Google Translator Widget

Come One...Come All!!

Ok, so I was on Krapsody's blog the other day seeing what's up and looking around I saw this translator widget (if you're questioning what that is, take a gander over to your right, scroll down a bit-yep you got it, that is a Google Translator widget) and as you can see I had to have it. So I Googled it, found it, and then put it on my site. I like the mini version over the big daddy in your face one.

If you do not want or can't put this handy dandy little tool on your blog and/or website there is still the free online translation tool I talked about a while back so you can use that. I just think this tool is less labor intensive and a lot more versatile-just me though.

This is the freak that I am, I have been getting a kick out of clicking on the translator to see my blog in French, Spanish, etc... (probably going to skew my site stats-duh!) I had no idea I wrote so beautifully in those other languages-I am quite impressed with myself!

I am not sure how much it will be used but because I want everyone to be able to hang out on this blog I thought it was a nice addition to the page. As a side note, according to Lijit (check out the map icon also located on the right side) I did have some viewers from Calcutta-sorry no Bengali translation...bummer, Luxembourg-oh yeah we have French and German for you buddy, San Paulo-nice we have the Portuguese for you, Tripoli-dang no Arabic, and so on and so forth.

So we will please some but not all, but well that just sums up life doesn't it.

Alrighty then so on this tech toy I give it 5 out 5 Smart Gals (Oh yeah that's right top ranking-this is mostly because it kept me entertained for a good 20 minutes today)

Cost FREE....entertainment value PRICELESS!

A Trip Down The Rabbit Hole...

For those of who read my blog, I am sorry it's probably a little confusing, this blog for me has been a bit of a brain dump. I write what I want to write about and it is interesting to see who reads which posts. I have techie posts, girly posts, random posts, and even frustrated posts there are some people who read all of them, and then those that gravitate to what suits their particular tastes. I may one day split this into two blogs but we will see if and when that happens.

I initially embarked on The Get Smart Blog for research, to observe the intricacies of using blogging as a business tool. I have written articles, used video marketing, written a blog all for my mortgage business so I know how blogs add value in the real estate world, but I needed to see how it worked out in the less industry specific realm. I have had so much success using technology and the Internet in my business that I started a consulting company teaching others how to do it. I am an emotional person, as you saw in the Wrath post, but I am also a very analytical person and for me I have to have a passion for something before I will take it on, then I have to reason out how it can be done.

So I am always watching and taking mental notes, thinking about how I can use the information coming at me, it can be a little exhausting at times. I am like a sponge and I always want more. I have books, T.V's., and notepads in almost every room of my house. I carry a digital recorder with me (that is no longer compatible with my computer because I have Vista-ridiculous) everywhere I go so I don't forget a great idea. I am a research nut, actually I just love to learn and then I get excited about teaching what I know to others. So embarking on the consulting path, I realize now, was a natural progression for me and something I love doing. What I didn't expect to really take to was blogging, for me a blog was a tool to be used to give depth, and increased exposure for a business, I honestly didn't think I would like it.

It really hit me this last weekend, I needed a break from my computer and a little human (in person) interaction, so after my post on Saturday I spent the rest of the weekend out. The weather was great here, met up with some friends, had breakfast at a great little cafe I love, coffee at another great little place. Went to a quaint local book store picked up some books, I did bring my computer to the coffee shop on Monday, but other than that I was computer free. Like I said before I like to observe, so sitting having my coffee I watch people and their interaction with each other, taking my little mental notes. The realization I came to was that there is more of a sense of community on the Internet then in the "real" world. As I sat there I noticed people were interacting but only in their comfortable little groups not with strangers, for the most part at least-there were a few people that struck up conversations with strangers next to them.

I am not excluding myself here, because I was either reading, listening to my iPod, or so busy watching that I wasn't developing lasting relationships either. I of course wasn't the only one playing research scientist, I think most of us like to people watch, so while everyone there was out in the community we were all in our own little worlds. I was so in my own little world, that when a girl approached me to ask me if I knew that the guy who just left was sketching me, I realized I had been oblivious to someone sitting 10 feet away me watching and sketching me. I had to laugh which made the girl laugh and started us talking, so I did meet a few new people this weekend.

