Rainy Day Monday

Labor Day. I'm ready to go to the church Labor Day Picnic. I have to pick up Sarah and Mike. No one else is going. If Sarah wasn't going, I'd stay home and do some much needed house work. It is, after all, labor day.

I've been going from room to room hunting things and finding that the problem is there is still too much STUFF! I want some space and order and I don't seem able to get there. Things still find their way into rooms and stay for no apparent reason. I need to find a place to start, and just do it. I did that a couple of years ago and tossed a lot of junk but this time, I seem to be stalled.

It is like some sort of transition step you take in the grief process, I guess. That one step is just a bit too high for me to reach. Sigh.

I've been experiencing that overwhelming hollowness again. The holidays are approaching but I hesitate to blame them. I  haven't even thought of Thanksgiving and Christmas. . . well, not much. I've been thinking about NaNoWriMo. I've been thinking about my son's impending divorce. I've been thinking about how much pain I've been having again. I've been thinking about how upsetting it is to be in chaos alone. Sigh.

All right, too much thinking.

I'm thinking about changing the name of my blog. I have done that one time and I've never been terribly happy with it. Boring.  But last night when I was downloading the missing blogs from the quickly dying Multiply I ran across one that is a snapshot of my life every single day. The title of that post was brilliant and I don't know why I didn't see it before. Well. . . I only write them once and move on so that could be why. Even the content of the post was such a snapshot of what I live that it was laughable. It isn't on this blog yet. I'll post it eventually. The name change you'll see probably sooner.

Maybe even today.

Beginning of the End

This post is made on Multiply but will be cross posted to Blogger. My days of blogging on Multiply are drawing to a close. I just deleted all post from 2006-2007 here on Multiply. It was funny because they were all from Yahoo 360. I joined Multiply in Oct 2007! That first year I was a non paying customer. I waited until I saw how it would go. Stated my premium account the next year. I downloaded only things that were missing on my blogger site. I will put those into blogger as I can. There is a feature in the post page of blogger where I can put the correct date and it will insert it in the correct order. Multiply has the same feature. So no worries. Beginning in 2008, after I started Multiply, I cross posted almost everything. So glad id did that! Most of what I didn't cross post was unimportant and I won't be moving them now. I will get through the next five years in a few weeks. Once all posts are copied, I will delete my account.

I'm actually excited about my Blogger site. Everything is going smoothly. I like the way it looks (very much like the one here, and I'm really liking the stuff I can put on the page and the fact that I can link all my other blogs together. Just makes it easy to keep up. No, I don't have the social contacts at the level I had here but I haven't been happy with the other sites I've tried and since everyone has gone in all directions, it doesn't really matter. It is odd, most of my old 360 contact joined me here but that isn't happening this time. Still, I've managed to keep emails and addresses of those I want to keep up with. And I've acquired new friends who have gone to Blogger.

If you go to blogger, look me up. I'm on G+ and that seems to be growing, too. Several of you have already joined me there. I'm still learning my way around there but it is such a new thing and they are adding stuff all the time with tutorial videos each time. So my learning curve isn't so steep.

It's late and I'm tired. I'm headed for bed. Tomorrow is the church Labor Day picnic. We've had rain for three days and I don't know if it is slated for tomorrow. I'm just glad to be off.

The Last Word

It was a rather simple explanation when I began. I was updating a profile. I think profiles are rather boring for the most part but sometimes you run across one that is just amazing to read. I decided I needed to update my profile on Blogger since it is now linked with G+. I'm on the internet in various places and my profile is one of the typical profiles... rather boring. I think I wanted to be someone exciting and special. You see, I'm not important. I've made no earth shattering discoveries. I'm not a movie star, sports figure, or Nobel prize winning writer. I am Mertice's girl; Jerry's wife and widow; Mike & Dave's mom; Sarah's Mawmaw. I mean something to them but half of them are dead. All are noble things to be but they just aren't. . . special.

