Mama’s new look

Posted on by Felipe Zapata

THE MOON gotta facelift yesterday, and you’re looking at it.

It’s not the first time she’s changed her dress since debuting in 2011, but it’s the first time in a goodly spell, long overdue. And her predecessor, The Zapata Tales (now defunct, 2005-2011) went through a few facelifts too.

I’m like a woman sometimes. I grow weary of looking at the same thing in the mirror, so I toss open the WordPress closet to see what’s new.

And free.

I like this change, but I always like the changes, or I wouldn’t make them. Some folks who write blogs wear the same outfit for years and years. I don’t know how they do it. Have they no sense of style?

Even worse is writing on Blogger when WordPress is immensely superior in every way, and switching is no big deal.

Let’s be blunt: These people are fuddy-duddies.

They should have names like Cora and Dudley.

This new outfit looks best on a PC screen or a decent-sized laptop. Quite a bit is lost on a tablet, and if you read a blog on a cell phone, there’s no hope for you.

The new comment section is quite better. With the previous style, it was often difficult to see who was responding to whom. Not anymore.

The type is larger. I’m not so fond of that, but some of you older folks can remove your glasses or pince-nez. There is nothing Mexican about the header, and there is a little mugshot of me up there, which the old look lacked.

The photo was taken a decade ago as I ate a churro in Mexican actress Margarita Gralia’s hot chocolate-and-churro joint in San Miguel de Allende.

I am fond of the photo because, although you can see me well enough, it’s not sufficiently precise to put out a hit on me.

* * * *

Note: I changed the theme yet again after writing the above, so some of the post may not make sense now.

38 thoughts on “Mama’s new look”

  4. Looks good. Change is good. The only thing is that little picture of yourself looks out of proportion to the huge background photo.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Brent: Thanks too. As for the mugshot, there’s nothing I can do about its size and, as I noted, it keeps my mug sufficiently hidden so a contract cannot be issued on me. Survival matters.

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      1. I’ll add that the color palette of your little mugshot doesn’t fit at all with the background photo. I suggest you turn it into black and white and then sepia-tone it. Then it will look much better against its background.

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          1. I see the little mugshot is gone. Frankly, I think that’s an even better solution. It was really too small to see what it was without study, and then design-wise it just didn’t really fit smack in the middle of the other photo.

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    1. Ms. Shoes: Yep, a churro, something I far prefer to cigars. I used to smoke everything, cigars, cigarettes, pipes, water pipes, you name it, but I stopped in the early ’90s. A couple of years ago I bought a Cuban cigar in La Surtidora downtown and lit it, just so I could say I smoked a Cuban cigar. Yuck.

      I have read that some Mexican cigars are superior to Cuban cigars, and maybe that’s true.

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    2. I wish I could rachet everything down a notch, the type size, the header photo, but it won’t let me. I’m more of a subtle fellow. This screams a bit more than I would prefer. It’s an imperfect world in which we live.

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  6. The view from here appears that you have adjusted well to the imperfections. We all have that to do. Adjustment — that’s what it’s all about.

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  8. That is super elegant and nice-looking. Don’t worry about the typeface being too large. Some print publications, including most magazines and the WSJ and NYT have reduced their typeface so much (I imagine to save paper and other publication costs) that they’ve become practically unreadable.

    Then again, I’m going in for cataracts surgery next week. Maybe that’s my problem.

    alfredo

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Señor Lanier: Thanks for the positive feedback. Often in the past, when I adopted a new look, I got lots of negative response. Doesn’t seem to be the case today, which is good.

      Buena suerte with the cataract surgery. I haven’t reached that point. Knock on wood. But it’s supposed to be quite simple these days, quick and easy. I hope you didn’t feel the need to fly to Texas for this.

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  9. Header is pleasant in a quaint, old-fashioned way. The larger print is good for me and I don’t think it detracts at all from the content.

    Liked by 2 people

  10. I like the new look. Since we travel the country full-time in a motorhome, I have finally been able to divest myself of all the keyboard-bigscreen computers. We now only have 2 tablets plus phone. I read all your posts, Bookmarks and photos. I assure you, they look great on my little 7″ tablet.
    Thanks for your blog.

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  12. This template is nice, probably nicer than the last one, of which I wasn’t overly fond. I also think larger type is a good idea online, where there’s literally infinite space. Something Silicon Valley regularly forgets is the fact that there are people over 40 who use computers, and many of us are don’t like squinting at minuscule type.

    You also seem to be a big fan of beige/tan. But thank God this is on WordPress. I’m so completely sick of the commenting system on Blogger/Blogspot where I have to go through that ridiculous “I’m not a robot” B.S. every single comment.

    Saludos y felicidades por el nuevo template.

    Kim G
    Redding, CA
    Where we think style and fashion are entirely different things, preferring the former to the latter.

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    1. Kim: I would prefer the type to be smaller. Large type appears like First Grade Primers to me. See Spot run! And enlarging type for you old folks is easy with your own keyboard (Control-plus sign). Yes, I am a fan of beige/tan. It’s a question of subtlety. Garish colors are, well, garish. By the way, Blogger comments do not always include the robot step. It’s an option the blog owner controls. Too many people use it, however. And constant moderation. Unlike WP, I believe you either have to choose constant moderation or none at all. And Disqus can be added to Blogger, eliminating the problem altogether. Steve Cotton uses Blogger with the Disqus comments. My suggestion to him long ago. You’re welcome. I don’t understand why people use Blogger when WP is so clearly superior.

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      1. Small type may look nice when you’re looking at the entire page and not reading it, but small type, especially in a low-contrast color, is a pain to actually read, and that goes double if you are using a mobile device. Did you turn on the mobile device adaptation for this theme? I hope so.
        And yes, we are of a mind on both the relative merits of WordPress and Disqus.

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        1. Kim: As I just emailed you, I changed the theme again. I couldn’t take the huge letters. But this one has the option of “previous post.” Where is that mobile-device turn-on? I’ve done that on previous themes, but I don’t recall where I did it. Please advise by email.

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  13. I’m going to add one complaint here. There’s no “previous post” or “prior post” links. Which means that those of us who don’t read every day will now have to go back to the main page and then scroll down in order to comment on older or newer posts. Making your readers do more work isn’t good. By the way, with an upgrade, you can customize things like font size, and the aforementioned buttons. Something to consider.

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    1. Kim: The obvious solution is to pass by here every day! Be alert. As for upgrades, I have that, but this particular theme won’t let me make the type smaller, only bigger. Go figger. Some WP themes just do not include everything others include, sometimes more, sometimes less.

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  14. I always thought you were smoking something. Thank you for the clarification. I have always admired your wit and quick comments on other blogs. First time commenting on your blog but I have been reading it for quite a while. Thanks for all the snorts of coffee that have occurred while reading your words whether here or on other blogs. You say what we are thinking. Carry on and keep up the great work.

    Cathie

    Liked by 1 person

    1. What a great comment, Cathie. I appreciate it. And I like it that I’ve caused you to snort in your coffee. You’re not the first to say exactly that, by the way.

      Don’t be bashful in the future, and only the first comment is moderated for polite people. Subsequent ones are not.

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  15. What’s new, Mr. Magoo?

    Mr. Magoo was an eccentric retiree who got into a series of comical situations as a result of his extreme near-sightedness, compounded by his stubborn refusal to admit the problem.

    However, through uncanny streaks of luck, the situation always seemed to work itself out for him, leaving him no worse than before.

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