Monday, September 27, 2010

Tech news

I've started a web design course some time ago. Bit too early to say whether I will hate it or love it. However, straight-from-a-class mindset can end up effecting all sorts of discoveries...


If you are an Etsian, you will probably find this one useful. Did you know that sections in your shop actually work as keywords to the main website of your store? So the more sections you have, the bigger your chance of being found in Google? Maybe it's general knowledge, written somewhere in The Rules, although I doubt it. I did not know until today. I found out only because I took a fancy to have a look at HTML version of my store and thanks to my course, I knew what to look for. Who knows, maybe I will be able to publish more smart tech tricks as my classes progress?


I also noticed there is a new 'Stats' section in Blogger. Curiosity killed the cat, but it also allowed me to learn that total visits to this blog as of today count 346. Nothing too impressive, heh? I stay optimistic as I assume it will only get better. But back to my stats - I also found out that my blog is being referred to from a Russian website, or so it would seem after my not-so-specialist analysis. Imagine my confusion when I realised that the above mentioned website is all written in Russian. I can't even READ Russian, much less understand it (although I wish I could), so I have no way of telling if it's all a big accident, or have I some secret Muscovite admirers or someone is slandering me shamelessly certain in knowledge of my ignorance :)


Another surprise I dug out is a visit, not too many days ago, from a reader in Vietnam, who improved my stats by QUITE a few pageviews in one sitting. Well, let's forget PR for a while. I want to confess that according to Blogger stats, this is the first person who actually seemed to sit down and read through my blog instead of simply flying over a post or two (or such is my happy conjecture). Hereby I want to acknowledge this special Vietnamese guest with a big Thank You and my sincerest hope that you enjoyed your reading :)


That's it :) End of tech stories for today. More to follow.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Organised chaos

I felt tempted to write some sort of a philosophical thesis here (might be an afterglow of reading Salman Rushdie's essays - yummy!), getting into heavy ideas and pseudo-intellectual jargon, but - oh, relief! - I managed to stop myself just in time.


I have two reasons for writing this post:


1. Few days ago, browsing Etsy forums and bored to death (ha, if you're reading this as me being bored BY Etsy forums, you're quite right), I stumbled upon a question "Is your workspace neat and organised or messy and chaotic?". It seems that people - which possibly means YOU, reader - are interested enough in the subject, because the thread was +300 posts long (and counting). So let me make this small concession and for once write about something that appears to be interesting to the general public (even for reasons not entirely clear to my humble self...).


2. I've noticed quite extraordinary behavior in myself roughly relating to the subject, and I'm surprised and amazed enough to turn it into a little story.


Let me confess straight away - I'm a messy person. As messy as it gets. I'll spare you the picturesque details, but I have a mess in my apartment, mess in my car, mess in my head, wherever you care to check. Organised chaos, I call it, and I'm happy with it. I'm not happy with people judging me for that, but that's a completely different story.


It's pretty much the same with my crafting. My supplies are stuffed into a big, happy, colourful bag. Their very sight cheers me up, although it includes not a trace of order. I usually have bits of stitching scattered all over the place (and needles, too - one day I'll probably die of something sharp through the heart. Quite dramatic, hah?). Certain pair in my earring collection even travelled with me to a camping trip and partly came into existence on a rocky beach somewhere in Connemara, me sitting on a rolled up camping mat, sunning in front of a freshly pitched tent.


And yet, something strange occurs. My digital files used for building Etsy website are kept in sterile environment. Every file, every single picture is correctly named, every item is placed into its own folder, each in the correct cathegory, etc. Moreover, I experience real discomfort if this is not done STRAIGHT AWAY. If a batch of new pics is not sorted immediately and just sits there on the desktops, I have trouble sleeping. Now, can you explain that???


I can't, but to be frank, I'm not really that bothered.
As Terry Pratchett once said through one of his characters - "Things just happen. What the hell."