HELLO, WORLD! 🌎

I’m Still Saying Hello!

the XO diary of #ArtistShimmer

DOES THIS HELP® | W3Connect | CREEKER.site | The Rhymes & Reasons of Communication

Hello, World!

If you’ve ever learned to write computer code, you probably recognize those two little words.

Hello, World!

It’s often the first thing we learn to make a computer say.

Two words. One introduction. Endless possibilities.

And here I am, all these years later, still saying hello!

I’m K. Kirton Niner, also known as #ArtistShimmer aka Krista Romero, and there’s a reason behind the things I do. Usually several reasons. Sometimes a rhyme, sometimes a joke, sometimes an Easter egg, and sometimes a story that takes a lifetime to comprehend.

I love the way words work. I love the way computers work. I love the way people work—or at least learning why we do what we do.

And I love that every new discovery can lead to another great AHA!

That’s what learning is supposed to be!

AHA! Number One: Intelligence Isn’t Just Knowing. It’s Comprehending.

I learned computer science and technology because I wanted to understand what was happening behind the screen.

I didn’t want to simply click buttons and hope for the best.

I wanted to know what those buttons did, why they existed, who created them, and what happened when somebody clicked them.

HTML, XML, AJAX, domains, DNS, email, redirects, databases, WordPress, applications—there are rhymes and reasons behind all of them.

And I have always loved discovering those reasons.

I’m a certified web developer and designer, an artist, a teacher, and a lifelong student.

One of my favorite things to say is:

“I know everything because I know nothing at all.”

Because the moment we believe we have nothing left to learn, we stop discovering.

And isn’t discovery half the fun?

I don’t believe intelligence should be used to make somebody else feel small.

If you understand something I don’t, teach me!

If I understand something you don’t, let me show you!

That’s communication.

That’s connection.

That’s W3Connect.

AHA! Number Two: iCANN. You CANN. W3Connect!

LOL! I’m such a G3EK!

Yes, there’s a reason behind the name W3Connect.

The World Wide Web Consortium, W3C, develops standards that help make the web work.

ICANN coordinates important parts of the internet’s domain-name system.

And I couldn’t resist the wordplay.

iCANN. You CANN. W3Connect!

A domain is more than an address.

It can be a home, a classroom, a business, a library, a communication station, an invitation, or a doorway to somewhere entirely different.

My network currently includes 16 domains, with subdomains and opportunities to create, connect, redirect, publish, teach, and communicate.

I can create email addresses.

I can redirect visitors.

I can build applications.

I can create classrooms.

I can let a domain sit there until I’m ready.

I can do something.

I can do nothing.

But I like doing SOMETHING!

And when I do, I want it to have a purpose.

Everything has its rhymes and reasons.

That’s why there are Easter eggs throughout my work.

Some are obvious. Some require curiosity. Some are little lessons disguised as jokes.

And some are waiting for somebody to ask the right question.

AHA! Number Three: Just Because I CANN Code It, SHOULD I?

I watched The Social Network, and something about that movie really bothered me.

The film portrays a young man responding to rejection by using his computer skills to humiliate a young woman.

Now, I understand it’s a dramatized movie, not a complete historical account of Facebook’s creation.

But the question it raised for me was real.

What happens when somebody knows how to create something powerful but doesn’t stop to consider how it affects another human being?

Knowing how to code isn’t the same as knowing how to care.

Technical intelligence without consideration for others can do tremendous harm.

A few lines of code can connect families across oceans.

A few lines of code can also expose private information, damage reputations, or make somebody feel powerless.

That’s why I believe digital literacy is about more than operating technology.

It’s about responsibility.

Before we post, publish, share, develop, criticize, or make decisions that affect others, shouldn’t we ask:

DOES THIS HELP®?

Does this help someone understand?

Does this help someone communicate?

Does this help protect somebody’s dignity?

Does this help us become better neighbors?

And if it doesn’t, why are we doing it?

AHA! Number Four: My Identity Doesn’t Belong to Somebody Else’s Platform.

Years ago, when Google introduced its business.site service, I began exploring and testing its capabilities.

I created and worked with business listings and digital identities because I wanted to understand how the system operated.

