However, though I’m not as prolific as I once was, to say the least, I haven’t given it up (even if my Twitter stream does get more attention) and I don’t foresee doing so any time soon. As I said last year, it’s just what I do.

Now, if only I had the time or motivation to do it more often…

Anywho, you can hook yourself up with the Uberfeed right here.

PS: If anyone knows why the Macrolog feed isn’t presently filtering into the Uberfeed, feel free to tell me (my e-mail is on the Colophon page).

I’d like to think that my missing such a milestone is a mark of how this site has blended into the narrative of my life in such a way that it’s no longer something distinct from me as a person any more; it’s not merely something I do, but something I am — or at least describes what I am, what I have been, and what I want to be. In a less intellectually-bullshitty manner, it’s nothing special anymore — it’s just what I do.

Maybe in another five years I’ll think differently. But even in saying that I know that something has changed, because I don’t really doubt that there will be another five years to come. It doesn’t bear thinking about. It goes without saying. It’s just what I do.

Right now? Plans are being made, bags are being packed and loose ends tied up before my long-awaited return to South Africa. T minus 12 days and counting. You better believe I’m counting.

In the meantime, happy 31o8 Day.

In a sense, we’re going back to the future. Blogs are starting to take on more of a “personal homepage” feel — a collection of media, writing, lists, reviews, events, geography, etc. In other words, we’re introducing structured data into what was previously just a text-based form.

That idea inspired me, and really got me thinking about what I want from my own website, and what I want to use it for. I asked myself: Do I just want a blog with other bits tacked on? Or do I want a site for and about me, a hub to collect and store all kinds of information relevant to and for me (events in my life and my thoughts on the world; links to other sites that interest me; what I’m reading/watching/listening to)? The site as it was is best described as the former; what I wanted was the latter. But how to get from one to the other?

Content-wise, earlier versions of this site have varied in focus, the content models always shifting in emphasis. I did previously make a few attempts to bring a kind of balance between the three main elements of my site — the longer blog entries, the shorter links, and the non-blog content. But whether it was due to my own web design limitations or whatever, nothing quite worked out exactly the way I wanted, my enthusiasm would swiftly dwindle, and I’d get itchy to change after a few months, or even weeks.

The design this current one replaces is a good case in point: it was a fresh, bold move to go with something that broke away from the typical/classic ‘weblog’ look, and it was perfect for the shorter links. But it was impersonal and anonymous despite its bold appearance; the deemphasising of the main weblog was a mistake in hindsight; the rest of the site, too, suffered from the restrictions that came with the design; and the whole thing quickly became a nightmare to maintain technically.

Addressing The Issues

So a clean sweep was deemed necessary. I had to decide exactly what I wanted from the site — both as it is right now, and where I’d like to take it in the future. From that, I had to choose a layout that would best suit the site’s main constituent elements, without being tailored towards one and jerryrigged to fit the others. And from there, my goal was to produce a design that kept things simple from a coding perspective, and visually neutral to benefit the content (but no so bland that it would disappear into the web ether).

Improvements

The end result of the above decisions is what you now see before you. At the very least, it’s a start along the path I want this site to follow.

The spare layout was influenced by print design, and by clean, modern websites — like Khoi Vinh’s Subtraction — that don’t sacrifice utility for their appearance. The last thing I wanted to do was over-design the site like I’ve done in the past; my intention is for the content to come first.

The front page is now a three-column portal to my aggregated self: the tumble-esque links on the left, signifying their importance; the longer entries in the centre, the bedrock of the site; and my media consumpuion/status information/everything else on the right, an area left open for more aggregated information or detail to be added in the future.

Beyond the front page, meanwhile, the first two columns merge to create a basic two-column-with-sidebar layout that can be used for any purpose, and brings a much more harmonious uniformity to the site. Only a few subtle changes, for instance, separate my list of recently read books from my collection of photos.

And regarding the code, I’ve tried to minimise my use of divs for positioning page elements, as well as keep down the number of classes for styling the text; the result is a streamlined site that should load a lot faster, with a new stylesheet that’s something like 33% smaller than the last. It only took me a week to produce from concept to finished article, too.

Other Notes

• The layout grid as it is has been aligned in blocks of 25 pixels using Smiley Cat’s very helpful background image grid. I may in future decide to realign the layout to a stricter grid a la Mark Boulton’s five simple steps to designing grid systems, which would only require a few minor tweaks to the CSS file, but there’s no rush.

• The icon in the masthead image (and favicon, if you can see it) comes from AIGA’s set of passenger/pedestrian infographic symbols which was recently made freely available on the web, and is admittedly an influence on the new look. I’ve created a few of masthead images like the one above using various icons from AIGA’s collection, which I will be swapping around as and when I see fit — and since they’re technically div backgrounds declared by the stylesheet, I only need to change one line of code each time and I’m good to go.

