Category: blogs

Force

I’ve gotten several requests as of late to do different memes for blogging. I usually ignore such things. I’m not being rude or insensitive, I just don’t like forcing myself to blog. If you have to force yourself, it quickly becomes a chore instead of being fun. My time has been limited as of late but I still find time now and then to post stuff…like now! lol

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And speaking of legs (from my last post), I’m off to a good start. I did legs  again a few days ago and I’m pushing 360 [1]4-45lb weights on each side on the sled press, which is more than I expected I’d be doing. Last time I did’em with Apple guy I was able to finish, but just barely. This time around I was able to push out all three sets and not feel like I’d over done it.

Lunges were a different story. I tried to do 3 sets of 10 carrying a 25lb weight on each side. I got 2 full sets and only 3 of the 3rd set before I had to give up. My poor glutes were like, “oh hell no!”  I guess the booty needs some work.

Last but not least are my regular squats. They were abysmal. *sigh* I can only do 45 on each side.  This was mostly because of my lower back. I clearly need to work on my core muscle group a bit more. I will say I didn’t notice the tightness that I have become accustomed to with my lower back. I was in a pretty severe vehicle accident when I was living in Colorado back in ‘95. I’ve had issues with my lower back ever since. [2]As my chiropractor can attest. Ever since then, I’ve always had a lingering tightness that signals a weakness in the region and I’m always super scurred of messing it up again. I’m hoping this means either its gone or I’ve just managed to strengthen it enough its no longer an issue. Only time will tell I guess but I’m a bit optimistic.

References

References
↑1 4-45lb weights on each side
↑2 As my chiropractor can attest.

Sa-kur-atee!

I’ve noticed a huge upswing in attempts to crack the admin account for my blog lately. Way more than usual. Its no secret I monitor my log-in records. Its an easy way to spot people up to no good. I use a legacy hack from an old version of WP. It records your key strokes at log-in, your IP, how many times you fail to log in, etc. If I notice someone with too may attempts they get a friendly email (if I recognize them) or their IP blocked (If I don’t).

I can’t help but wonder if my last post might have spurred them on. hehehe  I keep a pretty good password on my admin account already. Plus, you only get 5 tries before the system blocks you anyway. [1]courtesy of a little plugin called User Locker  If you can crack it in 5 or less tries, I probably deserve to be hacked.

As an extra precaution, I switched over to a different user account. You probably won’t notice anything different on your end. I figured one extra layer of protection wouldn’t hurt. The administrator account with WordPress comes with a default administrator account and you can’t delete it. That said, there is no reason you have to use it either. You can simply set the password to something incredibly complex and create your own account with admin privileges. Tip: If you use the same plugin mentioned above (or a similar one), incorrectly log into your default admin account until it locks up. Now its permanently locked until you reset your password by email or change it from your newer admin account. Most savvy bloggers do this already. [2]Or they should!  I confess after I switched over to my new database last year I never got around to it. I know, BAD MOBY! lol

References

References
↑1 courtesy of a little plugin called User Locker
↑2 Or they should!

Deleted II

I deleted over 100 user accounts from my blog today. Most were sp*mmers. On the odd chance I deleted a legitimate account in error, you can just re-register. I only block IP’s for known baddies. This is becoming a chore so if things continue on this vein, I’ll have to remove the 3rd-party log-in plugin. I had to adjust the security controls in wordpress for it work properly and now I’m getting a weekly hit of fake accounts.

I’m also taking suggestions/recommendations for a new sp*m blocker plug-in. My beloved SK2 is no longer supported. Its held up for over a year of newer and newer versions of WP with no problems but lately, cracks are showing. The WP code is changing so much I think its time to move on. I have akismet loaded but no running.  I’ve read good reviews but I’d love to find another plug-in as good or better than SK2. Suggestions?

Blog On

Durban Bud and I were lamenting the loss of talents in the blog world the other day while he was here. And its true, many of my favorite reads over the years have given up blogging. Some have made the transition to FB [1]I’m becoming increasingly annoyed with Facebook, twitter, etc, while others just stopped. And while I’ll admit even I have cut back, the blogging bug still bites me on a regular basis. On the upside, some folks have continued to blog away. [2]Now, if I can just get them to update their damn blogs to be mobile compatible!  Others have even increased. I (think) I recently mentioned I deleted my old blogroll by mistake. I happened upon an archived copy last night and was dismayed at the number of blogs on my list that had stopped updating and/or were gone.

