Maya
Regular Contributor
Queen of the Damned
Posts: 542
|
Post by Maya on May 29, 2009 22:07:50 GMT -5
The strings that 360 has been dangling by are finally going to be cut. I always found it to be the ideal social networking site, I liked its simplicity. You could personalize the backgrounds and add photos minus all the pathetic drama that myspace offers. It was hardly private considering everyone could read comments left by others on the front page. Comments that generally surprise us, and we sometimes feel awkward to delete. I've had a few, I usually leave them though. So what if someone responds in a vulgar manner.
I never did add friends or family. What for? Seriously if that isn't suffocating enough. Nothing I find sillier than leaving comments for friends that you see on a regular basis. "Hey Joey, didn't we have a good time at the bar the other night?" Yuck, yuck, chuckle, chuckle. Gimme a break.
I found opportunity on my page. It opened doors to a diverse world of people. I learned and grasped much from it. Regardless of the daunting page loads, it was worth it. I have grown though. I don't find blogging as ritualistic as I used to. Maybe it's because I got to know everyone and the elements of curiosity have kind of faded. No, I'm not saying you guys are boring. There's never a dull moment when someone is discussing new things such as Karla's fearlessness of wolves, or Grainne's view on religion, Stacy's hikes, Mitch's reviews, Neo's Canadian sleuthing, Savvy's quest to becoming a reknowned writer, Jen's latest run into dance workouts, Heather's menu of the day, shall I go on. (If I left you out, it's because I am done with you, and you don't have anything else to say that will interest me. Seriously, I'm kidding) Anyway, the whole point of this thread was to remind anyone that if they wanted to save their blogs, you can upload them to your new yahoo profile. Yes, you can privatize them as well. Simply click on settings and adjust. I wonder if anyone can get in touch with Semi-Mad, he has some nice blogs which I am sure wouldn't want deleted. Of course if you have most likely kept up with multiply, then you won't need to upload anything.
What have you gotten out of blogging and how has your posting temperament changed?
|
|
|
Post by sapphiresavvy on May 30, 2009 10:45:51 GMT -5
I am *so* pissed.
And I don't want to lose my friends just because 360 comes to an end. But realistically, that's probably what will happen.
I blogged about 360 closing today. Hope you'll come see it.
I feel that blogging has opened me up. Let's face it: everybody in my Contacts is in fact a stranger. I've never met any of them. Yet I have been comfortable spewing out some venom I normally wouldn't share with anybody.
My first blog was asking for opinions on my baby's name, who was still nestled quietly in my womb. Now she's soon to celebrate her second birthday. I've been through all that with my blog friends.
I have been through several agent-dumps with you guys. I have shared my hopes as new agents begin to look at my book. I was hoping to be able to come to 360 and tell you all I just sold it to Penguin Putnam or Grand Central or something, and celebrate with you all.
Like I said on my blog today, I really feel betrayed and booted out.
Angry, annoyed.
|
|
|
Post by grainnerhuad on May 30, 2009 11:38:41 GMT -5
I could care less, I only stayed at 360 because some of my change resistant friends stayed on. I like the format of Multiply better. However, watching trends I think places like we have here are going to be the next wave and I am excited that we already have it set up and going smoothly. Viva la Subversify!
|
|
|
Post by sapphiresavvy on May 30, 2009 11:52:44 GMT -5
You said it.
|
|
|
Post by sapphiresavvy on May 30, 2009 12:17:28 GMT -5
OK, I uploaded to Multiply,....and it didn't take more than 12 of my blogs off of Yahoo360.
|
|
|
Post by The Late Mitchell Warren on May 30, 2009 14:46:03 GMT -5
{Mitch bashes Yahoo 360's head in with a bowling pin}
|
|
|
Post by neonorth on May 30, 2009 15:01:57 GMT -5
For me blogging has been the opposite result than Savvy’s – I’m become much more close to the chest with what I’m willing to put out there though I started out pretty much putting whatever came to mind on line. I started out at MySpace but found it unpleasing so at the insistence of a couple of people I started blogging on 360 with the expectation that it would be a reversal of what I experienced in the ‘real world’. I thought that I would get lost in the masses and that the people that would read my ramblings would be guys, a sort of penis bonding club because my obvious arrogance, hyper-sexuality, bluntness and crudity. Though I’m the same way in the real world, the majority of who I would classify as friends are women (who now use me unmercifully as an unpaid babysitter) with my interactions with men more when they need someone to act as the front man for things that need to be done. What ended up happening was instead of being the mirror image of reality it became a true reflection of the real world, the readers of my blog were primarily women and they actually ciphered out what I was saying in blogs through the heavy layers of inanity and pelvic thrusting tactics I used. I discovered that even though I was being honest and open there was a small segment of women out there that felt that what I said about not believing in the concept of love and monogamy was only because I hadn’t met them, especially after I would post some of the erotica I write. The result was that as 360 became unpredictable I just shut it down and moved over to Multiply continuing to write whatever came to mind. By the winter of last year I realized that I had to halt just saying whatever was on my mind because while only two women had tracked me down to my house, I had twenty or so others professing that they were the ones for me to end my obvious lonely existence. I never minded the death threats or the moral recriminations of the self appointed moral squad but having people going out of their way to show that I could be found unnerved me a bit; I have a very close relationship with my godsons and as I said I babysit quite often – what if one of those nut jobs showed up when a child was at my place and acted inappropriately or violent when spurned? So I really cut down blogging per se – hell, there are things going on now that I could blog a mile a minute on but I get paranoid about what the ramifications of someone reading the personal blog may be.
