And the winner is:
Xanax 1993. T'was a very good year.
second runner up.
June 26, 2004
How ya feelin'?
This site can't be beat for emotive art. Thanks RB for the trip. I mean tip.
And the winner is:
Xanax 1993. T'was a very good year.
second runner up.
And the winner is:
Xanax 1993. T'was a very good year.
second runner up.
Dave Can't Shut Up
On Scripting today, Dave links to a comment he left at Shelley's place.
No matter how hard he tries to revise history--just one of his many endearing habits--I maintan that it was the OUTRAGE not the "outage" that moved things, that required MORE THAN that nice little request from Dave, which appeared on the homepage of all weblogs.com blogs one day, to simply "leave your URL and sometime in July I'll get you your files, if you don't whine about it."
Puuuhhhleeeaassseee.
If no outrage, those folks would still be waiting.
Plain and simple.
Not an Outage.
An Outrage.
A deliberate shutdown without a second thought.
One that is now all better thanks to the men of technology.
The outrage encouraged the solution.
The FOD (friends of Dave) responded.
None of them bothered to answer Shelley's technical questions.
And why should they?
'Cause as we all know, a woman blogger's place is behind the camera.
Bite me. Bite me. Bite me.
Dave, go pack a box, take in a movie, read a self-help book. ANYTHING.
I'm done.
No matter how hard he tries to revise history--just one of his many endearing habits--I maintan that it was the OUTRAGE not the "outage" that moved things, that required MORE THAN that nice little request from Dave, which appeared on the homepage of all weblogs.com blogs one day, to simply "leave your URL and sometime in July I'll get you your files, if you don't whine about it."
Puuuhhhleeeaassseee.
If no outrage, those folks would still be waiting.
Plain and simple.
Not an Outage.
An Outrage.
A deliberate shutdown without a second thought.
One that is now all better thanks to the men of technology.
The outrage encouraged the solution.
The FOD (friends of Dave) responded.
None of them bothered to answer Shelley's technical questions.
And why should they?
'Cause as we all know, a woman blogger's place is behind the camera.
Bite me. Bite me. Bite me.
Dave, go pack a box, take in a movie, read a self-help book. ANYTHING.
I'm done.
The COACEOs Will Blog
Uh huh. Hmmmm. So the Chief of All CEOS is going to start blogging. This is interesting. It would be a good thing and a bad thing at the same time. Bill Gates blogs. Every CEO in God's Heaven will blog.
"And so if I do a trip report, say, and put that in a blog format, then all the employees at Microsoft who really want to look at that and who have keywords that connect to it or even people outside, they can find the information." -- Bill Gates
Note to all other CEOs: You are not Bill Gates. His trip reports might be interesting because he's the COACEOs. Your trip reports, we can do without. Stick with the stuff you care about. Then We'll see how Bill Does.
Gates also has a stable of writers and communications specialists who help produce material. It's unclear whether they would help keep his blog going.
Probably so.
"And so if I do a trip report, say, and put that in a blog format, then all the employees at Microsoft who really want to look at that and who have keywords that connect to it or even people outside, they can find the information." -- Bill Gates
Note to all other CEOs: You are not Bill Gates. His trip reports might be interesting because he's the COACEOs. Your trip reports, we can do without. Stick with the stuff you care about. Then We'll see how Bill Does.
Gates also has a stable of writers and communications specialists who help produce material. It's unclear whether they would help keep his blog going.
Probably so.
June 25, 2004
Looked this up for a new blog friend - Corporate Weblogging Secrets...
Me on corporate blogging a year ago. I hope you can see the lump in the side of my cheek, where my tongue is. ;-)
Recommendations -- The JBMCSE Roadmap: At the end of the JBMCSE process, the team will present you with your tailored JBMCSE Roadmap, which serves as a blueprint for putting your weblogging strategy into action. Recommendations we’ve made to current and former blue chip clients, include:
1) Rip up your org chart, or forget that you’re on the top line, for at least eight weeks.
2) Read six weblogs a day for six months before you type anything.
3) Tear up 4 (four) of your own business cards and put the pieces in your coffee mug. Every time you think about blogging, try drinking them to remind youself you’re human first.
