Justin Germino Ramblings

Maybe I am starting to suffer a little bit of blogging burnout, where I am just not as "infatuated" with staying up late and writing blog articles until 1am as much as I used to be.  Or, maybe I finally found a PC game that calls to me so much I tend to want to play it more than blog (which would be the first time in 2 years this has happened).

Since I picked up Kings Bounty: Armored Princess I have been thinking less about blogging and more about just playing the game with every spare moment I have lately.  This game satisfies RPG and strategy elements and is one of the most fun games I have played in years.

Combine this new game with the fact that all of my blogs are suffering huge traffic losses since Google Instant search went in, and I have already seen my earnings plummet from Google AdSense and less offers coming in has taken its toll on my blogging enthusiasm as well.

My sites have pretty much jumped 20 months back in time as far as traffic is concerned, and I am just about at a point where I have to find new tactics and methods to bring it back. 

The best thing about blogging is that when you start suffering fatigue you can stagger out a little, write at least one post a week instead of every day and sites always get better with age (the aging of a site helps improve its SEO, SERP and PageRank so this can sometimes be a good thing).  Now is also a good time to reach out to other potential niches, guest blog and be more active in the online community.

In the meantime, I will just spend some extra time gaming and helping my wife with a new project we are working on that will be revealed in the future.  This will be a both online and offline venture business that we plan on running together.

-Justin Germino

Today is my 33rd Birthday and I had taken the last few days off of work to go on a little retreat in Sedona with my wife.  She treated me to a little bed and breakfast where we relaxed and enjoyed the time spent together.

One thing I notice that is true about aging is that I am a little more concerned over potential health issues developing than I was in my early twenties.  I care more about what I eat, and whether I will inherit or suffer heart problems like both of my grandfathers did.  Both of my grandfathers had heart surgeries and were plagued with heart and artery issues their entire lives.

My latest doctor visit shows good results and I eat some form of oat fiber every morning with soluble fiber like Oatmeal, Cracklin Oat Bran or some other source of fiber.  I know that soluble fiber helps keep your arteries clean and wheat doesn’t have soluble fiber like oat bran does.

I still need to commit to exercising more and eating less unhealthy processed meats, I have a weakness for Pepperoni, Genoa salami and aged Swiss cheeses which is probably going to cause more than a few colon polyps in my lifetime I am sure.

My wife always says to me that if it isn’t one thing that gets you, it will be another.  Clean diet only to have environmental toxins, so mine as well just enjoy life and do everything in moderation.  I go through periods where I am like this, and then other periods where I just want to modify my lifestyle.  This is probably the Libra in me where I am always bouncing between choices, sides and weighing what to do.

Anyway, for my Birthday this year I could have asked for a better gift than some quality time with my wife at a bed and breakfast.  It is such a nice feeling that I have my wife who is my best friend whom I have shared my last 14 birthdays with and I try cherish every moment I spend with her.

-Justin Germino

Responsibility is lacking in this society and it is unfortunate because if the majority of society was responsible then legalizing Marijuana would probably be a viable and much more widely accepted proposal.

I myself have never actually smoked pot, never tried it, never tested it and don’t know what the effects are from being high.  I did however grow up in a family where I watched my parents and brother smoke weed nearly every day and it was almost a daily ritual with my parents at night.

I get a headache from the scent of pot smoke and I had much anger and hatred for the drug and users when I was a teenager because I feel it contributed to some family issues going on at the time.

As I am much older and wiser now I have a different take on the drug and after medical study after medical study shows that weed does have a pain dulling effect comparable to some of the most potent narcotics and can be valuable in treatments for depression, pain management and more I do see it has a place and value as a medical treatment.

That being said, treatment centers and prescriptions crop up everywhere to a point where it is so available it is absurd that it isn’t officially legalized in California.  There are those who say legalizing pot and taxing it will help the state with budget deficits, help cut down on illegal drugs since people can purchase drugs locally instead of having to get smuggled pot in from Mexico…etc

There is people who say that more people will drive while high, and that more kids will be exposed to weed which is said to damage learning abilities in undeveloped minds as well as lead to addictions later.

In truth, pot is probably no more dangerous a drug than alcohol is, the effects of inebriation are similar in caliber though you can die from alcohol poisoning I am not sure if you can smoke so much weed in one session you can kill yourself (let me know if this is possible).

