Blogging « nicopolitan.com

Archive for the ‘Blogging’ Category

Detour

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

I jumped on board the VEDA project, which is being spearheaded by Captain Ashley and Commodore Phampants (those are not official titles. Er, yet.).

As that means I’m attempting to vlog every freaking day in August, that probably means I am going to set down the WordPress if I want to keep my sanity, and especially if I am still trying to meet freelance obligations. And be in a band. What the hell is wrong with me?

I now know that I have to become more strict with my time management. Realizing I have little time to begin with, more vlogging = less blogging.

In the meantime, this post will act as a housing for the videos I’m uploading every day with a YouTube playlist.

I’ll see you all on the other side!

Tags: 2010, august, VEDA, vlog
Posted in Blogging, Life As A Nico, Vlogs | 12 Comments »

How To Feel Left Out In A Conference About Community

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

Don’t let the post title fool you, VidCon was truly a blast. I did get to go with friends @writetoreach @freeandflawed and @phampants so I wasn’t necessarily lonely, I did get to meet some YouTube and interweb celebrities, and some of the presentations were straight up hilarious.

As one might expect from me by now, I went for the sake of work. While Phampants convinced me to attend because the conference itself would be fun, I came with a notepad and some pens planning to walk out of it with some material for quantitative and qualitative analysis.

The “learnings,” ~~or tidbits of statistical and/or qualitative information that inform and influence decisions when deployed in the realm of strategic consultation and execution~~ as they’re known in corporate jargon, were largely overshadowed by the wholly disparate intention of the conference. That is a long way to say: taking notes might not have been the point. By and large, this conference was supposed to celebrate the YouTube community — a community made up mostly of people under 21, but still, a community.

Community is something to which I’m no stranger. Having a blog has connected me to lots of people, and while I am always saying that I still need to work on reconnecting with everyone even after all this time, the readers and writers who keep up with me no matter how drowned in work I get really remind me that they’re friends who care, not just screen names. It’s a good reminder that there are, after all, real people on the other side of the screen.

Back to the ‘Con: The YouTube community — it’s different than others. Of course, this might be somewhat expected as the medium itself is fundamentally different from that of blogging, but it’s so tightly knit that when I met some people and revealed to them that I came for work purposes and explained what it was exactly I do for a living, I noticed their eyes wander in boredom. It’s not because they’re assholes, or at least I hope not, but it’s because was very obviously an outsider.

Until this conference, I really didn’t know much about the likes of Is Charlie So Cool Like? and Volgvetica and the shining beacon of the music industry’s future, DFTBA records (and really the list goes on).

Had I been creating content and engaging with the existing YouTube community before VidCon, I might have.

Why hadn’t I participated before? First, a good place to start is the situation with trolls. Before I shaped a persona on the interweb, I didn’t have very much confidence in myself to withstand being trolled. But now that I’ve been blogging for a while, and getting some ample evidence that the internet is as equally frightening as it is fulfilling, I realize I don’t give a flying fuck about being judged by strangers, so I’m probably in a pretty good place to learn to participate in user generated video.

Maybe it’s time for me to join this community, too. Phampants has been singing the praises for a long time, he’d even help me get started; I am a huge fan of the social part before the media part; and I would love to learn how to do something new.

Of course, engagement (or at least an attempt) is a minimal requirement. While I can’t guarantee much, especially if my blog-to-engagement ratio is any indication, I can at least make a valiant effort.

But at the end of all of this, towards the end of the conference, one moment stands out. I was hanging out by the hotel lobby ashtray with a bunch of smokers who were mid-level content creators with established, albeit small, audiences. They were here at the conference not to learn or to promote, but simply to connect with viewers and other video creators they have known and loved from afar for a while. They aren’t viral video superstars. They just love that being their respective selves on camera has led them to meet really worthwhile people who would eventually become friends.

One of the guys reacted strongly to one of my comments, that I do research and development because I’m interested in how people use social networks, and seeing such a tightly-knit community makes me to want to become part of it but I don’t know how to begin. He put his hand on my shoulder, and while swaying somewhat drunkenly, he impressively articulated: “Bro, if you’re here at VidCon, even as an observer, you already bought a ticket so you helped fund it, and while you were here, you paid attention. You’re already a part of the community.”