So, I began to write a new profile and found myself totally stumped. I reread the old one and yes, that was me. . . the one who died when the world turned upside down and she fell off. I realized that I no longer resembled that person much, at least in my own mind and that if I was really honest, I don't really know who I am anymore. Kind of makes it hard to create an accurate profile. What could I say about who and what and why I am? I didn't know. So I sent out this email. “I need one word you'd use to describe me.” I figured I'd get something to string together and make it sound . . . well. . . special.

I emailed 18 people asking them to describe me in one word. Nothing more that that. These were people who know me to varying degrees and the time spans vary. Some hold degrees, some don't. Some are Christians, some don't even believe in the man in the moon. Of those not related to me, I've met about half face to face and the others, I've never met at all but I have held long conversations with them, a few well into the darkest hours of the night during the worst days I've ever lived.

One by one the responses came in. Of course, with the responses came the inevitable question: What is this for? I decided I'd let them know when I figured it out.

I received ten responses to my query and the order was fairly predictable but I won't identify anyone. They will know what their responses were and that's all that matters. They all sort of astounded me in one sense. They flattered me. That wasn't my intention at all. Hold on before you go making assumptions. I didn't say they were all intended to flatter me. Some words were picked because that is how some people view me and it is in a negative light. Yes, they're friends. No, it doesn't bother me. You see, I don't think I can really know me until I know how others see me. I know that how some people see me isn't always truth but sometimes it is and in both cases who I am is revealed.

So, I'm getting these words. The thing is, I'm an avid word hound. From the time I was a small child I loved looking up the meanings of words. I mean, you think you know what something means but have you really looked it up . . . in a really big dictionary? When I was seven or eight years old, my mama bought this huge dictionary. It was my most favorite book in the whole world and I used it faithfully. I've never lost a love for huge dictionaries. My current one probably weighs a good twelve pounds. It is a library dictionary – even more huge. As the responses came in, I looked up every one and their meanings. I reasoned that I'd get a broad idea of what they were saying and thinking if I had the definitions.

I must have been right because I clearly saw myself in what they gave me. I don't deny it. I doubt everyone will agree, but that's all right. That's who they are. I share these with you because this is who I am.

A very old friend, 20 years, sent me the very first word, and I wasn't surprised by the timing nor the word. PROVINCIAL: not a nice word in itself, if you think too much about it. In this case the first definition  was “narrow” meaning I'm narrow minded. But I never settle for one definition. I discovered I am very provincial. You see, I am “lacking the polish of urban society; unsophisticated.” And am I thankful that I do not reflect the current society and its version of sophistication and broad mindedness. It reeks of vanity, self-indulgence, and pettiness. It is also fairly obscene and totally lacking in character. There was a third entry for provincial: “of or relating to a decorative style (as in furniture) marked by simplicity, informality, and relative plainness”. I'm pretty certain this paints a good picture of my taste, morals, and ethics. And for those who've visited my home... a pretty accurate description of the house. Probably describes how I dress, too!

A relative sent me UNIQUE: “being the only one; sole; being without a like or equal; unequaled distinctively characteristic; peculiar; unusual”. Although I never considered myself unique in any way, she's probably right. I didn't know she thought that way about me. In light of this experiment I'm more inclined to agree now. Its a good thing.

The next response came from someone I've only known about a year, one of my NaNo group. SINCERE: free of dissimulation; honest; pure; marked by genuineness; true”. I have to admit here that I'm flattered. The truth is, I have a great desire to always be sincere. I don't like prevarication and dissimulation. I want the person you see to be the person I really am. Well, maybe its working.

One of my best never met friends called me CHALLENGING: “arousing competitive interest, thought, or action; invitingly provocative, fascinating”. We exchange some very interesting thoughts and ideas. She's wonderful, smart lady. Challenging isn't something I've ever seen in me but the concept made me smile. Bear in mind I've been called difficult by some... just saying.

I have several never met friends and this is one who has followed my trials and who's own life is filled with painful difficulties. She sent me the word ENDURE. It is a transitive verb and means “to undergo (as a hardship) especially without giving in, suffer; to regard with acceptance or tolerance”. There are times I'd rather not wear this word but when I looked it up, it gave me something. Courage, I think.