4) Don’t touch the computer until every one of your employees has been encouraged to blog freely.
5) Tell your counsel that you won’t blog a single controversial word, and then do the opposite. Be prepared to cut them a big check.
These are just a few samples from JBMCSE Roadmaps we’ve developed for organizations just like yours. Remember, weblogging strategies are dynamic and complex. What’s “in” today may not be the savvy approach next week. With JBMCSE, we’ll keep our finger on the pulse of weblogging so you don’t have to.
Recommendations -- The JBMCSE Roadmap: At the end of the JBMCSE process, the team will present you with your tailored JBMCSE Roadmap, which serves as a blueprint for putting your weblogging strategy into action. Recommendations we’ve made to current and former blue chip clients, include:
1) Rip up your org chart, or forget that you’re on the top line, for at least eight weeks.
2) Read six weblogs a day for six months before you type anything.
3) Tear up 4 (four) of your own business cards and put the pieces in your coffee mug. Every time you think about blogging, try drinking them to remind youself you’re human first.
4) Don’t touch the computer until every one of your employees has been encouraged to blog freely.
5) Tell your counsel that you won’t blog a single controversial word, and then do the opposite. Be prepared to cut them a big check.
These are just a few samples from JBMCSE Roadmaps we’ve developed for organizations just like yours. Remember, weblogging strategies are dynamic and complex. What’s “in” today may not be the savvy approach next week. With JBMCSE, we’ll keep our finger on the pulse of weblogging so you don’t have to.
Lilapsophobia
So it has a name. Good old Google.
Lilapsophobia, an abnormal and persistent fear of tornadoes and hurricanes.
Jenna's got it.
We're not talking curiosity, we're talking listening for sirens in the air on a partly cloudy day.
It started with watching a weather channel special on twisters. Educational, I thought. What could it hurt?
I have now heard the word twister or tornado approximately 139 times in the last five days. Most frequently as the last word before she falls asleep and the first word upon wakening. And then several times during the day.
"If a tornado comes, will it rip the top off our house?" -- she asked me that as I'm writing this. Just now. In the last three seconds.
As we reassure her and share with her our own fears at her age, I'm hoping that this is just a childhood phase that will wane in time.
But the look in her eyes--it's the look in her eyes and the biting of nails.
They spell Lilapsophobia.
Lilapsophobia, an abnormal and persistent fear of tornadoes and hurricanes.
Jenna's got it.
We're not talking curiosity, we're talking listening for sirens in the air on a partly cloudy day.
It started with watching a weather channel special on twisters. Educational, I thought. What could it hurt?
I have now heard the word twister or tornado approximately 139 times in the last five days. Most frequently as the last word before she falls asleep and the first word upon wakening. And then several times during the day.
"If a tornado comes, will it rip the top off our house?" -- she asked me that as I'm writing this. Just now. In the last three seconds.
As we reassure her and share with her our own fears at her age, I'm hoping that this is just a childhood phase that will wane in time.
But the look in her eyes--it's the look in her eyes and the biting of nails.
They spell Lilapsophobia.
Little girls... what makes them tick?
I should remember. I was one. And I'm not sure if it's that I don't remember, or I wasn't the way little girls are today.
Jenna has a best friend the same age. They met in dance class two years ago. We moms and the two girls started spending time together. A friendship blossomed. You'd think that would be good. But what was once a friendship of giving has turned into nothing but one argument after another, one "she said this, she said that, she did this, she did that." after another.
What I remember about being six and having a best friend is that her name was Debbie and she lived next door, and living out in the country, this was a good thing. We became best friends out of necessity--two girls, same age, next door, none other like us for a mile or so in either direction. Hence, the bond.
I don't ever remember having the kind of catty fights Jenna and her friend have. I've seen it at school too. The notorious: "I'm not your friend anymore." How many times did I see tears through the rearview mirror because Jenna got the word from missy-so-and-so: "I'm not your friend anymore," or the kissin' cousin, "I'm not your best friend."
"I don't want to play with you." tags along in third place, as little girls trade alliances like lunchtime snacks.
Anyway, all of this is to say, the difficulty we moms are having is untangling whatever mess of a fight they bring to us with the "she said, she did" NO "she said, she did" scenarios.
