Stacey Mayer

Sometimes, the best way to fix your web site is to get out the scissors. Print out your front page, and cut up the parts of it. Pull out the rubber cement from the back of your drawer, and pretend you're creating a picture puzzle. Is there a better place for your links? Is your phone number above the fold? Remember to put usability over flashy graphics, and wasted space.

This morning, my client and I worked together re-designing her clinic's home page. With the original web designer on the phone, we cut up the page, and penciled in some new ideas. By moving the pieces of our page around on paper, we were able to arrange things very nicely. I think it took us about 25 minutes.

Our "scissor session" wasn't welcomed very warmly by our webmaster. We heard some growls, a few harrumph sounds, and several big, exasperated sighs. It's a nearly $4,000 web site, and it needs to integrate with the client's established Facebook and Twitter accounts. Some of the changes are just standard design issues. We'd like to unify all the different fonts, down to one font in only two colors, move the menu bar, and be sure to have some current, written content on the home page.

My client quickly understood their web site with the help of our old friends; scissors, a pencil, and rubber cement. We gave the page better organization, and a faster loading time, just by using scissors to see what's possible. I think it will score higher in search engines, and with our readers, too.

As a social media manager, I know my expertise overlaps most webmasters. Many websites have been slow to flexibly integrate Facebook and Twitter with regular web traffic. His reticence to re-work several pages wasn't unusual. Webmasters may be "stuck" in design templates they've used in the past, and be wary of the rapid changes presented by social media.

Well, change is here. Your customers should be able to find your domain, and interact with you easily. That's what social media will help you accomplish. Instead of pages presenting fancy code, we need to offer a good, old fashioned handshake, via Twitter and Facebook updates. If your webmaster is more of a coder than a design and content source, this may be tough for them. Today, you may find it's time to cut ties, and trace a new pattern for your business to succeed.

Probably won't cost you $4,000, either.

My husband, Phil, and I have just returned home from a quick, evening shopping adventure at Michael's, on Everett Mall Way. We arrived just in time to rush inside from the drizzle, and pick up the item I needed for a resin art project. As we were checking out, another couple came through the doors, only to be told, "We're closed, sorry folks". They probably tried Walmart, next. Walmart may be all that's left, at nine p.m. on Friday night.

Fred Meyer's used to be a good place to find sewing notions, or even a few yards of fabric. Our local Fred Meyer's doesn't carry fabric anymore, so they're not on our favorite, late night shopping spree list, anymore. Walmart has a good supply of miscellaneous fabric and notions, and an increasingly nice selection of beading materials and findings. Plus, it's close by.

We aso have a nice JoAnn's just a few blocks away. They're famous for their high quality fabrics. Fabric stores remind me of the shopping trips I'd take with my Mom when I was young. When your last sewing machine needle breaks, the night before you're planning to wear the prom dress Mom's making, you knew you'd be taking off together on a late night shopping trip. Usually, that also meant sharing a chocolate sundae, from Dick's Drive-In on our way home. (Lake City Dick's is my favorite!)

Phil enjoys finding the little things "just right" for my artistic creations. Thankfully, Phil's quick to grab the keys, and take me shopping for last minute arts and crafts items. Phil's Mom, RoseAnn, was here today visiting, and she made me think of what my Mom would have been sewing at this stage of her life. Our Moms were always working on some project, or another. Sometimes, Phil and I just sit together, and look through new books, patterns, and fabrics. Just like shopping sessions we'd share with our Moms when we were growing up, and what I've done with our four girls, too.

After we walk in the house, with just a little rain on our shoulders, I asked Phil if we have any ice cream left in the freezer. Phil smiles, and shows me the jar of chocolate topping, as he closes the cupboard door.

It's a Friday date night, courtesy of Michael's.

Saturday morning, we lost our church to arson. It was a lovely, small church, serving about 700-800 people since 1989. Located in Mukilteo, WA, it
was a total loss. My husband just happened to drive past the chapel that morning, and was stunned to see the fire. Neighbors were talking in small groups, along with firefighters, local leaders, and news media. The Mukilteo Fire Department was still working to douse hot spots as he took these images.

A church is a community's place of gathering; a center for weekly activities, weddings, memorials, and memories. Why would anyone attempt to destroy the peace of mind of a community by setting a fire? We may never know. Thankfully, Snohomish County, Everett, and City of Mukilteo leaders are working together to catch the perpetrator.

During the early 90's, the Seattle area was targeted by an arsonist who eventually killed three people, destroyed several local homes and churches, and over $30 million dollars worth of property. He was turned into authorities by his own father, and is now serving a life sentence. I remember meeting his father. A kind and compassionate man, with a forever broken heart.

As we make plans to attend church in another building, and reorganize our family's schedule, I realize another father is about to have his heart broken. My heart goes out to that family, whoever they are. I hope our community will be able to rally around them, as they face what's surely to come.

Diabetes is an unfair disease. Without a thorough retinal exam, diabetic changes may begin to affect your vision health before you even know you have type 2 diabetes. There is no obvious discomfort associated with early diabetes eye damage. But it's still doing its' dirty work. One of the first parts of your body it effects, are the tiny blood vessels of the retina. The early stages of non-insulin diabetes may go unnoticed for years. You may not even have a clue that your eyes are under attack, before the disease causes diabetic retinopathy. That's why an annual exam including the optomap® retinal exam is recommended.

Your eye doctor is trained to look for any unhealthy changes taking place silently within your eye. Using the optomap®, Dr. Lynette Sundholm is able to see an ultra-wide view of your retina (the back of the eye). This assists in the early detection of several common diseases in addition to diabetes; glaucoma, high blood pressure, macular degeneration, and some cancers. This quick, and painless eye exam, has fast become the method of choice for patients seeking a thorough exam without eye dilation drops.

If signs of the disease are found, you and your doctor can take steps to protect and preserve your eyesight. Before diabetes causes periods of blurred vision, or frequent urination, your eye doctor needs to find it. If members of your extended family have diabetes or eye disease, or you're just wondering if your eyesight could be better, make an eye appointment with Dr. Sundholm, your optometrist in Everett, WA. Call Silver Lake Eye Care Center, at 425-388-5400 to schedule a comprehensive eye exam. Most insurance plans, including Regence, Medicaid, and VSP accepted. Contact lens patients welcomed.

Silver Lake Eye Care Center offers corrective and colored contact lens fittings in Everett, WA. The Seattle area has thousands of young Japanese anime, sci-fi, and comic book fans. Anime cosmetic lenses, and flashy, round "theatrical" contacts, are often given away between fans, illegally, at local anime events and Halloween parties. "If it doesn't correct vision, how can it hurt my eyes?" I've been asked. Beware; so-called "Lady Gaga contacts," also known as round contact lenses, can hurt your eyes after only a few hours of wear.

If you're tempted to try them without a contact lens prescription, please don't. Doctors report more acute eye infections, emergency room visits, and red eye appointments nationwide as a result. A contact lens exam and fitting may protect you from unintended damage to your precious eye sight.

I recently spoke to a young woman that tried round contacts, and they made her eyes ache within hours. Luckily, she knew that wasn't like her own RX contacts. Many young men and women try cosmetic contact lenses before knowing what to expect. Since circle contact lenses cover more of the eye's surface area, and deprive the eye of more needed oxygen; painful eye infections can develop fast. See your Everett eye care professional immediately if this happens to you.

There are many brands of approved, "Halloween" or "special effect," cosmetic contacts on the market. To investigate wearing any of the legal contact lenses available, call Dr. Lynette Sundholm's Silver Lake Eye Care Center, at 425-338-5400, and protect your beautiful eyes, first.