I encountered restrictions and account blocks that raised serious questions for me about access, identity, platform control, and security.

I had concerns about how listings representing major institutions—including the United States of America and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—could be created, claimed, or managed.

I believed those concerns deserved attention.

And I believed I had a responsibility to speak up about what I observed.

My experience taught me something important:

Having a presence on somebody else’s platform is not the same as having control over your own domain.

So I purchased my own domain.

CREEKER.site became part of my answer.

Not because I wanted to control the internet.

Because I wanted to understand it, participate in it, and create something of my own.

I believe people deserve to know how the systems they use affect their identities, information, and opportunities.

And I believe we should have the courage to question those systems responsibly.

AHA! Number Five: Everybody Knows My Name, but Do They Know ME?

Here’s something I’ve learned about communication.

People can recognize your name without knowing your story.

They can hear something about you without ever hearing it from you.

They can form opinions about what you meant without asking what you were trying to say.

I’ve experienced that in my own community, including among people I recognize from church.

I remember having lunch with my Son Kyle when he was in kindergarten.

A little girl I recognized from Sunday church behaved in a way that prompted me to say:

“Well now, that isn’t very Christlike, is it?”

That interaction was later discussed with others, and I came to feel that people were forming impressions of me without getting acquainted.

What I intended as a reminder about Christlike behavior may have been heard differently.

And that’s another lesson in communication.

What we intend, what we say, what somebody hears, and what somebody repeats aren’t always the same thing.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we asked one another what we meant before deciding what somebody else believes?

I don’t need everybody to like me.

I don’t need everybody to agree with me.

But I would love to see more people make the effort to understand one another.

You can know my name.

You can know my website.

You can even know my reputation.

But if you’ve never had a conversation with me, how much do you really know about ME?

That’s why I’m still saying hello.

AHA! Number Six: In the Name of Jesus Christ Means Something to Me.

My faith is not something I leave at the church doors.

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I believe in God, our Eternal Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost.

I believe Jesus Christ is my Elder Brother, my Lord and Savior, and the example I am trying to follow.

When I say something in His name, I don’t believe those words are simply a religious signature.

I believe they carry responsibility.

Am I trying to be like Him?

Am I treating somebody with kindness?

Am I respecting their agency?

Am I serving instead of condemning?

Am I learning from my mistakes?

Am I willing to try again tomorrow?

I don’t believe we honor Jesus Christ merely by engraving His name or displaying it for others to see.

I believe we honor Him by following His example.

The Book of Mormon records the invitation to press forward with steadfastness in Christ, with a perfect brightness of hope and love of God and all people (2 Nephi 31:20).

That means something to me.

I’m not trying to become somebody else’s version of who Shimmer should be.

I’m trying to become the person I believe my Eternal Father wants me to become.

And I believe Jesus Christ sees our efforts and helps us along the way.

AHA! Number Seven: My Shimmer Has Never Left Him.

Sometimes I imagine life as a long tunnel.

There are difficult stretches. There are unexpected turns. There are moments when we don’t know what’s around the corner.

But I believe there’s light ahead.

And in my understanding of eternal family, I picture Jesus Christ standing in that light with my Dad, my Sister, my Grandma, Corey’s Grandma, and the generations of loved ones who have gone before us.

It’s a picture of hope.

Of reunion.

Of belonging.

And of love that doesn’t simply disappear when somebody leaves mortality.

My family history has become another great adventure in comprehension.

The people who came before us weren’t just names and dates.

They lived!

They loved!

They made choices!

They crossed oceans, built homes, raised families, endured hardships, and left behind stories that became part of our inheritance.

I see Corey and myself as the trunk of a family tree, our ancestors as the roots, and our children as seeds growing into trees of their own.

Like my willow trees.

Our roots don’t tell every branch exactly where to grow.

They give us something to grow from.

And that, to me, is another beautiful expression of agency.

We inherit knowledge. We make choices. We grow.

AHA! Number Eight: Cyberspace Is the Universe, but 85331 Is My CREEKERhood!

Now we’re getting somewhere!

I live in the Cave Creek area of Arizona, where our community has its own history, character, neighbors, and independent spirit.

My CREEKERhood is rooted in 85331.

And CREEKER.site is one website within my larger digital network.