I guess this means I should start making videos.

Tags: 2010, community, conference, free and flawed, phampants, vidcon, writing to reach you, youtube
Posted in Blogging, Internet, Research & Development, Social Media | 13 Comments »

Not Sleeping In The City That Doesn’t Sleep

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

I’m still reeling from some of the most work I’ve ever done in my life in one week (64 freaking hours!), but there are some things that I considered while attending Internet Week in New York that I think are important to note. Well, at least they’re important for me; and in some way, hopefully they are for you.

Getting one thing out of the way: though I do work in social media, I hate calling myself a “social media expert” because I feel that anyone is really qualified to become an expert in this space. While I won’t get into specifics, I will say that all you need to do is be well-versed at using the internet to get what you need. That that level of comfortability is entirely attainable for a good 97% of humans.*

But that’s all theory. In practice, there is no social media formula for success.** This isn’t just because any given message should be considered on a case by case basis since different things matter to different people.

In practice, I’m noticing there’s still a secret sauce nobody has yet figured out. I started asking myself something while I was in NYC: What makes me so invested in the internet enough to be here at #iwny? And moreover, what makes me different from the “experts” preaching “Top 10 ways to [social] your [media]“?

Well, it’s you guys. You there, on the other side of the screen. Y’see, I’m a blogger (o rly?), and I made friends on the internet because I engaged with them; and yes, I’d consider them friends. I’ve met some of them in real life and they exceed all expectations. I would like to, eventually, see every one of them in person again at the earliest opportunity. Oh, and those just-as-important-if-not-more friends that I have made offline? I know what they [Like / are saying / Digg / note / have on their Wishlist / listen to / are playing on Xbox LIVE / think about local restaurants] thanks to social media. Those friends that have moved to other cities are still within reach thanks to social media.

Clearly, I am a person who values the social more than the media.

Disclaimer: Okay, so I haven’t been a great interweb friend lately because I’ve been inundated with work and have seriously slacked on keeping up, but I’ll get to rectifying that soon, and participating again in comment threads from [some place close] to [some place far-the-fuck-away]. It’s like my Google Reader account is constipated with knowledge bombs. But oh, how glorious it will be to open them all up in new browser tabs. Like Christmas Day! Please note that my reference to constipation and a Christian holiday are two separate analogies.

My point to all of this is that I think I may be spoiled with how much good I’ve been able to get from social media. Don’t get me wrong, meeting and greeting people from all over the world who widen the web, and serving and returning the “where are you from?” and the “what do you do?”, and cracking jokes about whatever keynote presentation had the thing with the freakout was good fun and something very useful to me as a professional… but I missed the real bonding that goes on in social media. Awww. He’s a dork.

But seriously, very few times do I feel that ‘networking’ is also being ‘engaged.’

I am a person (okay fine, a robot) who uses social media and in turn gets to be part of a community. When I think about this as a professional, I have to question what it is that nico-the-person did to obtain so many connections to such high quality people.

Further, as someone who helps to build things on the web, I have to keep asking myself what can I do to help create things that bring people together so that they can connect to others of this same high quality I’ve been able to find?

What is the ‘secret sauce’? Why is it useful? Who can build this? How long and how many will it take? Who will use it? How will we measure it?

…and what will happen since this is probably already possible?

I have a lot of questions.

I should get to working on the answers.

Wait. First I should sleep.

_________
*but 100% of robots.
**There is a social media formula for fail.

Tags: engagement, internet week, new york, nyc, questions, secret sauce
Posted in Blogging, Internet, Life As A Nico, Social Media | 10 Comments »

Things You Can Learn in Las Vegas While Being Drunk Around 66 Ladies

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

Like a lot of the other #BiSC attendees, I’m definitely still reeling getting used to real life. But I’m still up working (Monday night / Tuesday morning), and this is a good time to blog as any. Plus, watching me mentally deteriorate over the course of one blog post may be entertaining.

As expected, bloggers are my kind of people. As I did not expect when I first signed up to go with them to Vegas, 95.6% of the bloggers were women.

Oh! you say, what amazing odds you have, Nico! And in Vegas, no less!

To which I’d respond: Don’t get me wrong, the level of hotness achieved by these ladies was staggering*, but that wasn’t why I went. As I live to learn, I was most excited to find out what these women could teach me while I was drinking 43 on a scale of 1 to Jesus H. Batman socially.

The results are not what you think. The results, actually, are acquired skills.

Level Up!

nicopolitan has earned enough experience points to gain a level!

New skills acquired:

<3 Dialect
- Not entirely in the direction of slang nor language, “<3 Dialect” is the only way I can describe it. Obviously, the <3 comes from the internet to communicate the idea of a heart. ‘Heart’ may denote “love” but the manifest incarnation has more prerequisites than that. As for the vocabulary itself, the words aren’t new; they’re words you know. Only, you don’t know them because the meaning is in the context. Ergo, the meaning must be inferred. Or imagined. The context must carry the following: in-jokes associated with laughter; deployment in lieu of adjectives and metaphors; equal parts love/camaraderie/admiration/friendship and OMGWTF.
Death Glare
- Reflective of pack mentality, women use the Death Glare to ward off douchebags. While the simple the eye-roll or the whatever brush-off are used for basic reactionary cockblocking, the Death Glare is a preventative measure. The Death Glare requires both concentration and composure, and when used effectively, will communicate that shit will go down if whatever is happening persists. Advanced users can use this in conjunction with a curt quip. The qualifier of Death Glare effectiveness is measured by the reaction of the target. If the target is shamed, the Death Glare is effective. If the target just simply thinks you are a bitch, that would be a misfire. This is something I was incredibly stoked to learn, and even got to use it once. And on real douchebags! It was awesome.
Brain Melt (14% complete)
- Ok, I didn’t actually learn how to do this one, but I did get to see how it was done, thus my level of completion in this is at 14%. Regardless, this skill actually does require a group in order to be effective. While the end result is that the group simply laughs so hard that their sides begin to ache, the Brain Melt comes in two variations:
  - The Slow Burn: Strong initialization by a good storyteller, which requires variation in reiteration of the main points, pacing, and energy to establish the blast radius and longevity of the Brain Melt.
  - The Missile: In the non-sequitur version of the Brain Melt, one other member of the group (payload) must draw attention to the non-sequitur itself (ignition) after it has been delivered. The non-sequitur version does not require reiteration.
- The reason I am calling this the Brain Melt is because after one Missile or Slow Burn, the composure of the group has already started to deteriorate, and further laughter can ensue pretty easily until the Brain is all but decimated. But, you know, in a good way.

So, in honor of my newfound abilities as described in the form of a video game trope that shows I really am a perma-neckbeard of a nerd, I have a new blog design that is meant to be much lighter on the browser than that of previously only it’s still got a couple of things that need to get ironed out but I’m not so concerned with this site’s completion since it’s in no way meant to be professional. What the fuck is up with that giant run on sentence? Goddam I need to go to bed already.

More on this subject soon. I’m not done here.

______

*Ben and RSub27, we already know you two are staggeringly hot, so I didn’t count you.

Tags: <3, bisc, bloggers, brain melt, death glare, dialect, heart, lessons, sin city
Posted in Blogging, Life As A Nico | 34 Comments »

Does Not Compute

Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

In a lull in readership (are people still coming here? I don’t check my Google Analytics) at the same time as a lull in taking-work-home, I’m going for an unprecedented two posts in two consecutive days for this week.

But a robot does not deliver more than is designated.

I guess I’m posting, like many bloggers do, because I’m down, and there is somewhat of a satisfaction that comes with letting out stress publicly than in private with friends. The point isn’t necessarily to bitch and moan about having a lame-ass day, it’s to explore this idea. We’ve seen it on blogs before, and with the exception of trolls, the bitch-and-moan blog post does make one feel better, and a different kind of better than picking it apart with friends. Why does this work? I mean, blogging like this is mostly for me, right? Nobody actually reads posts that are this long anyway, do they? Right.

So let’s take it from the top:

From what I gather about being human, shitty days come and go. It’s appropriate that my Monday, that wasn’t necessarily bad by any means, is pretty much just a downer. Mondays? I have them. I have a whole case of them.

A robot does not get ‘a case of the Mondays.’

So what’s up with this italicized text? If you know me at all, I’ve been referencing this ongoing joke (somewhat excessively) about being a robot.

A robot does not joke.

Because I seem to identify with that persona, and have ever since college, I’m struggling a little bit with how it relates to shitty days, which is a human phenomenon. Mostly, the robot schtick is a foil to being human. Part of the point of blogging in the slice-of-life format is to exhibit an element of humanity, but being careful about what I say from the get-go is starting to show signs of strain. It takes some work to shape a personality out of being completely neutral. Neutrality is spilling over into my personal experience, and that, too, is getting somewhat taxing.

But a robot is neutral.

Religion, politics, celebrities, sexuality, rants, those are all plentiful on the web, and I’d rather not add to the noise. Besides, my opinion is largely unimportant.

For a robot has no opinions.

What’s important about the way I blog, being fully transparent and accountable for what I say, is that if I’m to have a personality at all, I should offer my living experience as somewhat of a case study. Seems to be working for the most part. At least some of it is entertaining (mostly to me).

But as discussed previously, my living experience is that of a robot. And this ongoing allegory is suddenly in question when I have a bad day. How am I supposed to reconcile the “I had a lame day” blog post with “I am a robot”?

A robot’s only intent is to fulfill its programmed purpose. A robot does not get depressed. A robot does not feel misunderstood, neglected, or left out. A robot does not let a pile of misfortune influence its performance. A robot does not feel inferior or inadequate. A robot does not feel lonely. A robot does not have the ability to ask for help. A robot may get overwhelmed but it will accept requests at any and all times. A robot does not get frustrated.

Above all, a robot does not feel anything.

If your robot is exhibiting these signs, it may be experiencing technical difficulties. Contact technical support for assistance.

…but robot might generate an error log and send the report to web.

…and technically, the web is my support.

…and all of a sudden, I do feel better.

_nicopolitan is not responding. Send a report?

Tags: learnings, mondays, robot, shitty day
Posted in Blogging, Life As A Nico | 9 Comments »

Certain Types of Robots

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

Muse: How’s it going?

nicopolitan: It’s alright, all things considered.

Shadow Nico: What the fuck is that supposed to mean?

Muse: Be nice. It looks like he’s working.

Shadow Nico: Dude, you came home to work again? When are you ever going to do things for yourself for more than one night a week? I realize you like to help people but you have to stop promising all of your time before there’s nothing left of you.

nicopolitan: Well, I’m working on something for myself currently. Does that count?

Muse: Are you working on music?

Shadow Nico: Or better yet, drinking? You haven’t given me the chance to hit on any women in a while. Wathafack, man?

Muse: That’s probably a good thing, Shadow.

Shadow Nico: You shutting the fuck up is a good thing, Muse.

nicopolitan: You guys, can I please concentrate? You’re being really-

Muse: Wait, what is that?

nicopolitan: What’s what?

Muse: That thing on your name – what is it?

Shadow Nico: Woah dude I didn’t notice that before.

Muse: Could that have something to do with the fact that you’re always drunk?

Shadow Nico: Maybe!

nicopolitan: I’m still not sure what thing… on my name, you said?

Muse: Yeah, hold still, lemme see if I can remove it…

Shadow Nico: It looks like masking tape. Wait, I think there’s text underneath there.

nicopolitan.com: Really?

Muse: WOAH.

Shadow Nico: HOLYSHITYOU’REAWEBSITE

Muse: It all makes sense!

nicopolitan.com: It “makes sense”? What makes sense?

Muse: Well, you’re a robot, right?

nicopolitan.com: I thought that was just a running joke.

Muse: Maybe it’s possible that you’re a certain kind of robot — the kind of machine that exists in the current era. Not like a “hospitality robot” like you’d said, but something different. You know? Before, there was being churned in the belly of the beast, there was a “cog in the machine” in the industrial age, there was “just another number” when institutions began to serialize information about people in critical mass, and maybe in the information age… you’re a website.

Shadow Nico: That’s fucking depressing. Also, that analogy is lame. You haven’t cited sources to verify this, you’re just stretching metaphors to fit an allegory. If he’s a robot, him being a website means he exists through the internet.

Muse: Well… what were you working on again, nicopolitan?

nicopolitan.com: I was dealing with a kernel panic on my desktop. That’s not necessarily ‘internet’ as much as it is a ‘gateway to the internet.’

Muse: Ok, but it’s still technology, and robots tend to get along with technology. How do you feel about this problem? The kernel panic?

nicopolitan.com: Meh. It’s fine. I have all of the things that really matter to me in clouds and external hard drives and on separate machines so nothing was really lost here except for the use of the tangible object, the iMac; and I suppose that has financial implications.

Shadow Nico: Serves you right for using an Apple.

Muse: Hey! I like Macs! They are fantastically reliable for music composition and performance, they absolutely sing for graphic design needs, and actually do pretty great in work purposes, and-

Shadow Nico: If you tell me that those overpriced things are great for games, I will smack your face off of your face.

nicopolitan.com: THE POINT IS – I think this machine has suffered hardware damage. It’s been moved a lot during its 3 year lifetime, has run hot even during sweltering summertimes, has gathered dust and probably moisture during cold seasons, and has not been shut off for more than 12 hours, ever – the longest uptime without a cold boot was 2 months. If the problem isn’t hardware damage at all, which is plausible since all the parts are factory, there’s a chance I can resurrect it by booting something like, say, Ubuntu. I’ve little experience with it but from what I’ve been able to see so far, that’s an OS worth keeping around after the fix. That is, if the fix works-

Shadow Nico: OK you’re a fucking nerd, dude, we get it; get over yourself, you’re no systems analyst, you pretentious douche.

Muse: Harsh.

Shadow Nico: Truth, motherfucker.

Muse: Be that as it may, I still think nicopolitan being a website is supporting evidence of being a robot. Most people get attached to their possessions, and in a technology-based age, you would expect people to get attached to computers that have been with them through a lot of experiences. This computer has definitely been through a lot with Nico but I’m not detecting any signs of sadness. I would even go as far to say that he’s only mildly disappointed in the computer just because of how much he spent on the machine.

nicopolitan.com: But why specifically an internet robot named after a domain? It’s not like I spam people… or at least if I do, I’m unaware of it and don’t do it intentionally.

Muse: You live on the internet. You keep in touch with local friends and determine real life actions based on digital correspondence; you find new and meaningful relationships across profound geographical distances; you make a disposable income by selling your capability to construct things in this largely intangible realm called the internet, and you have that capability because you know how to speak languages that belong to machines; your very career is based on your understanding of the anthropology relating this intangible world to tangible action items that have innate monetary values… you are a robot that requires being “plugged in.”

Shadow Nico: Goddam. Your website isn’t about you — you are a website.

Muse: Wow! How indicative of the future! How inspiring!

nicopolitan.com: You know, it’s really not that big of a deal.

Shadow Nico: For once, I agree with him.

Muse: Fine. But I have to ask: even with this devastating loss of a machine, how do you feel about that?

Shadow Nico: Why do you even care?

Muse: I’m the muse, I have to care about these ideas.

nicopolitan.com: Um. I’m fine. I just really need to set to fixing this, I think.

Muse: Is it a lot of work? Are you scared or frustrated because of it?

Shadow Nico: For fuck’s sake, leave him alone, he said he’s trying to work! Jeeayzus!

nicopolitan.com: Er, thanks? I think?

Shadow Nico: Come get me when you decide to finally get a whisky.

Tags: IT issues, kernel panic, muse, nico, robot, shadow
Posted in Blogging, Internet, Life As A Nico | 5 Comments »

FrankenPost (re: Open Up Already)

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

I loved the responses I got from a couple of posts back, so I thought I’d try this little Dada-esque game that involves paraphrasing, changing the voice, and writing a new post composed of the comments, which furthermore promotes link love. It has yet to be seen if this will all make sense, but I’m going to do it anyway.

On with the show!

One can choose to be happy or one can choose to be right, and most people habitually choose to maintain control of the situation even though clinging tightly to that control denies them the happiness of just going with the flow.

It’s kind of like how a lot of people are afraid to be in love. Some of us have been in “love” and then had it all come crashing down, screaming, thunder, probably some lightning bolts shot down on it too and for a good while we would be afraid to try somebody new. We’d get too scared to label it as something in case we lost it again. But maybe what’s better is being able to label it – and holding on to it. We can enjoy it so much better while embracing it, and fully acknowledging that it COULD be gone just makes us appreciate it that much more while it’s ours.