The one thing that I thought that I would get out of blogging on 360 that I never did get was improving my perchance to be anti-social. I figured that reading what others wrote and having an opportunity to have a say in it would increase my likelihood of commenting often, which it hasn’t . I still have a hard time forcing myself to comment on anything because I know I’m an opinionated jackass and though I try not to sound disrespectful I always feel that if I say anything it may come across as such. I think a lot of the underlying problems with society today is that people feel if they speak up they will get put down for it – the last thing I want to do is proliferate that idea. Not that blogging on 360 was an entirely mind fart; I did get the book pushers interested in the possibility of me being publishable though it’s been a thoroughly horrid experience to rein myself in to work within the lines they are attempting to get me to adhere to. I also met Grainne, Gerri and Shirl on 360 which have been positives. It has also led to people pointing out errors in the way I present things, which is a bonus since I have a tendency to write like I’m just sitting on a barstool at the best of times. Improvement of the delivery system of a message is something that I continue to struggle with which is why Subversify is great, I can see or be told where I screwed up. Though I also must add that apparently my perchance to be long winded hasn't shortened itself any either....
|
|
Maya
Regular Contributor
Queen of the Damned
Posts: 542
|
Post by Maya on May 30, 2009 15:59:01 GMT -5
Phew, I am so relieved that I decided not to visit you after all Neo. No, but seriously, I totally understand "the opposite sex going insane on you aspect." I've had my run with a few ignorantly possessive males. Hello, what part of married do you fail to understand? Or is the internet a portal of its own, where being married has no effect on cyber relations. Ha, ha, ha you're mine on this domain.
I shut my first blog down with an urgency, hibernated for six months and then let the wind carry me over to the Desert Rose. That's where I found my solace in the company of serious individuals, who cared not for sexual advertising, or attracting the wrong type of attention. It was something to look forward to.
I remember the excitement of posting stories for new flash prompts. I wish I could get into it again. It just started to feel obligatory rather than leisure. Why does one develop such negative thoughts? Especially when the end product is so rewarding, your critiques have helped me with my writing structure substantially. That and the pleasantries of reading everyone else's submissions.
360 introduced determined individuals (to each other) who dedicated much of their precious time to the development of Subversify. Dreams can come true. Regardless of their size. Subversify is a success in the making. In a sense, it was meant to be, we were meant to meet each other on 360 for a reason. That reason is here. If it wasn't for 360 there wouldn't be a Subversify. Not now, not ever. For that I am grateful. The force of finding a series of committed individuals interested in the same thing and working on it in unision is one in a million. We have that. This most certainly has worked to our advantage. (Finishes speech and gives Grainne her soapbox back.)
|
|
|
Post by sapphiresavvy on May 30, 2009 18:40:37 GMT -5
Free babysitting? Neonorth, why haven't I met you before now??? I'm going to shut down my Multiply site in record speed. It sent out an invitation to everyone--I mean EVERYONE--on my contacts list. Hence, my DAD joined as a friend. OH FUCK. I deleted a certain post ....post-haste!!! Fuck. I will never blog there again.
|
|
|
Post by karlsie on May 30, 2009 20:38:10 GMT -5
Well, that sucks, Savvy. I originally opened a Multiply account to keep tabs on Mad Scientist, who hasn't peeped a word in ages. Even though it's far easier to keep up with your friends and friends of friends on Multiply, i'm just having a hard time accepting it as my new community. From the beginning, i was an anti-blog blogger. I had no idea as to what i could possibly write that strangers would take an interest in, so decided to just use my page as a drawing board for my stories. I was a Writer's Net refugee, and had already figured out what not to reveal about my personal life, but it took me a little longer to figure what people thought was ha-ha, funny and what wasn't. Writer's Net set me straight. It's not funny to bring discussions beyond polite tea table conversation. It's not funny to blatantly flirt. Well, i'm a bachelor. That's what they do. It's not funny to poke fun at the politically correct. My funny bone suddenly felt like it had received the padding used for playing football.