If people were more responsible as a society this could be a viable recreational drug to help deal with the stress and pressure of daily life in an economic nightmare, I mean some people game, others drink beer during football, pot theoretically should be an option to unwind at the end of a hard week.

The problem is society is not responsible and kids are already getting into parents prescription medications, guns, alcohol and such.  This would only add one more element with which kids have easier access to and therefore can lead to damaging societal consequences a decade down the line that can’t be predicted.

Where do you stand on the issue of marijuana legalization in California?

-Justin Germino

The last thirty days have been better than average with the BlogsVertise blogging network.  I was able to rake in about $30 with two sponsored opps which is far more than I have been getting (average of one $7-$9 dollar offer per month).

The other thing I noticed is that for the first time all of my opps have grab bag items which are extra assignments you can collect and do without being directly assigned opps.  These assignments can be Pay Per Action items which pay you only if a user clicks through and orders or fills out a form on the other side or sponsored posts.  Some are just writing a post about anything and including some backlinks (typically you will only see these type of offers on blogs with a PageRank 3 or higher).

As usual I find most offers from systems come for my Poetry blog which has my highest PageRank of 3 but the lowest Alexa and number of visits compared to all my blogs.  Ironic that my blog that barely gets 2,000 visits per month gets the most offers compared to a blog that gets 5x as much traffic.

This only further reinforces that backlinks are a hot item and you can make some decent earnings if you own a few blogs with PR5+ Google rankings.  These blogs can net anywhere from $10-$20 per month for each link on a homepage, if you had two blogs with five links each you can rake in about $200 per month from doing nothing but hosting some backlinks on your homepage.

I am still working to improve my own blogs PageRank by focusing on building  backlinks which I will do through combinations of guest posting, commenting and such.  In the meantime, BlogsVertise is a good option to make some money with sponsored posts and should be added to your arsenal of programs to make money online with your blogs.

You can read my guide on which programs make money blogging and my recommendations.  You can also sign up for BlogsVertise and register your blogs today.  They have a pretty fast approval system and you can get offers emailed to you within a few weeks.

-Justin Germino

Leave it to Bit Rebels to showcase and find an awesome and creative video online where someone took the time to create an entire Starcraft mission and replay it with Lego’s.

If you are a Starcraft fan then you will appreciate every attention to detail in this Lego Starcraft simulation:

I mean every sound effect, every step is perfectly detailed in these Lego Starcraft models.  Though this is Starcraft 1 and not the Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty game. 

I didn’t even know Lego made Starcraft models!

-Justin Germino

BlogEngage is hosting the Best of the Guest Blogger Contest where they will be giving away a $500 USD $1,000 prize as well as several other prizes to the top guest bloggers.

I myself have decided to join the contest and this is one of the first steps in entering the contest (write a post on your own blog promoting the contest).

The second step is to actually write a high quality guest post on the BlogEngage blog and make sure it is between 450 and 1000 words.

The quality, style of your post and interaction/comments left on your guest article will help determine who will be the top 3 winners of the Guest Blogger contest.

BlogEngage has been one of my favorite blogging communities for a while, and Brian just recently upgraded the messaging system which allows you to network and communicate with other users in the system more easily.

In addition, BlogEngage now has opened up registration to any blogger wanting to get their articles noticed and join a fantastic network of bloggers.  There is no more invitation only, so I encourage you to register for BlogEngage now and let them know that I sent you.

By the way, here is a list of the contest sponsors and the prizes:

2 year free hosting (3 GB space/15 GB bandwith) + 1 free domain

Houston SEO

Best Travel Websites

Denver Web Design

James Brown

Leading Travel Directory for Travel Websites

My Guest Blog Media Sponsor

Golf School

Chicago Web Design

Virtual Assistant

Newark Airport Parking

Other prizes: Non-Cash Sponsors

Platinum Package ” $125 value + stationery design “Business Cards, Letterhead and Envelopes” 100$ value

One year membership at Elegant Themes From Nick

Simply Fresh WordPress theme

Free Blog Review at Bloggeries Blog Forum

One Year Free of HostGator’s Business Web Hosting Plan (a $179.40 value)

-Justin Germino

There was a good article posted on Problogger.net this week about what type of blog to start when having trouble choosing a niche.  The article written by Darren Rowse talks about the benefits of starting a personal blog if you are getting your feet wet or don’t really know how to start or what to start blogging about but sure you want to dive into blogging.

