Maybe he has a point. Maybe I’ve scared away more jobs than I know. I hope not. I’d like to think that having my own domain is a good thing, that my website (however personal, however off-color, however infrequently updated) reveals creativity, demonstrates the important writing, editing and computer skills that I bring to the table, and underscores the fact that I am professional, even if I am also sometimes silly and stupid and irrevocably human.

I don’t want to make light of my father’s suggestion or dismiss it out of hand, and I certainly don’t want potential employers to feel that personal views or whatever else epxressed here are the sum total of who I am, or that those same views will in some way disrupt my job performance. When you’re out of work, it’s not so easy to say, “to hell with them,” or to ignore the real possibility that an employer’s views might not coincide with your own — and that that might be enough to lose you the job. It’s easy to second-guess yourself and worry about how every little thing reflects on you.

But, you know, at the same time, I think I’m going to stick with the domain, to continue letting employers know it’s out here, that I’m out here, that this is who I am, that this is what I can offer. That yes, I’m maybe a little more than a mindless drone, but I’m also a hardworker, dilligent and easy to get along with, loyal to my employers and focused on what needs to be done. And if I am at times silly or colorful or expressive of unpopular views, it’s never at the company’s expense or on the company’s time, but rather, I hope, to everyone’s benefit.