Welcome Ralph Ong

Its been a while since we have had a new visitor sign on to follow. I think he snuck in here last night. So everyone say hi to Ralph. You'll see him to the right in the followers tab. Ralph says he is ordinary and a dreamer. But if you look through his blog for a while you will see more than  ordinary. I'm not sure how old Ralph is, I'm getting really bad at guessing as I get older, but do not let age deter you from reviewing his blog.

I only read a few posts. And I will follow back since I like what I see. But I do want to encourage you to make those big dreams big reality. I am 40, soon to be 41 and very much afraid of my dreams as invariably my success means that there will be others that I will eclipse. And out of a false sense of loyalty I hold myself back. That path has wrought nothing but misery.

And to all of you, I say the same that I have said to Ralph. Make it so. Whatever the dream. Whatever the cost. For you young people, take heed, I say to you that you do not want to be 40 and wishing that you had the guts to do what you want to have done in your life. You do not want to be 40, facing the cold reality of homelessness and depressed economy with all the fallout from both still chained to the dead weights of the dream killing pragmatists who thinly veil their own jealousy and insecurity behind cautious wisdom. I can not say that it is too late to cut loose the ballast and rise above the circumstance. What I can say is that it is several steps more than are necessary had I only the courage and audacity to be authentically me in my younger years.
Surround yourself with cheerleaders not nay-sayers. If you are told you can not do something or do not have the skill to accomplish something then get the skill and evaluate that weakness. Weakness isn't the broken link those dream killers would like you  to believe. Finding a weakness is an opportunity to find a new skill or forge a friendship with a partner who has it. Not all of our dreams have to be realized in the vacuum that the dream killers try to suck us into.

Guilt has no place in your life. If you can not achieve on your own there is no shame in soliciting help. All the multi million dollar companies are partnerships. Bill Gates didn't build computers alone. He doesn't run Microsoft alone. Artists create alone. Musicians explore their inner selves alone. But both are dependent upon a network of individuals and groups to materialize their visions. Any one who would tell you otherwise is a liar serving your self-worth to themselves on a silver platter. And if you let them you will only be the latest of their meals, passed with all the waste of their own sad lives with or without a flatulent fanfare.

I have a long road ahead of me that none of you young people need face if you will only apply yourselves to accomplishing your goals and making those dreams a reality. And you need not travel your path in solitude. Solitude is for recharging your energetic levels and finding your center to create peace inside of you while chaos reigns without. Forge friendships. Find partners. Trade for or hire help where you need to. Honest criticism leads to growth. Petty shots from character assassins can be turned away by an army of good friends and reliable mentors.

My unsolicited pep talk is over. Encourage each other by stopping by each others blogs. Dream alone but work together. Life is not like an American Western movie with the hero standing alone in the middle of a dusty street riddled with bodies... everything is a communal effort.

Much love and prayers of guidance and protection to you all.

Hello Again

Good morning friends,
We have a new follower. I guess he could be considered a ringer since its a good friend of mine. But lets all send him a cosmic "Hi" and welcome anyway. It'll be interesting to see what someone who knows me well thinks about this little chunk o'blogiverse.

Now boarding the Geekdom Express

Everyone say hi to Dylan Parry aka the poster on the previous comment. In the Venn diagram of geek Dylan falls pretty close to center with the rest of us if you look at his profile. Welcome aboard.

And now... I must go and think about a post in which I compare and contrast or list the vibes of coffee shops. Which, now that I think of it, is really an assessment of the subcategories of coffee drinkers... hmmm....

Meeting Vicki

Been searching the blogosphere again. Its fun to see what everyone is doing with their spare time. I might pick up a new interest or be reminded of something I haven't visited in a while, like the Holmes post. Today I found a rather nice blog by a thinking person who wonders about the same things we all wonder. Well at least the things that I wonder. And we are following a paralel path toward seperating the people we know into categories.
Vikram, if you've followed my e-trail back here and see this, please leave a comment. I wonder what you think about the kind of people who are more comfortable with, and feel a greater attachment to, those in your "familiar strangers" category. I tend to judge myself harshly that I don't have the kinds of close personal friends prized by heroines of Victorian fiction. But perhaps there should be no judgement; just an acceptance of what is.

Hello again

Here we go, Everybody meet Kristen. Kristen meet Everybody. Kristen loves physics and would probably have been able to answer today's Aroma's trivia question: which is the only letter of the alphabet not to appear in the periodic table? I haven't verified the answer yet. But the answer will appear at the bottom of the post.

Kristen joined us this morning. I'm hoping that there will be some witty insights coming from our new physics friend. Or at the very least she will be the one to develop a Heissenberg compensator. Transporters! Woo Hoo!!!




the answer is J

Ola!