Happiness comes in a variety of forms. It can find us when we least expect it, and what makes us happy at one point in time might not make us feel the same at another.

Maybe it’s really just a question of semantics. We probably have all we need to be happy, and can call it what we like, as long as the concept of what “happiness” means doesn’t stop us from taking a risk once in a while.

Whatever hoops we have to jump through to maintain happiness are fine. Keeping quiet to ourselves about it–or even lying to ourselves–isn’t such a bad thing, so long as the state persists and we aren’t lying to others.

From what we can tell, so far anyway, is that the practice of contentment – santosha – is more important than the feelings of happiness. The idea suggests a lot about not attaching ourselves or emotions to anything, but acting more as observers and making sure our own actions contribute to the good of the whole, etc., than to our own feelings of happiness.

We should just accept happiness as a fleeting experience. Contentment lasts much longer. Accepting that those moments of happiness are more random leaves us free to enjoy them without fear of losing my happiness. We know we will lose it. We also know it will come back. Like the tides and stuff.

Maybe we shouldn’t aim for happiness since happiness is a benefit of aiming for more tangible things. We should be always on the move; always trying. Happiness comes when we are accomplished. But if we sit there, basking in happiness, we’ll start to feel like something else was passing us by.

People who are happiest don’t think too much about it.

Happiness is for suckers anyway. The cool kids know that having contentment and satisfaction are where it’s at.

Tags: comments, contentment, frankenpost, happiness, mashup, santosha
Posted in Blogging, Internet, Social Media | 7 Comments »

No One Left Behind

Friday, November 6th, 2009

Profound proof in my theory that blogging is more about community interaction than self-indulgent individuality, I was delightfully surprised at the comments thread in my previous post! For that, I have Photoshopped a neat little image here for you all to take with you.

All I did earlier in the week was complain about feeling out of it. It’s a pretty basic human feeling, and I’m sure everyone has those kinds of days. Methinks nothing really need be done about it.

But the rest of my bloggy community would not let me sulk alone, and definitely reminded me that although I wouldn’t feel better right away, that the feeling would pass and I’d be back to cracking silly inside jokes and smartass comments with everyone soon enough.

So as a measure of thanks, I’m going to give some link love back. It’s the right thing to do.

