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ABOUT THE SITE
2010 THEME - "OCTAVE: MUSIC, SUMMER-STYLE" When the site was first started in 2003, there was no way of knowing how the site would evolve, or that the concert page(s) would come to be as popular as they have become today. In 2010, www.dorothyswebsite.org celebrates its eighth summer - a completion of its first "octave" of years. So . . . this summer the theme is all about music (with some reflections on both summer and style to come as well). Although the many programs which have been cut back or cancelled will be missed, the fact that so many venues have been able to continue their summer music traditions in these uncertain economic times definitely is something to celebrate. Summer is truly a special time when it comes to the music as well. Sitting in a park under the stars, or by the beach, or in the glow of the city lights and listening to great music is something almost anyone can enjoy. Here's to the sponsors presenting the concerts, the bands and artists performing at them, and all of you who keep coming back year after year to listen to the music play! It's time once again to dust of those beach chairs and pack up the picnic baskets, because Summer 2010 has arrived! INTRODUCTION TO WWW.DOROTHYSWEBSITE.ORG/SITE HISTORY The site has its roots in the Cypress College Extended Education computer labs. In 2003, while I was working on a series of computer-based tutorials (covering everything from data warehousing to Linux), I came across tutorials for HTML computer code and the Front Page website design program. As a practice exercise I designed a basic website with the Front Page program and posted it to the internet for about six weeks. Since it contained primarily my works (and a page of concert schedules), I called it www.dorothyswebsite.org. Little did I know then that the six-week exercise would ever have a first, let alone seventh, anniversary! Had I known, perhaps I would have come up with a more "catchy" name. You know what they say about hindsight, though . . . Over the next couple of years I taught myself a bit more of HTML code and website design -- not enough to have a lot of flashy bells and whistles, but enough so that now I do everything for the site. I design it, write the code, research and write the articles and content, take the pictures (and incorporate many from my personal photo archives), compile the listings, manage it, and let you all know that it exists. For those music fans who have found the listings and are new to the site, you will need to know that there are two distinct phases to the site each year. The fall/winter/spring site is mostly text and in a much more succinct three-page format (Concerts By City, Concerts By Date, and an Arts/Special Events page). In the summer, generally from June to September, the site expands and takes on the format which you see now. The main pages of the site have evolved somewhat since 2003, and they are: Poetry: In 1998 I wrote a short volume of poetry based on photographs which I had taken while travelling and living
overseas. The volume was reworked in 2004 and new poems were added. Each year a few poems from the volume have been posted to the site, and in 2005 the works of a Guest Poet were also included for the
first time. When possible, new poems are added to the site each year in conjunction with the year's theme. Essays: Each summer there is a new series of three or four essays on a topic of technology-related
current/consumer interest. The Essay Archives contain all the previous works which have appeared on the site from 2003 - 2008. In addition, the current year's essays
are placed in the essay archives the month after they appear in the "This Month's Essay" section. Free Concerts: This is the most visited section of the site. The listings are for free concerts and music-related
events in Orange County, parts of Los Angeles County, and parts of the Inland Empire. Events in clubs, cafes, bars and similar venues covered elsewhere generally are not included. In the summer,
concerts are listed both by date and by city for the three areas and in total in order to make it easier to find relevant information more quickly. Each year a few more cities and/or venues usually are added, and the cities currently
covered for the summer concert programs are listed on the "Concerts By City" main page. You also will find the main concert calendar on the
"Concerts By Date" main page. In 2010, a new section will be added to the concert pages: Concerts by Type of Music. Several viewers have
asked for a way to find information on concerts by type of music, and so this year the first test page will be included in the "Free Concerts" section. Please visit the section for further
information. Links: This page was added primarily due to requests for more information about the musicians/bands appearing at the concerts.
It includes both links to the cities and venues in which the concerts are held, and to the websites of bands/musicians appearing during the summer (when available). A small section of art and poetry links
is included too, and these links will be expanded in the years to come. Extras: The extras page was added in 2005 and offers a few other ideas for things to do or see for free during the
summer months. The page is dynamic and continually being updated, and suggestions for items to be included are appreciated. The page also incorporates the type of information which
appears on the site's Twitter page during the rest of the year. About the Site: You're here now! Two other sections have been added since 2003. The Featured Artists page (2004) and Show of the Week section(2005), which has been found on the "Concerts By Date" main calendar page. Both were added in response to requests for more information about the summer entertainers. "Featured Artists" have a large number of performances over the summer in two or three counties, or, as in the case of a group such as the Long Beach Municipal Band, a number of performances in a particular venue or venues. As a general rule of thumb, and in order to give a wide number of groups the opportunity to appear as "Featured Artists," groups will be included in the section no more than once in a three-year period. "Show of the Week" includes acknowledgements of a wide variety of summer artists, special events, and whenever possible, the individuals, organizations and others who so generously make the shows possible. As a general rule of thumb, artists may be included in this section twice no more than twice in a three-year period. In 2010, the "Show of the Week" section unfortunately will not appear. Several of the summer concert series which were cancelled in 2009 have not returned this year. In addition, some concert schedules which were once spread out over a three- or four-month period have been reduced and may not be restored due to the current budget situation of many cities and arts organizations. As a result, the summer schedules have, in many cases, become much more compact in a five- or six-week period from mid-July through the end of August. Schedules will be watched closely this year and next, with an eye for having the "Show of the Week" section return in 2011 in a new and revised format. Website Guests: The works of a guest photographer were included in the site for the first time in 2004. In 2005, the site exhibited works of a guest photographer, guest painter and guest poet. These special guests are invited to exhibit works on the site which, as of 2006, either express or in some way interpret the summer theme. The site is called "www.dorothyswebsite.org," and if you understand a bit about how it has evolved, you'd know why the works on it have been mine. If the site stays in existence, however, my hope is that it will become much less about my materials and much more of a summer exhibition space for the works of other poets, painters, photographers and artists. Eventually this may also include a guest website designer/programmer, but only time will tell . . .
Photograph "Australian Protea" © 1985 Dorothy A. Birsic There is no logo for the site, but if there was, it might include a protea flower like the one shown in the picture above. The word "protean" has its roots in mythology in the god Proteus, a legendary sea god who had the power of assuming different shapes. In its more modern use it describes something capable of great change or readily assuming different shapes or forms. Hopefully this will continue to be a "protean" site in the sense that it can readily adapt to the changing circumstances in which it exists and become an ever more interesting stop for those who take the time to visit. Dorothy holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Southern California. She also designed and completed a graduate program combining an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School with an M.A.L.D. (Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy) from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. She also has taken on additional coursework in Human and Plant Biology, Genetics and Neuroscience. Dorothy's professional background includes work in public relations and management consulting. She has been a Fulbright Scholar in the former Yugoslavia, a Rotary International Scholar/Ambassador in Sydney, Australia, and lived and worked in Japan. She speaks Croatian, has passed oral and written translation exams in Japanese, and is currently teaching herself Spanish. In previous years, there also has been a section on the site featuring excerpts from a variety of Dorothy's personal and professional writings. Please click here to view those excerpts on a new page.
"Dorothy With Kangaroos" Miss Birsic is an avid sports and music fan. She plays tennis, basketball, runs, is a certified PADI diver, bikes, and enjoys photography and playing the piano. She spends a bit of time in the garden, too, tending to everything from lemons and alpine strawberries to passion flower vines and dahlias. If you have any questions or comments about the website, please send e-mail to information@dorothyswebsite.org.
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