Monday, November 20, 2006

Adieu False Heart

Adieu False Heart by Linda Ronstadt and Ann Savoy

I only loaded this CD into the listening center at the store because my Mom loves old Linda Ronstadt songs and we often like the same music. I was curious to hear something new by her.

I'VE GOT TO GET THIS CD!

I played it for my guy Allen with the cover hidden. His eyes went wide and he heard two songs with rapt attention. Who Is This? he asked. He was as surprised as I was.

I recall reading an interview with Linda saying she wasn't always happy with her singing. In the early days she didn't know that a song could be played in a better key for her voice.
Well, this recording has every key perfect for her voice. She creates such beautiful colors and sounds more free and light. She's completely in love with every note. And the duo of the two women's voices is perfection. The first track alone, with that passionate fiddle, was enough to melt my heart.

One more CD on the 20+ CD wish list. But it cut in line to get to the top of the list.

[Dec: Got a Christmas gift certificate so got the CD right away. It's even better than what I heard on the short samples!]

Monday, November 13, 2006

On Quality...

Most web design clients come my way after bad experiences with other designers. They arrive with ugly web sites, broken pages-and-promises. And lots of time wasted.

I wish I could reach them first.
There is enough hardship in the world without wasting time just trying to get a simple web site created.

Except that web sites are never simple. They only look that way.

Quality work will always be a time saver.

My failing seems to be with Clients that come my way without web experience.
How to explain the pitfalls of shoddy work?
How to describe the endless work that will greet them if they use the many cheaper methods?
The tools must work seamlessly or nothing gets done.

Even very intelligent people have decided to stay with a lowest dollar amount provider. Even after one admitted his loved one wanted dearly to release her photos online but couldn't get that part figured out with the poorly-made system. And I couldn't find the right way to help them see further than the dollar amount.

But I'll keep trying.

Singing in Pictures

PUZZLE PIECE
The book Thinking in Pictures by Temple Grandin helped my mind fall into place.
I realized there was an incredible tool I had never paid attention to using:
The images that flashed in my head while I struggled for words.

Without much practice I was soon flying over places I once only crawled.

WEB DESIGN
Web Design has been the most wonderful thing that ever happened to me.
To have power over images that say EXACTLY what I meant to say.
To get the information directly into the eye of the reader.

CAREFUL!
Very easy to get hurt using the Internet as a tool. Just like using a circular saw.
Be very, very careful!
So much good. So much confusion. Due to the lack of set rules.

RULES
"RULES? Them ain't no such thing as no dang Rules."

The browser makers interpret the "rules" the same way religions interpret religious text.
Each understands them to mean something a little bit - or a LOT - different.
And that means for me 12 hour work days.

SINGING
I'm also a singer, using the sounds of words to create colors and images and emotions to re-live the song. The words have meaning, but their sounds have more. At least for that I get to make my own rules.