Jul 18, 2012 |
It’s already Wednesday.
Wait. What?
It’s already Wednesday?!
This week has gone by far too fast for me. Dot’s now enrolled in college. College! I’ve got ten resumes out for review, and I’m considering signing up with LinkedIn.com and Kickstarter.com. [If any of you have advice regarding either of those sites, please… I’m all ears!] We had our second class of cake decorating, and Dot’s creation garnered her incredible attentions. I don’t often put photos up on my Facebook page unless they’re linked to posts. But Monday night I posted her cake, as well as wrote about it yesterday. I don’t have tons of followers on Facebook, but I was really impressed to see that Dot’s Cake is my most popular photo to date. Way to go, Kid! I’m one proud Momma!
Last week’s “What’s the Word?” Wednesday Blog Hop was my most popular to date. I love seeing the diversity of writings offered up around the Blogosphere. Would you like to be a part of it?
“What’s the Word?” Wednesdays is a link-up that allows other bloggers and readers to share whatever they want to talk about. Think of it as a virtual coffee date with some great friends. What’s going on in your world? Tell us all about it!
A few things to remember:
- Each week’s link-up is valid from Wednesday through the following Tuesday. So if you link a post today, you can still come back and link another post tomorrow! In fact, you can link up as many posts as you want.
- If you add a link, please put the badge on your post as well.
- Be sure to check out what others are posting, and even leave a few comments.
- You can now show your “likes” by voting for your favorite links.
So, c’mon. Join the conversation. After all, a great coffee date is one where everyone gets to chat, dontcha think?
Jul 11, 2012 |
This week’s theme for me seems to be
In the Middle.
or, possibly,
On a Teeter-Totter.
It’s already the middle of the week. In four more days it will be the middle of the month. We are closer to the end of the year than the beginning. Yikes!
While the local craft stores and Hallmark Movie Channel are celebrating Christmas in July, my town is in the middle of a scorching heat wave. We hit 105 in the shade today. Sure, people will tell you, “But it’s a dry heat…” as if that takes away some of the sting. Lemme tell ya, 105 is still 105.
My eggplant and green pepper plants can’t decide if they want to survive or not. My Sweet Broom plants are hanging on. Luckily, Fred the Tomato is thriving. It’s in shade more than the others… I’m thinking one more day of this, and the back patio will become my impromptu potted garden.
Dot went swimming over two weeks ago and ended up with Swimmer’s Ear. She gets that the first swim each summer, but this year it didn’t go away. So we spent an hour at the Doctor’s office Tuesday getting antibiotics and ear drops. We had planned to go to the beach today, but the drive is ninety minutes long and involves an altitude shift that always leaves ears popping. So we’ve decided to put that trip on hold until she feels better.
We started cake decorating classes two days ago. The Wilton Method, Course 1. It’s going to be so much fun. That is, if I remember to take ibuprofen before going. As creative and crafty as I am, my hands don’t always appreciate it. In fact, there’s this little thing called arthritis that’s starting to get in the way. I am not a happy camper.
I had a sort of epiphany last week. A shift in attitude, a revelation of emotions. I can’t wait to tell you about it in a soon-to-be-posted blog. It’s actually very exciting! Usually when I share my emotions, I’m either very excited or very sad or very angry or… you get the picture. I mean, drama is what sells, right? You don’t want to hear that I was just content to sit at my window sipping coffee… do you? Well, guess what. I was. I did. And I continue to do so. And it’s awesome. But more on that later.
I’m also very excited to read what everyone has to link up this week! Jenn and Casey have made their move from Maine to North Carolina and it’s been fun to read about their trip. I can’t wait for them to share their new home adventures!
Well, I could write so much more about this Teeter-Totter, but I’ve some tending to get to.
What’s on your plate this week?
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
What’s the Word? Wednesdays is a linky that allows other bloggers to share whatever is on their minds that they want to talk about. Think of it as a virtual coffee date with some great friends. What’s going on in your world? Tell us all about it!
A few things to remember:
- Each week’s linky is valid from Wednesday through the following Tuesday. So if you link a post today, you can still come back and link another post tomorrow!
- If you add a link, please put the badge on your post as well.
- Be sure to check out what others are posting, and even leave a few comments.
- You can now show your “likes” by voting for your favorite links.
So, c’mon. Join the conversation. After all, a great coffee date is one where everyone gets to chat, dontcha think?
Jul 10, 2012 |
I made a few alterations to Frankly, My Dear… and I think it’s a much better fit now!
I’m so excited at the way things are going; and they’re just going to keep getting better. Last week the planets aligned to put me in a better attitude and from those events (which I’ll blog about later this week), a new self-confidence was born!
I’m always at my best when I’m writing. I mean, really writing. Not just making notes but really working on getting a project closer to being finished. In the last week, I’ve grabbed that bull by the horns and worked.
A few minor projects were slight changes to the Blog, and I’m hoping you’ll approve:
*I posted a new blog hop: BLOG*HELP*BLOG*HOP. The full title is HOW TO WRITE A BETTER BLOG: I have questions. You have answers. It’s an ongoing Blog Hop where I’m hoping other blog writers and readers will comment and link up their own questions, ideas, and information about writing a better blog.
*I put a BHBH badge on the sidebar of my blog, so no matter what post you’re reading, you can click the BHBH badge and it will take you directly to the original post. I’m kind of excited about this, because (a) I designed the Badge all by myself, which is a HUGE accomplishment, and (b) I’ve received some nice feedback on it. I know it take a while to get noticed, but I’m hoping others will find this to be a great source of information and ideas to make each blog uniquely individual and inviting!
*I have partnered with ZipList.com for my recipes. ZipList is an online recipe-sharing site that also provides you with a grocery list and meal planning options. It’s completely free. You should give them a try!
