NaBloPoMo

OK, so you are asking what the heck is NaBloPoMo? Quite simply, it stands for “National Blog Posting Month.” It is a group of bloggers who are committed to writing a blog post each and every day of the month, not just a few here and there. Unfortunately, I most often fall into the latter category. This is why I am joining NaBloPoMo for the month of November.

NaBloPoMo allows bloggers to support each other, and give tips and advice to accomplish their goal. Because, I usually write posts so sporadically, I have decided to challenge myself this month. Perhaps, I will join again in December. We’ll see how it goes this month, and what kind of material I can deliver. Hopefully, the majority of my posts will be of interest to at least a few people! However, the main reason I joined NaBloPoMo is to develop my writing skills, and put them into practice on a daily basis.

I am very excited about the challenge I am taking in committing to daily writing. Please check back to see how I am doing. If you are a blogger, you should consider taking on the challenge of NaBloPoMo yourself!

The group can be found on ning.com

Read Full Post »

Daily Adventure #1: Podcasts, KC, Spin Pizza, and Swurl

Sunday, July 20, 2008: I drove from Springfield, Missouri to Kansas City. Even though, it is only a 3 hour drive, I hadn’t made the trip in nearly two years. My sister lives, with her family, on the Kansas side in Olathe. They come to Springfield on a regular basis, so I get to see my nephews often. However, I do enjoy all that Kansas City has to offer. During the drive, I listened to some of my favorite podcasts. I enjoyed the French music podcast,Radio Oh-La-La. In addition, I listened to Alternageek, Grammar Girl, and Net@Night with Amber MacArthur and Leo Laporte. I love that I can listen to podcasts while I drive. I learn something new and valuable, and it makes the time fly.

My brother-in-law had already made plans to take the boys camping and dirt biking on Sunday night. That meant my sister and I could have a girls’ night, which is pretty rare for us. We started by having dinner at Spin! Neopolitan Pizza in Overland Park. I loved the openness and the decor.

We started with an appetizer of Rosemary flatbread with white bean hummus. We then moved on to the Melanzane, which was a white pizza with roasted eggplant, caramelized onions, and goat cheese.
The crusts are hand-tossed, and the pizzas are stone-fired. We loved everything about Spin! The food arrived quickly, service was great, and the food was wonderful! I just had to try the gelato. They had several flavors to choose from. I opted for the blueberry butter cookie gelato. It was just the right size and taste to end the perfect meal.

Lastly, I heard about Swurl on one of the podcasts I had listened to earlier in the day. Last night, I decided to check it out and sign up. Swurl is a place that basically pulls all of your different web presences into one place. It pulls from services like Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Flickr, Picasa, and some many more. Swurl then places your updates from these services into your own little Swurl “page” with your own Swurl URL. The final result is a page that looks kind of like a blog. I think I am going to like Swurl. Here is my Swurl page.

Read Full Post »

Got Grammar?

Last year, I rediscovered my long-buried enthusiasm for writing.  As a high school and college student, I was actually well-versed  at writing. I could research, draft, and edit a 10-page paper in one day. I would usually end up with an A as the final grade. However, over the years since graduation, I had written very little. Then, last year, I was turned on to the wonderful world of blogging. Alas, my interest and love for writing began to slowly creep back into my life.  I found one slight problem, though. I quickly realized that I need a serious brush-up on proper grammar.

A friend, who holds a Master’s degree in technical writing, told me about Grammar Girl. Grammar Girl is a podcast that deals with specific grammar topics. I love that each episode is short and to-the-point. Mignon Fogarty is the girl behind the grammar. She has a knack for making grammar interesting and fun! Who would ever have thought that grammar could be fun?  It is obvious that Mignon Fogarty thinks it is fun, and she shares her enthusiasm for the subject in a way that is exciting and entertaining.

Mignon released her new book this month. It is titled, Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing. At this very moment, she is on a nation-wide tour promoting her book and meeting her fans. I am a huge fan of Grammar Girl.  I follower her on Twitter and Facebook, and she does likewise. I really would like to go to one of the book signings. However, the closest location is Cedar Falls, Iowa, which is an 8 to 9 hour drive from Springfield.  I do have a few days off work next week, so who knows? I may just decide to make the trip. I could also stop in Kansas City to visit family, and I could use the getaway. I actually enjoy driving long distances by myself at times. The only thing that could keep me from going, would be the out-of-control gas prices. I figure I would spend $130- $150 in gas. I have to ask myself if it is really worth it.

Last week, I spent time at a nearby lake with my family. I brought a couple of books with me, including the new Grammar Girl book. My dad, who is not really into reading, picked up the book and totally got into it. That is just further proof to me, that Mignon Fogarty has created something that can make grammar accessible and fun to a variety of people, from differing backgrounds. Kudos!

Take this little grammar quiz, brought to you by Grammar Girl, to see if you are in need of a brush-up on your grammar.

Get the Grammar Girl Quiz widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox!

Visit the Grammar Girl website.

Read Full Post »

Daily-Adventures.Com: Coming to a PC Near You

I finally broke down and decided to buy a domain name for Daily Adventures in a Semi-Boring Life. I purchased the domain name through my usual godaddy. I really wasn’t expecting the name that I wanted to be readily available. I first tried dailyadventures.com without the hyphen. This domain name was, in fact, available, but at the premium rate of over $1800. I found that price to be just a tad too high for a blogger newbie like myself to dole out. My second try was daily-adventures.com, with the hyphen. As luck would have it, that domain name was available for just under $10 per year. I eagerly snatched it up.

I further decided to secure a web hosting account through godaddy, specifically for Daily Adventures. The hosting account is in the process of being set up by the good folks at godaddy. I am sure I will have much to learn in this process. However, I do believe that there is more that you can do with your WordPress blog if you have your own hosting apart from WordPress.

I am realistic enough to expect many an obstacle to overcome, However, I am also excited and optimistic enough to anticipate that this process will make Daily-Adventures a can’t miss blog. Look for good things to come!

Read Full Post »

Daily Adventures on the Go, or How I am Mobilizing My Blog

Yesterday, I happened upon Wirenode, which is a fairly new service for bloggers. I was instantly intrigued to discover that I can easily create a mobile web page version of my blog. I was able to choose from a variety of different colors and styles. I was also able to choose from a selection of available content, including a Twitter widget. I love Twitter, so that was a definite plus. The site is based out of the Czech Republic, but it is also available in English. Because the service and website seem to be relatively new, the wiki and faq sections are somewhat incomplete. There really is not a comprehensive help section, though they do offer support via email. There are widgets that you can place on your site to promote your newly created mobile application. Wirenode also keeps daily statistics of hits on your mobile web page in addition to page views.

Right now, I am just testing the waters, though I am initially quite impressed. Feel free to access the mobile version of Daily Adventures by visiting http://dailyadventures.wirenode.mobi.

Read Full Post »