Which is where the baby monitor comes in. I just bought Mom number 2 a baby monitor for her shower. She's nine months pregnant. And 43. Surprise!
SO we've concocted a plan. Next time they play, we are going to straight out spy on them using the baby monitor. We will learn who starts what, how, why. We will trace the trends, examine the dynamics, and if we are lucky, learn more than we ever wanted to about the species known as the six-year-old girl.
Wish us luck, 'cause we're goin' in.
Jenna has a best friend the same age. They met in dance class two years ago. We moms and the two girls started spending time together. A friendship blossomed. You'd think that would be good. But what was once a friendship of giving has turned into nothing but one argument after another, one "she said this, she said that, she did this, she did that." after another.
What I remember about being six and having a best friend is that her name was Debbie and she lived next door, and living out in the country, this was a good thing. We became best friends out of necessity--two girls, same age, next door, none other like us for a mile or so in either direction. Hence, the bond.
I don't ever remember having the kind of catty fights Jenna and her friend have. I've seen it at school too. The notorious: "I'm not your friend anymore." How many times did I see tears through the rearview mirror because Jenna got the word from missy-so-and-so: "I'm not your friend anymore," or the kissin' cousin, "I'm not your best friend."
"I don't want to play with you." tags along in third place, as little girls trade alliances like lunchtime snacks.
Anyway, all of this is to say, the difficulty we moms are having is untangling whatever mess of a fight they bring to us with the "she said, she did" NO "she said, she did" scenarios.
Which is where the baby monitor comes in. I just bought Mom number 2 a baby monitor for her shower. She's nine months pregnant. And 43. Surprise!
SO we've concocted a plan. Next time they play, we are going to straight out spy on them using the baby monitor. We will learn who starts what, how, why. We will trace the trends, examine the dynamics, and if we are lucky, learn more than we ever wanted to about the species known as the six-year-old girl.
Wish us luck, 'cause we're goin' in.
June 24, 2004
Schwartz Nearly Gets It.
Fascinating, isn't it, to explore the parallel and simultaneous nature of blogging. Just the other day, I happened upon the first really good weblog written by a guy, who happens to be the President of a tech company (that's a VIM - very important modifier, as it's not vice-versa), who really gets blogging. That guy is Phil Libin, whose company is Corestreet.
But Corestreet's name isn't all over his blog, he believes in separation of church and state when it comes to blogging, and he avoids the usual C-Suite pitfall of blogging from his business card title. He talks about his brother, his love for all that is gadgetry, and he's really damn funny. The unintended result, or maybe the entire point, is that he's *likeable*.
incidentally, the PR firm getting credit for spurring Phil to blog is Schwartz Communications, and according to the case study, specifically, Chuck Tanowitz.
Fascinating so far. I am now Phil's biggest fan, since he's doing exactly what I urge CEOs to consider doing when I get questions on, how can we incorporate this blogging thing into our PR strategy..." Wrong question. Phil got the right answer. Chuck, kudos.
Contrast the Corestreet experience with the discussion going on over at Media Guerrilla, which I found through Elizabeth Albrycht.
The item up for discussion is whether or not a company should issue a formal press release when it launches a weblog. So far, they have one no, one yes, and me--well, I'm thinking it out right here.
Far from hypothetical, the question popped up in response to this press release announcing the newly-launched Wifinally weblog, written by the CEO, CTO, and VP of Marketing for Propagate Networks.
My answer to the question at hand will take more than one post.
What interested me, is that Propagate Networks has the same PR company as Phil Libin -- Schwartz -- as noted in the Propagate Networks' release. They are most likely serviced by different account teams, and it shows.
Compare Propagate's Wifinally with Libin's Vastly Important. While incorporating some similar practices, the weblogs are yards apart. Only one, I think, is really even a weblog. Only one, I predict, will get traction because it has a voice for readers to hold on to during the ride. That one is Libin's. The other reads, looks, feels, and smells like a mainstream wi-fi publication written by some industry veterans within an industry that is full of veterans.
And issuing a formal press release sans personality doesn't do anything to help the matter.
