Over the past few days I’ve received a few messages stating that some readers could not view the actual post content on this site.  It took a bit, but it boiled down to an error in Internet Explorer that caused that section of the pages to load improperly. (We’re not getting in to how stupid a parse-error this was, mind you.)

While browsers such as Firefox and Safari simply ignored the issue and displayed the pages properly, Internet Explorer, for some obtuse reason known only to the engineers at Microsoft, decided to render the glitch as a comment instead.  Why it happened is not relevant.  What IS relevant is that it has been repaired and everyone should be able to view posts normally now.

If you’re having an issue, please let me know as soon as possible so that I can fix the issue.

Thanks!

Peace.  I’m out.

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I mentioned in an earlier post that I was completely disenchanted with the new theme I designed for Cooking, by the seat of my Pants!  After just a few weeks of looking at This:

I had determined that it simply wasn’t going to work for this blog, no matter what I did.  I couldn’t stand it.  So yesterday I unveiled the New-New cbsop.  The current design (which, if you’re reading this blog a few years down the line and thigs have changed, looks like this:)

Hearkens back to the original design of Cooking by the seat of my Pants!, which unfortunately I do not have an image for.

I think this layout works perfectly to show off what this blog is all about.  The food.  The theme is designed specifically to always show a the latest recipe posted at the top of the page, with all other posts following, which makes certain that there is no strange content at the top of the lo when someone visits. (Paid posts, contests, personal ramblings like this one, etc.)

I hope Y’All enjoy the new look and remember: You can access Cooking by the seat of my Pants! via www.cbsop.com as well!

Have a great day everyone!

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Have you ever worked your tail off on something for weeks, really pouring your heart, soul and creative juices into a project just to come back to it a few weeks later and say:

What the hell was I thinking?

Yeah.  That’s me right now.

When I decided to update the look and feel of Cooking, by the seat of my Pants! last month, I was awestruck by the theme I built for my wife and determined that it would be a perfect for this site.  I wanted to simplify things, to make a cleaner presentation for my readers and to take the blog back to it’s roots as a linear experience.

One month in, I’m wondering exactly what I was thinking.  Sure, I love the sliding menu, but aside from that the new look is anything but elegant when compared to other food blogs that I admire.  The new look not only falls short, but feels nearly amateurish.

Worse, it doesn’t really capture what cbsop is about. The design of any online publication should serve several purposes. The design has to consider  ad placements, content, layout ease of use and accessibility, but at the same time the design as a whole should say something about what the blog or website is all about and help to share that concept with its readers.  In this I have failed with the current design.

Consider such notables as Simply Recipes, Steamy Kitchen, Chez Pim and Meathenge.  Each of these sites is elegant and simple to navigate of course, but the key to each is that they define the feel of the blog.  They are an extension of their writers’ personalities.  They just fit in the context they are supposed to.

My current design doesn’t do that at all.  It has no identity.  It’s just… There.

In fact, the more I look at it, the more I hate it.

So I’m asking you guys.  Where do you think I went wrong?  What could be done differently?  What could be done better?  I really need to know what you would like to see, not just what I’m thinking of changing.

This has to be a pretty quick process though.  The Holidays are upon us and it’s about to get seriously busy here in the CbsoP kitchens.  If I don’t act now, I’m not going to have time until mid December and to be honest I can’t stare at this thing for that long.

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Well folks, it’s that time of year again. parties, gatherings, family, friends and food are the order of the day for the next month and a half or so. The holidays are here, and here at CbsoP, we’re gearing up for the whole thing, both sweet and savory. It’s looking like there will be a flurry of recipes posted over the next week. Way more than my usual. I hope none of them get lost in the shuffle.

Dessert recipes are on the menu for the next few days.  With Turkey day and thanksgiving approaching rapidly, we’re all going to be looking for all the sweets we can get, and I’m here for you… Or to defeat a year of getting in better shape, one of the two. We’re going to have a slew of tartlets, barks, cookies and who knows what else (I think there’s a pie or two coming… )  it’s gonna be great!

And I’m gonna be fat.  But I suffer for my art, you know?

And it is all for you.

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October was a banner month for this little slice of the Internet tht I call CbsoP.  last month I topped the 100,000 unique visitor mark, with nearly 200,000 pageviews!  it’s really something special, especially since this blog is not yet two years old.

So to all of you who have topped by over the course of my ramblings, Thank You!  To my regular readers, thanks as well.  Without you this would feel like work, instead of the adventure that it is for me each and every day!  I love you guys!

I’m going to come up with a giveaway or contest to celebrate this occasion, I just haven’t figured out exactly what I want to do yet.  Stay Tuned!

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halloween is just around the corner, and I’ve got a slew of recipes coming for that over the next few days, but that leaves us dead in the middle of the Holiday season, a topic I covered pretty thoroughly last year.  What’s a blogger to do?

“Why,” I said to myself, “I’ll ask my readers if there are things that they would like to see!”

And it sounded like a grand idea.

so, dear readers and fellow food bloggers, are there any particular recipes you’d like to see tackled?  Any recipes that feel a bit tired to you that you would like to see spiced up or given a new twist?  That’s what cooking by the seat of your pants is all about anyway, taking what you know and making something new and incredible.  It’s about the inspiration, and I could use a little of that at the moment, because just re-hashing last years posts seems a bit redundant to me at this point.

Drop a comment here and let me know what you would like to see for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I’ll be happy to dive in and give you my take on a few things!

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If you’ve been typing in the address to this site manually when you come to visit, you’ll probably appreciate this one.  you can now drop by Cooking… by the seat of my Pants! by simply typing www.cbsop.com into your address or location bar.

Same Site, Same great content, easier to get to.  have fun!

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The lovely Jill McKeever of SimplyDailyRecipes.com shows off the latest in foodie fashion

For those who haven’t popped in to the main Cooking… by the seat of my Pants! site lately, you may be unaware that we now have our very own CafePress store.  It’s only got a few things in it at the moment, but I try to add more daily, so keep checking in to see if we have something that might interest you!

I’m also very pleased to announce that our very first sale went ot my dear friend Jill, who looks absolutely stunning in her new gear, don’t you think? I’m open to any ideas that you may have for inventory, and eventually hope to have hundreds of choices for you, from CbsoP swag to funny bits and bobs that may interest your relatives.  Take a look or drop me a comment!

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OK, that was scary.  I apologize if there were a few minutes when the site was unavailable.  Upgrading will do that sometimes.  As far as I can tell, most of the site is working properly now.  I’ll be working to get the rest back up ASAP.  If you spot an issue, please contact me at jerry (at) cookingbytheseatofmypants (D0t) com

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If you’re a regular visitor you’ve probably already noticed that I’ve shaken the look of the place up a bit again. There shouldn’t be any surprise in that, since I’d already said I was compelled to do so in an earlier post.

As usual, I waxed impatient and just had to get this template up today, so expect to see some shifting around of topics, menus and a bit of functionality here and there over the next few days. (I’ve never been great at waiting.)

I really think that this particular theme suits my style a bit better. It’s more original, more “My Own” than the last, and I think that it shows the photography in a better light as well. For that reason alone it’s a better choice.

Don’t worry, Cooking by the seat of my Pants will be back to posting regular food related entries just as soon as I can get ‘em typed up. My obsession with “Look and Feel” won’t prevent that, and I’ve got several items just waiting to grace these pages with their yumminess.

I hope you all enjoy the new look. Don’t worry, I’ll be sticking with it for at least a year.

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