One user
by Tyler on January 9, 2012
I am one user. So any conclusion I pull from personal experience is what you might call, a weak conclusion. But something that I noticed today is that I rarely visit new websites through their homepage. Is the home page dead?
There has been no research, no polling, nor any cold calls to answer this question. It is simply an observation of how I “surf.” But the take away could be huge!
How did you get here? Was it through tygorden.com’s home page? Do you subscribe? Was it in link from Twitter or Facebook (will I even share this article)? And lastly, is it even still 2012 (nothing dies on the web)?
I realize that I’ve just dumped questions with no explicit value. And ultimately I’m left to ask myself for the website that I manage: If people don’t enter through the home page, what does this mean for the rest of the site?
You can’t judge a book by it’s cover if you’ve never seen it.
Soap Making
by Tyler on October 21, 2011
Last year, my wife and I decided to make some of the gifts we gave away at Christmas. I had so much fun making the soap, that I’m doing it again.
The plan was to replace the lard from last year’s recipe with palm oil. This would let me call it vegan soap. But truly, it doesn’t matter to me if it’s vegan, and palm oil has bee hard to find locally. So, back to my previous recipe… this time with colors and scents!
I’ve been researching and thinking about what to color the new batch of soap with. Beet juice might end up staining as you wash! So, I was thinking minerals, aka dirt. But ultimately, day to day, our trees provide another source: lichen. So, I plan to grind it up into a powder, and perhaps it will make a nice light green soap. This variety is called fruticose lichen.
Also, at the request of my lovely wife, I’m going to be using some wintergreen essential oils. She tells me that it makes her hungry. Basically, the little bottle smells great.
I have no idea of the proportions for colorant and scent. So, I’m guessing from things I’ve read. For lichen, I’m planning to use 1 Tbsp. per pound (olive oil being 800-920 kg/cu.m) and my 1 gallon recipe is approx. 7 1/8 lbs. We’ll say 7 lbs. As for the oil scent, um… I’ve read everything from 15-20 ml per lb. of soap, or 6-9% maximun usage. Either way, we’re talking 3-7 oz of scent! I’ll use the whole 5 ml bottle that I bought tonight which is about 5/32 of an oz.
Here are my ratios: 65% olive oil, 17.5% coconut oil, and 17.5% lard.
Resources:
Lemon zest & chicken bones
by Tyler on February 22, 2011
I know that I am not as normal as most (normal is a dimmer and not a switch, right?). Well, I say this because I am somewhat confused why people don’t save their chicken bones and lemon zest. Read the rest of this entry »
Inkscape and Gimp
by Tyler on February 17, 2011
Last night I became curious enough to check out Inkscape and Gimp (the open source–free–alternatives to Photoshop and Illustrator). I’ve used Gimp in the past, and hated now my toolbox of hotkeys from Photoshop aren’t the same. I felt crippled. Read the rest of this entry »
My 150 Words
by Tyler on February 16, 2011
I read somewhere that to boost your creative process, dump what is in your brain for about 150 words before you start your day. This ties in really well with my desire to continue blogging. In the wise words of Barney Stinson, “It’s getting better.”
To work then… Read the rest of this entry »
Using The Potty
by Marian on June 8, 2010
As we've been home with Aideen, we have already begun to notice signs of when she needs to use the restroom, and so today, Ashley put her on the training potty, and voila.
A friend in China told me about traditional methods of potty training. I realized that many people for many generations did not or currently do not have access to diapers. They use infant potty training, also known as elimination communication (EC). I thought that it would be worth trying. Read the rest of this entry »
The pacifier
by Tyler on June 6, 2010
The magic toy that keeps Aideen calm and quiet. Use sparingly.
Today is Sunday, church, and we felt rested enough to consider going, so off we went on one of the first (not the very first) excursions out with Aideen in tow. The diaper bag was packed, and she was just getting fed before we had to leave, hoping that would put her into her milk coma for an easy church service. Read the rest of this entry »
Marian Aideen Gordon
by Tyler on June 3, 2010
Just home from the birth center, maybe 3 hours after she was born, she meets her new uncle John for the first time.
Yesterday, at 4:05 am, my daughter was born! She weighed 7lbs. 10oz. at 19in. long. She is beautiful! I have since enjoyed one full day and part of another with her. She is now asleep with my wife (I have the photo to prove it). Read the rest of this entry »
Changes are coming
by Tyler on May 4, 2010
Well, changes have come. Someone told me recently that my site has been the same since, well, before 2003. “The cobbler’s children go barefoot,” or so they say. I design, but yet, I’ve let things as there were since college. So, changes are coming.