Domain Information
Having run a dozen or so domains since 2004, establishing a network “hub” was an important step for me in organizing and displaying my sites to visitors. As I have mentioned on other subsections of this site, it is fairly impossible for me to keep track of the exact number of active websites I have online at any one time. Due to the ever-changing number of websites I maintain, I created a proper network hub in May of 2008 called the Haley.nu Network on the domain www.haley.nu. The network hub I had set up on this domain was fairly disorganized, thus resulting in the majority of my domain visitors only going to my blog (located on a subdomain). For this reason and others, I decided to be rid of my previous domain altogether to start a newer and better hub that could really reflect what I truly wanted.
Meanings Behind the Domain Name
Choosing an appropriate name for my network hub was a difficult task this time around. With so many domains being registered within the “big three” domain endings (.com, .net, and .org), I knew I had to come up with something short and concise, yet still meaningful. Many times before I have had extensive trouble coming up with an appropriate domain name for a website. Surprisingly, I was able to come up with a name to register within 36 hours of starting my brainstorming. I knew I wanted to register a name in a foreign language, but choosing the right phrase was going to be a huge task. Starting with languages I was somewhat familiar in, I randomly browsed through hundreds of French language phrases followed by Latin sayings, both common and uncommon. Preferring the Latin language’s pronunciation and simplicity, I extended my search through Latin phrases, but had no luck. Feeling somewhat discouraged, I went to bed that night with the full intention of “sleeping on” my domain dilemma. Luckily, that’s exactly what ended up happening.
The next morning, I signed onto my computer immediately and headed to Wikipedia. For me, Wikipedia is one of the best ways to kill time simply by starting at one topic, then jumping from link to link within the site to get to completely new and interesting topic pages that were previously unknown to you. I’ve always found this activity to be not only a good way to kill time, but a good way to explore niche topics and people around the world. This particular day, I decided to start my exploration at the list of Latin words and phrases to look for words that had to do with thoughts, emotions, instincts, and other brain related functions. Heading down the alphabetized list, I came to a translated phrase that contained the English word “dream”; somewhat below it was another completely different phrase that mentioned the god Apollo of Greek (and sometimes Roman) mythology. In typical link jumping fashion, I clicked on the link to Apollo’s page.
During any other link jumping adventure, I would usually not stay on a starting page for very long. However, as I read about Apollo, I found myself greatly intrigued. According to the Greek myths, Apollo was the god of several things including prophecy, artistic inspiration, and healing. Though I paid no attention to the prophecy aspect at first, I acknowledged the values of artistic inspiration and healing greatly. Artistic expression and inspiration are extremely important to me in not only my main hobby and career path, but also in how I relieve stress and have fun. Healing, however, carries even more importance to me in particular. I make it known on this blog that I have gone through quite a lot of severe medical “situations” – both physical and mental – and thus healing of both body and mind is extremely crucial to my own existence. For these various reasons, I stayed on Apollo’s information page for quite a while. Eventually, I realized I was not done with my link jumping adventure as I had not come up with a domain name yet, so I continued to click on various gods and goddesses of Greek mythology. It didn’t take me long, though, to reach my unknown destination.
The Wikipedia page I landed on was a page detailing the mythical beast of Lycia called the Chimera. I had heard the term “chimera” in language usage, but never really knew what the definition of a “chimera” was in terms of history and myth. Besides meaning a “dream” or “unrealistic image” in the English language, a Chimera – according to Greek myth and literature – was a creature that was made up of three different animals: a lioness (head), a goat (body), and a snake (tail). This creature was the third child of Typhon and Echidna, as well as the sister of many other mythological monsters such as Cerberus, Sphinx, and Hydra. The term “chimera”, however, also holds different meaning today due to scientific research in human (and animal) genetics, botany, and molecular biology. From those areas, the term “chimera” means a living thing that has two or more genetically different sets of cells that fused during the very first stages of development. In humans, people who are medically classified as chimeras have chromosomes from both parents, regardless of whether the person is female, male, or a hermaphrodite. In short, these people are a genetic hybrid in terms of DNA. I had recently seen a documentary on human chimeras, and was amused by the fact I had landed on the info page for mythological chimeras without even remembering the documentary I had watched.
At that point, I knew I wanted to use this word somehow for my new network hub. The word “chimera” is very rarely spelled differently in other languages, so all I needed was a general term to put in front of it to make the domain name complete. I chose “mia” (Italian for my or my own) to go along with “chimera” because – with the correct pronunciation – the two words sound very similar in ending and it also signifies possession. Choosing to go with the word “chimera” was obvious to me for a site about myself, but it would not be so obvious to most others. While I am not medically a genetic chimera as far as I know, I do know that I am most definitely a metaphorical chimera (or hybrid) when it comes to my behavior, thinking process, and personal identity.
My behavior and social interaction has always been very split down the middle, for lack of a better phrase. At age 13, I was diagnosed by a medical psychiatrist with having Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of Autism. This came as a shock to my family – and even to myself – because I did not seem to fit the “textbook definition” of what Asperger’s Syndrome was said to be in many ways. While I met all the criteria for a definitive diagnosis, my overall demeanor and body language were exactly the opposite of what someone would expect from a teen with Asperger’s. For example, parts of the diagnostic criteria for Asperger’s include impaired communication methods; usually people who meet that criteria have trouble making friends, joining a conversation, or understanding general human body language. While those troubles were large issues for me at a young age, I was able to quite literally pretend I did not acknowledge these issues as I got older. I simply studied the way my peers acted in all sorts of scenarios, and then applied my findings to my own social interactions in an almost mathematical way. Over time, my external personality became completely and extremely different from the way I approached socialization internally. To give you an analogy, it was like being both a visitor to a foreign country and a provided translator or tour guide all at the same time. I had to learn to be this sort of social and behavioral hybrid to make myself successful when it came to interacting with others in school or work. I still have trouble “translating” certain things in social situations, but I always am able to apply prior knowledge to make it seem like I am perfectly comfortable.
There are many other things in my life that have made me into a metaphorical chimera. I expect there will be even more factors that play into that term as time goes on. However, for now, there are so many reasons why I am a “chimera” that I couldn’t really get to them all in one page of this blog.
Previous Visual Layout Setups
The very first layout of Mia Chimera was created not based on appearance alone, but on many aspects of symbolism and imagery that are relevant in my own personal life. While many people on the internet turn toward interests such as celebrities, fandoms, artworks, etc. to represent themselves on a website, I decided to go a different route. I knew I wanted to use various symbols to convey aspects of my life, and it took a while to get it all right. Here are all the previously displayed versions of layouts that have been a part of Mia Chimera since its opening in late 2009.
Version I: Lady Aphrodite (December 2009)
The 1st layout of the network in use from Dec 2009 to May 2010
