I knew I had been away from the CW for too long when, on New Year’s Eve, Microsoft Word had disappeared from the “Recent Items” scroll on my Mac. The next day was especially long, as I resorted to occupying my time by watching the launch of the Oprah Winfrey Network.

I love Christmas as much as the Griswolds, but being off for two and a half weeks after the holiday just leaves time to reminisce about the holiday. Maybe if I were from a place like New York City, I could extend the festivities by going to watch Mayor Bloomberg orchestrate the lowering of the Times Square Ball.

However, I am from the standard Alabama small town, where the only thing showing at the local theater for the entire break was “Yogi Bear.” (Which, admittedly, might have more of a purpose than waiting for hours in a restless crowd to watch an illuminated ball descend in a spectacle that only lasts a few seconds.)

It seems like a university that spends over a month on Christmas break could spare time to recognize our veterans and our presidents with a day off. But I guess we have to keep scheduling like we are going to the National Championship, even though that didn’t work out as well as we hoped this year. Still, at number 10, we can all take pride in saying, “Roll Tide.”

Nevertheless, I did find some purpose over the extended vacation. Having disappointed myself year after year by failing to meet my New Year’s resolutions, this year the staff and I have decided to set some resolutions for the opinions page this semester. Or should I say the opinions apparatus, since we are now expanding to dominions beyond “Page 4.”

Starting today, we invite you to log onto our website and visit the “Campus Pulse” blog under the opinions section. This section of the website will allow our columnists to expand their horizons by actively connecting with different parts of campus to gauge the “pulse” of our community. We will share our thoughts on campus issues much more frequently, thus expanding both the depth and quantity of our commentary.

One page is simply no longer sufficient to accommodate all of the opinions flowing out of our 30,000-large student body, nor the frequent tangents of our more active columnists. So please visit us on the web, comment and help us establish this new venue for discussion on campus.

We are also launching weekly polls on the website. Every Monday, we will announce the poll question on the opinions page and publish the results of the previous poll. While we appreciate the readers who energize our debates by posting on our columns, we also understand that not every reader can be as loyal and active as famed CW commenter “Jeb.”

So we are launching this new web project to give you an easier way to share your opinion. Our first poll topic this week asks: “Do you think it is appropriate to celebrate the anniversary of the Confederacy?”

Both of these projects are aimed at helping us fulfill our resolution, which is to give you, the readers, more ways to interact and engage with us. The media is changing, and we understand that we must change with it. While the basics of opinion journalism remain the same – to provide thought-provoking commentary and help readers understand the arguments surrounding increasingly complex news stories – the platforms people use to access the media are evolving.

In utilizing these new platforms, we can provide more content that is easier to access.

At the same time, we are continuing our efforts to recruit new, talented columnists and bloggers. If you are interested in applying to write for this page or contribute to our blog, please email me at [email protected]. Even if you have applied before, give it another chance. It is a new year and a new semester, and we are looking for new faces that reflect the wide scope of personalities represented by the student body.

If you don’t have time to write for us, you can always send us a letter, post comments or just answer the poll questions. Columnists are a very opinionated bunch. Here at the CW, though, we want to hear your opinions, too. Even if they are about us.

Tray Smith is the opinions editor of the Crimson White. His column runs on Fridays.