Crazy as this sounds after looking at all of my posts, I am a very private person, and blogging requires you to open up and let people get to know you as an individual not as a business, while you in turn get to know them. Sharing "personal" ideas and experiences freaks me out a little bit but what is even more astounding is how easy it is to get caught up in it. I wasn't expecting to meet people, enjoy interacting with other bloggers, or to actually look forward to that interaction - I am still a little surprised by it all. In the mortgage business my blog was geared towards customers, prospective clients, strategic business partners, and the general public but not on a personal level more as an informational supplement to other marketing pieces. So the nerd in me is enjoying the depth and breadth of what a blog can be and the little extrovert-I didn't know I had in me-is enjoying the aspect of just throwing it all out there for the world to see. Finally, the part I am most enjoying is the sense of community in blogging, and the people I have met and continue to meet here. I have had a great time contributing to this blogsphere.

I love surprises and this whole experience has been a beautiful surprise, and because I am a smart ass I have to make note here that only a woman could rage one day and throw out a mushy post like this the next! So I want to thank you all for reading this crazy blog and I look forward to our future interactions....

It's a Wrath Thing!

Today's sin boys and girls is Wrath, and I am writing about Wrath because I have a lot of it! I am not sure if it is the hormones starting to kick up or something else. I am angry because I have to write this post, I am angry because the website I have been working on for the last two months is still lacking, and I am angry because there are real morons in the world! Yeah I said it you heard it, there are some people out there that just piss me off!

I have a temper, it could be the Irish in me, could be the vertically challenged thing better known as little gals syndrome - I am 5’3 and 107 pounds soaking wet but I will kick your butt. You know Bruce Lee wasn’t a big guy either! Who knows why I have this wicked temper, but I have for as long as I can remember. I was one of those kids that actually liked horror movies. I am also a big sports fan especially physical sports, football, hockey, rugby, UFC, soccer if there is a little blood.

Seriously though I can be very reactionary, I flare up easily so I have had to train myself to stop, breath, think, and then act. If you couldn't tell, I was a scuba instructor that is a mantra we taught divers to keep them from killing themselves, really I said it so often because I had to remind myself that I couldn’t hurt them-they were paying customers. My nickname was Dive Nazi because I was not so nice, especially to those that were just plain…well you can fill it in. Crazy thing is those people, my former students, still like me-well actually most of them were guys we know what gluttons they are....

I had to take a behavioral profile for a job 6 years ago and the first line in it said “Bridget is intolerant of people who seem ambiguous or think too slowly. She may lose interest in what others are saying if they ramble or don’t speak to the point. She should exhibit more patience…[yada, yada, yada].” I was sure they were going to fire me, amazingly my boss thought it was the perfect behavioral profile for the position – I should have known then she was going to turn out to be psychotic. The descriptors for my malady are controlling witch Dominant Influencer, I will first try to persuade you to see it my way and then I will make you. I really can’t understand why I am still single?

I do flare up quickly but I also burn out pretty quickly. On top of that if you can make me see how stupid I am being -without saying those words - that is if you want to keep both of your eyes in your head, and make me laugh I am quick to humor too. In my advancing years things do roll off a bit easier, I am either maturing or just getting lazier, getting pissed off takes a lot out of you!

OK so I feel better now that I got it all out, not so annoyed that I had to deal with slow people all day, and like I said last week I guess this carnival every Tuesday thing is turning out to be a good thing…I suppose. I could be feeling better, smiling even, because I just listened to Lilly Allen's songs Smile and Knock Em Out - terrible but she always puts a smile on my face!!

