298th Friday Blog Roundup
I was going to write an addendum to that last post and then … well … the day got away from me as it seems to have everyday for the last four weeks (and I massively apologize if you are waiting for an email back from me. My goal is to be caught up reading blogs and answering emails by the end of the weekend, but who knows what will happen to my good plans.)
I promise: I am not closing down my blog; it was merely pointing out that many of us have that thought from time to time, and I loved Andrea Ross’s speech about how we really have no sense of our blog’s reach. We have comment numbers and visitor numbers and even emails from a reader from time to time, but like icebergs, most of the real facts are submerged underwater. That everyone goes through frustrating times (and I agree, Vee, I think it’s seasonal too) where they are speaking and getting no feedback. And on the other hand, we all have times where we hit a post out of the park and it gets a lot of attention — and we have no. clue. how. to. repeat. it. again.
Thank you, also, for being with me during the move. When we were driving to my parent’s house for the final time, I was thinking to myself, “I can’t do this.” I really didn’t think I’d be able to walk out the front door; that I’d ever be ready. And suddenly, a Toyota pulls in front of my car with the license plate — UCNDOIT. And like a fucking idiot, I start trying to decipher it, and I’m saying to myself, “University of California … Nursing Department … Or … Internet Technology … no, that doesn’t seem right … University of …”
Seriously.
We drove behind the car for several miles and it felt like my own private message from G-d. So I went into the house thinking to myself that I could do this, I could walk through one more time and then say goodbye. Except it seems like I was right the first time (sorry, Toyota, for wasting your fine message.) I cried walking through the rooms, and finally realized that I simply couldn’t take in the enormity of never seeing the kitchen again, never seeing my room again, never seeing the tiling in the front hall again. And I accepted that I’d never be ready and just had to walk out the door. So I gave my dad a hug and kiss, thanking him for being a wonderful father in this house, and I left Josh and my dad behind to close up our lives there while I took the twins to meet my mum in the new apartment.
By two streets away, we had all stopped crying. And a few exits on the highway and we all commented that we felt fine. And then we moved my parents into their temporary apartment while their new house is being finished. I haven’t watched the video again since the move mid-week. It still doesn’t seem real, and at the same time, it feels wholly okay. So maybe I can do it.
And thank you for the good thoughts on the new book. I am really excited about it and I love, love, love the cover. When I get the final version, I’ll post it here and on the book site.
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The loudest vote for celebrating the 300th Friday Blog Roundup seemed to be for cake (or, if you don’t want to bake or purchase a cake, you could take a picture of a cake in a bakery and walk out without tasting a slice, or simply down a few oreos and snap a picture of your cookie orgy. The point is more to celebrate the Roundup and our community and have a built-in excuse to eat sugar.) Which is actually, if you can remember back to June 2007, how we celebrated my first blogoversary. We will hold the videos for the 333, which will be next spring.
Though first, I must admit something highly amusing that just happened as I wrote this. As I did the math and realized that 33 posts later would be nearly 3/4th of a year away, I started wondering how I was hitting 300 Roundups in 4 years. That just wasn’t possible since I started doing this a few weeks after the blog started and with 52 weeks in a year, I should be nearing on the 200th post.
And so I am.
Back in January/February of last year, the numbering jumps from #173 one week to #274 the next week. In other words, I added one more to the first number as I was adding one more to the last number and in the end, aged the Roundup 100 posts. I am not going to renumber the posts because it would be a pain in the ass, so the Roundup will be forever mis-numbered. But this will be actually the 200th post of the Roundup (though it will say 300).
Queue slightly hysterical, overtired laughter.
I’d like to practice today with this new linky tool that Calliope uses for Photo Fridays before the big day. If you have a picture of yourself on your blog (or on your computer) and can help me test this out, please click below and add your headshot with a link to your blog so we can all see how this works and troubleshoot since the actual 300th (well … 200th) Roundup will be during BlogHer and I’m not sure how much I’ll be online.
