My first thought on visiting The Blissfully Bitter Blog was “Well, this should be easy, its a blogger template site, there are no archives, pretty simple, okay layout, easy review.”. Well, what is that saying? ‘Still waters run deep’? On cursory examination of this site there is not a whole lot to it. Until you start reading, and read I did, and read, and read, and read, and I loved every minute of it.
This weblog doesn’t have archives (as yet as the author notes) and even though I strongly believe that archives are one of the most important aspects of a weblog, I have to say, that this site doesn’t need them. The author, in her own words, doesn’t use her blog as a diary, she only uses it for ‘stupid quizzes’ and venting. How can such a weblog recieve a 4.5 from me? Well if you look (just a little bit) past the blogger template, you find the authors main site. I don’t have enough room in this review to even come close to writing about how much content this site has. The author is a web designer, and a writer. A REAL writer. Anyone who would disagree with me I challenge them to read the articles entitled ‘White Trash Honeymoon’, ‘Everything Is Coming Up Roses’ and ‘Just Say No To Love’. My favorite line of her writing (from ‘Roses’); “A bunch of flowers ripped from their roots and wrapped in plastic delivered to me to rot in my fridge for two weeks. How nice. This says, “Our love, like these roses, is expensive and will eventually rot and die.” When you follow the link to the main site (listed under ‘OttoIgnatius’ on the left side menu) you come to find a treasure of information about the author which includes all of her writing, pictures, and a hilarious and extensive biography. Trust me, you will know this author.
When you go to this weblog, please follow thie ‘Ottoignatious’ link on the left hand side, and click on the ‘Written Word’ typewriter photo to the right. Thats where the real gems are. Ten minutes after I did my printer was making copies of two articles that the author wrote (I read twenty two of them, I even forwarded one story to my mom). These articles make you appreciate the internet, without its free flowing exchange of ideas and writing, I would never have read what I did today.
In summation, I read a blog that did not have archives, used a blogger template, had broken links (‘resume’ was one but if you are not looking to hire someone who cares) and yet I still spent the early afternoon and most of my evening reading. Oh yea, did I mention that the author is a web designer and the site I reviewed said to ‘come back later, this site is in the middle of a huge update. please bookmark and come back later.’ I’m glad I didn’t. Had I not had to dig for all the content I found I would have given this site a ‘5’, but I guess thats what happens when a writer starts a weblog, they think about what is in between the cover and back page and concentrate on what is in between.
Blissfully Bitter Blog