November

There are 25 posts tagged November (this is page 2 of 5).

Are you Doing the WordPress Daily Post Challenge?

I’ve been writing daily posts here since November 2007. It’s been a challenge at times. I’ve gotten behind now and then and I’ve used the scheduled posts feature to my advantage many times. Lately I have begun using illustrations and tried to have one for each daily post.

Will you start the WordPress Daily Post Challenge? There’s a blog with daily prompts and ideas, or you can follow the Twitter feed.

Each time you make a daily post add postaday2011 (or postaweek2011 if you are settling for the weekly challenge) in the tags for your post.

WordPress Snow Where Ever you Go

I’ve begun using WP Effects to bring a few stray snowflakes to my blog this month. With WP Effect you can set it to have a massive snowstorm or just a trickle. I thought a trickle was enough. If I look out my window chances are I can see more snow, if I want to. I don’t mind the snow really. It gets rid of a lot of bugs and other living and sub-living things. A harder Winter gives me an easier Summer with my asthma.

Anyway, I thought I would make a list of snowy plugins for anyone who likes the idea and wants to do the same. I found WP Beginner has done the same but only mentioned one plugin, there are actually a few and each is a bit different (of course).

  • WP Effects is the snow plugin I am using right now. The snowflakes are big, they remind me of those huge soft flakes that fall when it is pretty mild outside. I like those Winter days. This plugin will also let you choose other image files or add those you make yourself. You can use them for falling leaves, raindrops, lucky clovers, as you desire. With WP Effects you can set the amount of snowfall to blizzard or a single snowflake.
  • Snow, Balloons and More – This one also lets you choose different images files, snow speed and other options. One good feature I like is being able to put the snow on a timer and have it turn off for someone who is staying on your blog to read awhile. The snow could be distracting for a reader so this is a good thing.  This same page has a link for a fireworks and birthday balloon plugin as well. A very feature rich plugin.

Plugins for snow only:

  • Snowstorm shows you how to customize the script yourself. You can give your snowflakes a blue tinge, set them to twinkle and set the amount of snow to be falling. The flakes here are small white dots, some might like the smaller image. The plugin author also offers a script to have Christmas lights along the top of your blog. They will all break if you hover your mouse over them.
  • Javascript Snowflake Generator – Not a lot of information about the script other than a screenshot. It works just fine and was updated in November (2010) but I don’t know if it has any extra features to make it more adaptable.

You can set up a plugin which gives you snow people on your blog. They load once and then give a Merry Christmas and go away. Very cute.

As an extra, I just noticed that Island Paradise, one of the few Facebook games I still play, has just added snow to their game. It looks very pretty. How long does it take you to become saturated with pretty? I know there will be some people complaining about the use of snow in the game or on weblogs too. Some people just are that way, overly critical and Grinchy. I don’t take them seriously until it’s been snowing at least a week on my blog. Then, they might have reason to feel it’s snowed long enough. Still, it is up to me to decide how much snowfall there will be. I still like it!

The Meaning of Grrl

Reposted from my own personal blog: That Grrl. (Just because Grrl is a strange four letter word).

The Meaning of Grrl – Originally posted November 17, 2005.

There are probably people out there who see ‘grrl’ and think I’m just a really bad speller. I’m a fairly good speller actually. Grrl is not a typo (a typographical error, for those who stopped to wonder). Grrl is a fun way to say girl when you mean woman but don’t want to go into all of that. You see, woman is such a complicated word. Being a woman is hard enough without actually calling yourself a woman all the time. It’s simpler to just not think about it all at once.

So someone invented Grrl. It may have been Bonnie, I’m not 100% sure if she started the word itself or was just the first one to pick it up as a web domain. I’ve met Bonnie, online. She does justice to Grrl. She’s fun and yet not an air head. She’s doing things, accomplishing things and getting somewhere. She’s a Grrl and a woman. But, grrl just takes off some of the pressure of being a woman.

You see, women are supposed to be Super. That’s super with a capital ‘S’ you notice. Not just any super. Super Woman! It is not easy being Super. You don’t get many days off, none really. You don’t get to hide in bed and cover your head and pretend the world went away. You don’t get the chance to do-over, use the backspace key or shift the workload. Super woman has to do it all, every day. Who can be that?

Grrls are imperfect and glad of it. We still have our personal power, our goals and our great moments, we just get to take the odd day off, goof up sometimes and have a lot more fun. Grrls are not girls however, don’t be confused. Girls are children. Grrls are women, just not crushed into the weight of the Iron Maiden of woman.

Writing in the Great Hereafter

engardeToday (November 27th) would be my Dad’s birthday. I think he would be 77 years old. He isn’t here any more however. He died several years ago. We never got along well, he was not my best supporter in life or anything else. His theme in life seemed to be “Don’t bother” and those were, in fact, his last words in this life.

There are not a lot of second chances in life. In his case, there are none at all. I don’t know if he ever regretted how things were/ are in the family with him. I wonder sometimes if people do see how their families live on after they have died. I think of him watching the fallout from his actions in life. I like to think of someone telling him that he could have been a better Father, a better person. (Not that he was awful or that I blame him for everything I’m not happy about myself and my life, that would be silly). But, I do like to think that he would have some regrets. I won’t ever know of course. Or, not while I’m still alive anyway, after that… maybe I will see him again when we are both deceased. That isn’t something I can predict.

Write about meeting someone who disappointed or hurt you after you are both deceased. How does the meeting go, how does it start? When it is all over do you feel better or worse?

Originally published at Word Grrls.