Moving to Wordpress…

Auto Bailout – Good Idea?

Tis’ the season.  If you’re a bank, insurance firm, and now car manufacturer, it appears that Uncle Sam has a present for you.  The best part - it doesn’t matter if your naughty or nice – or competent.
Read more

Living in Obama Land

I’ve kind of run into a rut with my posting here at Seeking Above.  So, I’ve started a new blog, Living in Obama Land.  I’m not abandoning Seeking Above, just trying something a little different.

Living in Obama Land is my attempt at “contextualized” blogging evangelism.  What that means is that I’ll be posting from a Christian world view but hopefully on topics that interest those that may have a secular world view.

Check out my first post, Auto Bailout - Good Idea or Bad Idea as well as my What’s this blog about page.

P.S. I’m trying Wordpress on Obama Land.

Wordpress Envy

The grass is always greener, isn’t it? When I first signed up for blog space I went with Blogger.  I didn’t do a lot of research.  My wife was reading blogs from some of her friends in College Station and they were all using Blogger.  Best of all, it was free.

So, I signed up with Blogger and started blogging away.

For whatever reason, I cannot stay satisfied with my blog layout.  I quickly tired of the standard Blogger templates and started trying out various custom templates.  What I have noticed, is that the best customized blogger templates are actually modified Wordpress templates.

After tinkering with various customized, modified for Blogger, Wordpress themes, I thought I should just get a Wordpress account and try it out.  After all, Blogger is ok but Wordpress is for the serious blogger.

What I found out with my new Wordpress account is that just like real life,  the grass is not really greener.  It’s those green envy glasses that make everything else look so green.

Wordpress (the free Wordpress.com version) did have some nice clean and professional looking templates but the variety was not as plentiful as I expected.  However, what really got me is that you can’t just open up your template and modify it however you want.  I’ve spent a lot of time at Blogger Buster and now I’m spoiled.  I have to be able to tweak my template to make it unique.  My current template at Seeking Above is an extremely modified Cool Blue 2.0 template from Blogger Buster.

So, my Wordpress account just sits unused.  I might do something with it someday just to learn it better.  However, I really don’t have time for experimenting right now.

All this said, there is one feature in Wordpress that I truly wish we had available in Blogger.  I really wish we had the static Page feature.  It took me awhile to figure out how to fake this in Blogger by using a back dated post pages.  However, it’s really not the same.

I’d love to have this feature to add additional web pages to my site.  I could set these pages up to be in the same theme as my current blog but look and behave more like a static web page.  Off the top of my head I would replace my “Who Am I” and “Testimony” pages with these static pages.  However, I would also like to build some additional resource pages with widgets and links that I don’t necessarily want on my homepage sidebar.  Maybe I’d start my own customized template download page.

I’m sure there are at least of dozen or more creative uses for these “pages” if only Blogger had them.  I don’t even see it listed as a possible future option on the Blogger Wishlist.  Sometimes the grass still looks greener.

Seeking Above Gets an Award?

Now this is a testimony of faith and perseverance. When you blog just to share your faith, it can be discouraging, wondering if anyone is bothering to read what you have to share. Karen from Karen & Gerard Zemek has been an ongoing source of support and encouragement. I thank her, not only for this award, but for her gracious comments and support in general.

The Arte y Pico award was created and to be given to bloggers who inspire others with their creativity and their talents, also for contributing to the blogging world in whatever medium. When you receive this award it is considered a “special honor”. Once you have received this award, you are to pass it on to 5 others.

“What a great way to show some love and appreciation to your fellow bloggers!!!

The rules for passing this honor on:

1) Pick 5 blogs that you would like to award this honor to.
2) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.
3) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.
4) Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of “Arte y Pico” blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award. http://arteypico.blogspot.com.

Here is my list of recipients:

Hipp is my middle name: OK, this is my wife and I know she really does not want me to give this to her - but I really like her blog. Check it out; you’ll see what I mean.

Truth in Context: Theology 101. Lots of good information if you’re looking for insights on how to get deeper in your scripture study. Alan is preparing to start seminary. It will interesting to see his posts as he takes on the challenges that lie ahead of him.

The Bobo Files: Great conservative political commentary. Definitely a minority perspective in blogland from what I can tell. However, it is a much needed perspective for balance if nothing else.

Investigations and Ruminations: This is not a theology blog. It is just a great blog about daily, real life spiritual issues. I enjoy reading the authors “ruminations” on her daily journey.

Lofty Matters: A blog about important events happening around us, that for the most part go unnoticed in the mainstream. You’ll find interesting posts here about new inventions and world events that you probably won’t find on the nightly news.

Next Page »