Don’t forget to check out the other Sin Sisters:

Ssgreylord

Huckdoll

Caffeine Court

Secrets of a Black Heart

CableGirl

Planning a Vacation?? - Journeypod.com

Summer is almost upon us and for some of you luckies out there that can mean Vacation Time!! I love travel, the more exotic, adventurous, and out of the way the better. In my “younger” days cheap was in that list also, not that I don’t look for a good deal now (I will always be a deal girl) but cheap can also means not the nicest and I’m not afraid to say it but I want some pamper in my vacation.

First let me tell you what spurred this post, I was watching Top Chef – yes this Smart Gal likes a realty show, I don’t like that many and I am not an Idol watcher sorry, but there are a couple out there that I DVR – anyway the winner of the challenge received a luxury trip by Journeypod. “What’s this” I asked myself. The word pod got me thinking Ipod aka tech, and we know how much I like that, and then the luxury piece -well any girl likes luxury. So I just had to check out this website. It is an interesting website with vacation destinations that span the globe, from Iceland to San Francisco and points in between, this site touts themselves as the insider on the life of luxury for the jetsetter.

A little snippet from their website:

Whether its luxury vacation ideas, luxury travel destinations, luxury hotel information, luxury holiday travel, journeyPod means luxury. We have the insider’s information about international nightlife, boutique hotels, luxury resorts, and luxury travel Europe. Scope out our nightlife reviews, celebrity travel gossip, and restaurant reviews. JourneyPod has the lowdown on what to eat, what to buy, where to be seen, and who you'll see when you get there. Whether its San Francisco bars, London nightclubs, or Miami restaurants, the latest celebrity gossip, or where to find your favorite celebrity chefs, journeyPod is the one destination guide that has the most up-to-date info on exotic travel, luxury holidays, luxury vacation, trendiest restaurants and luxury travel.

Let’s review what your GetSmartGal thought:

Not So Smart:

1. Events – They listed 8 events total in their main events page (not many) and they were wine/food and Hollywood events. I was hoping for more events, varying themes, with some exotic locales. Note: the podcast piece makes up for this page.
   
2. Hotel “deals” these aren’t deals they should just stick to the informational piece and leave the “deals” to the more established online players like Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity, Priceline, etc..
   
3. Site is a little labor intensive and disconjointed, the podcasts take you to another web address making it difficult to get back. There is no directory or search box on the main site and the one on the podcast site is useless. The longer they do this, they started in 2006, and the more they put on this site the worse this will get.
   

Smart:

1. The podcast supplements; this for me makes this site, the topics vary from destination overviews to “insider” information, and then they sprinkle in the glitzy factor with the behind the scene interviews at events.


2. Dig deep in this site and you will find a lot more, they have specific city pages, a blog page, the podcast area, and some must be at events scattered throughout.
   

Overall this website it pretty interesting and has some great tidbits that will get the travel bug itchin! For me this would be a startin off point, then I would need to go somewhere else to set up the travel package, and then I would probably pick up a more in-depth travel guide for the trip. Not bad though I will definitely keep it in my Google reader and check back occasionally to see what’s up.

I give this site 3 out of 5 Smart Gals.

Why I Like Lijit.com

Lijit is a “personal” search engine it is a tool that allows people to see what you are up to in the big beautiful social Internet world! It covers social and group associations, all of your content, blog statistics, and your blog buddies.

So let’s break down what I like about each area:

Social & Group Associations - Lijit is a handy way of showing people where you are at and how they can find you. The widget is easy to create, you can put it anywhere, and it doesn’t take up much room.




My content – This portion really falls in line with the social & group associations, by clicking on the icons you can go see what I am digging, stumbling, favorite(ing), Twitting, etc. You can also use the search box to search through my blog posts. The thing that would make this a bit cooler would be if you could use the search box and it searched all my social sites as well as my blog for content. It would also be cool if they could add Ted.com I love that site and Qik.com so I have another reason to get a new phone (hint, hint).

