Julie Roads is a writer, a blogger, a speaker. Writing Roads proclaims her wares, and her blog captures the whims and woes of the writing/copywriting/momming existence. Julie Roads is on twitter too, if you want the even more unfiltered soundtrack. And the website design? Clever and organized albeit slightly cluttered. In a good way. Like a writer’s desk…
Is that a great logo or what?!?! Twitter connected me to this interesting website, and although it’s aimed at the fairer sex, I’m a big fan of the web design and graphics. Here’s what they are/do:
“The Wine Sisterhood is the world’s first interactive web site dedicated to getting to the bottom of what women want… at least as far as wine is concerned.”
Women want wine. And cool doodles! At least as far as websites are concerned… Or so I’m guessing.
After many moons of sidestepping the Twitter, Facebook questions, I’ve waded into the sea of tweets. Now, mind you “told you so” types, it’s just the tip of my big toe at this point. And I reserve the right to head back to the beach at any moment if the waves start to whip up and the dread of drowning in a Twitter typhoon kidnaps my imagination… But for now, I’m going to try bberry-ing some updates to twitter.com/virtualDavis.
I saved this image to my desktop within the last year or two. Now, cleaning up my desktop, I’m still enthused about the t-shirt, still want it, but I can’t remember where in the world to find the clever merchant.
I saved it as a reminder to buy the t-shirt, but now I’ve lost track of where to buy it. And yet… the shirt is GREAT! Any leads?
Ever have that feeling that you’re late to the party? Like everyone’s already had a cocktail and an appetizer or two, and then you stroll in with your hair still wet from the shower and your shirt buttoned up crooked?
I’ve been feeling that a little bit lately. Especially while trying to decide whether or not to join Facebook. It rose rapidly and quickly eclipsed all equivalent social networking sites during the last couple of years that Susan and I renovated a pair of old buildings in Essex, NY. Prior to catching the residential rehabilitation bug — or at least prior to the last 3-4 years during which I’ve been 110% consumed with revitalizing five distressed buildings from the early 1800s and 1900s — I considered myself at least near the vanguard of the new media movement. No longer. While I blundered around in a dusty, plaster splattered purgatory, the wired world has catapulted forward. Now, fumbling around like a man blinded by sunlight after too long among the troglodytes, I’m trying to get my bearings. And there is no question; I’m very, very late to the party!
LinkedIn happened to be my first encounter. I was at Susan’s Hamilton College reunion a year and a half ago, and I met Dan Nye who was the much heralded CEO of LinkedIn at the time. He made a presentation about the service to fellow alumni, and by the time I connected with him that afternoon I’d already joined. The concept fascinated me, and his down-to-earth pitch and sharp wit convinced me to act. Since then, my LinkedIn profile has proven to be an invaluable networking tool.
Twitter was next. I’d toyed with it a couple of times before, mostly because it seemed simple and serendipitous. And because it was viable from Blackberry which was indispensable this last couple of years. But it also seemed frivolous during a time where I was rationing minutes for eating and sleeping. So it slipped. Until a few weeks ago when I posted my first tweet to virtualDavis on Twitter. I’m still a newbie for sure, but I’m having a blast. I’ve been really surprised by how quickly I’m connecting to all sorts of great tweeters, and frankly it was the incredibly welcoming atmosphere that I’ve experienced with Twitter that prompted me to take the Facebook plunge. It’s sort of ironic since the Twitter vs. Facebook debate surfaces so often online. For me, a great Twitter experience is what motivated to set up a virtualDavis on Facebook account. And they seem like totally complimentary services, each so totally niched and overdelivering w/in their niches.
So, last night I finally accepted an invitation to join Facebook and I’m off and running! I’m taking a little ribbing from friends who have mocked me for not getting on sooner, but it’s been in good spirits. And I’ve been overwhelmed with the positive response and with the number of friends who’ve quickly connected me. That tells me I’m lucky to have good friends, but it also serves as a gentle warning. These folks must be on Facebook all the time! I’ve been amazed at how instantaneous interaction is on Facebook, which makes me wonder how anyone gets anything else done… Late last night, I realized that I’ll have to learn how to close the browser and go to sleep!
To everyone who’s welcomed me into the 21st century, thank you!
Hmmm… Bad karma? Coincidence? A bit uncanny that the same afternoon I chose to join the mad tweeting crowd the system got bogged down. Here’s the message that greeted me this evening:
“Twitter is over capacity. Too many tweets! Please wait a moment and try again.”