I understand that every client is different. I truly understand that many CEOs can't cross the chasm Libin has now widened with a challenge by example. Some of my clients could very easily, if they dared, be themselves online. They are likeable people with opinions beyond their industry, with a life outside of their business, that informs who they are within their businesses.
At the same time, because I care about weblogging, I don't encourage clients who wouldn't do well writing a weblog. I save the secret for the select few I know could resonate in this medium. I know three I wish would take the dare. I know six I will never mention blogging to. For them, there are brochures, white papers, bylined and contributed articles, and formal press releases.
But for the ones who get it, the game's wide open.
So, going back to the question at hand, perhaps what is better asked is, "Should Propagate Networks have issued a formal press release about its newly launched weblog?"
Yes. It fits with the voice, the tone, and from what I can tell, the objectives. It is more a publication than a conversation, so formal PR tactics can be used to support it.
Now, if you'd asked should Corestreet issue a press release announcing Phil Libin's weblog? I would have said no. Let the readership evolve there as it does naturally within this medium. Build trust and genuine relationships through the links that power our conversations here. Talk, don't report.
If a press release were to be issued for Libin's blog, I would want it to be better than, more than, different than, the usual, hum-drum press release.
More later--I have to run outta here and fast.
But Corestreet's name isn't all over his blog, he believes in separation of church and state when it comes to blogging, and he avoids the usual C-Suite pitfall of blogging from his business card title. He talks about his brother, his love for all that is gadgetry, and he's really damn funny. The unintended result, or maybe the entire point, is that he's *likeable*.
incidentally, the PR firm getting credit for spurring Phil to blog is Schwartz Communications, and according to the case study, specifically, Chuck Tanowitz.
Fascinating so far. I am now Phil's biggest fan, since he's doing exactly what I urge CEOs to consider doing when I get questions on, how can we incorporate this blogging thing into our PR strategy..." Wrong question. Phil got the right answer. Chuck, kudos.
Contrast the Corestreet experience with the discussion going on over at Media Guerrilla, which I found through Elizabeth Albrycht.
The item up for discussion is whether or not a company should issue a formal press release when it launches a weblog. So far, they have one no, one yes, and me--well, I'm thinking it out right here.
Far from hypothetical, the question popped up in response to this press release announcing the newly-launched Wifinally weblog, written by the CEO, CTO, and VP of Marketing for Propagate Networks.
My answer to the question at hand will take more than one post.
What interested me, is that Propagate Networks has the same PR company as Phil Libin -- Schwartz -- as noted in the Propagate Networks' release. They are most likely serviced by different account teams, and it shows.
Compare Propagate's Wifinally with Libin's Vastly Important. While incorporating some similar practices, the weblogs are yards apart. Only one, I think, is really even a weblog. Only one, I predict, will get traction because it has a voice for readers to hold on to during the ride. That one is Libin's. The other reads, looks, feels, and smells like a mainstream wi-fi publication written by some industry veterans within an industry that is full of veterans.
And issuing a formal press release sans personality doesn't do anything to help the matter.
I understand that every client is different. I truly understand that many CEOs can't cross the chasm Libin has now widened with a challenge by example. Some of my clients could very easily, if they dared, be themselves online. They are likeable people with opinions beyond their industry, with a life outside of their business, that informs who they are within their businesses.
At the same time, because I care about weblogging, I don't encourage clients who wouldn't do well writing a weblog. I save the secret for the select few I know could resonate in this medium. I know three I wish would take the dare. I know six I will never mention blogging to. For them, there are brochures, white papers, bylined and contributed articles, and formal press releases.
But for the ones who get it, the game's wide open.
So, going back to the question at hand, perhaps what is better asked is, "Should Propagate Networks have issued a formal press release about its newly launched weblog?"
Yes. It fits with the voice, the tone, and from what I can tell, the objectives. It is more a publication than a conversation, so formal PR tactics can be used to support it.
Now, if you'd asked should Corestreet issue a press release announcing Phil Libin's weblog? I would have said no. Let the readership evolve there as it does naturally within this medium. Build trust and genuine relationships through the links that power our conversations here. Talk, don't report.
If a press release were to be issued for Libin's blog, I would want it to be better than, more than, different than, the usual, hum-drum press release.
More later--I have to run outta here and fast.