I'm never gonna get any writing done! But for a good reason; there are new people to say hello to. Today it is FOLHA. Welcome aboard. "Ola. Bem-vindo ao Geekdom!" FOLHA is Portugese. And if my stupid computer would let me connect to her links beforeI die of old age I would tell you all more about her. But you'll have to check her out for yourselves.

hello

Everybody say hi to Shayne and go check out his blog. Its mostly political, Dallas cowboys related and full of interesting music stuff when he isn't preoccupied with life. Um, yeah, that is another request for some more light-hearted reading to take some of the edge out of the stabby side of life where politics and reason collide. I know there is no point in asking for common sense cause the world is pathetically depleted of that resource.

My dashboard still says I have 12 followers where there are only 11 on the front page. Someone is lurking in the ethers...

Another hello

Greetings and felicitations! It is Friday and Thank Steve the Fruit bat and whatever other imaginary Deity stand ins there are that it is!

First, I'd like to say hi to Sunnie, showing on the followers list as mides5. "Welcome aboard." And I've gotta say to you, Sunnie, "Holy cow you make me tired!" You look fabulous. I have no desire to put that much energy into body building. I just like to blow off steam. While I haven't the desire, it would seem that I have the need since the last doctor visit is rather annoying me.

secondly: HA! Blogger can't count either!!!! Shows 11 follower and only 10 of you show up on the follow list. So my guess is that the 11th person if a figment of Blogger's imagination or blocked their profile. Tsk Tsk! or Come out come out where ever you are!

third: I am serious about your blog posts sounding crazy. If you ever go back through them and it seems like there have been about 13 people (seek help when you find 2, don't let it get out of hand) writing your posts for you and you know that you are the only one who bothers to use up all of the gigabytes that they give you SEEK HELP!!!!

I've been struggling with a lot of issues lately. Chiefly with my tendency towards Nazi-ism at work. I know that is going to annoy my Jewish friends. But seriously. Tyranny may seem more accurate and politically correct a term to use but it hardly conveys the feeling of my own self loathing quite the same as Nazi does. The tyranny of logic, while logic is good, is not very effective in any endeavor. Tyranny breeds revolt. Or... encourages people to tell you that your behavior is revolting. Toss a coin.... it doesn't matter how you look at it. It is not a good thing to be the fiddling tyrant when the world is burning down around your ears.

I saw the doctor yesterday. While I am waiting on the test results that are going to tell Dr. Mike where we start with treatment, he is certain that I have PCOS. Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome. First thing that ACG tells me is that it isn't fatal. I would disagree.

First because someone at work is going to kill me. One of these days Dave is going to go behind the machines to clean out the lint trap and find that I have become an episode of Castle. He watches CSI but he needs to lighten up a bit and have some fun with us on Monday nights. I know that no one in my class would ever associate me with the likes of the WWWest, Cruella DeVille or.... Dick Solomon. But if this weird, angry, petulant and tactless version of me doesn't shut up on its own someone will shut me up.

Secondly because it feels like there are many people in my head and not an iota of leadership, I am tired of being angry all the time and can physically do nothing about it I keep thinking that I'd be better off onto the next life than sticking out this one. Sure I have a name to go with the issues so its even easier to tell myself I am being an idiot. But what it doesn't do is make this idiot any easier to live with; and I am the only one who can't get away from her idiocy!!!!!

So... are people telling you that you don't seem like yourself? Does it seem like some of your blog posts were written by pod people or jack the Ripper reincarnated? Then for CRIPES SAKE!!!! GO SEE A DOCTOR!!!!!

Lecture over. Resume your day.

Guten Tag! Wilkommen

And another very Special Hello. This time to Oman Collective Intelligence who just joined us in Geekdom this morning. OCI seems to be an active blog reader and writer. So hopefully we will get to see larger pieces of the world picture through all of our new friends. It is indeed a colorful, expressive and inviting planet if we would all just take the time to say "hello" once in a while.

I like how all of us are different enough to be intriguing but that we have something enough in common to feel connected despite the differences. I wish that everyone could realize this is a good thing and lay aside some of the hubris and selfishness that keeps us fighting for things that won't matter when each of us sees the end of this physical life.

Hallo

Well here we go with Summer off to a bang-zoom start. Welcome follower #8 to Geekdom. "Fresh start" is a new blogger as well. Not many posts right now, but well written with a sly sense of humor that I think will blossom as she gears up with more posts.

And again, I encourage you all to poke around blogger and see who is out there. Sometimes when we look around using only the same tried and true (ho-hum) keywords we have always relied on we miss the kindred-by-spirit-if-not-by-keyword people who expand ourselves and help us keep our limitless fascination alive.

Wow.. how zen do I sound? Go forth and explore the NEXT BLOG button!

Say Hi

It's time to welcome new followers. Engineerdeus and Author Girl joined out happy little part of geekdom on the 5th. I only have a limited amount of time today so I have not explored their sites as I normally would. But I wanted to say HI and let you all know that there are more places on the web to go and check out.

