Friday, May 9, 2008


New blog design debut: Thanks, Carrie!

As old timers can't help but notice, my friend Carrie after reading my post on "Commonplace Books & Uncommon Blogs" earlier this week offered her coding expertise and redesigned my blog today, as a surprise! Now, my often rambling entries will take up less space, as they can be read in full with a click after their opening sections. Also, the look of this layout also enhances the lusher possibilities compared to the plainer Blogger template for aesthetic pleasure, no small aim of mine despite my own limitations on this blog. I appreciate her assistance in overcoming my own ignorance.

Skimming rightways, you can also find my Amazon reviews are now linked directly, along with my Listmania for Irish language learning and my So You Want to Learn Welsh recommendations. That site's favorites in books, music, films, and victuals also keep rank. Now, you have no excuse for not hopping over to Amazon to rate my reviews, too!

The "California Impressionist" design she aimed for in the desert photo and graphics works nicely against the subtler green contrast. This evokes the themes of my blog that roam between daily realities of life endured in The Golden (if often more barren where I live in one corner) State and the literary alternatives and cultural counterparts six thousand miles away in the Hibernian isle. I tweaked a few shades to sharpen the links and fonts. If only we could use more fonts, alas.

Image: Placentia's not far from our designer's hometown! No orchards now, although a good Mexican restaurant near the tracks and the old packing house site.Shamrock Label, 1940s

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

You're quite welcome, John, I had fun doing it. I hope you like it!!
xoxo