bbPress has (finally) released version 1.0. I’ve been waiting to upgrade and promote the forum until they did. It’s in place now, so visit the bRight & Early Forum.

NOTE: I have deleted all the users. There were few, if any, legitimate ones. If you fell into that category, I apologize, but there were nearly a thousand spam entries. Please register again.

I know posting has been pretty slack around here the past few days or so. I’m just not sure why. I’m online the same amount of time, reading and searching the same amount, and the things I usually write about are still happening. I didn’t even comment on the Flyers 3-2 win last night to put them up three games to one in their series. And it’s not like there hasn’t been stuff to write about it. Could there be too much?

This is not good behavior for someone who is shooting for 100,000 visits. [Update on that: currently at 87,249 leaving 12,751. I need to get about 550 visits a day, or about 3-4 times what I get on average, to reach the goal by my blogiversary.]

I also haven’t been pushing the Forum enough. I’m the only one registered, so I’m talking to myself. (Not all that unusual, but it takes a new dimension in odd when you do it online.)

I guess I need to take Cher’s advice from Moonstruck — “Snap out of it!”

Reduced to taking advice from Cher. This is not good. Not good at all.

Throwing some site related items into one post:

• Don’t forget to enter your caption in this weeks Caption Contest.
• Discuss (pretty much) anything in the bRight & Early Forum. Or just register and say hello.
• I still am shooting to reach 100,000 visits by my Blogiversary on May 24th. Right now I need 13,931 visits. That’s about 450 visits a day, or 19 per hour! Link and Visit. Visit and Link. Please!

I mentioned the other day that I have upgraded the bRight & Early Forum to the latest version of bbPress. I would love for folks to go on over, register, and get some conversation started.

In other news, you have a few more hours to take your best shot at the I Can’t Hear You Caption Contest.

Enjoy.

In addition to upgrading to WordPress 2.5 and working on the site theme, I’ve also updated the (much neglected) bRight & Early Forum. In the process of that upgrade I deleted all of the old users and many of the old posts.

Feel free to register and use the forum to discuss the 2008 elections, posts here on the blog, or pretty much any topic that interests you.

I’m way behind. I thought I was caught up, but…not so much.

I did finish the plugin I’ve been working on for bbPress. And it works! You can see it in action in the Forum.

Speaking of forums, if you’re a fan of 24 (and who isn’t), you need to check out Forums4Bauer. The number of registered users has doubled since last Sunday, and there are some very interesting threads going on there.

Other items of note:

If you want to read the latest about the Scooter Libby trial you can’t go wrong with the work that James Joyner of Outside the Beltway is doing.

William Teach (Pirate’s Cove) has a must read post on Border Patrol Agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean and the contention that they were tried under the wrong law. This case is the very definition of “travesty”. Sign the petition in support of their pardon.

The Man, one of the real fun voices in the Blogosphere, is shutting out the lights at GOP and the City. He will be missed.

I want to comment on the President’s SOTU address, but I haven’t had a chance to read the transcript. I’ve also avoided reading much of the reaction until I’ve had a chance to look at it.

I’m sure that there are a slew of other things that deserve commentary as well, but that will have to be for another day.

I never drink coffee at lunch. I find it keeps me awake for the afternoon. ~ Ronald Reagan

Happy 1st Blogiversary to:
Reformed Chicks Blabbing
and
Planck’s Constant

In other Blogiversary Database news: There are now 212 blogs in the database. 197 are confirmed and 94 have the display code on their site. Thank you one and all.

The new season of 24 has begun! The crew at Blogs4Bauer has live-blogged hours 1&2 (The Man) and hours 3&4 (Tyler D). There is also the world famous Tivo blogging of V the K. You can find the irreverent commentary on hours 1&2 here. Check back later this morning for hours 3&4. (I’ll add the link when it’s available).

I have set up a forum where folks can register and discuss 24 24/7. Visit Forums4Bauer. For other discussion you can visit the bRight & Early Forum. Both forums are powered by bbPress.

I’ll be honest with you, I have hardly looked at the news on television or online in the past few day. It was a combination of the time pressures of real life, working on some other blogging projects, and yes, a bit of blogger burnout. I feel much fresher this morning, and I’m ready to jump back in. Thanks for sticking with me.

For the first time in almost two years I didn’t post anything yesterday. Not a First Cup post (I worked on one all day, but it just never came together). Not the Overnight News Open Post. Sure I was busy, but that is unacceptable.

I plan on making up for that this weekend, but no promises.

Yesterday was a combination of a heavy schedule at work, a car in the shop all day (hint: tip jar?), and exhaustion (fell asleep on the couch watching who-knows-what).

This morning I’ve been working on a plugin for bbPress. I’ll update when I have it running on the forum. In the meantime I do encourage you to join the forum and discuss what interests you.

Thanks. Check back later. OK?

I haven’t posted anything since the First Cup post this morning. Excuses?

Let me tell you a story.

A man went to his neighbor and asked if he could borrow his ax. The neighbor told him, “I’m sorry. I can’t lend you my ax. I have to make soup.”

The man was curious, “what does you having to make soup have to do with me not being able to borrow your ax?”

“Nothing”, the neighbor replied, “but if I don’t want to lend you my ax, one excuse is as good as another.”

Mine for this evening:
Shampooing the carpets
Playing around with the bRight & Early Forum
Working on another project similar, but unrelated, to the Blogiversary Database which should be announced soon.
Watching the Gators pound on the Buckeyes.

Take your pick.

. . . and he’s almost back. Jack Bauer that is.

24 Season six starts next Sunday. That means that if you start right now, have all five previous seasons recorded or on dvd, sleep less than 7 hours a night, and don’t let things like work, family, and eating interfere, you can watch all that’s gone on in seasons 1-5 before the new season starts.

I’ve added a link to the Blogs4Bauer website in the right sidebar, and hope to have the blogroll code up there later today.

I’ve also created a separate forum in the bRight & Early Forum just for discussion surrounding 24.

After spending a year in the hands of the Chinese, I have a feeling that Jack’s going to be a little irritable when he returns. I can’t wait.

Weekends are great times for playing around with your site. This morning (and late last night) I’ve been tinkering with the bRight & Early Forum. What? You didn’t know there was a bRight & Early Forum? Well there’s a big button in the right sidebar.

I’d love for you to take a look and let me know what you think. Sign up and join the discussion. Right now I’m pretty much talking to myself. (The voices, the voices.)

Now back to playing around — at least until football starts. Right Chad?

Oh, by the way, there is a separate forum dedicated to discussion of the best television show on the air — 24. Come on by and join the conversation.

Trackposted to Stop the ACLU, Outside the Beltway, Rightwing Guy, Faultline USA, stikNstein… has no mercy, Blue Star Chronicles, The Pink Flamingo, Diggers Realm, Jo’s Cafe, Pursuing Holiness, and Right Voices, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

I have made some background changes to the Blogiversary Database, mostly to the Add Your Blog page. I realized there was nothing there but the form, so I add a link to the info page, and I added the code so bloggers who sign up will see what will be displayed.

But, most of the day I have been playing around with bbPress for the bRight & Early Forum. bbPress is relatively new when compared to WordPress. In fact the latest version is 0.73 — it hasn’t even made it to a 1.0 yet! Most modifications take a pretty good knowledge of css, php, and html. I have a bit of knowledge in those areas, but for the most part I just fiddle around a little at a time and keep a way open to go back if I really screw things up.

I do invite you to visit the forum, sign up, and put it through it’s paces. Thanks.