Social Media – Obsessed – Top Ten
Posted: January 31, 2012 Filed under: Blogging, Humor, Social Media | Tags: Facebook, Google, IPad, IPhone, Pinterest, Social media, StumbleUpon, Twitter 89 Comments
Okay, some of us may be taking the whole social media thing too far. We have our blog(s), Twitter, StumbleUpon, Facebook, Google+, Tumblr, Pinterest, and of course email accounts; and these are just the ones that readily come to mind!
With all the time and focus spent “connecting” with others on our desktops, laptops, iPhones, Androids, iPads, Kindles, etc. we have to force ourselves to make time for life – hehehe! Much like Jeff Foxworthy‘s “You might be a redneck if …” I present my take on:
You might be obsessed with social media if …
10. You start a joke with, “So this blogger walks into a bar …”
9. On vacation in the Virgin Islands (wishful thinking on my part), you say to your family, “You guys run along to the beach, I just have to get this post published really quick.”
8. You try to limit your side of a conversation to 140 words or less like you do on Twitter.
7. Whenever you meet someone new, you introduce yourself as “@mjmonaghan_”
*insert your own name there*
6. While out shopping, you spot a great gadget or design and promptly state, “I need to take a picture of that and pin it to my Pinterest pinboard.”
5. When your definition of “+1” is not bringing someone with you to an event or party, but rather adding someone to your Google+ account.
4. You’re frequently heard saying, “Did I tell you about the post I read on …”
*fill in just about ANY subject*
3. Someone in your family screams for the tenth time, “It’s time for you to come out of the virtual world, and back into real life. We have things that have to get done!”
2. In the middle of an important “talk” with your significant other, you throw out the dreaded, “Can we talk AFTER I finish commenting on a few blogs?”
and the #1 reason you might be obsessed with social media:
1. As you’re about to leave the house, you holler, “Okay Tweeps, let’s go, we’re gonna be late!”
Okay, my sarcastic friends – you know who you are – what are some of your comments that you have said, or had said to you about your obsession with social media?
RSS Feed Reader – Even an MJ Could Do It!
Posted: January 13, 2012 Filed under: Blogging, Humor, Writing | Tags: Blog, Feed Readers, Google, Google Reader, News aggregator, Paranormal, RSS, Sisyphus, Surely MJ knows better! 86 CommentsGenius. Intellectual. Brainiac.
Three words you will not see in the same sentence with my name. See here for proof. I make no apologies; one has to accept the gifts one was given, right?? My talents lie elsewhere – fortunately, none of them are any of these, either (just “WOW!” to #1 – did he really do that??).
You see, most of you are using only 10% of your brain – as studies suggest. However, in my case, I’m using the full 100% of my mental capabilities and still falling short of your 10%!
The PROBLEM 😦
After months of blogging, commenting on blogs, and replying to comments on my posts, one thing has been haunting me. Something scarier than the trailer for Paranormal 3:
I CAN’T get a grasp on how to stay up with all the blogs I want to read and comment on. It has been something that has kept me awake at night – cold sweat running down my forehead. I’ve clicked on the links to those who make comments on my blog, mentally ran down a list of those I could remember, had posts come via email (disastrous to the inbox), and spend hours each day trying to keep up.
I am Sisyphus – pushing my giant ball of blogs up the mountain, only to slip back each day, never getting everything read that I had hoped for. Am I just a boulder -achiever over-achiever?
Some of you “smart ones” like Rosemary Jayne, Being Arindam, and
My Haphazard Proclivities are going to be laughing at me as you read further – though I don’t mean that in a bad way.
The SOLUTION!! 😮
Well, after getting frustrated for so long, I went in search of something that would aggregate, or consolidate, all the blogs that I’m following into one list that showed a snapshot of the posts for each blog. Okay, techy people “rolling on the floor laughing” right now – watch out for MJ karma! 🙂 For all of you non-techies, like me, this little tool is called an RSS Feed Reader.
I’m not going to go all up in your grill about the technical aspects of how this gizmo works, because, well … I can’t! So you might want to ask someone with “skills.” Anyway, here is what my actual Google Reader looks like:
Actual screenshot of my Google Reader.
The blogs that I subscribe to are on the bottom, left-hand side of the screen (there are many more if you were able to scroll down). In the middle is the highlighted subscription – in this case, it’s Leanne Shirtliffe at ironicmom.
You can probably tell that I’m a little excited about something that could save me two to three hours a day. It will also help ensure that I’m not missing one of the blog posts that I want to read from one of my favorite blogs.
Maybe this is something that would help you in your blog reading – or maybe you’re thinking, “duh, dude!” Either way, I just had to share this with you all, just in case it could help someone.
Anyone have an even better way to to organize blog reading? I’m always open for improvement.
Here’s to better-organized, voluminous reading of your great blog posts, my friends!
mj monaghan 