You might have noticed that things are a little different around here. And you’re right! The blog has been redesigned — in more ways than one.
The redesign is not just visual. Instead, it reflects my desire to rekindle my love for the only form of writing that makes sense to me: blogging. As much as I love reading long magazine articles and books by the dozen, nothing makes me happier than thinking out loud on a blog. It is the easiest form of writing for me, and it allows me to fully capture what is going on in my mind (which, as you may have noticed, can be very random).
These days, it is popular to have a newsletter and a podcast — and I have those too — but for me, blogging is the future. If you like to read, come along. If not, it’s okay. I will be over here, just doing my thing. I am hoping to blog more frequently and to take a more traditional approach to blogging — links, photos, short posts, and long essays.
Much of what constituted blogging in the early days has now become commonplace on the social web. However, what has not been replicated is the ability to create a map of one’s thoughts. Social feeds spread those thoughts in the proverbial wind. A blog gives you a window into one’s thinking as it evolves. I look back at my own blogs and realize my own limitations and the folly of my former ways. I learn from those errors in judgment and tries to improve. For example, if I were to scroll back right now, I would see that I have written about this before and am repeating myself. I’ll certainly try, but I can’t guarantee that won’t happen again!
Since the passing of GigaOm, I have struggled to find the spiritual enthusiasm to blog, as it often felt like being stuck in the past. I took to photography to scratch my creative itch. And I am glad I did, because photography has taught me a lot about myself. But in the end, I am what I blog. And I can’t fight it. After four years (and change), I find the desire and energy to return to blogging — the activity that feels most natural to me. It is also a relief to think of it not as my profession, but rather as a creative outlet.
I cannot say precisely what sparked this renewed interest, but I suspect it stems from the pervasive negativity around technology and the technology industry. If the future is looking increasingly dystopian, then it is important to find ways to beat dystopia and find hope. Change is a constant. It isn’t positive or negative, though our response to it can be either. Change leads to innovation. Every aspect of our world is changing, and I am interested in what is happening. I want to travel the world and take great pictures. I want to find great ideas and fantastic people and include them in my journey. And I want to tell all about it right here.
I am fortunate enough that I can afford to do that.
I am grateful for the team at Automattic & WordPress, who (under the design guidance of great Jeffrey Zeldman) have spruced up my homestead on the web. My brief for the team was simple: Readability is the primary goal. Readability is more than mere legibility. Legibility makes it possible to read the content. Readability makes it pleasurable to do so.
We have simplified the design, menus, and navigation in order to make it easier for you to focus on the words and not be distracted by the rest, no matter on what type of screen you are consuming the blog posts on. The team has managed to keep a minimalist and visually appealing look while combining excellent typography, simple yet pleasing use of whitespace, and elegant integration of photography. Thanks, team, I will forever be in your debt. In particular, a big shout out to Christie Wright.
Based off the new Gutenberg editor, the entire site is now going to be managed and updated via WordPress Apps on my iOS devices — the iPhone and the iPad Pro.
PS: I am going to be retiring the photoblog, as well. From now on, I will share photos and all my visual adventures right here. Until my time on the planet runs out, you will see me live online here — with occasional visits to foreign spaces, like Twitter and Facebook.
Reminders for myself: