I know I am going to hear it about changing the format for this blog homepage. Please understand, it had to be done. I have tried this a few times in the past, only to get push back from some top blog readers. Let me apologize ahead of time, but this is the way it’s going to stay.
I will tell you that you are welcome to sign up to receive my posts by email if you can’t get past the change. As far as I know, they are still in the same format and you won’t even have to visit the site anymore. The sign-up is to the right.
As you may have noticed, I am toying with the idea of having people register at this blog. As I said, I am toying with the idea.
Right now, I have every new user registration set to “subscriber.” In the future, and if I trust the person who registered, I may set an account to “contributor.” As of right now, three new users registered since yesterday. None of their user names or email addresses look familiar, so I feel pretty comfortable keeping things the way they are.
Of course, if a good friend registered, or perhaps my mother or sister, they might become a contributor. All that means is that they will be able to write new blog posts that will be reviewed by yours truly before being posted.
So, if you feel like you might be of benefit to this blog and wouldn’t mind writing a guest post once in a while, I invite you to register for an account (top right).
UPDATE: I am temporarily turning off registration. Apparently, many people from other countries are very interested in registering at this website at a very fast rate.
You may have noticed a little change today. If you haven’t, that’s good. I am not even going to tell you about it then.
If you did notice something, let me just tell you why I did it. No, not because I’m bored. It’s because I was getting tired of writing for three blogs. Oh man, sometimes it’s exhausting on the brain. Now, I write for just one common blog because I merged them all together. I still have a little work to do, but if you see anything odd, please let me know.
What’s in a name? I just thought paddling down a beautiful river in the Solomon Islands would be nice…the Kwaree River, that is.
So we have been tossing around the idea of having a few guest writers on this blog. How’s that sound? Personally, I would love it if I were one of those people who couldn’t stop talking about my favorite TV show.
I mean, seriously…there are some reality shows that I just can’t shut up about, but for me, those are limited. I am sure there are a heck of a lot more people out there who love TV more than I do. I know I could write a whole post just on that Fifth Gear T-Rex on Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory. If you haven’t seen it, check out something like it here:
Yup, that T-Rex would certainly have a post of its own.
Anyway, if you have a lot to say and you like to write, please write a comment letting me know. Show us some of the stuff you’ve written before. Hey, maybe you can make yourself famous. You could even be like this lady…
Woman using a laptop in the snow on the side of a mountain
PS – It doesn’t only have to be about TV. It could be about movies, the internet, radio, or whatever. It just has to be exciting and awesome.
I’m not sure if you know this about me or not, but I’m addicted to reality TV. I think it happened a few years ago…the addiction, that is.
Anyway, the other night, while I was watching “Bad Girls Club,” I came up with this great idea. I thought that I would start up a blog so I could discuss all the shows and movies I love so much. I mean, how much fun would it be to bounce theories off one another about “Lost?” I’m sure we could all use a few good answers about what the heck the Dharma Initiative is really doing on the island and why Ben killed the whole group.
I’ve decided to allow registration on this blog and to let users write blog posts. We’ll see how that turns out. Please behave.
As I mentioned in another post, I am leaving this blog open to registration. Please feel free to register and share your thoughts about your type of entertainment. Please be aware that I will be moderating your posts, so you probably shouldn’t waste your time writing about anything other than awesome shows like “Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory.” How great is that show? And to think, I loved “Rob and Big.”
If you click the show links above, you can check out the shows I am talking about.
I think this is going to be the second and last part of my “Complaining about the Internet” series. I just need to get this one out there.
Have you ever heard of Twitter? If so, you’ll know what I am talking about here. If not, I’ll explain what it is to you. Basically, Twitter is a website that allows you to post very short updates on the happenings of your life. It can go something like this…”I have my hand stuck in the toilet.” You can post as many updates as you would like all day long if you want to. People who follow your Twitter feed can stay updated on how many times you get your hand stuck in the toilet during the day. It’s marvelous.
I hope I am describing the service correctly; I have never actually used it.
Just because I haven’t used Twitter, doesn’t mean I can’t complain about it. Please, let me know if the following is annoying to you too.
