Donning a New Skin

I've spent the better part of the last few days reading other folks' travel blogs, trying to get some inspiration for our own site redesign. sarah.word. has always been my personal outlet, but as it will soon serve as a base for the Amazing Adventures of the Traveling Morans, it deserves a facelift and restructure to reflect our new direction. Hardy har.

What's comforting is the number of really well-done travel blogs upon which I've already stumbled. I have little doubt we'll be able to update regularly, no matter where we are. What's daunting are the countless choices I have in regards to organizing our own journey. I'm leaning toward something like what Mark Yiin has done (his link was posted in my comments section, thanks!!). Not only is his blog easy to navigate, but he takes swell photos and tells good stories about his follies in a lot of the same places we'll be enjoying. Hey Mark, I want my Sunday back!

Anyway, I'm all ears if you have advice and suggestions for how this blog should look going forward. Be honest! Have your say! Brendan has already banished my present (and adorable) pink/gray/green color theme. I'm going to go ahead and blame it on his colorblindness. Besides, it's time for a change.

:)
s

Comments

[Steve Foster]

Have you looked into any GPS tracking?

[John-Paul]

I was thinking about that, Sarah the blog is a cool idea but hear me out. You've got this killer trip planned, all over the place. A really really nice digital camera. Now it goes without saying ya'll will probably be seeing the sights, eating the best food, etc. etc. Have you thought about doing a book about it? I think your TV/tech cred gives you enough immediate interest from readers, you could even tie tech into it somehow if you wanted... like wifi spots or.. local net stuff. But you could definately do up something on the places you eat and the sights you see. I don't know. Sounded like a cool idea when I thought about it. Actually, the more I think about it you'll more than have your hands full with Brenden (lol, sorry, no pun intended) and the new website updates. Too much work for something called a vacation.

[3rik]

brendans color blind?? That would explain all those times he wore bright ugly shirts on the show : P

im kidding

sarah what have you been actually doing aside from planing your trip...getting up at 12 in the afternoon? Watching adult swim...

or are you so busy planning the trip you can't do anything else

im sure the new design will be awesome, just pick whatever

k that wasn't helpful....sorry :'(

[T-Man]

MORE CAT VIDEOS!!

[Damian]

India has the plague - Its a crap hole

[Bryan]

You should theme it on what part of the world you're currently in when you start your trip!

[Ligershea]

i agree with bryan u could change the depending on where you are on your trip

[Paul]

I like Mark's blog, just needs more color. I just hope you guys do like a daily podcast on this adventure, and then post pictures. I'd rather have a daily morning listen than a big long story to read. It'd be great to hear your perky voice Sarah, and your just...great voice Brendan.

[Dustin]

Hey Sarah are you and Brendan going to E3?

[Dustin]

Oh yeah I forgot happy easter.

[Steve aka Captain Smee]

I would have to agree with John Paul up there. I'm am really looking forward to the blog keeping up to date on the Amazing Adventures of the Traveling Morans but a book would be pretty awesome too. Maybe piecing all the blogs and pictures together into a memoir of sorts and then a final overview of the trip after it's all over, that would be sweet.

Ok, I'm not colorblind and I'd still have to agree with Brendan, the pink/gray/green color scheme does need to be retired. Hot pink is an awesome color, pastel pink, not so much. Just an idea, but maybe the color scheme could match the countries colors that your currently in. So when you come to the page and see that the colors have changed the reader knows Brendan and you are in a different country now. Just a thought. Even though I don't read many travelogues I took a look at Mark Yiin's page and his layout was pretty nice. That would be an easy way to work with the country color scheme idea too. Huh? Huh? Ok. Anyway, keep having fun on your time off. Go Dodgers and Cubs. Smee out!

[foxtrot]

hey sarah,

congrats on the wedding and best of luck on the world traveling. i must say you are doing what many people simply spend their lives dreaming about. i read this blog about a man who took on a similar travel adventure. enjoy his page.

http://www.vagabonding.com/

best regards,
-foxtrot

[chris]

SARAH HAPPY TO HEAR THE UPDATE HAVE 1 QUESTION WHEN U COME BACK FROM THE TRIP WILL U EVER COME BACK TO G4 AOTS AS A GUEST AND BRENDAN... WILL HE HAVE HIS LIL BLOG ON YOUR SITE AND THE DODGERS SUCK LOL YANKEES SOUTH BRONX AND YOU R THE SEXIEST WHITE GIRL EVER IM PUERTORICAN LOL DONT WORRY BRENDAN MY GIRL LOVE YOU MORE THEN KEVIN P.AND I HATE OLIVIA SHE TO HOLLYWOOD 4 ME AND ISNT K-PER CARRYING ATOS BY HIMSELF NOW CANT WAIT TO SEE NEW UPDATES U GUYS BE SAFE OUT THERE BEST WISHES AND A SAFE TRIP PEACE....... SARAH LANE 4 LIFE

