Monday, September 19, 2011

Welcome to the Brand New, Completely Re-created Artist Insane .com!!!

I have to admit my stomach flipped a little when a notice from my web host hit my inbox last month, announcing the program I'd used to create and update the version of this site that launched in 2001 would no longer be supported. And, the unease this prompted turned to full-fledged panic when I learned this notice was being sent a mere 30 days from the date my site would become (at least in part) non-functional. EEEEEEKK!!!

The thing is, I'd long wanted to bring my (ancient) site into the 21st Century, but kept putting it off until I eventually had time to get around to it. Of course, these thoughts persisted for a good two or three years without "around to it" ever, well, coming around.

But, with the threat of my stage going dark, so to speak, looming in the far too near future, I began scrambling to locate a program I could learn in a very short time -- and which would produce an attractive and user-friendly result.

So, here it is -- the new and improved home of my writing and various other artistic endeavors -- and, of course, the new home of The Rodent Reader Quarterly. There are some new features -- such as "Mad Music Miscellany" (which you'll find in the "Music Mayhem" section). And, of course, there are several upgrades in functionality as well as style -- including, at last, a simple shopping cart system for purchasing subscriptions and back issues of The Rodent Reader Quarterly --and, this blog. So, feel free to share your thoughts on the new site, any problems you may run into with links or navigation, etc. I'm sure there will be at least a few bugs and glitches to work out.

While my old site had grown to more than 300 pages over a decade, this one is starting out as a greatly abbreviated version. Of course, that brings us back to that concept of "around to it," as this site, too, will gradually expand to include more and more content from the old one as time permits.

In the meantime, I hope you'll take a winding walk through it. And, of course, I hope you enjoy the journey.

Thanks for visiting!

Mil