• I’m still playing around with the format of the monthly/category archive listings for the Macrolog and Microlog, to see if I can make them more useful for anyone digging around. But again, there’s no rush.

• Speaking of categories: I’ve begun a bit of a purge of the category archives, removing posts that no longer have any relevance to me or to the site in context. A few of these are outright deletions — such as the many outdated entries filed under Site Updates — but many will be exported to more suitable homes.

What’s Next?

Now that the hard work is done with the design, it’s time to add the content, and start experimenting with ways to aggregate more personal data and better represent the non-blog content on the front page.

I’ve already got four months’ worth of links saved in my ‘Blogfodder’ folder awaiting distillation/publication — not to mention that whole API business to figure out — so I’d better get to it.

But I do have another motive: I’m determined to visit the Rough Trade shop, at long last, after my two previous abortive attempts (in 2001, lost in Covent Garden; and 18 months ago, bewildered on the wrong section of Talbot Road). If I don’t find it this time I’ll cry, I really will.

• The Tates, Modern and Britain
• Thomas Demand at the Serpentine Gallery
• Future City at the Barbican Art Gallery
• The City of London Festival
• Dan Holdsworth: At the Edge of Space, Parts 1-3 at the National Maritime Museum

I’d also like to take some interesting photos around the city, for which I’ll do a bit more research on good architectural walking tours and the like before this weekend. My time in London may be limited, but I want to make the most of it. (Hell, I’m paying enough for the privilege.)

So I might as well turn this question to the audience: What should I see? What’s good to photograph? What am I missing? Your contributions will be muchly appreciated — bonus points for anything that’s free.

• A couple of weekends ago, the hard drive on my iBook started dying. Stressed me out no end, it did. The poor machine is in the shop for a replacement right now — the new shipment of drives is due later this week — so I should have it back soon. I hope.

• Seems like nothing but problems with my broadband recently, too. It was slower than dial-up for two days last week, and a fortnight before was down completely on two separate occasions. Apparently they’re ‘upgrading’ the exchange at the moment… at least I can’t fault the customer service, which was more helpful than I expected. And it’s been working uninterrupted since last Friday. Touch wood.

• After all the stress caused by the above, I gave Lightning Bolt a miss last Wednesday and had an early night instead. But I did go see the Boredoms on Friday night, and boy was I glad I did. Their current line-up of three drummers — plus Yamatsuka Eye on vocals and electronics — is quite a departure aesthetically from the sounds they were famous for with the cool kids back in the day, but the new direction fits them like a Saville Row suit. I’m a sucker for good percussion so I was in my element — if a little tired on my feet after a long day — for the more than 90 minutes they performed, perfectly in sync. Awesome doesn’t even begin to describe it. (And to top it off I bumped into at least five people I know when the house lights came up after the show, and everyone was chuffed to bits. That never happens.)

• Speaking of music, on the same day as that Boredoms show I bought News And Tributes, the new album by The Futureheads. I’ve only ever been as disappointed by one other record, and that one — Chris Cornell’s Eurphoria Morning — stayed in rotation for at least two weeks before I was convinced of its craptitude. Oh, what have The Futureheads done to themselves?! The songs are there, more or less, but the production is just plain terrible; never has a ‘big sound’ sounded so small. And what’s with the rhythm-section-hating? The drumming, especially the snare, is barely audible on most tracks, while the bass is mired in murk. And don’t get me started on that godawful track 11! I’m sure they’ll sell bucketloads and get lots more teeny-bopper emo-lite black-rim-glasses-wearing groupies before they realise how far they’ve sold themselves out, and make up for it with a better third album. But this one? I disliked it so much that I returned it on Monday and got the new Mogwai CD instead, which is far more satisfying. (On a related note, most of the reviews of the Futureheads’ record give it a thumbs-up while almost universally referring to the term ‘mature’, as if pedestrianism in art is supposed to be some kind of virtue. Quite frankly, that’s bollocks. Whenever I see a record described as ‘mature’ it’s the kiss of death as far as I’m concerned. I’m sure others would agree.)

• Continuing the music thread, and on a more positive note, today happens to be the last day of NARMo — and I’ve just recorded the final minute of my album. Can you believe it? I actually followed through on one of my many promises and recorded a whole 31-minute album in the 31 days of May! I’ll be putting some finishing touches on the songs over the next few days, doing some overdubs, sorting out the track listing and so on, and then I’ll post the whole thing online early next week for the world’s delectation. (In the meantime, you can add this link to my MySpace page — yes, MySpace! — to your bookmarks.) You’re all gonna hate it. But I don’t care. In fact I’m looking forward to the hate mail.

• Oh yeah, and yesterday was my birthday. I turned 26. I feel old. However the wonderful Benitha, who also celebrated her birthday yesterday, is still full of youth and vitality and the joys of spring. So I’ll have to live vicariously through her, then. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a place in a nursing home to book…