[CHRIS]

HEY SARAH TRY THIS www.terrystrek.com IT ALMOST LIKE YOU WERE BLOGGIN ABOUT LOVE TO HELP BYE

[Joe's Honest]

want some advice. dont go. i would hate to see you doing a pod cast like kevin rose. please dont goooo.....

marry me insteade, theres more than enough room in my trailer.

[Kyle]

terrystrek looks good, I like how he has it organized by country.

I don't suggest a podcast, you probably don't have enough time ;) and have fun on your trip :)

[Evan]

I have a question. After this year of travelling, would you consider coming back to AOTS? Your presence is truly missed. I like your replacement and all but the feed and the energy between Olivia and Kevin isn't the same as it was when it was you and Kevin. I hope that if you don't got back to AOTS, that you will at least come back to TV on another network in some form. I never see you respond to questions in your comment section but please respond to this or send me an e-mail.

I wish you and Brendon the best,
Evan

[chris]

sarah u should check YOUTUBE and enter your name plus www.terrystrek.com its really good site I SEND IT EVERY DAY LOL

[matt]

I agree with the theme idea but i think that it should be certain themes within the main theme, like when you are in Inda have a pic of the flag of india, there main import/export,known animals, their currency (and have it compared to ours), their food, words you have learned from other cultures, etc

[Jake]

Is Brendan really color blind? lol =)

[S0m31]

I hope it's ok that I still call you Sarah Lane, I dont think I'd be able to get used to Moran. Don't let Brendan take control of your blog either, you should make him make his own.

[mocaldoc]

Traveling morons?

[Ryan]

You should do a segment on Attack of the show every week about your adventures from a far!

[Broph]

Sarah, I don't know if you've seen this yet (haven't read all the other comments), but the Travel Channel is looking for a couple to drop everything and travel around the world - on them. You'd just have to submit a 3-minute video and a couple of stills for consideration. It's for a segment "1,000 places to see before you die", based on the book. The deadline is May 10th for submission. But the Travel Channel would pay for a 4-month trip!

[Jason A]

I like it this blog the way it is but if you must change it don't use a red background it hurts my eyes.

[Ryan]

A few suggestions:
-Keep it simple. Just have your updates and a few links, nothing too cluttered.
-GPS updates are a cool idea, but you should make sure they're a few days delayed so you don't get some weird stalker tracking you down. Or just have a world map(google maps?) that you update after you visit a city.
-You should setup a photo album where people can vote on the pics and then the top 5 or 10 are displayed as thumbnails on the main page of your site.

AOTS isn't the same without you, but I hope you have a great time on your journey around the world.

[Mark Yiin]

Hi Sarah,
Someone told me I was linked on your blog, and so I had to stop by and say hi! I think it's great that you've decided to go traveling, I'm sure you'll have an experience of a lifetime. If you want tips or suggestions (about your trip or blogging it) dont hesitate to contact me, but I won't offer any unsolicited advice. Because, after all, the greatest adventure is figuring things out for yourself!!

[Senor Awesome]

I was watching old AOTS podcasts, and I found this flattering pic.
http://www.boogieware.com/sarahlane.html
We miss you.

[Dylan]

Hey Sarah! You're plans sound amazing. I think updating every so often is good, but probably not a podcat. It just seems like too much work. You're on a vacaation with your hubby! have fun. Maybe a post when you reach a major city one during and one after you've left, like the differnt facets of your perception of the place.

You'll always be missed,
Dylan

[Monica]

Hey Sarah...

I think what you and your future hubby are doing is so great and I only wish my hubby and I could do the same. I suggest having a blog just like Mark Yiin's. It's great! It's so interesting, I can't stop reading it.

I have to agree that your colors are so been there done that. How about different shades of green? Those seem nice....

Travel safe... Can't wait to read your blog.

Monica

[archiloco]

glad you liked mark's blog....i have been following his adventure since he posted the "i want to leave my job, and travel the world" thread on ATOT. and i am sure you will do an excellent job too!!.......(with mark's blog) i had an entertaining adventure to read everyday for almost a year!

[MICKEY G]

Change is always better than a rest!