I limped over to 360, along with a few other refugee writers to share and exchange in our short stories without the WN crowd ripping us to shreds. Most of that original group continue to remain active as my Internet friends, along with others i've grown attached to over the last couple of years.
I am very much of the opinion that the Internet world has few differences with the physical world. The verbal abusers, the cheerleading crowd, the players and flashers are all out there. In the physical world, we tend to move around the ones who don't appeal to us. We settle into clicques and groups of like interests. When we first go online and join the foray, we're as innocent as babes in the big cities. We learn the ropes.
I don't see much difference in the way i socialize on the net. I gravitate toward artistic people and free thinkers. I don't really remember a time when i didn't have my "gang" of musicians, artists and writers. I am completely lost in any other type of environment; a clam. My reason for going online was to work with a group of writers. I didn't have a real plan at the time. I was learning my ropes. It took several years of search, but now i believe i've found the group that soulfully craves the same things i do, and that is to bring out all their best qualities as writers.
|
|
|
Post by sapphiresavvy on May 31, 2009 11:42:42 GMT -5
If you're a Writersnet refugee, you should come to the Cafe more often!
*shameless plug*
*evil grin*
Heh heh heh.
Well, this just goes to show me again. (1) I am a total ass and (2) I really need to quit opening up on the 'Net.
Still and all, I am really going to miss 360, and blogging in general. I got really used to being able to say whatever I felt was important, whatever a few souls might share with me for a minute.
*mope*
|
|
|
Post by neonorth on May 31, 2009 12:42:35 GMT -5
Free babysitting? Neonorth, why haven't I met you before now??? Free is sort of a subjective word - the parents prey on my disdain for the educational system and its flaws so its more of a "I'll show the bastards how its supposed to be done" mentality on my part. From some of the conferences that I've attended in the States and other parts of Canada there is an untold rule that children that don't know their ABC's and can count to ten before they enter into Kindergarten will fall behind because the requirements for grade one spelling and math comprehension basics are rushed through (mostly I suspect because of the new mode of 'professional development' for teachers. Alberta has a minimum requirement of hours that a student has to be taught, the Alberta Teacher's Association - a malignent monopoly in Alberta has stated that teachers must have certain amount of hours for 'professional development' that has to be done during school hours. As a result the children in town are dismissed at 2:50 every monday to faciliate the weekly 'professional development' sessions - which the ATA has mandated isn't enough time so next year parents will be dealing with either a 2:00 dismissal or just a half day monday. This is conjunction with the monthly 'professional development' day off they have as well as the yearly two day teacher's convention. It is quite frustrating for the parents of the younger kids since kindergarten and pre-school are split between "English" days and "French Days" where currently they alternate between the languages on fridays but it will be switched to Mondays next year meaning that parents will have to try to remember which class is which and if they have it or not - remember when school was monday to friday?). Anyway, sorry, stupidity drives me quite mad, with all this hurry up and grow, some kids get lost in the fray and since the schools also have a "no child is held back" some parents get me to work with their children to give them strategies so that their child doesn't get too far behind. I find the whole situation frustrating, and the reason why I don't work in the early educational system, that the concept of 'no child is held back' is the official line of their thinking is that a child repeating a grade has a negative effect on that child's self esteem as they see their peers advance which hinders their ability to learn. For me, I think administers are betting on a certain percentage of children to fail as they progress and with the data of these children they schools can go for more special education funding as a result. I don't think that a child being held back is that negative in the long run, having a firm grasp of the garbage that they have to spew out in order to succeed in the antiquidated cattle car system should be seen as a positive. I hold three beliefs about early education: 1) The brains of boys and girls are wired differently just as they are as individuals therefore you cannot have a standard teaching style. 2) Active play is better than sitting down in a desk and looking at a blackboard 3) Incidental learning has a larger impact on a child's memory retention than rote learning. The other dirty little secret is that I'm a behaviourist while the majority of my 'peers' in the early educational system are mindlessly following the conductive line where they are brainwashed to believe that there they are student-orientated because they are teaching the child how to think. I think this is utter bullshit - I believe that you can't change the process of thinking, you can only change the behaviours associated with the individual's personal thinking style. The only person who can change that person's mind, no matter how young, is that person, especially if it goes against their developing belief system and perception of the environment they are in. I don't waste time on trying to determine how the child thinks but I concentrate on the why and work from that in order to find a way that allows them to firstly accommodate the information then secondly assimulate the information into their thought patterns. Shit, I hate when I get preachy..I meant just to say that it's a two way street in the babysitting thing - I get to keep the rust out of my neglected once calling and the parents get some ideas how they can best help their child. One of my first blogs on 360 was on an assignment I did for a program planning course - it was on Ancient Eygpt for a learning experience for five and six years old. My professor was quite adamant that Ancient Egypt was far too advanced for that age group but for the three hours I had the kids going through the pyramid I built, the making of cartouches of their names, trying the foods that would have been available at the time, the games that the Egyptians were said to play and having the kids dressed in the clothes of the era (though I had to moderate this from being as close to the experience of being there - children did not wear clothes until they were deemed women or men so discarded the fact for the play experience), role playing the different roles and the reading of the myths along with crafts the kids had a great time. The only down side is that now its expected that on occasion that I put together theme birthday parties for some of the parents who don't want to have pure chaos for a couple hours. See what I mean, I just can't get rid of this damned long windedness...