Uh-oh! And a moment later I tried again. Still the little twitter birds were hauling the whale over tossing seas. And again a moment after that. The blurring was a cross between seasickness and a gentle, prolonged belly laugh. I can explain neither.
Now — a leisurely shower later — the system seems to have restored itself. For now.
At last, I’m returning to this long overdue update to virtualDavis! I’m resuming the process of migrating old content over to the new server, CMS, theme, etc. I know, I know, I first promised this update in April 2007! But between then and now my life was kidnapped by the folly of follies: renovating our new home on Lake Champlain.
W.D. Ross House, Essex, NY (c. 1822)
Recounting this epic adventure is my next challenge… But more on that later. Please don’t expect an overnight website transformation, but I will stumble through some of the most overdue updates ASAP. Patience and time will reveal the new and improved virtualDavis. I promise…
Back at it again after an intermission. Still not convinced that this is the perfect solution, but see plenty who are using it well. Just wish I could figure out how to properly redesign my template to seamlessly match my website, but so far close will have to be good enough. In any event, back to hosting this on Blogger.com rather than on my own server. And for now, just making certain that I have an easy way to post during my upcoming return to China (Sept. 15-29) in the event that I have limited ability to publish on the main site. A safety net then…
First snowfall of the year! Not much stuck on the ground now, but for a couple of hours it was a whirling white blizzard outside. Of course it came at exactly the same time that I need to drive into Elizabethtown for my vehicle inspection. Good opportunity to test out the Subaru AWD and the verdict is… She’s a beaut! Hauled me through the slippery roads in time to dump the car and head out for a blustery 3.5 mile run.
Then home again to discovery that we won’t be riding today. Too slippery for the horses despite the fact that snow has stopped falling and is already mostly melted.
Other news: Email Forward of the Day. Like most every other soul existing in cyber universe, I detest email forwards, chain letters, etc. But every once in a while a really nifty one comes along. Today was one of those days. Actually a double header, but I’ll only post the one funny stab at Uncle Sam. Who knows where these things are born. If I knew the author’s name, I’d credit her (him?) but I don’t so I won’t.
Here goes: “The U.S. government announced today that it is changing its emblem to a condom because it more clearly reflects the government’s political stance. A condom stands up to inflation, halts production, destroys the next generation, protects a bunch of pricks, and gives you a sense of security while you’re being screwed. It just doesn’t get more accurate than that.” Yowzer!
And in final news, twenty five visitors to my eBay auction. Ce-le-bra-tion Time, come on! Bidding has totally stalled out after the first one. Hmmm… Obviously I need to be patient to see what’s going to happen. Excited to watch this play out, but sure would enjoy having some competitive bidding. I’ll keep you posted.
Still haven’t been able to get the Blogger.com upgrade to work so that I can begin adding pictures here. Not sure what the ongoing problem is, but my brother’s had some good luck getting hold of support. Maybe technicolor images will start appearing soon. Hang in there, I’m working on it.
Another pea soup day in NYC. A super productive 16 hr. day yesterday seems to have prompted a backlash today. A little too much procrastination, but what better time to update the blog?!?!
Glad to see that the October 18th entry on my homepage is once again making the successful link to two spirit-lifting, buttock-waggling audio and visual treats. If you haven’t visited yet, seize the momentum before inertia or techno-gremlins interfere. For a while they weren’t loading and the main site they derive from (see the entry for details) was offline or maxing-out its bandwidth or, well, or something else… A new link today, for a different flavor of soul raising, was discovered by my mother and forwarded. Visit Lo, How a Rose e’er Blooming or just go to the Oremus Hymnal homepage and search for one of your own. I’m no goddie, but this is cool, no? And, before slipping back into the ether, check out DanWinckler.com for another blogger who’s managed a pretty slick interface for the curious voyeur. Apparently he’s a friend of Beth, the woman behind The North Carolina Experiment and The Study of Design. Of primary interest is his video blog, an idea that appeals to me and that I’ve tried to figure out an easy way to experiment with. So far, no dice. The downloads are slow and I can’t find a reasonably efficient way to upload, update, present, etc.
A few experiments that are online, but which remain painfully slow for visitors to access are The Pompidou Fountain, Les Halles Juggler, and Les Halles Musicians. Well, how’s that for a link-heavy blog? Cheers!
