming and is doable.

Also, for the fandom_isle peeps, when the archive moves, we'll be losing the wiki. If anyone is going to be heartbroken by that, and feels the need to save it for posterity, then I'll be more than happy to do it if you do the research on backing up, exporting and moving a Media Wiki installation from one host to another, and give it to me in plain ol' dumbed down English.

(And now comes the small, quiet plea. Would anyone be willing to skin my new archive for me (it's all a bunch of html code in template files) or at least create a header banner? I'm feeling graphically challenged at the moment.)

My websites that is.

I have found a cheaper webhosting solution than the one I currently have, so I will be relocating my website, which yes, means I will probably actually be updating my sites as well.

But I have a question for those out there in 'net land: I need a good, easily learned and installed solution for managing my writing. Can anyone suggest any scripts/CMS/etc that would be conducive to easily managing writing (preferably that allows for categories).

Also, has anyone ever moved a domain from one webhost to another? I'm mostly concerned about keeping my email online and active.

I rang in the new year in the best way possible. With a butt-kicking, lay me out in bed, drain me of energy, give me a fever, can't keep anything down illness.

I'm still recovering. My energy levels fluctuate, which means I get spurts of energy followed by lows of lethargy.

Anyway, a quick follow up: I received two fic requests. Requests are still open if anyone's interested to keep my creative juices flowing. I'm going to shoot for January 31st to get the requests done. (If I get more than that, I might have to change the date. Next week is looking crazy at work and it isn't going to let up 'til February.)

That is all.

For now.

I've not seen this list for this year, so I hunted it down for myself and decided to post it. As always it makes for enlightening (and sometimes scary) reading.

Background: When they welcome the class of 2011 in the coming weeks, American colleges and universities will be saying hello to the generation born as the Cold War was ending. For them, a Russia with multiple political parties and a China with multiple business enterprises seems quite normal. They’ve grown up in a time of triumphant capitalism, where it’s common for stadiums to be named after corporations and where product placements have always been yet another clever way for companies to sell their wares.

Each August for the past decade, as faculty prepare for the academic year, Beloit College in Wisconsin has released the Beloit College Mindset List. Its 70 items provide a look at the cultural touchstones that have shaped the lives of today’s first-year students, most of them born in 1989. It is the creation of Beloit’s Keefer Professor of the Humanities Tom McBride and Public Affairs Director Ron Nief. Latchkey kids for most of their lives, students entering college this fall think nothing of arriving home with parents still at work, then e-mailing or texting their friends, instantly updating their autobiographies on “Facebook” or “MySpace,” and listening to their iPods while doing their research on Wikipedia. They’ve grown up with Rush Limbaugh urging his fellow Dittoheads to excoriate liberals, with having been taught by an equal number of women and men in the classroom, and with women having been hired as police chiefs of major cities.

Food has always been a health concern. Consumer awareness about ingredients and fats has always been energized. They’ve never “rolled down” a car window, and to them Jack Nicholson is mainly known as the guy who played “The Joker.” As usual, they remind their elders how quickly time has passed. For them Pete Rose has never been in baseball. Abbie Hoffman’s always been dead. Johnny Carson has never been live on TV, and Nelson Mandela has always been free.
As for the Berlin Wall, what’s that?

And now, without further ado, the ( Class of 2011 Mindset ListCollapse )

Not as good as previous years, but there were some "Huh? Wow. I'm old" items on that list.

And because I couldn't resist ...

( Read more...Collapse )

So, I've been wondering about MySpace and I have to ask: Why? I just have trouble wrapping my brain around and seeing any reason for MySpace. Is it a blog? Is it just a loud, tacky webpage where it's "All About Me"? Is it the Teen Scene thing?

I have a MySpace page, but I never use it. I think LJ is more interactive and more social. Maybe I'm just showing my age . . .

Yeah, this is non-coherent rambling but it's an effort for me to keep updating my LJ on a regular basis.

In other news, I did change my layout and I finally updated my profile. Seeing how this LJ is now all about everything I do, from writing to real life, I thought the profile should reflect that.

I got a flu shot this morning (yay-ness!) because I get sick all the time. With anything. And everything. Unfortunately that means that my arm hurts now, but only when I lift it up more than chest high. Yeah, sure tell me not to lift it chest high: I have to move computers this afternoon. My co-worker also got a flu shot. His arm hurts too. I think that watching us move computers and monitors is going to be quite entertaining.

Later, I will upload a picture of The Girl demonstrating her fine belly dance skills.

I'm going live with fikgirl as my main journal. It's paid up until December, at which point I'll probably switch over to march_ides.

I've deleted all my tags and will be recreating my friends groups. And I'll be going back and retagging.

Yay! I love cleaning house ... not.

(Also if you're from the other journal and you have any interest at all in reading my writing, whether it be fanfic (or my "trying to be pro") stuff, comment here and let me know whether it's fannish or pro or both.)

No, this is not one of those paranoid, oh-my-god teh_drama! things. This is because I am tired of maintaining two journals. I'm tired and it's difficult. I'm going to start using this journal for everything and just creating filters and tags for what's posted here. (Yes, I'll also be cleaning up my tags.)

All my former "friends-only" entries will slowly turn to private until I get the new filters set up. It's either this or creating a whole new journal and considering that I actually paid for a year on this one, I'm not too keen on forking out another 25 bucks to create a new journal. (Actually, I did create a new account, march_ides solely for this purpose, but unless there's a way to transfer paid time, I won't be using it any time in the next, say, um, year. Yeah.)

Right then. Just inane babble and rambling, which I'm sure most folks don't care about. But, I wanted to put it out on the table.

ETA: I'm reading about rename tokens. Has anyone used them before? Know anyone who has? Does using one mean that this journal's entries, etc will still be accessible as fikgirl and everything new will be march_ides? I'm having trouble making complete sense of LJ's FAQ.

It's Yet Another Community started by moi. Yeah, just what I need another community to monitor. However, it's not an RP and I don't expect that it'll take up much in the way of time or housekeeping.

And without further ado . . .

I'm sure that there are a few of you on my friends list who remember Forever Tomorrow, the crossover Highlander: The Series/Tomorrow People universe? Well, I've received a few emails of late regarding the status of that project. After some consideration, I've decided that there's just no way I'm going to finish it in my lifetime, but I liked it enough that I don't want to let it die a slow and wasting death.

Thus 4ever_tomorrow was born. It's an open, collaborative writing comm. Anyone who wants to add stories to the universe may do so.

May it live long and prosper. (Oh, sorry, wrong series.)