State of the Website

Due to the recent changes in our hosting provider, we have moved our website to our own server. This means there are a few things to be aware of:

1. All previous comments were lost in the transition. This is not what we wanted, but it is where things stand.
2. All user accounts were lost in the transition. So if you had a user account before, you will need to create a new account by commenting or making a purchase.
3. Due to the amount of spam comments, all comments must now be approved before they post even if you previously had a comment approved. Be patient, there’s only the two of us and we have been getting a lot of spam.
4. If you saved links to our site, these links may not work and present you with a 404 error. If you get this error, please either do a search or browse the site to find your information and reset your link. We’ve added code to analyze the links and do the best possible job of getting you to the correct page/post, but sometimes it just can’t find a good match. When this happens, the 404 error will occur. We suggest that you reset all your links to our site.
5. Since the website is now running on our own server you might notice a pause once in a while. This is because we do not have a super computer for our server, and the site is image heavy. Images take time to render.
6. Server maintenance will occur with or without notice. System updates are required to keep the site running smoothly. If you get a 503 error, please wait a few minutes and try again.
7. Power outages may occur and take our server down. While the city where we live is really good about keeping the power on, the possibility exists that the power may go out. We have lived in our current location for 20 years and the power has only gone out twice. Each time was only for a few hours. We are looking into battery backup solutions to minimize the impact of a power outage.

Overall, we feel the move to our own server is a positive step in keeping the site up and running. Hosting fees are expensive and these fees were the driving force behind the decision to move to a server that we own and maintain.

Please be patient as we iron out any remaining kinks, and please use the contact form to let us know if you find a problem with the site. We are working hard to fix any remaining issues. Thank you for your understanding.