Apt. 11D

Comment Policy

Every once and a while, I think it is a good idea to review the comment policy for a blog.

Comments are very important to Apt. 11D. I genuinely appreciate the fact that people like to come to this blog to chat. I have made comments a big part of this blog. I throw out open questions and put the latest comments up on the top right hand portion of this blog - valuable space that could be used for other purposes.

However, sometimes the comments on this blog get a little out of hand. I need for you all to self-police yourselves, because this blog is a hobby. As I've said before, the ads on the sidebar bring in beer money for myself. I have other projects and responsibilities. I have very limited time to manage blog comments, so if this responsibility becomes too burdensome, I will have to remove the comments.

Some quick rules:

1. Sockpuppetry. You have to stick to one name in the comment section. You can't say one thing with one name and then something different with another. Unless you are being purposefully and obviously ironic. 

2. Comment Hijacking. If the blog post is about Topic A, then you really should stick to Topic A. Comments should not exceed the length of the post. One person cannot dominate the comment section. I think that five substantive comments per day is sufficient for the most part. There can be unlimited one-line snark. From time to time, I get complaints from readers that someone is hijacking the blog. I do not have the time to mediate these matters. If you feel so strongly about Topic B and think that I'm completely off base for not considering Topic B, then I suggest starting your own blog. Feel free to put a link to your post in a comment here, so everyone who wants to talk about Topic B can talk about it elsewhere. 

3. Offensive comments. I love debate. I have zero problem with people criticizing an idea or an opinion expressed in a blog post. Sometimes I fail to consider an angle of a story or maybe you're aware of some information that disputes my point. FINE. Tell me. I'll always be cool about it. I'm very proud of the fact that there's a spectrum of political ideology in the comment section and, as long as everyone is civil and respectful, I'm happy to foster that environment. 

But if there's something about ME that deeply and consistently disturbs you - my political leanings, my world view, my family, my house, my choice in footwear, my character, my weakness for celebrity gossip - then you really need to find another blog to read. If you don't move on voluntarily, then I will help you.

I've never had a problem with racist, sexist, evil comments, but if they happen, then the comment will be deleted and the commenter banned. 

I think that's about it. Sound, good? OK, let's move on.  

 

Apt. 11D Gift Guides

The Apt. 11D Gift Guides are back! The Apt. 11D Gift Guides are back!

Do I give you guilt trips? No, I do not. Do I try to sell you tote bags? No, I do not. Do I post obnoxious ads that slow down your browser? Well, ok. I do that. But  you guys never click on them, so I don't make any money off of them, and I'm not quite sure why I keep doing it. Anyway.

Amazon Associates does bring in some dough for this blogger every year. Here's the deal:

1. I'll post some gift ideas over the next couple of weeks.
2. If you are planning on buying anything on Amazon (that product or anything else), please go there via an Amazon link on this page. 
3. I get a little kickback. 
4. I buy myself a bitch' pair of boots that I would be too guilty to buy ordinarily. 
5. You get what you wanted. I get some serious kickass boots. Win. Win.

Next Week: All About Blogging

Apologies for neglecting my loyal blog readers and devoted spammers this week. I was at a blogging conference on Friday. Thursday was spent doing last minute prep work, like printing up business cards at Staples and figuring out the new bus route into the city. On Monday, I'll dish out the details and a series of posts about blogging. 

The Summer and Blogging Slow Downs

Blogging will stop and go like a rusty locomotive during the summer depending on chaos levels at home. This week, the chaos levels are high. The kids are home. We're in that canyon of time between school and camp, so I've packed in appointments for the pediatrician and orthodontist. We're leaving for Cape Cod on Thursday. I have to polish a 40 page proposal and send it out by Wednesday night. And I have to keep the house in magazine condition, because it is still on the market. NO BIGGIE. 

I'm not griping. Our stress levels are surprisingly low right now. I'm just warning y'all that I'm going to be a lousy blogger this summer. 

Comment Problems

I was just notified that the blog was swallowing comments. The spam filter went insane. I've republished the comments. Thanks to Kyndra for notifying me about the insane spam filter. Sorry all!

I'm Baaack

I survived. I'm catching up on life. What should I read?

Happy Holidays

I'm closing up shop around here. In the next few hours, I have to write the menu for tomorrow night, put in orders for mussels and scallops, clean out the playroom, and set up the inflatable mattress for the in-laws.

I hope everyone has a splendid Christmas, if you celebrate it. Eat lots and laugh lots. If you don't celebrate Christmas, enjoy the time off.

I'll be back in half capacity next Monday. See you then.

Thanks, as always, for stopping by Apartment 11D.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm signing off until Monday. I hope everyone has a day filled with food and laughter.

Next week, I'll be doing a series of gift guides posts, including Steve's history books pix for 2010. I'll only highlight gifts that I love, but if I can figure out a way to link the products through Amazon, I will. If you make a purchase on Amazon through a link on this blog -- it doesn't even have to be the product that I mentioned -- Amazon sends me a small kickback. This will be my own version of a pledge drive.

In fact, if you plan to start your holiday shopping early (Hanukkah is early this year), use the Amazon icon below. Thanks!

 

Or you could just donate:

Hiatus

I'm out of here. On vacation until next Saturday.

I had planned on writing extra blog posts this week and setting the timer to have them publish next week. Sort of like those women of my mom's generation who cooked a week's worth of meatloaf and put it all in the freezer for their husbands, when they had to go out town for a while.

I wanted to write about California and Kagan and TV and kid stuff and porch rehabs and... well... it just didn't happen. No time to my own right now. Just a bunch of half baked sentences and ideas swirling around in my head.

You know, if you only vacuum out your car right before you go on a long car trip, which happens on average once every year, then the lollipop sticks really pile up under the seat. 

I'm heading into vacation only armed with an iPhone, which sucks for blogging. I might check in, if something earth-shaking happens. Back in a week.

Missed Two Days

I missed two days in the blogosphere. We had a spontaneous getaway one day. And yesterday was packed with school meetings at Ian's school and business and quotes for a new front porch.

Ian's doing great academically. He could probably jump ahead a year in math. His speech is much better. It's becoming more clear that Ian's problem is audio processing. At this point, it's really his only problem. He doesn't understand everything he hears, but he's been compensating for years and hiding this problem from us. He's very good at guessing when people ask him questions. His speech therapist and teachers are working on it. When we mainstream him, we'll hold him back a year to give him a chance to catch up with the other kids.

I need to catch up right now, too. My inbox is stuffed, and the newspapers are still folded on the coffee table.