I started teaching myself how to design websites back in 1999 when I connected up with my first ISP, AOL. I built a hometown personal page as a family page and when I was all done setting it up, I thought it looked like…oh how should I put this? Well, I hated it. I figured there has to be a way to lay out a web page exactly the way I want it to look. Not that I knew what I wanted…I just knew that the best I could make using the WYSIWYG editor on AOL was not giving me anything close.

At that point, I started searching around to find out how to build a page myself from scratch, and that is really where it all went downhill..er…I started to learn web design. By studying simple how-to tutorials online, I was able to start hand-coding html in notepad. My new family web page still looked pretty awful, but it was all mine. That alone made it better, but still not good enough. Whenever I found a site I liked, I would pick apart the source code to see how they did whatever it was they were doing so that I could see if I could re-create the same effect on my own.

Somewhere along the line, I realized that if I want total control Im going to have to learn to make my own graphics too…so while teaching myself web design, I also started figuring out how to use the simple little paint program, accurately named “paint”. Clever eh? I still have a copy of the first “real” website I ever made with my own custom graphics. No you cant see it..its embarrassing, but I can tell you, I was so proud of it!…for all of 10 minutes, and then I decided I have to figure out how to improve on it even more.

Nothing has changed really. Im still seeking out new techniques, learning new software, and no matter what I make I sit back, think oooh, I like this! Then instantly start trying to figure out how I could make it better. Anyway, that puts me where I am now. Still learning, still figuring things out, and I enjoy every bit of it…both working in familiar territory as well as the challenge of figuring out something I havnt done before.

Like a smart business woman, I have a second career choice to fall back on if need be…the fine art of dirty ceramics and naughty origami. You’ll buy one right?

Okay yeah, I think its best I keep doing web design…