I’ve got a fresh design for the blog (I liked the last one, but this simple, ultra-clean look is more my style), but that’s not the only change around here!
- I’m stepping down as Art Director for Gemstone Publishing’s line of Disney Comics. My last day will be Wednesday, November 26th.
- Two days later, we’re loading up a truck and moving to Columbus, Ohio! (Thanks in advance to Rae Whitlock, who’s already agreed to round up some strapping young church men to help us unload the truck over the weekend.)
- I’m looking to take on some additional freelance web design and optimization clients. If you know anybody who’s looking for that, you can get yourself a 10% referral bonus (because I’m cool like that—also because I hate cold-calling). Just go on over to the “Feedback” page and pick your favorite way to get in touch with me.
UPDATE: According to Google Maps, this might be where we’re moving:
Hey everyone, I’m back!
Did you know the Wall Street Journal displays trackbacks at the bottom of its articles? I didn’t realize this until I started getting a bunch of comments on Friday from people I didn’t know. Friday may have actually been my highest-trafficked day since starting this blog.
Of course, I had to be moving at the time. 
We’re in Marietta now. Boxes are all over the place, but everyone seems to love the new digs. (I was really worried there would be something that Nicole hated about the place—she never saw it before Saturday!)
I want to take a moment and publicly thank our friends and family who helped us move: on Saturday, we had Nathan Bartlebaugh, Steve Cole and Brian Powell helping us take our junk down from our 3rd-floor apartment into the moving truck (and special thanks for getting the treadmill! That think must’ve weighed half a ton…). Brian and his wife Jo came up to the new place that evening, and brought us dinner (perhaps the best lasagna I’ve ever had)! On Sunday, my mom and dad, Jordan, Naomi and Sarah came up to help us unload, and our new neighbor, Jason, pitched in too. I think this may be the first time I’ve been invited to a neighbor’s home for dinner before we’d moved into our new place!
Unpacking is going well, but I’m still looking for some nuts and bolts so I can reassemble the end-tables in the living room…
Well, it’s official: we’re moving on Saturday, November 24th. (For those of you keeping track, that’s the Saturday following Thanksgiving and Black Friday.) We don’t believe in hiring professional movers, so if you’re looking to burn off that pumpkin pie and 3rd helping of cranberry sauce*, we’d love to have a hand loading the truck!
Pizza and soda (or beer, if you’d prefer) for everyone who comes out. If you’d like more details, leave a comment here and I’ll get back to you via e-mail. 
* C’mon, I’m not the only one who binges on the ’sauce, am I?
Today marks the beginning of my first NaNoWriMo adventure. I didn’t join because I think I’ll be a great author; I joined because I think it’ll be fun.
I fully intent to have as close to a stream-of-consciousness first draft as possible. You can keep tabs on my progress (the goal is 50,000 words by Nov. 30th), and I’ll try to give updates here, too.
You know, I would decide to do something like this in the same month we’re preparing to move to another state. Some folks sez I crazy; I sez, “it’s the only way I’ll ever get anything done.”
It’s going to be a nice change of pace for Katie and Joshua to have separate rooms. We’re also within walking distance of Marietta’s downtown, so we’ll probably have lots of opportunities to go on family outings without the car!
