OK, so the blog isn't 'all-new' exactly. But bits of it are new, honestly. I've changed the design of the site, for instance. What do you think? I haven't quit decided if I like it yet, so I might still change back, but it seems kind of restful, I reckon.
The other thing that's prompted some changes is that while I was having my house-moving semi-sabbatical earlier this year, Typepad (my hosts) introduced the facility to have extra pages on the blog, just like it's a real web site, and I've been scratching my head trying to decide what's the best way to make use of this.
What I've decided, as a starter at least, is to upgrade my various links. So instead of a short list of 'popular posts' in the sidebar, there's now a whole page of links to all my previous posts that are even remotely worth reading (apart from a few that are out of date) with a brief description of each one to help you decide if you want to take a look at it or go back to Google instead. Regular readers will know that I've covered all manner of spirituality, self-development, and just plain bizarre subjects including enlightenment, the law of attraction, living in the moment, Deeksha, the Quantum Light Breath, Eckhart Tolle, Conversations With God, What The Bleep Do We Know?, Richard Dawkins, science & spirituality, how to deal with difficult emotions, web 2.0, moving house, repairing a bed, Halloween, winning a million, and even how to slow down time! So get browsing now and find out what you've been missing...
The other main thing I've done is to upgrade my list of other blogs which you might want to look at. My 'eclectic collection' of links had got a bit long and a bit out of date, and the longer a list like that gets, to be honest, the less user-friendly it becomes. So I've done the same thing with this as I've done with the popular posts. I've taken it out of the sidebar and given it a page (actually two pages) of its own, with a brief description/mini-review of each of the blogs to help you decide if you might want to give them a try.
As spirituality lies at the heart of this blog, I've given spirituality (and self-development) blogs a links page all of their own - with a separate page for the other blogs that I visit. Time has taken its toll, though, and some of the blogs in the original list are no longer being updated. Forgetful God, the Modern Humanist, the Accidental Blogger and even the mighty Battle Rocker no longer seem to be writing, sad to say. Hopefully at least some of them will return to the fold (having taken a well-deserved break) and I can put them back on the list. But with a couple of honorable exceptions which have been quiet for a month or two, all the linked blogs on the new pages are current.
It was often difficult to decide how to categorize the blogs on the list, especially - in some cases - when choosing between spirituality blogs and personal blogs, as some are plainly both. So if your blog is on the list and you'd rather be categorized elsewhere (or indeed described rather better!) then just get in touch and I'm sure we can work something out. Similarly, if your blog has disappeared from the list and you'd really, really like it back on, then just let me know. Like I say, blogs have mainly been left off because they're no longer being updated, but in a few cases they've disappeared because they've changed their nature since I first included them.
I'd like to further develop the list of spirituality (and personal self-development) blogs, so if there's a blog you'd like to see included there (either your own or someone else's) do get in touch and I'll see what I can do.
You can access all these lists from the sidebar - along with an entirely separate project, the Personal Development List, a mega list of personal development blogs which is the brainchild of Priscilla Palmer of Personal Development Demands Success.
I'll also be updating the links to useful web sites and making a few other changes shortly, so watch this space for further developments...
Have I talked enough about my blog for now? I think so.
Your site is looking great!
Thank you for using and linking to The personal List.
Posted by: Priscilla Palmer | September 24, 2007 at 12:56 AM
I think it looks great :)
Posted by: Guilty Secret | September 24, 2007 at 02:38 PM
looking nice and clean.
Posted by: Online Money | September 24, 2007 at 07:20 PM
I like the new look and feel of your site! Great job!
Posted by: Mark | September 25, 2007 at 05:40 PM
Very, very nice job...what a great looking site! And thank you for such a great write up about my blog, Simon...yours is one of my favourite sites, as well.
Sometimes I walk away, after reading one of your posts, and think about it for hours, before I can come up with a comment for it. You're very enlightening!
Posted by: Marion | September 25, 2007 at 07:41 PM
Thank you all for your positive feedback - glad you like the new look! I've decided I like it too, though I'm not so sure about the typeface, so I may still tinker with that...
Marion - Thanks, too, for your encouragement! I too usually like to allow people's comments to simmer in my mind for a while before I respond. It often seems to take some time for the relevant thoughts - and the best words in which to express them - to surface.
I'm not sure how that fits in with 'living in the moment though! I'll have to, er, go and think about that one...
Posted by: Simon | September 26, 2007 at 10:37 PM
Its great to hear you're devising new ways to encourage readers to bolster positive thinking and living. I also like the sound of the Personal Development list sidebar.
Posted by: Liara Covert | September 29, 2007 at 02:06 AM
well i have not seen the earlier one, so I can say how its an improvement but the present one is good. I also recently re did my blog. You can check it and let me know too. I have seen that having a menu bar helps in getting more readers, even for older posts. See if you can work something like that. I have done that to great adavantage.
cheers
vinni
Posted by: Vineet Rajan | September 30, 2007 at 06:44 AM
Hi Liara - Thanks. Yes, I'm trying to make the site as accessible as possible to new readers - and to make people aware of some of the other blogs I like.
Welcome Vinni! - I checked out your blog. It looks great - and it's interesting that the menu bar is effective.
Posted by: Simon | September 30, 2007 at 09:26 PM
Hey Simon!
I really like the color scheme, the light blue is very serene and calming. Maybe my eyes are getting old (I am closing in on 40) but I liked the spacing between the lines on the "Bloggers Against Abuse" post.
The font was a tad big, but it allowed a bit more white space between each sentence. I'm nit-picking right now and I will read you no matter what you do with your line spacing, that's just a suggestion :)
p.s. I like the guide to popular posts! Good job!
cardiogirl, low tops optional
Posted by: cardiogirl | October 06, 2007 at 10:41 AM
Hi Cardiogirl - My eyes are older than yours and they're not too fond of this typeface either! I hope to tweak it shortly. It's a bit complicated, though, because with the bargain basement version of Typepad to which I subscribe, this typeface comes along with the color scheme - I don't have a choice. So if I want to change the typeface, I need to upgrade to a better version of Typepad. (Yes, I should really use WordPress, I guess, but I'm too lazy to work out how to use it...)
Many thanks for the feedback, CG! I'm glad you like the colors.
Posted by: Simon | October 09, 2007 at 12:44 AM