|
|
|
Post by karlsie on May 31, 2009 15:36:27 GMT -5
Neonorth, all that long-windedness means is you're a writer with a lot of things to write about. What could be more valuable to a magazine? If we don't have issues we wish to bring to the forefront, than we have nothing to write about. Never curb your mind's rambling on these pages. What you put down is essentially like taking notes for an article. The problems have to be stated before you can zero in on the solutions.
I find your stand on behaviorism an interesting one as it's a field i didn't spend a great deal of time studying, other than the aspects of conditioning, re-enforcement and the stages of development. Most people would find the educational experience i gave my children as somewhat lacking. All the learning tools were there. I gave them their choices as to which areas of education they would like to study most. Wouldn't you know, both of them had a higher interest in mathematics and science than they did in language skills. My abilities to be an adequate instructor went out the window as they out-stripped me in mathematics comprehension, consequently developing a suspicion that mom didn't know everything there was to know after all.
Teaching them to read proved an incredible challenge as my daughter had dyslexia and my son has one of those attention spans that absorbs several things at once. Nimble child. Before i had finished explaining why the wolf blew down the little pig's house of straw, he was off on why there were different types of houses. The first book i was ever able to get him to read from start to finish was Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Go figure. He scratched ninety percent of the books geared toward children and leaped straight into adult performances.
I find it peculiar that the educational system thought young children were not ready for a culture whose greatness lies in the past, yet whose heirs still exist today, when one of the first things they are exposed to are dinosaurs. Creatures who lived so far in the past all we have are a few bones and foot prints to prove they once lived and of such shapes and sizes, they may as well have been living in an alien world. Children are able to learn whatever is presented to them. If they can wrap their minds over such impossible names as Tyrannosaurus Rex or pterodactyls. they can damned sure learn about ancient Egypt. Maybe it's the reflex reaction of Christian/ Judea mind sets. After all, the Bible lessons teach you all about ancient Egypt and their particular efforts to squash humanity. We wouldn't want any contradictions in that child's early formative brain. Mercy! Don't get me started.
Savvy, i do check into the cafe on a pretty regular basis. It's a very nice place with a good group of writers. I know they are mainly interested in traditional publishing, but if they'd like to write articles or short stories for the exercise it brings in creativity and to promote their work through example on a web site, maybe we should shamelessly plug for submissions to Subversify over there. Just an idea. Don't feel obligated.
On another note, i have a golden rule. Don't beat yourself up. There are plenty of other people who will do it for you if you feel it's necessary. There is nothing more powerful than an article that's written with confidence that what you have to say is valid. That is the essence of influence. Yahoo has introduced a new system for bloggers with a format very similar to multiply, except that the page appears directly on your mail box sign in. It doesn't automatically send invitations to your friend's list. You have to manually invite new participants. I signed up just a couple of days ago. So far, only a couple other friends have signed over, but i suspect the page will absorb a lot of the old, stubborn, 360 circle.
|
|
|
Post by neonorth on Jun 1, 2009 12:03:07 GMT -5
Don't feel bad if you aren't to up on Behaviourism, it's gotten a bad rap as it is associated with Pavlov's dog experiments and uses such nasty words like operant conditioning, positive and negative reinforcement along with punishment. The thing is that behaviourism is what most of the legal system is based on since you can't convict someone on what they are thinking but on what they do. As for your style of teaching your children, it is very similar to a style that is talked alot about in North America called Reggio Emilia which is based on a town in Italy whose school system is based on the children being given various topics then exploring those in their own fashion with their peers. A lot of early educators talk the talk about how they have implemented this in their schools here but unfortunately that too is another lie that the system in North America has masked itself in.
|
|
|
Post by sapphiresavvy on Jun 2, 2009 16:13:22 GMT -5
Neonorth, I got my masters' certificate in curriculum development, during which I came across the magnificent works of John Dewey. You sound like a Deweyist at heart. He hypothesized that if (and I emphasize "if") we are willing to claim that democracy is the best methodology of government, why do we institutionalize followers of dictatorships in our schools? Excellent thinker and writer; if you haven't come across him before, I recommend him highly to you. I don't disagree with anything you've said. I still don't "get" why you give out free babysitting, though! ;p
|
|