Journal entries in 'Dear Diary' for May, 2007

You may have noticed (if you're not logged in) that I've added a few small ads to the site. I've tried to make them as unintrusive as possible — matching them to the site's color scheme, etc. Even so, I hate to do it. But the flight lessons I'm taking are putting pretty significant demands on my budget, and I'm trying to find ways to reduce my monthly expenses in any way possible. The $160/mo I pay to keep BinRock online was obviously one of the first things to look at. I've never considered adding ads to the site before, because I always assumed they'd only bring in $10 or $20 a month, and that just wasn't worth the clutter they add. But I've been talking with friends of mine who participate in Google AdSense, and I've been learning that actually, based on my monthly traffic, it's quite likely that I'll bring in something in the $80-100 range — over half of my monthly server costs. That's just not something I can ignore — at least for now. Once I've finished the flight lessons and my finances have settled back down, I may get rid of them again. And of course, if it turns out they really aren't producing enough income to be worthwhile, then they'll be gone much sooner than that.

My decorating style has always tended towards posters (and the occasional alien head and pretty rainbow-shaped rug). I have occasionally had friends create original works of art for me, such as "Pop-Tart Mural" by Amy or "Wax Sculpture Soaking Into The Carpet" by Anonymous (come to think of it, that was probably Amy too. What the hell, Amy?). But on the whole, my walls have generally been decorated by relatively "low-class" things.

[Entry Continues...]

I'm about to fly up to Boston for the weekend for my brother's graduation. He now becomes a real psychologist and can now continue to make no money. Congratulations!