It seems fairly simple. You (1) click on the link below. (2) Add the url of your blog. (3) Add the name of your blog. (4) Either give the url of the picture as it appears on your blog, OR upload a new image to the Linky Tool that is from your computer (see, it doesn’t even need to go on your blog). That’s it — it should appear below. And this practice list should close on Sunday. So we’ll see if that’s the case.
Thank you to the heads floating above this sentence for helping me test this.
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The Weekly What If: What if you could either be given a free netbook or iPad tomorrow — which would you take and why?
Can you tell that I’m still trying to make this decision? I like to hear what other people think are the benefits and drawbacks of each one (as well as opinions if you have either and how you primarily use it) because it helps me consider things from entirely new angles.
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And now, the blogs…
Baby Wanted: Apply Within has a post about where they are now, and how she thought life would be back when they started trying to build their family. It is a simple, straightforward post, but I found it incredibly moving: the thought of what you don’t know and simply can’t imagine when you start down this road.
Impersonating Normal (formerly, Infertility Rocks!) has a post about faking a birthday wish for the sake of others. She contrasts this current birthday with the one she celebrated last year, back when she was starting her lupron shots and had no idea how the year would unfold. Again, it is a reminder of what we can’t possibly know about our future and how that fact makes us look back on past events with wonder and sometimes bittersweet sadness with what that earlier version of ourselves doesn’t know.
Lastly, Nuts in May asks at the end of a post this week: “So really, are any fertile people reading this? Who have read this far? Have I really pissed people off now?” The discussion in the comment section is equally as interesting as the post. Go jump in with your thoughts.
The roundup to the Roundup: This has been a crazy week (I’m not sure I could say it more succinctly than that.) Celebrate with cake in two weeks for the 200th/300th post of the Roundup AND please help me test this linky tool today. Answer the Weekly What If. And lots of great posts to read.
15 comments
iPad. I am loving my new iPhone but the tiny print is hard for my poor eyesight. If I’m going to work I’m going to work, in which case I’d use neither netbook nor iPad. If I’m going to not-work then I’d prefer the iPad over netbook. Netbook is, to me, a smaller, poor-man’s laptop. iPad is something else entirely.
Oh and ROFL at the numbering error!
I’d opt for a netbook over an iPad, because I prefer typing on a regular keyboard over a touch screen one, and because of the lack of Flash support on the iPad.
Your posts about your parents’ move got me wondering about how I’m going to feel if/when my parents move. They’ve done enough remodeling over the years that it’s not the exact same house I grew up in, and my old bedroom has long since been redecorated and repurposed, so I think I’ve already started the process of letting go. But it’s easy to be cavalier about it now, it may be a whole different story once I’m facing it in reality.
LMAO @ numbering error! Even if it weren’t a pain to re-number, I’d vote for not! 😉
I haven’t had much ‘experience’ w/ a netbook, but I love my iPhone, so I’m assuming I’d love an iPad. HunHun heard that the next round will include a (web?) cam and usb ports, so that’s a plus! Have you typed on a touch screen? That might help you make a decision.
And woot for cake!
Wow that linky thing is pretty nifty. 🙂
My husband is heavily into computers and electronics so I asked him about the netbook vs ipad issue. (Neither of us have either one so please keep that in mind!)
The ipad would probably prove very hard to type on because it doesnt have a “real” keyboard, just the touch screen. He has an iphone and loves it but is disappointed about how hard it is to type on one. If you are getting one of the two for heavy typing usage, he recommends the netbook. The ipad is just a large ipod touch. You really can’t do anything on it that you can’t do on an ipod touch. Also, Apple doesn’t allow flash on the ipad so that might be a consideration.
The netbook is basically just a slower, less powerful laptop that is very light and portable. But it runs windows by default so if you are looking for something that functions the same as a laptop but be more portable, the netbook is definitely the way to go.
If you have any questions for him I’d be glad to pass them on. ayariaATgmailDOTcom
What’s a hundred between friends?
I’m glad that Toyota driver I hired was able to find you and get in front of you ;-).
Abiding with you. I know that must have been hard.
iPad, I think.
I like LinkyTools so much better than the one I used to use. It works as designed, and you can make the thumbnails larger or smaller if you want.