Another never met friend said I was SEARCHING. We've only known each other about a year but her word gave me pause. She's a smart woman and she's picked up on a lot in a short time. “To look or inquire carefully; to make painstaking investigation or examination.” Sometimes those who know you least, know you best? Maybe I'm just nosey? Nah, searching is good.

The next email was from a friend who also helped me get through the dark times. They sent me OPINIONATED. Its a lovely word, one people love to toss around, particularly opinionated people! I must say here that it is a badge I wear with honor. “Unduly adhering to one's own opinion or to preconceived notions.” If you truly believe in something, you don't let go no matter what the rest of the world thinks about you. No, I'm not changing. I don't expect anyone else to change either. After all, everyone has an opinion they think is superior.

I have a friend who's sister died, maybe a year before Jerry. Both she and her sister were never met friends, both wonderful Southern gals. I don't even know HOW we met! We all three chatted online regularly for at least a year when her sister died of cancer. I hope I was there for her, even at a distance. When Jerry died, she was definitely there for me. I built a whole farm on Farm Town with her as my neighbor and wrote about 50 chapters in Hidden in the Mist! All because of her poking and prodding me. We talked for hours. She saved my sanity. She sent the word ECLECTIC. I have to be truthful here. I would have looked this up even if I hadn't looked up the others. I didn't really know what it meant, even though I thought I did. I was sort of surprised. “Selecting what appears to be best in various doctrines, methods, or styles; composed of elements drawn from various sources; also heterogeneous” Hmmm, well, I like it. Totally opposite of opinionated but there ya go! Still, it summed up a lot of the other words nicely.

I actually laughed out loud when the next email came in. The word was INDOMITABLE: “incapable of being subdued, unconquerable”. I could say the same about the person who sent it. I think that is why we've become friends, we share this same characteristic and it is what allows us to engage in lively conversations in G+ hangouts and via emails. . . sometimes up to a dozen in a day! Molly Brown would have loved us!

That last letter was received a little over a week ago. Of nearly twenty people, nine responded in the first week. A tenth faraway, never met friend emailed me last week to say she was having a hard time coming up with one word but she would be getting back to me. So, I decided there really was no hurry. I waited. This morning it occurred to me that I really should start putting this together and even opened my email to start it. I was amazed to find a second email from this friend.

After I read her email I was so profoundly affected I was very nearly speechless. That's doesn't happen often. I can't really describe what I felt. Remember, I asked for only one word and she gave me one but the beauty of her reply in describing why she chose this word is one of the loveliest I've ever received. I'm glad she took so long to respond. I have to share it and I hope you can understand why this word had to be the last word.

“One word is ridiculously hard you know!!! There are so many aspects of you that could describe you and all the amazing things you do. However, I keep coming back to one word, which reminds me of how I came across you on Multiply originally. It was when you had just lost Jerry and in reading your blogs I finally understood how and why people get married.

I know that sounds weird, but having Aspergers and being useless at relationships, I could never understand why my friends chose to marry the men or women that they did. And your unbelievable deep emotions at your loss explained it all - that bone deep love and grief and pain at losing him. And although I hate that you have to continue going through your loss, I am also thankful that you have taught me that lesson. I know I will never have that but you have helped me to understand the people around me more. Thank you. And to still have you, despite the whole Multiply debacle!!

Your word is – Tsunami.”

No, I didn't have to look it up.

*All definations from http://www.merriam-webster.com/

*Multiply© is the name of an online social network.

Nearing The End

Tonight I finished downloading my Multiply videos and will begin reviewing my blog for any post listed there that is not on this site. For several years I've used Blogger as my mirror site. I didn't in the early days. I was at Yahoo 360 for a couple of years and when it closed I went to Multiply, which now has also sunk. I started here first and posted irregularly and not the same things I was putting on 360.

Once I shifted to Multiply, I began to cross post a bit more but still not extensively. At one point, I moved over a lot of blogs from here to Multiply but not vice versa, mainly because Multiply has no export feature. It would make our lives, those who are abandoning ship, easier. So, I've downloaded all my albums, all the videos I want to keep and all that remains is pulling posts off that I want to save. It was tedious doing the first two. The third will be horrendous.