I agreed with this and my own technology blog started out as a personal blog which adapted three months later into a technology and blogging niche only.

The reasons for having a personal blog can be rewarding in that you can blog about anything you want, test themes on the fly, learn without worrying about brand / business reputation or side effects.  Personal blogs are also a great option for people who already have an established blog but want to build trust and relationships with their audience by allowing audience members to know more about the person behind the blogger.

With personal blogs you can also cross promote your other sites later, network with peers and so much more.  My own personal blog is my second most popular and has received as much as 10,000 visits on some months with an average of about 5k visits.

I use it as my "catch all" blog, personal diary, sharing my own thoughts about raising kids, working, blogging, pets, Arizona news and events and so much  more.  I do however restrict what I write about as everyone should when considering a personal blog.

Problogger.net listed some reasons to start a personal blog, but I am going to list some things you should not talk about in your personal blog unless you are really sure you know what you are doing.

Do Not Blog About People You Know

Unless you are a celebrity blogger you do want to refrain from talking about anyone you know or associate with.  Don’t include real names or identifying issues.  Unless you are given permission to share details of someone else’s life that you know, you can break the trust in your relationships with people by blogging about them.  The last thing someone wants to do is search for themselves on Google and show up on your blog when they didn’t know it.

Don’t Share Too Much Personal Details

Employeers screen employees in ways never done previously, if you share information about the last time you smoked pot or a crack pipe, you will likely risk losing your job.  Remember about company reputation and your boss, manager, coworkers and anyone else you associate with may potentially find and read what you write about.  Always write keeping this in mind.  This also includes information about your children, where you live (city is fine, but don’t go into street or neighborhood), when you go on vacation (see my blogging safety article)…etc.

Remember that some people can start to blog thinking they have no audience and write freely only to regret things written later.  Always write with the assumption everyone you know may read it (not just friends) and you will do a good job of filtering your own content.

Final Thoughts

In review, I think starting a personal blog is a really good idea but just make sure you keep your content appropriate to where you won’t risk doing any harm to your career or relationships as a result of the information you are sharing.

Do share your personal thoughts and views on everything, people read personal blogs because they want to know what the "blogger" thinks about a political situation, product, event…etc.  Reports just report, bloggers are supposed to add unique insights and their own point of views in my opinion.

What other tips do you have for people and starting a personal blog?

-Justin Germino

I haven’t actually been to my primary care physician for more than two years and my wife prodded me to finally go and get a regular checkup again.  (Why is it the wives always prod the husbands to get checkups?).

Anyway, so without boring with the gory details I just am going to have some blood word done to check my usual LDL, HDL, Cholesterol, Blood Pressure…etc.

I am combining my Dr. Appointment with a drive into the office since my doctor’s office is within 3 miles of my work office. 

My point about bringing this all up is that it actually is important to have annual screenings to check your various vitals and make sure you don’t have any conditions gradually getting worse.  Better to catch something early than have to deal with the consequences later.

I am a little dismayed that I have put on about 15 pounds since the last time I was at the doctor’s office two years ago.  My diet has not been so good lately with me consuming far to much fast food and eating too many portions, combined with my cutting back on exercise because I have been so incredibly busy these last six months or so.

Ah well, tomorrow is a new day.

-Justin Germino

It was only a few short years ago that my wife and I were seriously considering moving from Arizona to California where the weather would be a calmer moderate temperature all year round and we would not only escape the scorching summer heat but the 40 degree lows in the winter as well which my wife doesn’t like either.

At the time we had looked at several California moving services to see what level of effort and cost it would take to transport a fairly large house with over a decade of collected belongings from one state to another.

We realized that there were just some items that didn’t make sense to transport, as we would have gotten a smaller house in California than we owned in Arizona we couldn’t have fit the same number of furnishings.  Despite that we could find professional movers to transport one of our most prized items which was our Pool table, this was an item that we decided to sell on Craigslist instead of transporting to California with us. 

It was a fine pool table and we only did get about 30% of what we paid for it, the worst part is that we wound up not moving to California at all and now still have a giant vacant spot in our front room where our pool table used to be (though my sons drum set fills some of that spot).