I would definitely go with the iPad. My DH got one for me a few weeks ago and I love it. I don’t find it that hard to type on, but if I did, there is a keyboard that you can dock it to that will work just fine. It’s also got bluetooth, so you can use another wireless keyboard that you have if typing is an issue. I’ve run into the flash problem a few times, but it hasn’t really bothered me.
Your posts about your parents’ move reminded me of when my grandparents sold their house to move into something smaller. It actually got to me more than when my mom sold the townhouse I spent most of my childhood in (we moved a few times while my grandparents didn’t so maybe that’s why). I wish I had thought to go through room by room and take tons of pictures or a video to remember exactly how things were. I did take a small crystal from one of the hanging chandeliers, though 😉 . I can still remember so much about that house, much more than about the smaller house they moved into for the last 8 years before they both passed away.
I spent like 15 minutes trying to make my name fit in to the allowed characters. And, I think it’s hysterical that you misnumbered, because that is so…very human of you.
Glad the move is over.
Glad you’re hanging in.
Your parents’ move sounds just so agonizing. Heaving a deep sigh for you over here.
The linky thing was really really easy to do!
We have a netbook and it’s still kinda hard to type on cause the keyboard is smallish – but if you have small hands that might not be an issue. I am slowly descending into a codependent relationship with our iTouch but it’s also hard to type on cause of the miniscule touch pad for typing which has cut way back on my commenting on blogs, unfortunately. But the iPad might actually be easier to type on, I’ve never used one so I’m not sure.
IPad, definitely! Hubby has one, and really likes it. He is half on his computer (a mac) and half on the ipad.
yay for photo linky!!!
Hehehe I love that you made a numbering error, so you are human ? 😉
I looked into the ipad versus the notebook also. I told the sales guy it was it was mainly for writing on the go and he told me that the ipad is just a bigger version of the iphone/itouch, I already have an iphone and I do love it but it’s more of a fun thing and I didn’t really need a bigger toy. I had a go at typing on the ipad and didn’t like it. It also doesn’t have a usb which I would want to easily connect my cameras and upload photos etc.
I decided that the Asus Eee PC was what I really needed and went with it.
iPad but unfortunately I don’t really have any sound technical reasons. It’s purely a novelty thing.
And I think the fact that it’s really the 200th roundup even though it’s labeled 300th, is pretty cool, gives it some character. I am glad you’re doing the cake thing.
Very funny about the license plate. I would’ve done the same thing. I’m happy you got through the move. You can definitely do it.
Thanks, Mel, for continuing to post. Congrats on the 200th/300th roundup! Here’s to many more to come…. cheers!
Numbering is a convention, right, universally accepted for the sake of, well, convenience. This 300/200 Blog Roundup is OUR convention. So there is nothing wrong about it. 😉
Now, my two eurocents. I would go for notebook. I love my iMac and iPod, but I am profoundly pissed off (pardon my French) by the Apple attitude lately. Yes, their products are reliable, but they also lack a lot of features I appreciate in a modern gadget (multitasking anyone?). And they are way too pricey just because they are thought of as ‘cool’ (which I admit they are, but not THAT much) and when they feck up (see the iPhone4 antenna blunder) they first try to ignore it and then cover it up. Or even better, they try to sell silly customers a 30$ rubber band and then offer a rubber cover or sth. I would so much appreciate a mature reaction of admitting one’s fault, as a responsible corporation who respects its customers. Oh, and talking about respect and mature attitude, remember the time Steve Jobs said they are not even interested in thinking about a table PC? And then they came up with the iPad? Are we in 3rd grade or sth?
The iPad is cool, but for the price of one you can get two notebooks, one now and a better one next year.
I am not really hating apple, I am just annoyed by this silly attitude of theirs, it’s like they have so outgrown the cool nerdy endearing stage ‘I’m a Mac and I am a PC’ and turned into the class’ bully. And I do not really fancy bullies.
I just bought a macbook pro, and I love it. I played with an ipad in the store, and would’ve bought one if they’d had one in stock. It was fun and fabulous. I considered a netbook, but felt like they were so limited that they just weren’t worth the cash.
So sorry you had such a hard week.