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2022 THEME: "TEMPUS FUGIT . . . TIME FLIES" 2022 THEME: "TEMPUS FUGIT . . . TIME FLIES"
The image on the introduction page this summer (pictured above), reflects some of the work that has appeared on the site over the last 20 years. The "Scenes and Summer Themes, 2003 - 2022" picture shows each of the summer themes on the shades above the windows, the website book written in 2013, images from some of the past summer sites and a little bit of celebrating! Why the flowers on some of the inner site pages? The flower motif has been used because in some way the summer concerts might be compared to perennial flowers. They come back year after year and are particularly enjoyed in the season in which they are in full bloom. Have the concerts taken a hit over the years? Yes. The first came with the financial downturn in 2007/8, the most recent in 2020-21 with the Covid pandemic. While some new concert series have emerged, many also have gone away. New forms of presenting, collaborating on and performing music emerged during the pandemic; however, there is something about viewing a live performance of music that just can't be replaced. While not all the concerts have returned this year, most have, and the summer of 2022 is turning out to be a good one. Why the Wings?
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 a twelfth, 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 has been a new series of 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 - 2019. 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. Since there was no summer version of the site in 2016, no essays were completed for that year, and there were no essays in 2020-21 since there was no expanded site due to Covid. Also, recoding the entire Essay Archives section to accompany the summer theme has become a very time-consuming proces. The Essay Archives were recoded in 2019 to reflect a theme dealing with anime, comics and manga, and those are the Essay Archive pages that currently are available. 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 was added to the concert pages - Concerts by Type of Music - and it is now a permanent section of the summer site. 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). Over the years, the page became one of the longest on the site, so it was split into three sections to avoid the page loading too slowly. The three links pages are City/Venue Links, Band Links A-L and Band Links M-Z. 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). 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," a group or artist will be included in the section NO MORE THAN ONCE IN ANY THREE-YEAR PERIOD. The "Show of the Week" section included 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. Due to changes in the summer concert schedules and other
factors beyond site control, it has since been cancelled and the information no longer appears on the site. 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 has taken 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 (well, used to, at least), 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 vines
and roses to fruit trees and dahlias. If you have any questions or
comments about the website, please send e-mail to information@dorothyswebsite.org.
Follow www.dorothyswebsite.org on TWITTER! Home | Essays |
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www.dorothyswebsite.org © 2003 - 2022 Dorothy A. Birsic. All rights reserved. Comments? Questions? Send an e-mail to: information@dorothyswebsite.org | ||||
Welcome everyone to the site's TWENTIETH summer, and a warm "thank you" to all who keep visiting the site on an ongoing basis! For those of you who have been with the site for a while, you know that there are two phases to the site: the Summer version, posted from June through September, and the Fall/Winter/ Spring
version which is here now. Things change a little bit each year, but you can always click the links on the calendar on the home page to reach the concert listings. Each summer the site has a new theme, but due to Covid-19 there were no special summer themes in 2020/21. This summer's theme is "Tempus Fugit . . . Time Flies." It is explained a bit more below. Also, one feature has been added to the site in conjunction with the website book. All past summer sites from 2003 to 2013 which were covered in the book were recoded and reposted. They can be accessed from the 
In sitting down to plan this summer's site, the first expanded summer edition in three years due to the limited number of concerts during the pandemic, it seemed impossible to believe that the 20th Anniversary summer was here. Time has flown by - and a one month experiment turned into something that has endured for a much longer time than ever expected. Times are also very different in 2022 than they were in 2003. In 2003, Facebook had yet to be started. In the computer center where the site originated, everyone was on MySpace - the most popular social media site back then. For the first several years of the site, all the photographs (both from my photo library and new ones taken for the summer theme) were on film and were scanned to be converted to digital files. Early files were uploaded to the site via modem that hissed and crackled in a way only those who had experienced the modems could understand. And in the past 20 years, websites themselves also changed. Going online mostly by computer has given way to multiple platforms and devices, especially smart phones, and sites which adapt to each (sorry, but my self-taught computer/coding skills couldn't keep up with the pace of change in that arena). Time HAS flown by, and the one thing that comes to mind about time is just how precious it is - something that can never be replaced by any amount of money, because once it's gone, it's gone.
The other element brought back for this year is the wings which originated in 2014, when the theme dealt with World Fairs. In doing research on the World Fairs, I came across the picture included here in the
digital archives and special collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (Image SSC S0000548). The photograph caption said "John Donoghue at work on model for "Creative Spirit." Details indicated that the statue was intended for the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, though it was not possible to verify if the completed statue was part of the event. Still, there was something alluring about the figure - peacefully seated, eyes closed and head tilted slightly upward as if in quiet contemplation - but to me it was mostly the wings. The wings I created piece by piece appear throughout the site as a symbol of the "creative spirit" that fuels artists and innovators alike. They are wings for everyone, and yes they are ample reminders that time does fly by.