The other day, I was watching the news or something like it. Maybe it was one of those news shows, I’m not sure. There was a fascinating story on about how a few surgeons were operating on someone and another doctor was Twittering the goings on of the operation. I didn’t think too much of it at the moment. Then, later that day, I started thinking more about it. I asked myself, “Self, why was a doctor Twittering about an operation as it was in progress?” I began having strange thoughts and my mind started to wander. I must confess, I got annoyed for a while. I finally calmed down and tried to look at the plus side of the whole thing.
Let’s look at the “goods” of Twittering during an operation:
1. Comfort – a family can sit around a computer or a mobile phone reading “Tweets” about their loved one’s operation.
2. Informed – The world can get a first hand look at what goes on during an operation.
3. Progress – The doctors and hospital can glow in the limelight of their cutting-edge technology.
4. Contact – Everyone can be proud of themselves that we no longer need to have any amount of human contact.
Today, I watched the White House press conference for a few minutes. I got to the part where the Press Secretary said, “I find it humorous how many press releases have gone out and how much Twitter activity has gone on about…” I had to stop watching. Are you serious?
Okay, I love technology just as much as the next guy, but at what point do we implant “Borg-like” cybernetic enhancements on the sides of our heads and call it a day?
I thought it was great when email arrived on the scene. What a time saver. Then, when I could read the news online, I was thrilled. When I could finally keep up with friends and families through their blogs, I just loved it. When people started broadcasting every heartbeat that occurs inside their chest cavities, I thought the line was crossed.
I tend to think that this modern computer age is a “tool” to assist us in our “real lives.” Did you read that? A “tool” to “assist” us in our “real lives.” I might be over-quoting here, but I believe we are headed towards a place that is quite the opposite of what I just said. It’s going to be like, “Oh man, I have to go out in the sunshine today? Can’t I just twist the knob on the side of my skull and relay all my thoughts to everyone who belongs to the collective? Well, if I must go outside, I am going to need some sunglasses.”
Exercise? Family time? Conversation? Hiking? Looking someone in the eyes? I don’t think so folks…I’ll just go to YouTube and watch a video of someone else exercising, email my family about what I did today, use Skype to have a face-to-face conversation, get a treadmill and call it a hike and email someone a picture of me. I think that about covers it.
As I am finishing up this post and re-reading it, I am seeing a theme among this post and my prior one about Facebook. It appears that I get most agitated at the constant updating of our lives. With my blog, I write every so often to give you folks some information about me. I do it with thought and care. I plan it, write it and then proof read it. I don’t do it randomly and I certainly don’t do it 30 times a day.
Let’s go back to the Tweet, “I have my hand stuck in the toilet.” I think many of us might ask, “Who cares?” Seriously, “W-h-o c-a-r-e-s?”
To think, I thought I was alone. This guy sums it up nicely.
I’m not sure if I am using the correct terminology here. I am not talking about some sortable photo gallery plug-in with tons of features. What I am talking about it the “Gallery” feature that comes with the Wordpress package that allows you to place thumbnails into your post.
I just found this today. I know, I am probably the last person on earth to realize this was even available. I was going through an old post about Luray, VA. My brother took a bunch of photos a while back that I posted here. Basically, I wanted people to see what the area looked like. I noticed that I didn’t put any captions in the photos, so I clicked the “Add an image” button, just to see if those photos were stored somehow. They were and there were a few tabs that I hadn’t noticed before in the pop-up window. One of them said, “Gallery.” Mind you, this tab only appears if there are photos already uploaded.
I clicked the link and saw all the photos. Each photo had a link next to it that showed its properties. I still had the option of adding captions and all that. At the bottom of the list of photos, I noticed some neat little options that let you post all of the uploaded photos for that post as a gallery. How sweet. I chose the number of columns I wanted to see in my post, the order of the photos, how I wanted each photo to show when it was clicked and hit “Insert gallery.”
Take a look below for an example gallery. I found some random pet photos to post. Be sure to click each photo for a larger view.