Blog Statistics - I like this feature most of all. I am a visual person and I have control issues like clear cut organization with cool graphics, Lijit has that and more. The site shows you page views, top posts, searches, and where readers came from. The where is the coolest because it not only looks at where on the Internet you are coming from but where in the world. It breaks it all down with summaries, charts, graphs, and pictures – yes I am a nerd and proud of it!




Blog Buddies - I haven’t really availed myself of this feature, it includes your blogroll, any blogs you want to watch (Google reader does this for me), blogs in MyBlogLog communities (easier to pick thru than MyBlogLog), and other Lijit users (I don’t have any Lijit buddies).

Search Engine - I hadn’t checked this feature out much until I wrote this post but it is kinda cool if you know what you’re doing with it. You can put in search terms and it will first search my blogs and then you can also search the web (web portion powered by the Google gods). I know that a couple of people have used it because my stats told me so! Whoever you are I hope you found what you were looking for, thanks for not trying to look up porn!

Support – Initially I wasn’t too happy with their support because I couldn’t figure out how to get to them quickly (it’s that instant gratification control thing I have). Then one day I got frustrated because I couldn’t figure out how to get Lijit to recognize MyBlogLog and Flickr, in my frustration I blasted a b*#^chy twit/tweet, whatever. It said something like, “Lijit is p#@^*ing me off and the worst part of it is that it’s probably my fault” well within minutes Tara from Lijit Twitters me. So sweetly too; “I saw your twitter can I help you?” Once I got over my shock and Big Brother conspiracy moment I got her to help me, and I apologized for slamming them on Twitter (my mother told me my mouth would get me in trouble one day)!

Walking the Talk – So it turns out that Lijit is using Twitter to get in touch with their members and for customer support. That is pretty cool…I like it! I am not sure how long they’ll keep that up, have you seen what people put on that site (well duh you just saw what I brilliantly put on there)? But it is pretty sweet that they are out there in the thick of things.

So be careful what you say on Twitter - they are watching….

Qik.com - Live Streaming Video from your Phone

Qik.com, Qik enables you to stream live video directly from your cell phone

Another cool toy I can't use because I am a Verizon Girl!! It is becoming an AT&T/iPhone world...I am not a big conspiracy theorist but if I were I would definitely smell something here...

Now, I am not a 100% sure which carriers have which phone models-you will have to check that out on your own, so if it turns out that Verizon has one of these phones, hooray! I have a Crack I mean Blackberry without the camera because Verizon can't get in the game doesn't have that model. In any case Blackberry and iPhone don't look to be compatible at this time. Some of these Nokia models are cheap though, I would spend the dough just to have the cool factor...live streaming video from anywhere that is too much! (for those of you who aren't sure what this is-no stupid questions here-it means that what you record on your phone can now be seen live on the Internet)

Here are the specs for this service from their website:

Just point your cell phone and stream video live to your your friends on Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, etc. OR use your cell phone like a camcorder and stream hours and hours of video without worrying about storage on your cell phone.

Since Qik is new to this they say that they are constantly adding support for new phones - which would be nice since none of the phones are Blackberry or iPhone! Currently, they support video streaming on Nokia S60 phones: N71, N73, N75, N76, N77, N80, N82, N91, N92, N93i, N95, E50, E51, E61i, E65, E70m E90 Communicator, 3250, 5500, 5700 Xpress Music, 6110 Navigator, 6120 Classic, 6121 Classic, and 6290. You also need a Data Plan and it is advisable to have an Unlimited Data Plan from your service provider as video streaming can consume considerable amount of bandwidth.

This company is in their alpha release so registration is only through invitations. If you are interested, you can go to Qik.com and enter your phone number. They send you an SMS with a link to verify your request. Once you click the link from the SMS and confirm your request they will evaluate your request and get back to you.

Now there are no more excuses for you UFO people not to have better proof, instead of those messed up blurry pictures, now you can stream your encounter live on the Internet. This is going to change everything!

