Really Just a Delivery Tool for My PodCamp PowerPoint Slides

Another PodCamp Pittsburgh has come and gone.  I am again reminded that the Pittsburgh Social Media crowd could beat any group on earth in a cage fight, turf war, or mud wrestling match. And we'd look good doing it.

Look, not to bemoan the point, but if you are in any way active in social media (and if you're reading this, HELLO! You are!), you really should make it to an event like this one. PodCamps are held all over the United States, as are a number of other conferences centered on social media. And remember, just because a conference is free doesn't mean it won't be good. In fact, in my experience, the opposite is true. Those who organize and present at free conferences are in it purely for the joy of sharing information with others. They are experts. They just happen to be the type of experts who aim to lift up the community, rather than the type of "experts" who are out to make a quick buck.

As for my presentation, thank you so, so, so, so, so much to everyone who sat in on it. There will be video of it available at the PodCamp Pittsburgh site in the next few weeks. When that's ready, I'll be sure to post about it here. In the meantime, the PowerPoint slides are available:

Blogging 201: Finding Fodder 52 Weeks a Year #pcpgh5

View more presentations from burghbaby.

And, in case you're still rolling your eyes at me about whether or not you should make it to a future event, how about taking a look at what other people have said?

This video comes via Pittsburghonvideo.org:

Coming Home to Podcamp from Melissa Carey-Budd on Vimeo.

(I have a crush on the woman in that video. True story.)

Oh, and speaking of people rolling their eyes at me, I could hear Sheep the Moon rolling his eyes at me when I mentioned PodCamp on twitter. Yes, I COULD HEAR IT VIA TWITTER. I think this post means I get to say I TOLD YOU SO.

Not that I would ever gloat or anything. Ahem.

If you don't want to wait a whole year to get involved and you're in or near Pittsburgh, there are ways to get involved now. For one, you can attend a tweetup. There is a site dedicated to listing opportunities. There is also burghmom.com for parents (mostly moms, but there are some dads who show up as well) who are active in social media. The lady who updates that site is a little crazy and slightly unreliable about posting things in a timely manner, but rumor has it she is trying to get better about that. She probably won't succeed, but at least she tries.

More on PodCamp to come . . .

I Could Have Stood There and Watched Them All Day

(Psst . . . if you came looking for a PodCamp summary or my slides, they're coming. Soon. Just not today.)

One of These Things Is Not Like the Others

There are remarkably few photographs of our entire little family. It's not because it's difficult to get us all in the same place at the same time. It's not because we don't have an camera which is quite capable of snapping a photo without one of us behind the viewfinder. It's not because there aren't plenty of opportunities. All of that? Totally not a problem.

The whole thing has often annoyed me almost as much as Dora's screeching voice. I try to schedule something with a professional. I try to get someone who happens to be with us to take a photo. I try to glue some people down and force compliance. None of that works. It turns out what I really needed to do was to have Alexis come home with a school assignment that required a family photo.

Someone is incapable of saying, "No," to Alexis.

Bet you can't guess who the Grumpy Grumperpants is that won't normally let me take family photos.

Oh, and a less zoomed in photo tells a whole other story:

Our dogs would be really good at photo bombing, if only they were a little bigger.