Cresting my Mind. Yes, that could mean brushing as well as riding my mind. I’ve been doing a bit of both. But too much flouride can also kill you, and so can a big wave. No wonder I’ve been feeling a bit woozy. OK, you’re thinking, “what on earth is he talking about?” Well, I’m peaking in the rush that comes from spending many, many hours messing around with all this BLOG stuff. “Wha?” (go ahead try the link!) It’s endless! And infinite! It entices me.

On the other hand, almost no one I talk to about all this blogging stuff has responded with much more than a blank stare, or maybe a generic look of pity, soft eyes, slight frown, etc. Occasionally I see a flash of judgement, perhaps accompanied by the thought “How vain to think masses of strangers would be interested in your personal journal“. But it’s usually a blank stare, and then changing the subject. So I wonder if I’m weird to get into this. The path less traveled, so to speak. We’ll see.

But back to the wave. In the process of researching (meaning thumbing through many library books, and perusing 100’s of blogs (photo and journal), reading the reviews and instructions of several blog engines), installing (meaning read the instructions again, downloading (easy), tearing my hair out solving the little problems installing, and many, many forum discussions) followed by endless revision (meaning getting the kinks out, revising the lay out, revising the layout, revising the layout, until, gotcha, I was then solving problems I created by revising) I have certainly learned to think in a more structured way, and focus, and concentrate, and persist. That’s the Mind Cresting.

In my numerous revisions of my sites, I’ve learned quite a bit of how code works, how it doesn’t work, and how to solved mysterious problems. Just an hour ago, I solved a bizarre kink in my photo site, Glints. I had been baffled that some symbols appeared at the top, which shouldn’t have been there. The site was working fine except that. My forum questions were answered with some clues but no solution, since these kinks are oftenobscure. The only good clue I had was that the same odd symbols also appeared in a certain folder’s page. So I decided to delete the whole folder. It fixed the problem. Gibberish gone. Boy, my brain was forming some new synapses!

BUT! Now I was faced with losing the features contained in that folder. I sat here for a few hours, and tried reinstalling the folder whole, then each item in the folder alone (there were three). I was really gettingfocused now, reved. I was going to solve this. At one point after fiddling endlessly, as each combination produced the same gibberish on the photo page, I nearly gave up. I had just deleted the three individual files, and there was still gibberish on the Glints page. Yet when I deleted the whole folder, the problem was solved. Why? Have you figured it out? I’ve certainly made it obvious. Haven’t I? Let me know.

Then there’s the other, cresting as in getting to the top of a wave. I feel that I’ve discovered a new and wonderfully structured and chaotic new world. Structured, obviously, because of the system it uses, computers. And the software, code, systems, etc, that go along with compters. Chaotic, implying the unpredictable nature of basically anonymous selfexpression. Bloggers have been in the news a little recently with their ability to create a firestorm of attention about something, like a scandal in politics. I see it as the new grassroots network. It certainly had some effect on the last election, with rapid advances in usage for both sides. I have no idea if it affected the outcome, but it certainly will affect future elections.

In scanning 100’s of blogs, I noticed there were almost infinite topics. Anything from what Brittany Spears wore to the bathroom (just kidding) to blogs of insomniacs and folks with depression, to product safety awareness, you name it. But what finally sunk in was how they all connected. It’s by a system of rings, or lists. From what I’ve observed, a webring is a fluid connection between many blogs of similar nature, like poetry, or gay sites. And the lists are huge. You sign up your blog and it’s accesible to anyone else who has registered. Last night I joined 5 or six. Once again they are usually by groups, or interests. But these lists are often connected by RSS which stands for Really Simple Syndication. It speeds up the connection between bloggers, tightens it. So my site, for example, could have lists of Rings and Bloglists which will enable other bloggers to watch my site easily for certain subjects or categories. An idea can spread quickly.

So this infinitely complex other world is buzzing around us all. And I am lured by the possibility of it. Riding it, at least for now. It’s out of body, like, fur shur, man. Its infulential. It’s totally free! (for the software and help) It’s anti-capitalist. It’s freeing. Eyes gaze out into the distance. It’s mind buiding and brain bending. Get back to me in a month, though. And don’t ask for a current photo. I’ve got severe computer face.