My blog has always been about my own personal growth (or lack thereof at times) and continues to be so, for the most part. But I have cut back primarily because I have worked thru so many of my issues over the years, frankly I don’t have that many left. lolol  Its no secret I often used my blog as a form of self-therapy. Well I’m happy to say it worked. Don’t get me wrong, I still have my issues but I am not the mess I was when I first moved to SF. heehee 

My writings (and sharing it with others) gave me a chance to really explore not only who I was but who I wanted to be. It gave me a chance to be introspective, a trait I lacked at the time. I guess it was only a matter of time before things changed. While DB and I were talking, I was shocked to realize how long I have been blogging. It was August 15th 2004 when I sat down and wrote my first post! The ex and I were starting to have problems and I needed somewhere to vent. I’d heard about blogging and thought, ‘why not?’

Nowadays, I find I have less time and less drama to blog about. Plus, with a new man in my life and a much busier work schedule, it is harder and harder to sit down and really write stuff out. I’ll often think of stuff to blather on about but by the time I find time to actually type, I’ve moved on (or its gone stale in my mind). I still write in my daily journals but that is so tedious. I keep those private as they are so mundane, what’s the point?

Anyway, I’m sure I’ll continue blogging because I always have something to say. (I know, color you surprised right?) But, as I age and move on with my life I’m a little saddened that it probably won’t ever have the focus it once did. Or at the very least, not for the reasons I originally started blogging anyway. Hope springs eternal…

References

References
↑1 I’m becoming increasingly annoyed with Facebook
↑2 Now, if I can just get them to update their damn blogs to be mobile compatible!

Real

I can add one more blogger to my list of “real people”. lol I met the famous Durban Bud today for lunch. Him and his PILLS [1]Partner in life love & sodomy are in town and we conversed over sushi after 4 years of being blog buddies. (That sounds almost dirty. lol)

He was definitely taller than brettcajun for sure. :)~ He was also a very nice guy, easy to talk too, and an all around cool bud to have. We talked mostly about bloggers, our pasts, etc. HIs PILLS is a non blogger but we did our best to include him. hehehe We talked a lot about the changes to the blogosphere since the arrival of twitter, Facebook, etc on the social networking scene. I was really excited to finally meet him and I hope I didn’t talk too much. Lawd knows I tend to blather on at times.

Anyway, there are only a handful of folks left on my list of bloggers I’d like to meet.

References

References
↑1 Partner in life love & sodomy

Rant

Considering more and more people are consuming their news, blogs, etc on the go these days, I am irritated at the lack of sites that still haven’t upgraded their sites to include a mobile version.

And considering most platforms already include free templates, not switching is just laziness.

Upgrade your damn sites already!

We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming. . .

/rant

Direction

I’ve been weaning myself off Facebook and twitter as of late. Its just too time-consuming. And frankly, the energy invested is almost never returned. lol   If it wasn’t for my moto group, I think I would abandon FB all together. Filtering, while still possible, is way more complicated than it used to be and trying to sort thru the lists of people just gets old after awhile.

Access to social aspects is great but the onslaught of “friends” is often too much and/or eventually waters down the entire experience. I’m leaning toward leaving parts of my profile, normally restricted, open and just weeding down my friend list to people I actually interact with on a regular basis. This way people who are just dying to know what I’m up to can. Ok seriously though, I’m not a celebrity or social icon. One really doesn’t need thousands of friends that never interact w/you but feel slighted the moment you remove them. Seriously. It all becomes very high school-ish after awhile. Apple guy de-activated his account completely the other day.

Even my blogging has suffered. I still have plenty to say but my free time is limited and I have to pick and choose where I waste it. heehee  As often happens, by the time I actually get time to sit down and blog, I’ve already moved on to other topic or forgotten the topic I wanted to blather on about.

Shifting my priorities away from FB and twitter will give me more time to ramble incessantly on my blog anyway. This way I can feel validated and still get my online time in. [1]Yes, I’m being sarcastic here. duh!