Seven Deadly Sins...Avarice/Greed

It is that time again… Terrible Tuesday with The Seven Deadly Sin Carnival! For the love of Joseph I cannot believe I have seven weeks of this (that is my sloth talking and I am sure that the love of Joseph thing is blasphemy so I am off to a good start here). I picked Avarice this week, partly because I forgot what it meant, so I thought it might not apply to me, hence an easy post. Wrong! Avarice boys and girls is another word for GREED, that little green devil that makes you ravenous for the Qwan.

Honestly Greed and Gluttony are synonymous, but those crazy Christians like to keep you on your toes, so they throw the same thing in under a different name. No actually I think Gluttony is more sustenance based and Greed is more monetary…we all know the Scrooge story don’t we? So how am I Greedy…I guess if I am going to dig deep here I am probably greedy for things. I have a lot of things, closets, a garage, an extra bedroom full of things. I am a bit of a pack rat I think, I am told I could cloth a developing country and the shoe thing (well we just won’t get into that).


In my defense I do try to offset my greed with helping others, I want nice things but in return for that I work hard and I give back. I’ve been told that I do not charge enough for my services, if you ask anyone who’s worked with me they will tell you I am more interested in getting the job done right then how much I am going to make from it. Don’t get me wrong, like I said I want nice things, so I am no Saint here but I get real joy out of helping someone else.


Now that I threw in that little side note to make myself look better -next posts are definitely pride & vanity, I should look around and give some of this stuff away. Take the less is more road, there are so many people out there that could benefit from the stuff I take for granted. Besides a natural disaster could hit here tomorrow and all of this stuff would mean nothing! That was that cute little angel on my left shoulder, that trampy little devil on my right shoulder is saying, “if you get rid of some of this stuff (Ebay) you could get that alkaline water thing you want!!“ It is a constant struggle really, to find that healthy balance of giving and receiving.


So you tell me is it ok to have more than some, not as much as others, but more than you truly need? What is true greed, how do you quantify it? According to Wikipedia the accumulation of possessions that denies others legitimate needs is greed. That is rather ambiguous, how should I know if I am denying someone else, I am no Scrooge but I am no Gandhi either. In my work I help others but I am rewarded for that so does that count?


I think it is all a matter of perspective, I look at Warren Buffet and Bill Gates, both ridiculously wealthy men and both incredible givers. Warren lives frugally while Bill lives “a bit” more lavishly, but are they Greedy men? I would say maybe a little here and a little there but overall (disclaimer here I don’t know them personally so if one turns out to be a serial killer there was no way I could have known) I think they are good people who have done a great deal for others. In the end if someone can say that about me I will know I did alright.


And I will not try and take all those shoes with me when I go, I will let them go to those who need them most – excluding a pair of Manolo Blahniks. I mean I have to wear something and those are the only ones that will go with the outfit!

Don't forget to check out the other carnival members: (I am sure there are more these are the ones I know of)

Huckdoll
Caffeine Court
Secrets of a Black Heart
CableGirl

Voice Cloud-Turns Voicemails into Text

I seem to be saying this a lot these days….but I was out there checking out the blogs and I found this cool new service called Voice Cloud. I saw this post on an activerain real estate blog by Roberta Murphy which she contributes to Pat Kitano and I have no idea where he found it so hopefully that is the end of that list. In any case I was intrigued by Roberta’s blog title which was “Cool New Tech:Voice Cloud.” The blog post was short and to the point (which I love but do not do myself) and stated here is a new FREE service that will transcribe your voicemails into text emails.

How cool is that? Now when someone leaves you a message you get an email with the mp3 file, an email of the text transcription of the message, and you can also get a text message of the transcription. Wow…that was a mouthful!! You can choose one, a combination of, or all of the distribution methods listed above. This service is still in beta testing (probably won’t stay free for long) can be used on mobile or land-line services, works with most major carriers, and is done in real-time. For myself the mp3 of the message came right away, the email transcription comes about 4 to 6 minutes later as does the text transcription.