[Matt]

One thing you might try is using a map of your route as the site navigation - click a city on the map to go to stories/photos from that portion of the trip, etc. It'd be a neat way to tie everything together, both visually and structurally.

[dogbowl]

Enjoy Santorini! I went there on my honeymoon as well. White, black and red sand beaches. Plenty of floppy German titties too. Be prepared for 2 liter plastic jugs of wine. BE CAREFUL! Don't get the swordfish on Santorini. I'm not kidding. My ne bride got it, and I ended up spending 2 days all by myself. She couldn't leave the bathroom. Stick to falafel.

[Kat]

Anyone send you this link yet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjrEQaG5jPM

Traffic in India. Check it out. :)
-Kat

PS
And if that was too freaky, here's a little something adorable, except for the last bit, that last kitty is creepy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXeXpvtiHxA&search=kitten

[W]

I don't really have a suggestion on how to change the site...as long as you guys don't get replaced by an 'unfunny and not very good at being a tv host' chick and a tall unshaven 'who the hell is he supposed to be' guy, then I'm sure I'll like it

[Reverend B.S.]

Congrats you two.

I think a cool idea would be to use google maps, or something like that, and overlay a gps route that you've taken and where you are currently.

Oh, and Brenden, if anyone makes fun of your accent, just post a picture of them and let me know... I'll take care of it.

ENJOY!

[Robert]

Hey, what are you gonna do with your cats? O.o

[Rogue]

Hi - I hope that your journey is as awesome as what Mark Yiin has on his blog. That is incredible, thank you for sharing. I haven't been a visitor to many blogs, but his was moving, and motivating.
Good luck in your travels. I hope that you, both, enjoy and fulfill your wanderlust.
You will be missed on AOTS, although I'm sure you are tired of hearing that by now. I look forward to reading more of your blog and following along on the trek - vicariously living through you and your hubby!

[Angel]

So much for finding out about stuff in the feed podcasts. :'( But then again, wow... You're sorta gonna live on of my dreams, having a 'round the world honeymoon. It would be nice to see some video podcasts of some of your trip whenever you find it convenient to make/post them.
As for the blog, all I can say is keep it simple. I've seen some of my friend's myspace pages and they're well.... a huge mess. So many cool animated gifs and that stuff in the background and it just feels cluttered. I happen to like the current format, the colors are very Sarah-ish for some reason. I did like the idea of organizing your blog entries by country on the side bar. Another idea would be to have music from the country you are in playing in the background while people read your blog. I think uploading a song is much easier than changing the layout of the entire blog... maybe. I really wouldn't know. A great, and highly impractical idea that's just plain insane is taking a bunch of animal costumes with you and every once in a while take a picture with a furry in the background. It's not logical, practical, necesary nor convenient (and photoshoping them in is ways easier), but the idea sounds funny. At least to me. :P
As for your travels, I've never left the american continent so all I can say is, keep your valuables somewhere out of range of pickpockets, only drink bottled water and make sure everything you eat is overcooked. I'm aware that's like generic, common sense "hallmark advice", but it's the most useful I could come up with. Enjoy your trip! Best wishes to you and Brendan. You two sorta make sense. I don't know how else to say it. I promise I'll keep watching AOTS even with those two gaping holes it has now. They're quite distracting. :P

[Angel]

So much for finding out about stuff in the feed podcasts. :'( But then again, wow... You're sorta gonna live on of my dreams, having a 'round the world honeymoon. It would be nice to see some video podcasts of some of your trip whenever you find it convenient to make/post them.
As for the blog, all I can say is keep it simple. I've seen some of my friend's myspace pages and they're well.... a huge mess. So many cool animated gifs and that stuff in the background and it just feels cluttered. I happen to like the current format, the colors are very Sarah-ish for some reason. I did like the idea of organizing your blog entries by country on the side bar. Another idea would be to have music from the country you are in playing in the background while people read your blog. I think uploading a song is much easier than changing the layout of the entire blog... maybe. I really wouldn't know. A great, and highly impractical idea that's just plain insane is taking a bunch of animal costumes with you and every once in a while take a picture with a furry in the background. It's not logical, practical, necesary nor convenient (and photoshoping them in is ways easier), but the idea sounds funny. At least to me. :P
As for your travels, I've never left the american continent so all I can say is, keep your valuables somewhere out of range of pickpockets, only drink bottled water and make sure everything you eat is overcooked. I'm aware that's like generic, common sense "hallmark advice", but it's the most useful I could come up with. Enjoy your trip! Best wishes to you and Brendan. You two sorta make sense. I don't know how else to say it. I promise I'll keep watching AOTS even with those two gaping holes it has now. They're quite distracting. :P

[captain_eri]

NOOOOOOOO! I love the pink/grey/green It's perfect

"If you don't take control of him now, before you're married, you'll never have control of him, ever."

yea, i paraphrased Mona Lisa Smile, you wanna fight about?