June 23, 2004
A final goodbye
Since I was twelve, my sister has never been without a dog, and in that time, she's had only two dogs. I'm 42 now. That's 30 years, two dogs.
Her first mutt, Mac, lived to the ripe old age of 16. I used to baby sit Mac when I was a kid, because he was hell on wheels. She lived on a farm, and on one particularly dicey baby sitting stint, I was talking on the phone to my best friend, it was 11 at night, and she heard the phone wires go dead as I said "Oh no!"
Needless to say, probably, that my friend's parents called my mother, who called the snipers in, and before I knew it, five people were knocking on my sister's front door, expecting to find me dead.
I was eating a ham sandwich.
Mac, aside from ripping up a nice throw rug that night, had also chewed through the phone cord. He was always a hoot.
When Mac's kidneys failed, I was about to turn 28. Mac had seen my sister through three moves to three different states, a marriage, a baby, a divorce. She had him put to sleep at home, and her grief was so big. So big. She went up stairs, and I sat with Mac while he got his shots--one to relax, the other to rest. I laid next to him on her living room floor, told him what a good boy he was, patted his head until the vet whispered, as they do, "He's gone."
She didn't know, then, what to do with him. He was too big for the mobile vet to take, and that wasn't a service he liked much to offer. So he loaded Mac into the back of my station wagon for us, and I set off to find the crematorium, a 40 minute drive. I don't remember what I thought as I drove with Mac, dead in the back. But I remember I thought a lot of things.
About three months after Mac died, my sister fell in love with a puppy, a clumsy hound mix whom her son named Blitz. We put him to sleep yesterday at 14. Blitz saw my sister through four moves, her single parenting of an asthmatic (and often hospitalized) child, that child's graduation from college, and my sister's remarriage.
If dogs could talk.
But then, they do.
I didn't think my sister would be able to go with me yesterday. Our pasts are loaded when it comes to death and loss and the inability to grieve. But she did. She went. She stayed in the room for the first time during the letting go of life. She wept, as we stroked Blitz's head, we shared kleenex, and he went to sleep.
With his nose resting at the tip of her sneekers the whole time.
When death is beautiful, it really is.
This one was.
Her first mutt, Mac, lived to the ripe old age of 16. I used to baby sit Mac when I was a kid, because he was hell on wheels. She lived on a farm, and on one particularly dicey baby sitting stint, I was talking on the phone to my best friend, it was 11 at night, and she heard the phone wires go dead as I said "Oh no!"
Needless to say, probably, that my friend's parents called my mother, who called the snipers in, and before I knew it, five people were knocking on my sister's front door, expecting to find me dead.
I was eating a ham sandwich.
Mac, aside from ripping up a nice throw rug that night, had also chewed through the phone cord. He was always a hoot.
When Mac's kidneys failed, I was about to turn 28. Mac had seen my sister through three moves to three different states, a marriage, a baby, a divorce. She had him put to sleep at home, and her grief was so big. So big. She went up stairs, and I sat with Mac while he got his shots--one to relax, the other to rest. I laid next to him on her living room floor, told him what a good boy he was, patted his head until the vet whispered, as they do, "He's gone."
She didn't know, then, what to do with him. He was too big for the mobile vet to take, and that wasn't a service he liked much to offer. So he loaded Mac into the back of my station wagon for us, and I set off to find the crematorium, a 40 minute drive. I don't remember what I thought as I drove with Mac, dead in the back. But I remember I thought a lot of things.
About three months after Mac died, my sister fell in love with a puppy, a clumsy hound mix whom her son named Blitz. We put him to sleep yesterday at 14. Blitz saw my sister through four moves, her single parenting of an asthmatic (and often hospitalized) child, that child's graduation from college, and my sister's remarriage.
If dogs could talk.
But then, they do.
I didn't think my sister would be able to go with me yesterday. Our pasts are loaded when it comes to death and loss and the inability to grieve. But she did. She went. She stayed in the room for the first time during the letting go of life. She wept, as we stroked Blitz's head, we shared kleenex, and he went to sleep.
With his nose resting at the tip of her sneekers the whole time.
When death is beautiful, it really is.
This one was.
June 22, 2004
June 21, 2004
If a CEO Blog Could Talk... Hey, Wait!
