I think popularity with blogs is commensurate with amount of comment spam. As of late, I’ve had quite a bit of comment spam. It builds up during my long periods of being away, then when I finally return I just empty it out in one feel swoop. I think hooking my blog up with the Akismet plugin is in order this weekend.
Other than working a lot, my 17 month anniversary with Jackie, the government jackin’ me for $1500 in taxes, and not updating this blog — only a few things have been going on that are noteworthy:
I have to be purposefully vague with this in case certain people read this blog, but I’ve set the wheels in motion for making money on a one-time effort that could prove to be quite fruitful. We’re talking one-time payments for services that range from $500 to $5000. Those are pretty substantial chunks of change and not something I would mind making, even if it was just once or twice a month. On a related note, I’ll be redesigning four pretty huge sites in my life: this one, dark driving, B7M (I’ll be vague on this one for the time being), and IntuitSolutions.
Where I used to be stressed about designs for these majors in my life. I’m going to sit down and just do whatever comes naturally for me. If that means that Greater Satellites is a black site with white text and no images, so be it. At least it’s done for the time being and I can expand upon it later. I’ve come to realize, more and more, that content is king, and it’s time I get some bangin content in my corner.
On a semi-related note, I’m thinking about starting a blog solely dedicated to reviewing all the horror movies I’ve ever watched. I talked to a few people here at work and everyone seems to be crazily on board, so there might be more on that soon. Should be pretty cool.
Finally, my five point plan for taking back the web and interacting with others who might like what I have to offer:
Assuming everything pans out, I should have all sorts of interesting contacts across the interwebs in no time flat. Next task: seeing the light of day!
Despite the news of a delay in the release of my favorite CMS, I’ve officially finished an Andrew-branded version of Greater Satellites. It’s nothing too flashy or fancy, but rather simple and quite elegant (in my humble opinion). I’m going to code out a static version of it shortly and try to have the start date coincide with the release of Wordpress 2.5, which will hopefully have an improved, bug-free template system.
Get ready.
The following post was completed inspired by the following website: http://www.pinkfloyd.co.uk/obtw/
Now, my love of Pink Floyd has nothing to do with this website. For a site running entirely in Flash, it’s a great effort and a design that matches up completely with the band as I understand them. It does look like total ass in Firefox for me currently, but I first saw and was able to appreciate it at home in Safari.
I see a lot of “design is…” wallpapers cropping up on the interwebs lately and I think they are, much like Ron Burgundy, the balls. I have my own hat I’d like to throw into this ring, however, only it’s in the form of words and not so much a clever wallpaper… Would it be cool to have a thousand word essay in wallpaper format? Hmmm…
I digress.
Design is about making what the visitors sees relevant to the subject. If that Pink Floyd site above was just a black background with the signature spectrum somehow implemented, a long track list with images of each album cover in a list format, I would not be as impressed because it pales in comparison to the creativity of the band. Instead, the site is relative to the subject (in this case, Pink Floyd) and embodies a level of creativity shared on par with the music it is representing. The subtle visuals, including of music (which I normally hate), and the presentation really stand out… Much like the music of Pink Floyd.
The reason Greater Satellites hasn’t had a design in, oh - I don’t know, a year now is because I’m not sure how to relate what I see to my visitors. I don’t need to be flashy, but I have a personal like of shininess and reflections on websites. I don’t have to include anything about space, but I personally enjoy it and would like to incorporate it in a tasteful way.
After some experimenting, testing certain elements with friends and family, I’m sure I’ll find the perfect mix of a design that will both showcase my talents and be relevant to my visitors. Until then… Just keep waiting. I guarantee* it won’t take another year.
* - This is not a guarantee
So after a two year battle with a former hosting company who will remain nameless (not like many people who read this are anxious to hop on board a new hosting company anyways), I’ve finally begun the process of getting my second domain name ever back: darkdriving.com
This is pretty big for me because for all intents and purposes, and as far as the government is concerned, dark driving LLC still exists. We don’t really do too much work anymore (none that I know of, at least), but our website being down for about three years may have had some impact on that. With a bit of luck, the transfer will go smoothly, I can sign up with a new hosting company, and get at least the original website back up and running and maybe generate some leads by doing some of the natural SEO optimization I’ve learned from my current job.