So one thing to consider before you are ready to hire San Diego movers or movers for any other state is what you really want to move and if you really are going to move.  Don’t sell anything off until the move is definite and don’t get stuck moving something that you would end up just selling upon arrival if you can help it.

In our mistake we sold off a few items prior to moving that we would probably have never sold if we knew the move would have been cancelled.

-Justin Germino

I have been using the same blog theme on DragonBlogger.com for nearly two years and realistically I made one critical mistake as a blogger when choosing my theme is that I never put together a list of requirements and think about the end user experience when choosing a blog theme.

In this respect, I chose the Black Abstract 2.0 theme because I always had an affinity and liked black backgrounds with white text vs. white background and black text and I wanted the site to stand out more than the generic white on white sites you see online a dime a dozen.

I honestly feel this backfired however, and as a result my site is perceived as less professional in appearance and more amateurish as a result of my radical theme appearance.  I have also had some users complain about the white on dark grey being hard on the eyes.

In light of all this I will be spending the next few weeks looking at a drastic redesign of my technology blog in an effort to bring it more mainstream and professional in appearance.  I did however find it much harder to decide on what I want in a theme and what I am looking for.  This prompted me to create a bullet list of features I wanted, functionality and other preferences and I started thinking that if all bloggers went into picking their theme this way they might end up a lot happier later on.

When designing or choosing a blog theme you should consider the following points:

Width of post area

Some themes have narrow post areas less than 500 pixels which aren’t as ideal for embedding video as the video’s will be small and harder to watch details.  Others are so wide like 650+ pixels that if you type small posts of only 100-200 words your post will only be three or four lines long which makes it look absurdly tiny.

Content area is a huge factor and you should weigh in heavily whether you want to make room for large images and video embeds, or keep text short and brief to the point with a smaller content read area.

Sidebars

One or Two, how wide should each one be?  You will find that in many cases a 125 or 150 width is just not wide enough for some widgets, yet be stuck with a 2 column model.  One column gives you flexibility at the expense of appearance, when you have various width sizes it can really cut down on the professionalism of your site.  Some sites have an ideal mix of 1 big sidebar box and 2 columns under that.  This is what DragonBlogger.com has now and I like a variant of this for my own personal preference.

Colors

Ideally you want to use a blog that is immediately easy to read and appears professional.  This means if you are an information only blog or a blog that functions as a news source you don’t have much option with color schemes or patterns.  If you are a photo, art, creative blog then you have a lot more flexibility and leeway for choosing creative colors/patterns for your site in my opinion.

Who Is This Site Designed For

Too many bloggers and myself included create or pick their blog themes because “They like it” without putting much thought into another user experience.  Get polling, samples with experimental themes and opinions.  Also look at what’s popular in your niche and has a low Alexa rating (lower is better) and Alexa is a good indicator of traffic and popularity.  There is a reason why so many blogs use the same WordPress frameworks like Thesis for WordPress or Genesis for WordPress which both offer flexibility but have default template looks for quick and professional installations and appearances.

How Should Posts Be Displayed

Do you want full posts at home page or summaries with read more plastered on them?  Do you always want the latest 5 or 10 articles on your homepage or do you want to have a mix of certain featured articles and categories plus most recent articles?  This is very important when you choose a theme because this is one of the items that requires PHP function as well as major theme design changes if you don’t find something you are happy with.  You can tweak CSS easily to change colors of fonts/backgrounds…etc but if you don’t like what is presented and in what format, this means your theme will not likely work for you unless you are really good at creating/modifying WordPress themes.

In Summary

I am going to be spending a fair amount of time in the coming weeks trying to find and determine what theme will be the next look and feel for DragonBlogger.com and what will work to present my readers with quicker and easier access to the information while giving my site a more impressive and professional look and even expand my potential to earn from selling advertising space.

Right now I would prefer to use some sort of framework like Genesis which is used by Chris Brogan or Thesis which is used by FamousBloggers.net I have to figure out which one is right and will offer the functionality I am looking for which is a bit different than both of those site designs.

BTW, the same rules when choosing a blog theme should apply whether you use a Blogspot blog, WordPress blog or other CMS platform.  Always consider the end user experience and readability.

-Justin Germino