[Angel]

Whoa, first comment and it's a double post. Sorry!

[Rebonal]

Sarah, I think what you are doing is amazing.

I plan on undertaking the same sort of trip when I turn 25, and possibly do it for 2 years.

I really hope you plan on visiting Chile. There is The National Park Torres del Paine, arguably the most beautiful natural landscape on the planet. Also, further south are incredible glaciers that are shrinking due to global warming(see them while they're still there). Also, on nearby Easter Island are the incredible mysterious stone structures.

I do hope you will get around to this incredible country.

[Gram_22]

Yo, this is weird. I just found out you guys (Sarah and Brenden) were not on the show anymore, and was like "damn, they were the two best. A- It seemed like -youknowwho- thought he ran the show, and B - They barely gave brenden any screentime, wtf, he was the funniest. C - why are they recruiting NEW PEOPLE to take YOUR screentime? You two are better off in a new medium or show.

If -F4- knew what was good for them, they would give the two of you your own show. I refuse to watch AOTS, or if I do I mostly mute it and look at the new hot asian girl, who is only eye candy and her comedic timing is not even close to Sarah's.

E-mail me if you need an experienced internet marketer, I can promote this or another website to over 100 forums. I think the internet is a good medium for you. What about a "video" blog? www.tomgreen.com is a good example of cool format.

Sarah, Brenden, You better not change on your fans and followers, DON'T YOU CHANGE ON US!

[Gram_22]

Yo, this is weird. I just found out you guys (Sarah and Brenden) were not on the show anymore, and was like "damn, they were the two best. A- It seemed like -youknowwho- thought he ran the show, and B - They barely gave brenden any screentime, wtf, he was the funniest. C - why are they recruiting NEW PEOPLE to take YOUR screentime? You two are better off in a new medium or show.

If -F4- knew what was good for them, they would give the two of you your own show. I refuse to watch AOTS, or if I do I mostly mute it and look at the new hot asian girl, who is only eye candy and her comedic timing is not even close to Sarah's.

E-mail me if you need an experienced internet marketer, I can promote this or another website to over 100 forums. I think the internet is a good medium for you. What about a "video" blog? www.tomgreen.com is a good example of cool format.

Sarah, Brenden, You better not change on your fans and followers, DON'T YOU CHANGE ON US!

[coby]

I don't get out much so I can't give you much advice. I did travel to Oklahoma by bus with the wrestling. I was the teacher in charge. One piece of advice that I've always carried with me since that fateful trip: when someone yells "dog pile" you're either about to step in crap or people are about to jump you. The moral...don't go to Oklahoma by bus. OOOOOOOOO you need to buy up some like lysol or something. Hose down the bed before you get in. Bed bugs are all over the world and leave a nasty bite. Like a chigger but worse. Have you got like your medical stuff in order? I may travel myself this year. The Rattlesnake Round Up is coming up in Opp Alabama. It's almost three hours but I think I can manage.

[Vanessa]

Hey Congratulations on your marriage. My hubby and I love AOTS. We missed a few shows and look what happened 2/3 of our favorite trio is gone. I will be reading your blog from now on. Wishing you all the best on your world tour. -Vanessa

[Nick M.]

I hate being like this... I hate remembering TechTV and all of the old hosts. I know it was only a TV channel, but it was something special to me. I remember a time when I could turn on the TV, look at some familiar faces, have a couple laughs, and actually learn something. I've learned a great majority of my tech knowledge from TechTV, and I've learned to love everyone from that channel. I don't know why I feel this way about something so simple, but I can't help it. I do know that some people may just say "get over it" or "suck it up" but I can't help the way I feel. I actually dream about meeting the old TechTV hosts, and dream about TechTV coming back, but it won't.

Sarah and Brendan, I really do wish you two the best of luck and safety, and this is coming from the bottom of my heart. I hope that things can work out between you, and you can enjoy your time together. I am actually starting to tear up... You get my best wishes.

[Jill]

I think it would definitely be worthwhile to post videos along with pictures and entries.

As long as you really incorporate personal feelings and opinions behind your entries instead of sounding like a generic travelguide, you'll do okay :)