This new company on the block started in 2007 is headquartered right down the road in the same county as me and did I say it’s FREE!! The website says currently there is unlimited voice/transcription storage and retrieval (we’ll see about that), 24/7 customer service and support. They also have “a specifically designed interface for the iPhone.” (I am so tired of the iPhone getting all of the super cool interfaces) What happen to the Crack Blackberry being the cool toy to have? I may need to switch to AT&T especially if they are the only ones to get the new Blackberry this summer-it’s a conspiracy I tell you!!

So check it out and tell me what you think of this service….so far I think I’s pretty nifty.

Revolution Money Exchange.....Paying $25 to $500 to get your Business

Have you heard of this site called Revolution Money Exchange?

Well I was making the blog rounds (the sum of my life these days) and I got sucked into signing up for this new money exchange site. It sounded interesting...as anything free does, and I decided to jump in and check it out. So read on to find out about it...

Launched in 2007, based in St. Petersburg, FL., aparently it is trying to place itself as a viable alternative to money processing companies like PayPal and OboPay. The biggest advantage is the no fee money transfer feature if both parties are Money Exchange members. Also you can link it to a bank account to transfer money back and forth. If you have ever had to wire money to someone you know how expensive and time consuming that can be.


Money Exchange assures customers that it fully insures its funds. According to the site the accounts are issued by First Bank & Trust, Brookings, SD, Member FDIC and part of the Fishback Financial Corporation. It also lists series B venture capital funding from Citi, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, Revolution LL to further the validity and staying power of this very young pony.


Addressing security issues all MoneyExchange transaction information is transmitted with a Secure Socket Layer (SSL) connection - like all financial institutions. In addition they request a personal identification number (PIN) before authorizing any transfer of money, thus ensuring an extra layer of security. Finally, the whole process is secured via a multi-factor authentication process and limit the amount you can transfer daily as well.


The list of free services includes:


FREE to register for an account
FREE to add money from your bank account
FREE to send money
FREE to receive money
FREE to request money
FREE to electronically transfer money to your bank account


A transaction fee applies for check withdrawals ($2.50 per check), check stop payments ($20 per check), paper statements ($5 per statement), ACH returns ($35 per returned ACH), and overdrafts ($35 per overdraft).


Some drawbacks to the Money Exchange service are its limits. It has a daily limit of $1000 USD and a monthly cap of $2500 USD right now. At this time, money cannot be sent or received internationally. You must be a U.S. resident to register for MoneyExchange. In addition, your MoneyExchange account can only be linked to a U.S. bank account. Money Exchange is cutting out the worldwide web compenant by not addressing foreign clients for many freelancers, borrowers and sellers. Hmmm...something to look into.


Money Exchange offers a solution for sellers to place an item for sale on their own website, eliminating the fees associated with PayPal, eBay and other auction sites. If Revolution Money Exchange were to increase its transfer limit to a more substantial amount than $2500, I think they could be a viable contender against these other sites as well as possibly motivate banks to start implementing easier and cheaper money transfer procedures. Wouldn't that be nice.

I Got Your Back M Night Shyamalan

Ok so I was out there making the rounds the other day and I went to Tim Fox’s blog, he is hysterical you have to check out his blog, he comes up with the best stuff and I always leave there with a smile on my face. So anyway, he had this M Night Shyamalan post, comparing M Night’s movie collection to being in a steadily deteriorating relationship.

His take on M Night’s movie portfolio is as follows:

“Sixth Sense which was a classic [Unbreakable was good], Signs was ok, The Village was garbage, and Lady in the Water was one of the worst movies ever.” He isn’t optimistic about The Happening and that's putting it mildly!