 I've been monkeying with the appearance of my page. I don't do that often but one of the favored features at Multiply was the ability to "dress up". I encourage you to stop by my blogger site and see how I've changed things. You can decorate. I used the same wallpaper that I've had up on Multiply for a while. I have my NaNo buttons, albeit at the bottom of the page to save space, but they're there. A tag box is also at the bottom.

There are dozens of gadgets you can add to your page. I've picked things that appeal to me. You may choose different ones. And if you're really handy, you can design your own gadgets. I suspect that in a few weeks I'll take my site down on Multiply for good. I'm rarely there except to keep up with my friends who remain. Many have disappeared but a lot of them have followed me here and are using G+ as well. I'm glad. I've gained a few new friends, too.

That's the only aspect of the shift that seems positive, at least in the beginning. However, the more I've been forced to use Blogger and learn how to do things I wasn't doing and how many new things they have that I didn't know about, well, I'm not missing Multiply as much. Yes, I miss the community interaction but I've been able to get that with those who followed me to G+. I was skeptical of it at first but it works pretty good. There are not a lot of you. But I can select a circle of people, in this case called Blog Friends, and see their posts and comment and even chat in the comments in real time. Cheryl is learning her way around and we've sort of tested the waters. And I've been able to respond to comments in the Blog itself. I check my dashboard each time and it tells me if I have comments awaiting because I've got moderation turned on.

So, I'm content with the transition, more so than I ever was with 360. And now, I'm going to bed. The day was lousy and tomorrow I go back to work. The only good thing is that next weekend is a long weekend.

Long Week, Short Weekend

Somehow there seems to be a great injustice between the week and the weekend. I don't know who decided that the week should be 5 days and the weekend 2 nor why. They could just as easily have made it 4 and 3 or 3.5 and 3.5. Equal number of work days and days off. 

I think they should find the person who decided we have to work 40 hours a week. Really. He's probably dead now so any revenge we could take is impossible. 

I'm not rested and relaxed. I did laundry, went to lunch, picked up Mike and Sarah and went to Wal-mart with my sister to get some items. It ended up being a couple of hours. When we got home I was just too tired for anything. Sarah seemed to have a good evening playing with my sister. She played school. Anyone ever done that. She was teaching Phyllis the sounds the letters make. I kept forgetting to raise my hand... you're supposed to before you talk. 

Anyway, I took Mike home and Sara around 9:30 and continued to sit in a chair . . . very late. Found out my mother fell and broke her right arm between her wrist and elbow. She was out watering plants around 9 pm?!!!! Needless to say no one is happy about it. Her left arm is useless from a couple of previous falls. She can't do anything with it as far as I can tell. It is even crooked. So now I have no idea what she will do. 

Must head out to church now. I'm depressed this morning. I don't know why but it makes it harder to leave my house. I'd rather go to bed. But I'm not having company this afternoon. I'm considering shutting off all the phones. I don't like doing that.

Soak Your Feet In the Ocean

A New York retail clerk was suffering from aching feet. "It's all those years of standing," his doctor declared. You need a vacation. Go to Miami, soak your feet in the ocean and you'll feel better." When the man got to Florida, he went into a hardware store, bought two large buckets and headed for the beach. "How much for two buckets of that seawater?" he asked the lifeguard. "A dollar a bucket," the fellow replied with a straight face. The clerk paid him, filled his buckets, went to his hotel room and soaked his feet. They felt so much better he decided to repeat the treatment that afternoon. Again he handed the lifeguard two dollars. The young man took the money and said, "Help yourself." The clerk started for the water, then stopped in amazement. The tide was out. "Wow," he said, turning to the lifeguard. "Some business you got here!"

The Bridge

I get a joke daily from GCFL.com. Today's joke just tickled me.
John lived across the river from his backwoods neighbor,Clarence, and the two feuded constantly. They never missed a chance to throw rocks and yell insults over the water.

One day the Army Corps of Engineers came to build a bridge. John was elated and told his wife he was finally going to get his hands on Clarence.

