Windy Kilts

It was a very cold, clear day following a winter storm, there was no incentive to work outside. I wanted to settle into comfort with a book and a cat. But I had a craving for a hot drink...

I ground some darkly roasted beans and brewed a pot of coffee. Near the coffee pot was a half-full bottle of Laphroaig single malt. My muse must have been sitting on my shoulder because, all vanity aside, the result was inspired.

Ingredients:

• Islay Scotch whisky, e.g., Laphroaig, Bowmore, Ardbeg. It must be Islay
• Irish Cream, e.g., Carolan’s, or Bailey’s
• Strong brew of dark, or if you prefer, a medium roast coffee. It needs to be a premium, smooth bean; Folgers won't do.

Find Your Bliss:

To start, combine 1 part whisky, 1 part Irish cream with 4-5 parts coffee. You'll find the right proportions, after a time.

Locate a favorite chair. Find a book, and a cat given to catatonic sleep. Enjoy a peaceful day.

Cheers!

Why do I Still Have a Web Site?

I need to update some pages on my web site, upload some scripts and presentations for download, and make some corrections on my recipe for Windy Kilts (what?!?, you haven't tried Windy Kilts yet?). In a rare moment of reflective thought it occurred that my online self, that part that I control, that is, was scattered and disorganized into tiny silos. Should I really count on a search engine to make my on-line life whole?

Take for instance my web site that I used to lovingly construct and update. It's got a home page, it's got my resume, woefully out of date, it's got the recipe, it's got a script that captures browser signatures, it's got some really odd databases, it's got some presentations, probably out of date, but I dunno; you get the idea. I've got some web space at Penn State with another homey page, out of date. I've got a blog. I post at some other blogs, but I've got that organized, methinks. I've got stuff at trailfire and iTunesU. I've got a clone resume at linkedin. My digital corpus is scattered across dark little nests, and no m'am, I don't like it.

It's time to simplify, to clean this house. Why do I still have a web site when I'm surrounded by publishing tools and community sites?