My friend Craig deserves partial credit for the headline on this post. Click on that link and you’ll read a post he wrote in which he asked for advice. I won’t tell you what he asked for because I am going to ask that you go read the post and comment. Do it for me and do it for Craig. Do it for Craig’s wife who supposedly reads this blog but never comments.
Maybe one day she’ll change her mind. I like the community here and I am grateful for those who comment and those who don’t. I can’t help but wonder about the lurkers. Can’t help but wonder what you enjoy and why you visit. It sounds sort of silly, but sometimes I am surprised that any one reads my words. Still, I am grateful.
Gratitude
I grind my teeth more than I should. I find myself sitting here with my jaw clenched and remind myself that I need money more than my dentist does. It is something that is happening with increasing regularity, the teeth grinding and jaw clenching thing. I know why I am doing it and am working on fixing that.
Gratitude is part and parcel of the cure. That is I am careful to remind myself of the things that I am grateful for. Two of the people I care most for lost their fathers last year. Both of them miss their dad’s terribly and I am very sorry for their loss.
I remember how frightening it was when my father had his heart attack. All of the docs told us to get ready for the end and then it didn’t happen. So I am grateful for all of the time I have had and pray for plenty more.
I am grateful for my health and that of my family in general. It is one of the reasons why 2011 wasn’t a complete disaster.
I am grateful for opportunities that are coming my way and hopeful that some others will too.
Children and iPads
Old Jack the dad blogger (score one for SEO efforts) has a new concern- iPads and children. The issue is that my children and their friends are using iPads to make videos and I am very concerned about them uploading these videos to the Net.
I don’t trust their judgment. They mean well but they don’t really understand or appreciate that once you upload something you lose control of it. Chances are nothing will happen but my job as dad is to be worried about what could happen. Sometimes that means worry is somewhat misplaced and others….
Since we don’t own an iPad they aren’t making these videos here but that hasn’t stopped them from happening. That is because many of their friends own one or have access to a family unit. I have made sure that my children know that nothing is to be uploaded and they have promised to follow through but I don’t trust their friends.
It is not because their friends are bad but they aren’t my kids and I am not monitoring them. It is so easy to give in to some sort of childish whim, especially when you are 11 or 12 and think you know better.
I have mentioned my concerns to a number of parents but not all of them feel the same way. One mother made the mistake of mentioning how silly my concern was to one of her friends while I was in ear shot. She doesn’t know that I have a juvenile sense of humor and that I considered uploading a picture of her eating a banana.
To be clear I don’t have picture of her eating a banana and there is a 98% chance that I wouldn’t actually do it. It would be funny but I don’t think that she would receive the sort of education I would like. All it would do is create a problem and I don’t need any more.
Cheaper Than A $5 Whore With Less Risk of Infection
I read another post from one of the social media experts that suggested that people should write their headlines first and then fit the post around the headline. I understand why they recommend doing so but it is still not something that I find attractive or enticing.
That is because I see it as another tool for inducing sterility in blog posts. I really dislike that. When I read a post I want to get a sense of the author’s personality. If their words were food I’d want to have something to savor. I’d want their to be some sort of spice. It doesn’t have to be so sugary sweet I can’t take it or so spicy that flames shoot from my behind.
It just needs a little something. Give me some personality and a dash of purpose and I am probably going to be happy. Remove the spice from your post and you kill your post. I can assure you that there are many bloggers who disagree with me on this. They don’t want to offend so they take a middle road.
It may be cheaper than a $5 whore with less risk of infection but it is so damn dull that the readers you tried not to offend will end up going elsewhere.
What do you think?
There is one comment