I am doing some tweaking to some of the pages here at UI.

You know I don’t like to follow the crowd, this whole “rotating link-lovin” bull crap annoys me. Unfortunately having a blogroll the size of the Mississippi River on my front page annoys me too. As a result I have to give them their own page now. I figured since I was giving them their own page that I should categorize them too.

I am doing the same thing with my links.
I am also finally getting around to getting contact info up as well, as far as my various user names on the different social-networking sites, as well as e-mail, etc.

Hopefully all of this will be done by Wednesday evening. (No promises, but that’s my goal)

Thanks for hanging in there.

If you’d like to be listed in the new blogroll shoot me a message either on twitter (|at|wfyoung3) or via e-mail will|at|willyoungband|dot|com. You can also shoot me a line on myspace or facebook, but I’m not linking those right now because I don’t feel like it.

So I upgraded to Wordpress version 2.6 this morning and it was fairly painless.

I’ve got to admit switching over from Blogger (thus ending all but one connection with the *evil* empire that Google is creating on the internet) to Wordpress was a great idea. I’m finding the possibilities and the places I can take my blog are almost endless. This of course doesn’t matter to most non-blog-geeks out there, but seriously if you haven’t considered it I would definetely encourage you to check into Wordpress. There is so much out there you can read about them and generally speaking I haven’t ran into one person who does not like them.

Check out this video for an overview of Wordpress version 2.6:

Thank you Wordpress developers for making an easy to use, complex tool to allow bloggers to step up their game.

I get asked on numerous occasions why I immerse myself in the online world of blogging, social-network services, online chats and the like.

Carlos posted a great entry that sums it up, please check it out.

I commented back with this (I’m posting, so you’ll have a better idea of why this entry resonated with me):

Well written and I couldn’t agree more.

I feel like what was once my small, semi-dedicated circle of friends has expanded through this vast world of online relationships. I’ve “met” people that I wouldn’t have otherwise had the opportunity to meet, that have let me in to their lives and who I’ve let in to mine. To me it’s not a “network” of people whose names I can drop, it’s a family. It’s people who are willing to lend a hand from 900 miles away even if it’s through an AIM chat.

Thank you for this concise and poignant statement. It resonated with me immensely.

I know that there are many out there who say that online relationships are unhealthy. I’ve always, and will continue to beg to differ. I think it is very possible to maintain a very healthy lifestyle, and maintain very healthy relationships even if a large number of those are online. Let’s face it, we’re living in a new world.
I could go on for quite a while telling you how Alex has inspired me with his dedication to his ministry and to the people of his community and to his family, or how without thinking twice he answers my e-mails when I have questions that in the grand scheme of things are completely a waste of his time. Or I could tell you how both Carlos and Heather have given me not only a sound biblical example of parenting, but a realistic “We don’t have all the answers but dang it we love our kids and we’re trying our hardest to be the best, Godly parents ever” example of what a parent should be. I could tell you how Anne and Crystal have reminded me on numerous occasions that the only way you’re going to get anywhere in life is to remain transparent, and to constantly be on guard when it comes to matters of the heart. I’d probably also mention how Chris, reminds that you do not have to agree with someone to know that they are right, that they are wise, and that they are thinking about things well outside the realm of anything you could possibly grasp. (Consequently, I’ve met Chris in real life, and he does the same in real life as he does online.) I’d probably even tell you about Pete who reminds me continually that life DOES indeed come at you fast, and the only way you can deal with it is to fully embrace what is thrown at you.

That’s just SOME of the many people I follow, you can always check them out in my blogroll, and in time I’ll be adding some more of the blogs I read either via their feeds or online that are not currently up there.

The point I’m trying to make with this, is that I’ve grown physically, mentally, emotionally, relationally and spiritually as a result of the blogosphere. I’ve also done a lot of growing as a result of my “real life” relationships, but I can not and will not allow others to write off relationships formed via the internet as if they lack substance, because, well they clearly do not.

Thanks again Los for sharing your heart.

Thanks to Crystal I discovered the worth of my blog this morning.

Apparently, my blog is worth more than I’ll probably ever be worth.