Forum Update

[Gareth]

I promised you all a forum update a while back. It is taking longer than I imagined and I am starting to become suspicious about the people that I commissioned. Here is an email that I sent to them this morning:

Hello,

Please could you re-assure me. I paid 200$ on 19/09/12 for some work to be done on my forum, since then I am yet to see any results, and the communication from you has been very poor. I would like to see some evidence that you are indeed undertaking this project. At the very least, I would like some kind of date for completion of the project.

This is my own money that I am using to try and get this philanthropic project off the ground. I would appreciate it if you could get back to me as soon as possible.

Gareth Walker

It's funny, this whole thing has kind of been an exercise in mindfulness. In the past, something like this would have sent me into an anxiety spiral. Now with mindfulness, I notice the thought "they have ripped you off!". I allow that thought to go away again, because it really is of no use, and I just get back to what I was doing.

Gareth

[Gareth]

The pesky people have stopped replying to my emails now. So, on the balance of probabilities, it is looking like I have been ripped off. I am going to make some more enquiries in this regard, but don't hold out for any forum updates just yet. I#m sorry about this, but at least the forums still work, and we can still talk to each other. I am aware that spammers are still getting on here all the time; I am deleting the spam and the spammers as soon as I become aware of them. Please bear with me and please don't leave this forum behind.

[Gareth]

It's official; I have been scammed. Luckily I paid the money on credit card, so I will probably get the money back.

I have now found a reputable programmer who is willing to do the work for a price that is affordable thankfully. However, I have been speaking to rara and another friend of mine who reckon that the site is a bit too dark. I am coming round to the same conclusion.

I am thinking about a complete site re-design. Something light and airy, to do with clouds which are a current obsession of mine? The forum work would then be done to match the new look of the site.

What do you think?

Gareth

[FeeHutch]

I am really sorry you have been ripped off even if it did prove an exercise in Mindfulness.

I love the idea of lightening the colour of the forum up and find clouds, sky in any of its wonderful colours and the beauty of trees all very inspiring. If you would like to write a guest post for me on mindfulness and the forum Gareth I'd love to post it on my blog. I get several hundred hits a month usually and promote posts using facebook and twitter so that might bring some new members our way too.

I am happy to do anything I can to help :-)

[rara]

Hi Gareth,

Glad to see you've found someone else! Yeah, in general, I just think lighter colours...whatever else you want to do, go for it!

@FeeHutch I like this :) I am going to start a Youtube channel up as well which will launch around the same time as the new-look site. I will start posting a couple of vids and will leave it open for members to contribute once it's off the ground too (if they wish, that is!) Any way to put it out there is great...we're here for those that want us.

[Gareth]

I am going to update the site, and I'll get the forum work done after that. Time is becoming a bit of an issue these days, I'm reckoning on being able to do the work in the new year, perhaps before. I have been off work due to my MS for most of this year, but mindfulness has got me feeling so good about myself that I am hoping to have a go back at work soon, then time really will be at a premium. I am hoping to get as many people involved with this that want to. This site is eventually going to be about its members not just me.

I could write a blog about mindfulness. I have about 50 in my head. I like the idea of someone else writing something about mindfulness though. Have you got anything you can write about mindfulness Fiona? I could ask the followers on Twitter, there are getting to be quite a few now. I am really keen on making this a collaborative site. It is more in the spirit of what mindfulness is; it will also help the site grow quicker. I am lucky in that I know a few web developers; I am also learning of those skills myself.

This whole site is an exercise in mindfulness. I quite often get thoughts like: 'what if nobody wants to come to my forum' or I start getting lost in thought about the future of this site. Mindfulness brings me back every time and any work that I am doing is so much more productive. This site is a lifetime's work for me. I am 34 years old, so we have a good few years to go at this don't we?

Gareth

[FeeHutch]

Hi Gareth
I have some ideas but my brain is not working so well at the moment. Once I have marshalled my thoughts a bit more I am going to see if I can write a piece about mindfulness and this forum for another site I write for called The Daily Waffle.

Asking twitter followers why mindfulness works for them could make a really good post too :-)

Good luck with going back to work, you sound very positive and prepared. I am retired now although still trying to complete my counselling diploma. I found the idea positively scary to start with having worked for the last 19 years but I am enjoying having the time to be present not always rushing for one thing to another :-)

[rara]

Gareth - I see the new bubbly-blog style site is up!

Is there any way of having an obvious link to the forum on there? I forgot the url (yeah, I know, it's just /forum...took me a few mins to use my head lol) Just thinking, when I do these vids, I'll probably direct people to the main site, so that people can have a read first...but would be great it the forum link is there as well so that people can find it easily.

What do ya think?

[Gareth]

There will defintely be a link to the forum on soon, and I'm hoping to commission the new work on the forum at the beginning of the new year!

[rara]

Coolio =)