the laid.back Buddhist has MOVED...back!

Sunday, August 26

A Widgetal Affair

I must confess, I have a thing for widgets.

It's a lot like love, but I'll be real here. It's a helluva lot more like obsession.

See, I've been tweaking my blog layout since...well, since I started it. This is why I claim it's a lot like love. In turning all things I love doing into a continuously active process, I'm celebrating my passion for it. And, I'm rewarded (and fueled) by ever new discoveries. Granted, there are those days when I desire to ruthlessly murder certain widgets.

Fortunately, those days are far and few in between. *knock on wood* However, as can be imagined this "celebrating" led to quite an accumulation of widgets all over the freakin' place!!! Header, footer, left and right sidebars, in posts--if I liked it, you better believe I'd fit it...somewhere. Except I never stray far from my Buddhist roots, as laidback as they may be. So, I realized I had to start trimming my blog's unnecessary fat. Er, at the very least, relocating the fat.

For a useful guideline, I recommend checking out 50 tips compiled by Skellie.

Anyways, there I was merrily trimming away extra fat. Every single day this week I was making progress. At the risk of sounding like a weight-loss testimonial, it felt grrrrreat!

Then along came Uniqlock. Correction: along remained Uniqlock.

Now, I can't explain why in the world I should keep that widget at the top of my left sidebar. All I know is that I absolutely adore it!

Adore. It.

I must thank my new friend Jon, who's probably thinking, "What?! I don't even have Uniqlock!"

True, but Jon did a spotlight post on SnapClap that cracked me up so much I followed the link he provided. There on SnapClap's side bar, I became mesmerized by the choreographed dancers. Again, I can't explain why I am so fascinated.

I could only think of 3 reasons that might possibly explain my awe:

  1. Watching them, I almost...almost...felt compelled to try ballet (keep in mind yours truly is a ballet teacher's worst nightmare come true).
  2. They all look the same!!!
  3. Each girl has the kind of Asian hair I don't.
But aside from all that it's basically just a clock!

I don't NEED a clock widget cluttering up my left sidebar. Time is irrelevant on the internet where people come from all over the world. It'd be an utter waste of space on my blog.

Well...

Except for Uniqlock, of course. Remember, just don't ask me why.

By the way, is "widgetal" even a word? Or should I just play it off as new Jo Jargon. ;)

19 Musing(s):

Anonymous said...

They are very good, especially with many of their hand movements. Still, call me old-fashioned, but I can't help but think it could be improved with the addition of some ravenous wolves.

Anonymous said...

Hey Joanne is Uniqlock a widget too? It is such an interesting advertisment. I'm a newbie in website so widgets save me time and frustration so I'm pretty obsess with widgets too I guess haha.

mikkers said...

i totally was mesmerized by your Uniqlock and had no idea what the hell it was for. I couldn't even figure out what it was doing...New York? What? What are the numbers for?

But I was totally captivated by it.

Oh, and I love widgets. I think you spread it like some sort of Typhoid Mary.

Joanne said...

Dan: HAHA, you always make me laugh.

David: I consider it widget since it tells time. Yeah, at first I thought it was some kind of ad as well...it's why I kept staring at it nonstop.

Miki: Me, too!!! All I knew was that I had to click on it, and that's when I realized it was a clock (the numbers are in military time so there's no need for AM/PM). And, it displays NY because that's the major city it chose for our time zone. Does this mean I'm gonna see a Uniqlock on your site now? ;)

me said...

1. I totally didn't realize that was a clock at first until I read your entry.
2. I like how you likened blog editing to trimming fat.
3. I can think of one person who'd be worse at ballet than you. It rhymes with "me."

jon said...

"What?! I don't even have Uniqlock!"

Anonymous said...

I'm a widget fan too. Still, I've got to rework the layout of my site a little more. Make the widgets really work for me. :)

Enjoying your site. Thanks for popping by mine as well. Have a great day!

Joanne said...

Vy: You are my hero for the day (yes, ONLY today ;) b/c you replied in a list. It's nice to have company in my list-making frenzies.

Jon: LOLS!!!! And, your new site layout rocks, by the way. I am in awe (this seems to be a rather consistent emotion in regards to you). I miss the beautiful pictures in the header though.

Rich: You're welcome! Hah, I've resigned myself to having the urge to continuously tweak my site layout.

Erina Hart said...

Oh my, I am not hip to the widget scene. I hope I don't become addicted.

I guess that I could always seek your expert guidance should I fall prey to the tempting allure of the widget seductress. She appears to be a cruel mistress.

:)

Joanne said...

Erina: They are SO addicting, just you wait. It was only a matter of time before I was won over. I mean, the word "widget" is already too cool as it is. =P

jon said...

yay! You're the hot community today in MyBlogLog! Congratulations! :)

Rolando said...

I hate/love widgets cause I'm always looking for cool ones I can use, but ones that won't take away from the site.

I'd like to believe that less is more.

Joanne said...

Jon: Thanks for telling me! I'd never had known. So exciting...I was up for 2 whole days.

Rolando: I agree, less is more. Especially with blogging when the spotlight should be on posts. But I think if widgets are used wisely, then they can add a nice personal touch to the blog, you know?

Unknown said...

You would love the Mac OS dashboard, seriously. I hit F12 and boom, there's three clocks (Home, Los Angeles, New York), local weather forecast and new email indicator.

And that's nothing, I mean there are tons of them. I used to be a frequent user of the notes widget but now I use the real thing.

I bet you'll find lots of adorable widgets for your future Mac. No doubt.

cbattle said...

I feel you! uniqlock is just like alluring for some reason. i just can't put my finger on it. Maybe its that the tempo of their dance and how its perfectly in sync with the each passing second? Also, the music is pretty dope too. LONG lIVE UNIQLOCK!!!

Joanne said...

Daniel: There are not enough widgets in the world for me ;)

Cibattle: I know, right! And, at night...they stop dancing and sleep, it's way too cool!

Unknown said...

Clearly that clock is successful, because I clicked on it too and thought, WTF? Then I clicked on the link and got to this explanation.

Hmmm... I have a bit of a widget aversion, so maybe I'll just stop by here to get my fix.

Joanne said...

Cardiogirl: LOLs, it's a love-hate thing this whole widget accumulation. I always trying to see if I can de-clutter my sidebar more...if only I had a widget aversion like you, haha!

Anonymous said...

I put Uniqlock on the other day, shortly after visiting the new Uniqlo store here in NYC.

Check out what those kooky gals do after midnight! The whole vibe and scene change.

I love it!


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Winston Churchill