As always, E and AG, I hope you both have long careers blogging and much success in all of your endeavors. And I am looking forward to your voices being part of the blogosphere.

Do you know Victor Riley?

I found a blog that has been around for a while. It is well written and very entertaining. Victor is a fellow geek with all the questions and angst that comes with that territory. It is well worth a look. If you need more entertainment or you just want to feel like you are part of a bigger community of people who feel like you do then stop by.

In a lot of ways he reminds me of Wil. It takes conscientious focus for me to keep up with the references because of his various interests. But he writes very unselfconsciously. He also evokes the kind of stream of conscious/top-of-mind/lack-of-internal-editor that Rick Castle has. Fun and youthful in heart.

Victor doesn't post frequently so he'll be an easy follow. And the story of how he got his name is awesome. I think on some level those infectious private in jokes that spread beyond a group must be another hallmark of geekdom. We haven't had that kind of notoriety in our group. But we did manage a kind of generationality to the Denny's cup prank that warms my heart to no end.


BTW: I know generationality is not a real word. But we are wordsmiths... we can do what we want.

hello

Well friends, we have another follower. Say hello to Mohammed al kurdi, joining us on the 15th. I'm looking forward to meeting more folks here and exploring their blogs. It just won't be today. Today the car is going back into the shop. I know... because the timing belt wasn't expensive enough. What can you do? It's just the way it is. Some things will never change.

I so don't want that song in my head interfering with the Reim that is winding its way into the neural net.

Another welcome & some encouragement

Say Hi to A Literary Treat.
True, while not a registered follower, Lit Treat did leave a comment and I still welcome him/her to the fold. Lit Treat is a new blogger with talent. I hope this blog continues in as many incarnations as is required to keep up with his/her author's evolution.

For a long time this little plot of geekdom, barely considered a legal parcel size among the kingdom's surveyors and tax assessors (Gods let's hope we don't get taxed on the time we blog!!!!!), was just me and Shayne keepin up with keepin up with each other and jotting down the odd thought. But in the last few months I've noticed that the readership is increasing and attracting exactly the kind of people I was looking for... namely other writers.

Most of those writers are new to blogging. As mentioned with our first official follower, it takes time to build readership. None of us are Wil Wheaton and it is unlikely that we will amass the reading fellowship of his community. We will, however, as the saying goes, attract like minded people to our respective cogs in this great machine. May will be my second year blogging. The readership is yet small. But that was never my goal.

My goal was to force myself to write, to get used to the idea of refining my thoughts in print for publication and make a few connections if possible. It was never my goal to compete with Wil but to experience some of the things that his blog demonstrates: positive evolution of writing style, exploration of geeky things that I didn't know existed and make a few friends. If that is the best that I can hope for that is good enough. Though I do know there is more.

The more is the reason that I will keep writing. It is the reason that I want all of you to keep writing. Your refined materials will teach someone something that has eluded them, encourage where no other words or feelings have helped and bring something positive into the world when these chaotic times threaten to topple our meager existences. Over time your readership will build. It may never make you rich in monetary gains as directly as blog post=money.But it will make you rich in ways that you cannot yet imagine. *cue ObiWan theme*

greetings and felicitations

You know what I like about being a little known and obscure blog? [That's obscure in a romantic sense not in a literal sense, thank you Mr. Trapp] While I am small and not widely read there is time to look in once in a while and see who's on my dashboard. I chose to forgoe the apparent arrogance of having my email notify me when comments and follows are left, less for Hubris and all for not wanting to listen to my pathetic ego cry for the last two years "Nobody's following me!!!" ME: Here, have a cookie and go watch TV. The best part though is that I can, as I've said before, say "Hi!" and introduce followers to each other like I do when I actually check in with Twitter. So...

Class, say hi to Steph S. Steph joined a few days ago when I wasn't looking. Her profile is sparse but she follows some blogs that I will have to investigate. Steph, welcome to the class. There is no syllabus, no curve and no grades. And sometimes, as you will see given my choice of topics, no class.

And on that note we all need to say goodnight to the crew @Aroma's Coffee and Tea (with two locations serving Traverse City) so I can go home and try to sleep through the draft. I mean the draft scouring the basement floor like an arctic storm as much as I mean the NFL. No I do not watch. Nor do I care. However my hosts do. Alas....

Goodnight all

Welcome

Dear readers, we have another follower who is brave enough to register as a follower. Say hello to Charles from Brazil. I am happy to be considered for entertainment, hopefully a little enlightening as well. And now more than ever I wish I had more than a passing knowledge of other languages. My German isn't good enough to write in and the only thing I can do with a Spanish language of any kind is count with Elmo. Thank God the rest of the world is not so short sighted as we in America and actually learns to communicate with others outside of their borders.