Think of it as our neighborhood headquarters.

Like Washington, D.C., is a recognizable center of national government, CREEKER.site is my imaginative headquarters for connecting our local community.

Not a government.

Not a replacement for our neighbors.

A gathering place.

A place to communicate, learn, share ideas, and discover what we can accomplish together.

And cyberspace?

Well, that’s our universe of connections!

From a little corner of Arizona, we can communicate with people around the world.

But I don’t want us to forget the people living right next door.

Which brings me to another great AHA!

AHA! Number Nine: The CREEKERhood Wagon Train Starts at the Wagon Wheel!

Instead of going to FB to find ME…

COME TO ME!

I’m inviting neighbors and friends to get acquainted on Wednesdays at the Wagon Wheel Café.

That’s where our CREEKERhood Wagon Train begins!

A real place.

Real people.

Real conversations.

Coffee, questions, ideas, laughter, learning, and maybe a few good stories.

You don’t have to be a computer programmer to climb aboard.

You don’t have to know HTML or XML.

You don’t even have to own a computer.

Just bring yourself and your willingness to communicate.

Maybe you’re a neighbor who wants to learn how to create a website.

Maybe you’re a business owner who wants to understand your online presence.

Maybe you’re a developer who has something wonderful to teach.

Maybe you simply want somebody to listen.

All aboard!

Because a wagon train isn’t about one wagon traveling alone.

It’s about people making a journey together.

And every wagon brings something different to the adventure.

AHA! Number Ten: The World Is Full of Easter Eggs.

I love stories.

I love Alice in Wonderland and the Mad Hatter.

I love the imaginative world of Rise of the Guardians, especially North and his sense of wonder.

I love Ralph Breaks the Internet because it gives us another way to think about friendship, insecurity, technology, and the consequences of our choices.

I call my husband Bunny, which makes all those rabbit holes and Easter eggs even more entertaining to me!

But here’s the thing about a rabbit hole:

You never know what you’re going to discover until you explore it.

That’s how I feel about learning.

One question leads to another.

One family record leads to another ancestor.

One line of code leads to another possibility.

One conversation leads to another friendship.

One hello can change the direction of somebody’s day.

And sometimes the greatest discovery isn’t something new.

It’s finally comprehending something that has been right in front of us all along.

AHA! Number Eleven: DOES THIS HELP® Is a Question, Not a Command.

I’ve built my work around those three words for a reason.

DOES THIS HELP®?

I’m not telling you what to think.

I’m asking you to think.

I’m not asking you to become me.

I’m inviting you to be yourself.

I’m not asking everybody to agree.

I’m asking whether we’re willing to listen, learn, and consider the consequences of our actions.

Sometimes helping means teaching.

Sometimes it means listening.

Sometimes it means standing up when something appears wrong.

Sometimes it means acknowledging that we misunderstood.

Sometimes it means respecting somebody’s right to make a different choice.

And sometimes helping begins with the simplest thing in the world.

Saying hello.

HELLO, WORLD! I’m Still Here.

I’m still learning.

I’m still building.

I’m still teaching.

I’m still asking questions.

I’m still discovering my ancestors, celebrating my family, loving my neighbors, exploring technology, and finding new ways to communicate.

My 16-domain network isn’t the destination.

It’s an expanding collection of doorways.

CREEKER.site is one of them.

W3Connect is another.

And behind every doorway, I hope there’s an opportunity to discover something meaningful.

I don’t want the world to become Shimmer.

I want the world to know that Shimmer is here, saying hello, and inviting you to say hello back.

Because knowing somebody’s name isn’t the same as knowing their heart.

Because understanding technology isn’t the same as understanding humanity.

And because intelligence becomes so much more valuable when we use it to help one another.

Hello, World!

From my house to yours.

From our CREEKERhood to yours.

From one generation to the next.

From our ancestors’ stories to the possibilities our children will create.

I’m still saying hello.

And I’m still asking…

DOES THIS HELP®?

With love, curiosity, and a little Shimmer,

K. Kirton Niner
#ArtistShimmer

The XO Diary of Shimmer & Friends

CREEKER.site — CREEKERhood HQ
W3Connect — Communication of the Coded Kind