Let me make a long story short:
This former hosting company emailed me an invoice yesterday for a years worth of services (which weren’t active on the domain) and said I owed somewhere in the neighborhood of $180. After immediately getting pissed off, I wrote the following email in response (as calmly as I could):
To Whom It May Concern:
I have not used nor had access to your services for over three years. I’ve sent multiple emails to ***** ***** (the technical contact on the domain) in attempts to have my domain, darkdriving.com, transferred back into my possession with no luck. I’ve since purchased a new domain and am affiliated with a hosting company that meets my expectations and often times exceeds them. I’m writing to tell you that I will not be paying the balance you claim is due for two domain names that have in the past and currently point to absolutely nothing. If you’re willing to negotiate the transfer of darkdriving.com to me (that is to say unlock it and allow me to transfer it into my own domain control panel), then I would be willing to hear an offer. As for the balance that is due (9 days before I receive this email, nonetheless), I reiterate that I will not be paying it and should you charge the card you may still have on file, I will pursue legal action.
Regards,
Andrew Gormley
I left it at that, expecting to hear no response whatsoever until this little gem came thru:
Hi Andrew, I’m sorry to report that I have not received any of your prior requests. The domains on file have been unlocked, I’m sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
The invoice is to continue services on your domains. If you’d like to keep domain and hosting with ********, log in and pay your bill. If not, just let me know and I will cancel your account.
There is nothing further preventing you from transfering your domain. I’ve switched the contact information over to Edward Gormley. You would just need to make sure the email address on file confirms the transfer- Edward Gormley (********@msn.com)
“Sweet!” I thought. I just canceled this broke ass hosting company’s charges and I can get my domain back. The one hitch, however, was that my dad hasn’t had MSN since the domain was originally purchased (circa 2003-2004). I called him, left a message and waited patiently. He called me back shortly thereafter and confirmed that yes, he was able to get the email and would go thru the transfer process. Scrumptulescent. He also mentioned that there was someone else who wrote him earlier this week in an attempt to purchase the domain (bastardos!). Good looking out, pops.
Now I’m just waiting for the verification process to clear and then we’ll go from there. Props to my former hosting company for not being dicks and charging me a transfer fee and to dad for not selling the domain to someone else. Dark Driving is back!
I just noticed that Wordpress looks really different on a PC than on a Mac. I kind of like the aesthetics on the Mac better, but I have a strong bias.
Anyway, here I am blogging at work. I think I may do this at least once a day. I work really hard in burst mode to get a lot done so I can relax and double check my work to make sure it’s accurate and well-done. In my free time, perhaps even on the old lunch break I’ll take a moment to reflect on my day thus far.
A semi-sad realization dropped on me recently like a Mack truck: working in a job like mine (doing design, coding, etc) is creatively draining, whereas other jobs I’ve held (office work, appraising houses, etc) are creatively restrictive. I’ve basically found the amount of design-centric work I do outside of this job has dropped to practically nothing unless I have an extreme desire to accomplish a set task (example: last night getting this blog set up, wrapping up the design of the new site). I’m going to try my very hardest to get everything all together and find a balance. I admire people who have a great balance in their lives.
Can I also say, as a total aside, that the new Camaro design is probably one of the most bangin things I’ve ever seen. I hope they take that out of concept and make it a reality. I would totally spring for one (if I had a spare 30-40 grand laying around).
Well, it looks like it’s back to work time for Andrew…. ::yawn::
Well, after a lot of saving, spending, saving some more, paying bills, saving yet some more, and ultimately having money stashed aside. I’ve started the process of getting my web site up and running. I’ve purchased two domain names (with a possible third on the way), signed up with a very decent (and affordable) hosting company, and got started on some possible designs. Here’s how I’m hoping things go down in the next month:
There are probably a few more steps that I’m missing, but those are definitely some short-term, doable goals. The next time I check in… it’ll be on a new domain name. YAY!
So little to say and so much time… Here goes something….
My name is Andrew to everyone who knows me and nothing to the people who don’t. I rarely feel inclined to write about myself and this small text blurb is no exception. I’m a film maker, of sorts. A designer, of sorts. A musician, of sorts. A photographer, of sorts. An armada of etceteras march behind these four generals.
The point I’m trying to make is that I enjoy art in all of it’s forms, and try my best to creatively express myself in every medium I take a liking towards. As always, things like life get in the way of being a non-stop idea factory, but that life is something that I’m thoroughly enjoying at the moment.
It consists of my beautiful girlfriend who I am very much in love with, a job that pays me well to do work that I would otherwise be doing for free, and a family and friends that I wouldn’t trade the world for. It’s safe to assume that I’m walking on air/over water/atop mountain peaks (pick one… hell, pick all three).