*This excites me, because when a reader clicks “print” or “save to my recipe box”, ZipList makes sure that the recipe credits back to Franky, My Dear… and New Inklings Press. Right now, I don’t have many recipes saved to ZipList, but I have used them to format some. I’m looking forward to providing more, for both my readers and ZipList users.
*There’s a ZipList badge on the sidebar. If you have a ZipList account, or if you just want to see what it’s all about, you can click the Badge and you’ll be taken to their website.
Those are the major changes to the Blog. I’m looking into ways to attract more readers and subscribers, and in the last month I’ve discovered that my Giveaways have garnered some great attention. I love planning Giveaways, but I’m not always sure what would be a great prize. I’ve won some great prizes: Scharffen Berger Baking Chocolates, a Le Creuset Utensil set, even a Kitchen Aid Blender! I’m looking into trying to get some great sponsors, but right now it’s Me, Myself, and I… and we’re not really sure what kinds of Giveaways you might be interested in. Feel free to offer up some suggestions!
*Each Wednesday through the following Tuesday I post the “What’s the Word?” Wednesdays, Blog Hop. It’s a place for people to comment and link up whatever they feel like talking about. Many thanks to Ann from Doodles and Jots for always linking up some of her great posts! If you haven’t checked out her website, I urge you to do so. She’s so very creative, and always has some wonderful suggestions for children’s books and arts.
*For the past two Mondays I’ve been posting a Weekly Theme: that one mantra I cling to through the next seven days to build on. Whether it be something creative, smart, inspiring, or just fun, I plan to have a new Theme every week.
Those are all the up-and-coming changes right now. But as I am ever changing, so will Frankly, My Dear… I hope you’ll enjoy the new directions, too.
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
Jul 8, 2012 |
I’m a blogger. At least, I think I am. Blogger is typically defined as a person who maintains or publishes an online diary (web blog). But I’m not writing my private thoughts into the public media. Blogging, to me, is more than just spilling your emotions over a keyboard for all to see.
There are good blogs and bad blogs. Blogs that have one theme (Food or travel blogs, for example), and blogs that are all over the place (blogs written typically by high school girls, perhaps…) The majority of blogs are somewhere in between.
Take mine, for example. I started well over a year ago to document my forays into the social/dating world. But I found that to be too limiting for what I wanted to say. So I spread my wings. And I realized, thanks to my subscribers’ comments, that I have more to say on more subjects than just Who’s Who on Match.com. Thank goodness… have you checked some of those profiles lately? Seriously….
I’m a good writer. But I’m not always a good blogger. I threw myself in the deep end and am teaching myself how to swim. Sometimes I float, sometimes I sink. But I am always able to come up for air and reach the surface.
I don’t know logistics. I don’t know coding and formatting. I know writing. I know creativity and characters and descriptions and recipes. And typing. And a little bit of photography, but not much.
I’m still learning.
This is where you come in. I need help. I have so many questions. I just know that somewhere out there in the great Blogosphere are the answers. So far I’ve been self-sufficient enough to research and google and obtain basic information. But I know there’s a whole world of ways to make my blog better, and I’m just not sure where all that information is.
So here is my Plea: Tell me how to write a better blog.
- Do you have tips on photography?
- What topics do you like to read about?
- How do you attract (and maintain) a large following?
- What types of giveaways get your attention?
- How do you get your Blog to pay for itself (advertising, sponsors, etc.)?
- How do you get contributions for your giveaways?
- What can make Frankly, My Dear… a daily must-read email?
- How do you get people to comment on your blog, without using spam?
- Do you reply to every comment?
- How do you get your readers to interact with each other (reply to other comments)?
- What layouts appeal to you? What makes a blog too “visually busy”?
- When I add my blog hop links every “What’s the Word?” Wednesday, the code box is adjustable instead of formatted to fit under the photo link. How can I change this?
- Is there a way to make a Blog Hop start, without a stop date?
I truly welcome want need any advice or suggestions you may have. Feel free to comment or even link up posts if you have them.
Come by and visit. Get some tips. Share some tips. Don’t forget to place the link on your own posts! I know I’m not the only one on this teeter-totter. Together, we can write Better Blogs, dontcha think?
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
Jul 4, 2012 |
Happy Independence Day! It’s time to celebrate!
What does Independence really mean? Well, for America, today, it means we stand on our own.
But in general terms, “Independence” means freedom, liberty, self-reliance.
It can also mean ability, qualification, aptitude. I like that! I like that freedom doesn’t necessarily mean being separate from others; it just means being an individual.
For me, today is about creativity, learning to make-do with what I have. Being able to take care of myself and my family without wholly relying on others to do so.
There’s no shame in needing other people. But there’s a great satisfaction in being Independent.
There’s a certain pride in being able to say, “Look what I did!” and “See how far I’ve come!”
There’s also a joy in being able to pay it forward.
I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the support of my family, friends and readers. And while collectively I love you all, I appreciate each of you Independently.
Have your own stories to tell? Leave a comment or link up your blog posts and share!
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
What’s the Word? Wednesdays is a linky that allows other bloggers to share whatever is on their minds that they want to talk about. Think of it as a virtual coffee date with some great friends. What’s going on in your world? Tell us all about it!
A few things to remember:
- Each week’s linky is valid from Wednesday through the following Tuesday. So if you link a post today, you can still come back and link another post tomorrow!
- If you add a link, please put the badge on your post as well.
- Be sure to check out what others are posting, and even leave a few comments.
- You can now show your “likes” by voting for your favorite links.
So, c’mon. Join the conversation. After all, a great coffee date is one where everyone gets to chat, dontcha think?
