499th Friday Blog Roundup

Taking a break from over-analyzing the Internet to write the Roundup.

Actually, I’m not going to apologize for over-analyzing the Internet.  It’s important that we ask ourselves these questions as we go along, even when we can’t do anything about the way the Internet operates.  I think it’s important to take a step back, especially when the Internet looks so happy and shiny and helpful, and check our gut to see if we’re operating within our comfort zone.

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So remember that speed reading software I wrote about a few months ago?  It’s the free app of the week on the iTunes store.  Or there is an app that is exactly like that software.  I can’t tell if it’s made by the same people.  But it operates in the exact same way.

I’ve been using it to read articles that I kinda sorta want to read.  Like I feel like I should read them, but I’m sort of dragging my heels about it.  I don’t use it for blog posts that I actually want to savour.  Or think about.  Or sit with for a bit.

I like that it tells you how much time it will take to finish the article before you begin so you know that it will only take you X seconds or minutes to read.

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Time for your weekly nag:

This is just your friendly nudge to do your weekly backup.  I know, I know, who has the time to create backups on a weekly basis?  No one.  But you still need to do it and forgo ten minutes of something else, once a week.  Right now, before you do anything else, use this post to roll through a quick backup of your email, documents, images, blog, social media accounts, and mobile devices.  Reading the Roundup on the go and don’t have the ability to do your backup right now?  Email yourself a copy of the Roundup so that the email will serve as a visual reminder to get this task done.  Ten minutes of your time once a week may save you a major loss of time and data down the road.  Don’t have regrets.  So, on your marks, get set, back up!

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments in order to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

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And now the blogs…

But first, second helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week.  In order to read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “It’s Still Hard to Express the Sadness that Comes from Being Unable to Have Children” (TheJournal)
• “My Womb is a Graveyard: Healing Body & Mind” (Spiritbabycomehome)
• “Change” (Diary of a Mom)

Okay, now my choices this week.

My Scar Smiles at Me has a post about traveling home — home being both a literal place and the people we meet in life.  I especially love the moment when the little girl returns the stuffed animal she had been minding for four years.  And the sweetness of this thought: “I am deeply part of this family and many other families’ lives. Their children think of me a special aunt and as a friend and as someone they can count on. Their parents have me down as their emergency contact number. I fill in as a babysitter and confidant. I am part of the team…. who knows if I ever get to give it a go myself… but today I am feeling blessed that I know I have showered loved on children and it has come back to me 10 fold.”  Isn’t that gorgeous?  I had chills down my arms when I read it.

The Empress and the Fool has a post about trying to make decisions when you don’t have clear-cut answers to guide your decision-making process.  It’s about coming to terms with the things we can’t know since the need to know why is such a huge part of her personality.  The post is really about how infertility sometimes keeps us from being ourselves.  It keeps the maternal personalities from mothering, the extroverts from socializing, and the why-askers from knowing.

A bout of insomnia has Serenity wondering what she inherited from her grandfather.  And I love the ending so much, especially what she learned from her grandfather that she is passing along to her son: “I give it to Lucky because I remember how good it felt to have that kind of love and affection, how safe I felt with my Grandpa C. I do it because I always want Lucky to feel loved and safe with me. Because as he grows, that’s going to be what he remembers.”  What we inherit aren’t always physical traits or personality characteristics.

Lastly, Waiting for Little Feet has a post about reclaiming her blog space.  Posts like this pop up often, and it suddenly occurred to me just how young the blogosphere is.  That we haven’t been navigating changes in life status for very long online.  No wonder there are few guidelines to get you through.

The roundup to the Roundup: I think it’s important to ask these questions about our online usage and comportment.  Speed reading app is free this week.  Your weekly backup nudge.  And lots of great posts to read.  So what did you find this week?  Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between June 13th and June 20th) and not the blog’s main url. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week?  Read the original open thread post here.