How To Redesign a Blog in One Evening

@Photo by Austin Chan on Unsplash

Here we are! 2018 is happening full swing, people are already forgetting about their resolutions, and if you listen really hard you can hear the calmness of gym equipment not being used across the globe. 

Everyone thinks about the year that is ahead: some set goals, some say goodbyes to various things and people, and some just use an excuse to get drunk. All appropriate actions, if you ask me. I was never the one for resolutions, in fact, I don’t even think that’s a thing in Ukraine? What we do at midnight while the clock strikes 12 times is:

1. Write down a wish on a piece of paper 
2. Burn that piece of paper and dump all the ashes in a champagne flute 
3. Drink that champagne with the ashes inside in order for the wish to come true

Don’t ask. I’ve never done this and I don’t think I will be doing this in the future. But trust me: it is fun to watch. 

I started my year by thinking about the things I enjoy and love. Maintaining this blog is one of the things I love but am not that great at finding the time or inspiration. I am not promising anything but I am taking steps at being better. So, without further delays, I am happy to introduce to you the new chapter of my expat stream of consciousness. Welcome to alisakaiser.com 

Is it narcissistic? Probably. Is it honest? 100%. 

Back in the day of me working for Kyiv Post Andrew asked me about a project I would like to do in the future. What I told him was an idea that represented a mix of The Moth Podcast and Humans of New York. And I wanted to call it Wordly: a combination of the Word and World, an adjective. I remember Andrew saying that it might catch on. Just like tumblr even though the spelling don’t make sense. 

I moved to the US and realized that in order for me to collect people’s stories and make Wordly what it was originally planned to be - I would have to get some friends first and some interesting friends too. Not that easy to do when you are in a foreign country and are no longer a student. So, Wordly became what I needed it to be at the moment - an outlet for MY stories. 

When The Hello Series was created it was the closest thing to what I originally planned. I found all of the stories so fascinating and so unique that I just couldn’t keep them to myself - I needed everyone to see them. The Hello Series will remain on the platform until the platform ceases to exist: thousands of fearless Ukrainian women have yet to share their stories. And I am here to let all you know someone is always listening (not in NSA kinda way - in Oprah way). 

I will continue to write about Nashville, about my life here, about the things that don’t make sense or make too much sense. But I am going to do it as me. Alisa Kaiser. 

With every single post and every single picture I take, I hope dearly to open something new to you. I know this year won’t be an exception. I will continue to write about the things I know and the things I have yet to discover. Like, how to get a different domain and move everything blog-related in cyberspace or how to do basic html. How to design a logo, business cards, weird merch, etc. I have fun making this platform better, more user friendly, and more inviting for both you and I to stay, to read, to share, and to laugh. 

So here is to 2018. Let this year bring inspiration and people who still click on advertising. But again, those are just add ons - I am genuinely glad you are here.