Simon sleeping on top of Jambalaya
Simon lounging around
Mickels on the grass
Simon getting all nestled in
Mr. Quack stopping by to say hello
Flipperhumanbodyman laying on bed
Simon licking Michaels ear
Holly looking through door waiting to come inside
Michael sleeping on the floor
Holly and Simon sleeping on the floor
What is the benefit of putting your photos in gallery form? Well, for one, your page will load a heck of a lot faster. Also, you will give your readers more of a choice. They can click what they want and ignore the rest. You know, I am all about reader satisfaction.
(Well, this isn’t the greatest example. I had to adjust the “medium” picture size to fit the screen better. Now, you have to options. You can click the thumbnail, which will bring you to a medium sized photo. Then, you can click that photo for a full sized photo. In this post, the medium sized photos are too small. They will be correct in later posts.)
Have you ever had one of those nights where everything was just way too fun? That’s what happened to me last night.
Around 8:30, I finished up dinner and walked back up to the kitchen to put the dishes in the dishwasher. I did a little tidying up and poured myself a nice glass of Brandy. Then, I took a small sip and walked up to my office for a little work. That is basically where the problems started.
I had a few more small sips of my drink and started getting into my usual 8:30 – 11:00 routine. A little work here and a little work there. I wasn’t doing anything all too serious, so I decided to turn some music on. Of course, I started listening to my new favorite band, “Days Of The New.” Seriously good music. Well, the next thing I knew, I had the music playing way too loudly and my drink was gone. The worst part about the whole thing is that I was halfway through a blog post. Let me just tell you this – it was magical.
I always worry about those types of posts. Good thing I never actually publish them because I mostly tell you what I really feel. Well, this time was a bit different. I finally started working on my story. Remember the one I told you about? It’s the one that’s going to knock your socks off. Yeah, I am trying to make this one worthy…worthy enough to be a chapter in my most unique book that my sister Lauren is going to put together for you.
I saved the post as a draft last night and just took a quick look at it. It’s not long; probably a few hundred words. I was quite surprised to see that it was better than I had hoped for. I would really like to post it, but I’m a little nervous about what people will think. It’s pretty odd at times. I’ll think about it. It isn’t that big of a deal because it’s just a prelude anyway. Maybe I’ll have my mother edit it before I do anything with it.
——
So Rob came over to the house tonight. I told him to remind me to get a picture of the two us us together so I could write about the visit, but he forgot. So, unfortunately all you ladies out there won’t get to see a picture of the two most handsome guys on the east coast. Maybe next time I’ll put the camera on the desk or something to remind me.
I think we had a really good visit. I gave Rob the house tour and then we talked business for a while. That was fun because I like seeing the fire in Rob’s eyes. He is a born entrepreneur…maybe even more than me. Let me remind you that it was Rob who was doing this stuff before me. He’s one of the people who came up with crazy ideas that actually made money long before I ever did anything. All I need to do this time is keep him on the straight and narrow and things should be fine.
After we talked business, we headed out to pick up some pizza and salads. That was cool, because I got to show him the new car and how it drove around these winter roads. I asked him if he saw the “driving in the snow” videos and he told me he hadn’t. So, I am linking to it right here. Michele, please pull him to the computer and have him click this link. Thank you.
The pizza was pretty good. The salads were pretty good. Typical stuff, but Rob liked the thin crust.
After we were done eating, I thought it would be a good idea to load up a big bag with about 42 empty beer bottles. I am giving them to Rob, so he can use them for his beer making. I am also letting him borrow the capper and some caps. I gave him 6 of my prize-winning beers too. We cracked one of the chocolate ones open and I have to tell you that they are tasting much better these days. Very full of body.
As Laura and I were saying good-bye to our dear friend, we made a vow that we wouldn’t let another year go by without seeing each other again. We have way too good of a time together to let these years pass by so fast like this. After all, we are only an hour and a half away.
The article has some pretty good ideas in it to keep the ball rolling on your blog, as well as keeping your readers interested in what you are writing about. As we all know, that is very important.
PS – Actually, I was just reading a few more posts on this blog (Content Writing & Copywriting Blog) and I want to give big kudos (one of my corporate jargon words) to its author. There are tons of great ideas over there.
