First Impression: (5/5) Ah lemon-y fresh. First time I’ve ever seen this template, which is a first for diaryland, and doesn’t happen very often. The links and colors and the like match. So far, so good.

Contact: (5/5) Notes, email, guestbook, AIM. Though, if you would look at the layout section about your book.

Errors: (3/5) Your archive page is formatted differently, I won’t take points off, just realize that people on the diaryland server see it as the same thing, and that they have to press a back button to find the links they were headed to—just logistics. Also…the cast page is titled as “season one” whereas your archive page would tell me we’re not in season one anymore. Lastly is one of just sheer confusion: on your review page…there’s the code for the ring navigation. Now, I have no idea how they link, but if you have an appropriate explanation I’d be willing to hear it. The links all functioned, the only thing you have to be aware of is that some links can’t be clicked because they’re such a small word and change the paragraph (since it’s boxy style) so when you highlight it with your mouse it won’t let you click it—just kind of fidgets.

Navigation: (4/5) It’s all on the right side, and for how many links you have, it’s pretty well organized. The only things that need to be cleaned up are…the “housekeeping” section is more of a fanlistings thing—which is ok, but ruins the mono-toned nature of your page. It’s very distracting and…more than that it offsets how your page was even—now on your slightly shorter entries the first column is a little longer but the second one is way long.

Along with those goes the Diaryland and site meter links. Icky icky icky. 1) why are you using D-land’s usual icky pixilated link? It’s just…ugly, either Diaryland buttons (available here; simply save the image somewhere—there’s one that’s already saved for you somewhere) or a simple text link will do (that will nicely put a very small thing in place of housekeeping, keeping it in a nice stepped look).

Also, the site counter thing you have…eh. I’m not such a huge fan unless they’re invisible (I have a few tricks on making those free ones hide themselves if you’d like) or having them in a “number style” such as simply displaying: “12,357.” If you’re happy with your current counter, so be it, I’m not though—check out Site Meter for a free counter which does basic counts, and has no ads, and if you look at “referrals” lets you see what you were searched under. Quite helpful (and looks nice as simple numbers). Changing these things will help you enormously, and help make your site look so much more professional.

Layout: (40/50) We’re gonna tackle the easy one first: guestbooks. Dun dun dun! First off, while I love Blue Swirl, and her designs—this is not only non-matching for your diary, it has this completely different feel. My suggestion? Take your current template, where it says “div=entry” and all of your entry code: place in the sign my guestbook basic code and play with some colors (from your main code) some fonts, (also from your main code) and have a grand old time, ending up with a guestbook that matches your site. It makes things look so much more put together.

Now, as far as your layout goes…

It’s most definitely yellow. You’ve also picked an appropriate green to match as your link color, not too annoying, but off enough to make a difference…and your font, while Verdana, is fitting for the page. The font issue, well it fits your page, but I’m not sure if it fits you, I almost see a nice arial or Tahoma fitting a bit better (trebuchet or gill sans if you’re feeling nutty), and I could see it giving your page a face lift—this is so minor though, that it’s completely up to you—I just want you to be aware of how your page looks to others. Also…while complimentary fonts are fun (yay for matching fonts) not much matches verdana—change the font where it links the designer and yourself to Verdana (and I might take out the ? mark out before her name and year, etc).

Also, with the nice three column design, once you lessen that right column a bit (pull out the things with all those other colors especially) things will be a little more in sync. Your design is definitely not made as a one-page, which is ok, because you don’t write one page entries. Also completely acceptable. But the nice thing is, your page isn’t trying to be one page.

For the most part—it seems like this layout has become home to you, and better than that—it seems rather customizable. Not feeling the yellow anymore? Play with some hex codes, find a new image and bada-bing bada-boom. New layout. It’s comfy. Careful with the links, though, they could take over your writing. Remember what’s most important here: the words.

Content: (24/25) It hurts when as a reviewer you find a reviewee who writes better than yourself. You feel like you should find all the flaws in their writing and make them pay.

May I state: not my intention.

The nice thing about this diary is that it shows how you’ve changed. Reading your 101 and all makes me realize the person you used to be (it feels by how you write your mood and your personality) and that has changed, quite a bit, from how you are now. You write more smoothly—and while some of your topics are, say, boring, or day-loggy, when reading them in succession, they fit. I didn’t mind reading about them. Mustard and ketchup on the pants? I mean, not really a hugely in depth topic for an entry, but I read it. I enjoyed it. You’ve managed to catch the attention of your readers—and that’s good. You’ve got talent there. I’m not as huge a fan of the truly emotional entries, because I fear I read through a block of 20 very funny, very entertaining, very off-the-wall ones. The ones where you want a man or would be happier with a boyfriend, searching for acceptance, etc, just didn’t feel as—right.

Perhaps this is me putting things on your writing. You write well, and noticing things like that is something me, as a reviewer, is supposed to do. But the funny part? I suggest that you change very little. I suppose you could (oh grammar god—which by the way, that’s not Osama, that’s God from Monty Python, and I scored the same on that quiz) put it into a spell check from here to there, or re-read things as I noticed a few “to’s” as “too’s” and the like. Anything major? No.

Extras: (5/5) The highlights section seems to explain most of it. This is one of the few sites I’ve seen in a long time that a lot of links actually works for—good job.

Final Score: (86/100) Keep in mind—while my scores are relatively low, I think they truly reflect the writer’s deservance, and show a more quality review than most sites.

Favorite Quote: “Mom's been walking around on pins and needles for the past few days, wondering if she'll catch her pulling out a stash of dildos from her duffle bag or something ridiculous like that.”

“I hate Condoleezza Rice for making up total crap at the 9/11 Commission Hearings last week, and having such a ridiculously long name.”