Ok, so normally I would just laugh at his blog (it was funny), make a comment, and move on. The problem is that Signs came on the teli the other night and I had just read his post. You see I liked Signs and I liked The Village and I know people will think I am mad but I liked Lady in the Water also. There I said it I like them all, the dirty secret is Lady in the Water. I actually didn’t like it the first time I saw it, because it wasn’t what I expected, but I watched it again and I liked it. Could I watch it a hundred times like say Troy....with Brad Pitt’s soft porn shots- OMG where did that come from get back on topic, no but that doesn’t mean it was horrid. Honestly Unbreakable was my least favorite because Bruce’s character was just so damn pathetic! Not that Bruce wasn’t a little depressing in Six Sense but in Unbreakable it was the same guy just worse and so annoying – you find out you are unbreakable – buck up already!!

I thought Signs was great, it’s an overdone theme yes, but a few parts made me jump, a few parts made me smile, and I have been able to watch it more than once (true test of a good movie). The ending was predictable but how many endings aren’t, we can’t expect Six Sense every time? I think that is the real reason folks were disappointed with subsequent films, it’s because we don’t like it when people deviate from what we expect. Shyamalan does Hitchcock horror really well, but does that mean that he can’t do anything else? Stephen King gets that also, he should do one thing, and one thing only right? Nope! One of my favorite King books is “The Eyes of the Dragon” a dark Arthurian type fairytale about two boys (Lady in the Water also fairytale based theme) that has absolutely no gore and a lesson to be learned.

You know for all that Stephen King has done he has had his share of duds, bad reviews, stumbling points, and well it takes a few broken yokes to make an omelet doesn’t it? If I had stopped checking out his work after his poor reviews I would have missed out on some good stuff. I think that M Night Shyamalan has a lot of creativity and a uniques perspective on things. In expressing what’s bottled in that expansive imagination he is allowed to take some unexpected turns.

I for one am looking forward to The Happening I hope that I do not have to eat my words after this I have faith in M Night’s abilities as a story teller. I am a little nervous about Mark Wahlberg but his brother was awesome in Six Sense so why not… who knows he may surprise us? God I hope so …oops that was meant to stay in my head.

So Tim I turned your funny dating post into a movie review…sorry I just have to express myself it’s a sickness!!

The Grand Experiment

Always looking for new and inventive ways to increase exposure to your blog page? Well you have to be out there researching, connecting, and exchanging ideas. It takes time...a lot of time and can be quite addicting! There is so much out there, really interesting and entertaining blogs sometimes it is hard to consistently and regularly visit them all. But you have to be out there networking in order to get them to visit you and increase your exposure.

The more inbound links a blog has, greater the chance that blog's rank either for Google or Technorati will be. which means more people will stumble onto you and hopefully increase your readership. To that end a group on Blogcatalog is looking to "Stick it to the MAN" by creating a Link Mob. Here is the group on Blogcatalog, LINK MOB

There is a lot some debate on whether this practice, of link stuffing or link farming as it is called, is good or bad for your rankings or if it can even get you totally kicked off of the search engines all together. I found a good article at Net Mechanics that goes through the issues with this practice.

I am always one up for a new challenge experiment so here I am, checking out whether this link exchange boosts a blogs ratings or not....so will I perminently be kicked out of the search engine world never to be heard from again? The prudent thing to do here would be to keep this in the world of theory/debate, to be a good blogger and keep plugging along in a very responsible manner...

And She's Off!!


POWER TO THE MOB!
1.Stick It To The Man
2.Dizzy33
3.Syed Kazim
4.Mungoblog
5.Roshan's Blog
6.sw33tcheeks
7.multsidegeaba
8.therealmaccoy
9.ulupongdotcom
10.brownflava
11.scott-ford
12.mydrift
13.wierdo site
14.skashliwal
15.indiana jones IV
16.gorean refuge
17.Rani the Brainy Rani Dababneh
18.artizle
19.original sharp says
20.neugen's eyes
21.five finger
22.makemoney-onlineguide
23.sonis-bloggingresources
24.minimalsource
25.baza of gaza
26.life of a gamer
27.zh infospace

28. Bluntwit

WujWuj...No More Crappy Gifts

Party Time!! I don’t know about you but for almost all party occasions my friends and I use evite.com. Evite is easy to use, easy to manage the guest list, it’s cutesy-which of course is important, and it can be monitored from anywhere. So when planning a get together most of the time I go to that site to do it, but I was out there surfing the web again…I have no life, and I found a new site that I think is super cool!!