References

References
↑1 Yes, I’m being sarcastic here. duh!

Deleted

I made a booboo and deleted my RSS feeds today. I was cleaning out some directories and got click happy. Naturally, I cleaned the recycle folder before I realized what I’d done.  ooops!

Oh well, I’d been thinking of starting over anyway. I guess it was a sign to start sooner than later. lol  Many of my old favorites have gone by the wayside anway. I guess with Facebook, twitter, etc it was bound to happen. This just gives me a good impetus to start fresh. But, this time it I’m sticking to blogs I actually read on a consistent basis. I got far too click-happy previously and added way too many over the years. This also gives me a good excuse to go blog hopping [1]randomly clicking from blogroll to blogroll, finding blogs you like again. Something I haven’t done in a very long time. hehehe

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Speaking of, I still use twitter more than Facebook but both are loosing their appeal to me. Its fine when you have a few friends but after a few hundred, it becomes cumbersome and a pain in the butt. I don’t know how people with thousands of “friends” do it. [2]Well, I do but that’s another story. lol  Seriously, there is no way you can interact on a consistent basis with that many people. Hell, I don’t even interact w/half my list as it is.

References

References
↑1 randomly clicking from blogroll to blogroll, finding blogs you like
↑2 Well, I do but that’s another story. lol

Click, Click

I got a mild complaint the other day. Someone asked why I no longer have a blogroll listed on my blog. I guess they felt slighted because they link to my blog and I don’t reciprocate. [1]A link they have since deleted. Uh…bitter much?  Well, the answer is simple. It got to be too much to handle/manage. I still follow almost 200 blogs. Tie that in with Facebook and twitter its a lot to manage on a daily basis.

And for the record, I still have a blogroll. I just follow it via RSS feeds. Its easier and faster than trying to click thru from my blog. I know that defeats the purpose of all the bells and whistles you see on most blogs (including mine), but I just don’t have the time these days. I surf purely out of personal enjoyment on my free time. I also don’t comment on many blogs as much anymore as I do most of my surfing on my phone. Since only a handful have updated their blog for mobile devices, its either impossible or complicated to try and leave a comment.

I may or may not bring my own blogroll back in the future. As universal log-ins take hold and the integration of social media continues, I’m sure new easier methods of link management will arise. Hell, it may become moot as everything becomes much more interconnected. twitter, Google, and Facebook are fighting tooth and nail to capture users via universal log-ins. I’m sure eventually you’ll have just one large integrated feed that gets auto-updated continuously so all you have to do is log-in and view it.

References

References
↑1 A link they have since deleted. Uh…bitter much?

Read/Write

While I don’t blog as much as I used to, I’m always tickled when people I know ‘come out’ about reading my blog. I’ve had 2 coworkers and 2 friends fess up this week. Why they felt it was a secret is beyond me. My blog is and has always been public. While I do sometimes hide my more personal thoughts, [1]even most of those get shared usually its perfectly easy to find me. That said, I’ve made a few changes as of late. Some out of necessity and others out of convenience.

I’ve always made it a point not to use my real name online. [2]Considering only a handful of people actually call me by my real name its kind of a moot point in my mind.  When searching, I realize it presents some challenges if that is your only frame of reference. But, if that is your only frame of reference then you probably don’t know me that well anyway. Right?  Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with people knowing my real name, I just decided a long time ago it was prudent not to use it in a medium rife with the potential for abuse i.e. the internet. So far, it has served me pretty well.

On the flip side, for a long time my personal and work worlds almost never mixed. As time has passed, that has changed quite a bit. Many of my coworkers often read my blog and share their insights with me in person. Knowing me in person, they are rarely surprised by what they read. lol That said, there are some things they just wouldn’t understand. I used to spend a lot of time and effort managing “restricted” content on the old archive. It was very time consuming to say the least. I finally got tired of messing with it and just made it all private. Time will tell if I ever bring it back. I’m sure as the use of universal log-ins become the norm, there will be newer and easier ways to manage users but for now you do not need to log-in when you visit le ole blog. It still helps w/commenting but content-wise everything is pretty much the same.

References

References
↑1 even most of those get shared usually
↑2 Considering only a handful of people actually call me by my real name its kind of a moot point in my mind.