Oh! How Lovely! – Jamie gets to be first because she instant messaged me to make sure I wasn’t being a huge ball of life-sucking negativity. Good call, Jamie. As always, it’s good to chat with someone who says “dude!” as much as I do. Fly out to California so we can hang out already!
Deutlich – One of the first bloggers I ever followed religiously, and for a good reason. Very rarely does a blogger have the ability to complain and make you think at the same time — to be able to point out the bad without being whiny — and to talk about all of these things in what is effectively very, very readable prose. A good brain propped up by sass and honesty, and when she’s being funny, she cracks a joke like a bullwhip.
DShan – A veritable team leader as far as 20SB is concerned, DShan’s got this secret weapon in pontification that is loaded with gunpowder that smells like nostalgia and home cooking. You rarely see it coming even though you know it’s there. And when he delivers, when a post is loaded, he packs a punch.
freeandflawed – Known to normal civilians as Awesome Face and our one and only living connection to the elusive superhero, The Googler, she now lives in MY town and you ARE jealous. In seriousness, I really hope she likes this city and doesn’t think Angelenos are bat-shit crazy 100% of the time. And Jenn, I will cook you dinner one of these days. And we will invite other bloggers to eat it with us. And it will be rad.
phampants – If I lived in Chicago and produced video instead of producing music, I might be phampants. Of course, there are differences in our lifestyles. He can run a marathon and I can smoke half a pack of cigarettes, he doesn’t wear pants as much as I do, he’s in a different part of the tech industry than I am, etc. etc. However, over IM conversations, we get stoked about the same things enough that it makes me suspicious of if we might have been part of the same government experiment. Might it have something to do with Asians? Who knows. Time will tell.
blaez – I hear that geminis get along with other geminis as well, and go figure that blaez and I accidentally started reading each other and that that is all it took for me to subscribe. And never once did I consider unsubscribing. There’s gotta be some truth in that there astrology. Additionally, considering how my sufferings are far less to deal with than what she’s been through, her encouraging me puts something into perspective: pain and suffering are related, but independent of each other. You can choose not to suffer.
doniree – Why I hadn’t been reading Doni before the 20SB Chicago Meetup is beyond me, but I dare say that I keep up with her more so than some friends I’ve known way longer. That is a testament to loyalty, for sure, but it’s also a testament to her highly addictive and contagious personality. She’s one of the funnest (shut up, that’s a real word…) persons in the series of tubes, especially if your idea of fun is an examination of fundamental metaphysical and sociological ideas without all the histrionic* fluff that comes with formal philosophy. Incidentally, that is totally my idea of fun.
Angela – Another blogger who was the first in my favorites folder. Her writing style is very distinct to me and epitomizes the “blog ramble” a lot of us think we’re doing but it’s what she successfully pulls off and makes it work oh, so well. Every post is a trip. And since she was one of the first escribitionists I started reading, she was one of the first to inspire me to keep up my own blog. I will even go so far as to say she’s changed the way I talk, because I find myself offering well-wishes to people when I leave them right before they go do something. May she never cease writing – ever.
eshonkwiler – In a past life known as college, I was a highfalutin English & Comparative Literature major (meaning we also studied translations of stuff). There’s a part of me that still craves the deeper layers under prose, no matter how it’s written. I just need to be reassured that there’s more going on than what I can see with my own eyes. When I found Eric’s blog, I found that he would nearly single-handedly provide me my fix of postmodern writing in the practice of Iceberg Theory — and his actual writing is way different from his blogging voice. It’s like his blog is a stout and his writing is a bourbon. I find that to be pretty badass. Plus, he shares my love of post-rock. Bonus points.
writetoreach – I’ve always been subscribed to Ashley and really only started paying attention in the past few months or so, and now I have to backtrack to catch up on what I missed. It seems like she too is going through a busy spell currently, so recognizing that, it was really nice to get a note involving what may have become a “running joke” regarding “punctuation.” She was once an English major like me, and she’s now delving further into deeper meanings via theology; that makes me feel like a zombie because I want her brains. (But, uh, not for eating.) Lastly, it’s fun to watch someone go through NaNoWriMo, which she’s doing RIGHT NOW. (If you don’t know what that is, Google it. I’m too lazy to find the link for you.)
SleepyJane – Most distinctly for me, she lives in Johannesburg in South Africa, so that’s pretty cool to start because it makes her the only buddy I have on that continent currently, let alone that country. I’m actually not sure how I started following her, come to think of it. Maybe she was always in my reader. Definitely a varied escribitionist, perhaps the appeal comes from the idea that there’s a person who is thinking about the same things–about all the different parts of life–from the vantage point of an entirely different hemisphere of the earth–that keeps me reading. Alternatively, maybe it’s not that profound. Maybe we both just love coffee and that’s where the internet-friendship started. :P Oh, did I mention her dachshunds are cute?
f.B – I used to think I had found most of the quirky smartass bloggers I needed, but I was so effing wrong until I found out about this guy. Just the right balance of earnestness, sarcasm, hyperbole, actual working footnotes, and of course, absurdity — all drizzled in eloquence. The drizzling might make him a sort of popcorn, and you like popcorn, don’t you? Of course you do. Oh, sure, he self-denegrates just like any other self-aware blogger, but chances are, he knows some things you don’t. Go get some smart popcorn.
Andrea – Andrea, from whence did you get here, and why hadn’t I subscribed to you sooner? I mandate right here and now that we become friends because you are the 3rd ex-English major on this list (anyone correct me if I missed you), we have been dealing with eye doctors at nearly the same time, we both refuse to wear contact lenses, we were both zombies for Halloween, and… oh, dear. Maybe YOU are my doppelganger!

________________
* okay, that one IS a real word:

histrionic |ˌhistrēˈänik|adjectiveoverly theatrical or melodramatic in character or style

Tags: , bloggers, blogs, encouragement, link love
Posted in Blogging, Internet, Life As A Nico, Photochops | 19 Comments »