WujWuj.com is evite with group gifting (evite+egift)….how killer is that! WujWuj according to the website stands for With Upmost Joy – like it. You sign up, which is free, create your event, add your attendees, and you can then select a gift or gifts for everyone to contribute to. So if you have a graduation, special birthday, or anniversary, anything that you want to get some people in on a good gift for-now you can do it online. Hence the tag line... No More Crappy Gifts, you know you want to say that some times, but that would be rude. So now this website can say it for you.

My family is everywhere, California, Florida, Hawaii, Washington, Colorado, Maryland, the list goes on. Trying to get everyone coordinated to go in on a gift is difficult, who’s contributing, who collects, who purchases, who delivers the gift it is always such a pain to figure out. So this website looks great, you pick the gift it is included in the invitation, your invitees (is that a word?) go to the “event” page contribute to the gift, and WujWuj purchases it and sends it to the address listed.

I love the virtual world!!

So that’s today’s get smart tip, I would love to hear your feedback about the site….

Chris Abani on Ted

What an amazing man!!

Imprisoned three times by the Nigerian government, Chris Abani turned his experience into poems that Harold Pinter called "the most naked, harrowing expression of prison life and political torture... In this deeply personal talk, novelist and poet Chris Abani searches for the heart of Africa through poetry and narrative -- including his own story of artistic and political awakening, which began with an inventive teacher who taught him the forbidden history of his own people. How, he asks, can we reconcile stories of terror, war and corruption with one's enduring sense of pure wonder?

The Forgotten Dialect Of The Heart

How astonishing it is that language can almost mean,and frightening that it does not quite. Love, we say,God, we say, Rome and Michiko, we write, and the wordsget it all wrong. We say bread and it means accordingto which nation. French has no word for home,and we have no word for strict pleasure. A peoplein northern India is dying out because their ancienttongue has no words for endearment. I dream of lostvocabularies that might express some of whatwe no longer can. Maybe the Etruscan texts wouldfinally explain why the couples on their tombsare smiling. And maybe not. When the thousandsof mysterious Sumerian tablets were translated,they seemed to be business records. But what if theyare poems or psalms? My joy is the same as twelveEthiopian goats standing silent in the morning light.O Lord, thou art slabs of salt and ingots of copper,as grand as ripe barley lithe under the wind's labor.Her breasts are six white oxen loaded with boltsof long-fibered Egyptian cotton. My love is a hundredpitchers of honey. Shiploads of thuya are whatmy body wants to say to your body. Giraffes are thisdesire in the dark. Perhaps the spiral Minoan scriptis not laguage but a map. What we feel most hasno name but amber, archers, cinnamon, horses, and birds. -Jack Gilbert

Ode To The Drum

Gazelle, I killed you for your skin's exquisite touch, for how easy it is to be nailed to a board weathered raw as white butcher paper. Last night I heard my daughter praying for the meat here at my feet. You know it wasn't anger that made me stop my heart till the hammer fell. Weeks ago, I broke you as a woman once shattered me into a song beneath her weight, before you slouched into that grassy hush. But now I'm tightening lashes, shaping hide as if around a ribcage, stretched like five bowstrings. Ghosts cannot slip back inside the body's drum. You've been seasoned by wind, dusk & sunlight. Pressure can make everything whole again, brass nails tacked into the ebony wood your face has been carved five times. I have to drive trouble from the valley. Trouble in the hills. Trouble on the river too. There's no kola nut, palm wine, fish, salt, or calabash. Kadoom. Kadoom. Kadoom. Ka- doooom. Kadoom. Now I have beaten a song back into you, rise & walk away like a panther. -Yusef Komunyakaa