A guy who likes gadgets, has a brother with a big screen TV, and even writes about his company. He's Phil Libin, the CEO of Corestreet, and this is his personal weblog.
He doesn't blog from his business card title. The fact that he's in the security biz informs his writing, but this is no mainstream column about the space. Even when Phil is talking about his company, it's far from preachy:
About two years ago, when CoreStreet was just over a dozen people, our offices were two adjacent rooms in a (not very recently) renovated 19th century commercial horse stable. It was an inconvenient setup because even though the two rooms shared an interior wall, to walk from one to the other required going out one door, down the long hallway and in through the other door. This added a couple of hundred feet to the walk and required fumbling with keys two times per trip. Among our neighbors on the floor was some sort of “training” center. We never figured out what they taught, but judging by the condition of the single common bathroom, it may well have been toilet training. We kept our doors locked at all times.
This is a good example of what a CEO blog should be.
This is the don't example.
Thanks to PR Opinions for pointing out Phil's blog.
He doesn't blog from his business card title. The fact that he's in the security biz informs his writing, but this is no mainstream column about the space. Even when Phil is talking about his company, it's far from preachy:
About two years ago, when CoreStreet was just over a dozen people, our offices were two adjacent rooms in a (not very recently) renovated 19th century commercial horse stable. It was an inconvenient setup because even though the two rooms shared an interior wall, to walk from one to the other required going out one door, down the long hallway and in through the other door. This added a couple of hundred feet to the walk and required fumbling with keys two times per trip. Among our neighbors on the floor was some sort of “training” center. We never figured out what they taught, but judging by the condition of the single common bathroom, it may well have been toilet training. We kept our doors locked at all times.
This is a good example of what a CEO blog should be.
This is the don't example.
Thanks to PR Opinions for pointing out Phil's blog.
Tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow morning I get to take old Blitz, my sister's 14-year-old 80-pound hound mix for his final ride to the vet. He's a good old dog. It's time. I'll sit with him, look him in the eye, tell him what a good good boy he is, and pat him goodbye.
Jump it, Jump it, Jump It!
I like this one best so far. Scott, not Gerry, Mulligan laid it down over on Waxy.
makin' me smile so big.
makin' me smile so big.
David on Voice and Authenticity
A discussion of note going on at David's place about Voice with a capital V. I've commented too. Go on now, git.
Gonzo Enraged
Listen, gonzo engaged participants, what is, is. Stop jumping up and down. Now, another new template is in place. Sorry the other one was so sucky, but I'm in the middle of 25 other things over here, and I gave it a shot.
If you wish to continue posting to Gonzo, please update your blogger profiles within the next week. Otherwise I'll assume you don't want to post to the blog anymore and will delete your ass completely. Reason being, it's kinda nice the way blogger has set up the "Contributors" section of the template to pull your blogger profile info, which shows ALL the blogs you post to, as well as things you probably don't want readers of gonzo engaged to know, like your email address and town of residence.
Ah well, another day...
cross posted here.
If you wish to continue posting to Gonzo, please update your blogger profiles within the next week. Otherwise I'll assume you don't want to post to the blog anymore and will delete your ass completely. Reason being, it's kinda nice the way blogger has set up the "Contributors" section of the template to pull your blogger profile info, which shows ALL the blogs you post to, as well as things you probably don't want readers of gonzo engaged to know, like your email address and town of residence.
Ah well, another day...
cross posted here.
June 20, 2004
Gonzo Engaged Has A New Look Because I Felt Like It.
Gonzo Engaged has lost it's circa 2001 weblog look in favor of a shiny new blogger-2004 getup. But there's a little problem.
If you know what tag I have to add, and where, within the template to get the poster's name (or blogger profile link) to read out at the bottom of each post, can you leave a comment here, or email me?
It's a team blog, so there are several different posters. And I don't know what I did to the lil doodadder what shows who's who.
byebyenow.
If you know what tag I have to add, and where, within the template to get the poster's name (or blogger profile link) to read out at the bottom of each post, can you leave a comment here, or email me?
It's a team blog, so there are several different posters. And I don't know what I did to the lil doodadder what shows who's who.
byebyenow.
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