When the bridge was finished, John headed off, but he returned a few minutes later. 

"I never realized how big that guy is," John said sheepishly to his wife. "I headed for the bridge, and then I saw the sign: 'Clarence - 8 feet, 4 inches."

Easy Ways to Travel

I've had a couple of comments on the extra page feature in Blogger. It is simple to add pages to and put a tab on your main page that will take folks to either another page in the blog or to another website. 

On your Blog Dashboard, check the left menu for Pages. Select that. On the next screen, you will see a layout with just one box titled "Home". At the top is a button with a drop down menu. Select New Page. It will bring up a drop down menu that will allow you to select whether you want a webpage or a blank page. If you select a blank page, you will get to add what you want on it. If you select a link to another website, a box will open where you type the name of the page that will appear on your tab in one field and in the next field you will put the URL for that page.

This isn't complicated. The URL is the site's address and is located in the browser address bar. Copy it and then go back to blogger and paste it in the field for URL. This is where I love the feature in browsers that allow you to have several sites open in tabs. 

Once you finish inputting the information, you save it, save the blog and then go look at the main page of  your blog. 

If you have several blogs or other sites you want your guest to navigate to, this is a great way to do it. This makes it easy to move to another site. Remember, that navigating back from other sites will have to be via the back button if you don't have links set up but I've tried it a few times and it isn't a big deal for me. I really love how it came out. If you want see how this looks, check out my blog. A Series of Unforseen Circumstances

Rehash of the Past

I started this blog last Tuesday!  Crazy! But thinks got hectic and I got busy so it didn't get finished. Fortunately, the opening of the post is so appropriate. I began with -Sometimes titling a blog is such a chore! It's Tuesday morning and the sky is at least 10  shades of gray. No rain as yet but that's nothing new. This year it often clouds up and doesn't rain all over.

I didn't talk about my writer's meeting but someone did post a comment asking about it. Writer's meeting last week was a lot of fun. Those gals are just a hoot. I always have a good time. And anyone who says divorce lawyers are not amusing hasn't met Laurie. 

I formed the group because my local group was breaking up. I don't think it was intentional. They all were so busy with home, work, school, family and friends and people couldn't come to the meeting, no one was writing, and discussions had become about everything but writing.  I know when I disbanded it they were all hurt by it but it simply wasn't a writing group anymore and there were too many meetings where just one person showed up. That's not a group. We could meet and shoot the breeze any time but I needed to be involved with a group of people who wanted to write, wanted to talk about writing, and who needed an outlet to do that. I miss the old group a lot but no one has since suggested we meet to just shoot the breeze and that leads me to think my gut was correct. We were all burned out with the group. I still see a few of them on Facebook but haven't had any invitations to lunch or just to visit. But that's o.k. things change. People do, too.

The biggest difference in the current group is it meets only online. We're strung out across the US and it'd be really impossible to meet any other way without Google hangouts. Laurie is on the East coast, Samantha on the West, Cathy is in the NW, Kat, Chris and I are in the mid-west and Phyllis is in Texas. Fortunately we were able to settle on a time that seems to work pretty good for most of us and while not everyone makes every meeting,  because ultimately life is happening all the time, most of us do. And we have a good time of it. If we find less than three are going to attend, we reschedule the meeting but those who want still may "hangout" just to chat. And that's  really nice.

And now we get to today's post. It is really a gray day. And it is much cooler - 71 degrees. Nice if the sun was shinning but it isn't and so it is a bit cool. I am hoping the cold weather will hold off until October but I'm betting not. I'd like to see my moon flowers bloom if possible and they need at least a month more of warmth I think. I was a bit late getting flowers in this year because of the heat and how I felt. But the sidewalk looks great.

I've got my blogger blog tweaked a bit. Helping some of my friends get started has actually helped me learn some new things. Multiply really did have a great format and it is unfortunate that they are ending it. However, I think life will be better for me if I'm not managing so many blogs in different places. If you look at the new tabs at the top of my blog you will see I'm a bit over extended. I'm going to update at Multiply via Blogger until I get all my stuff downloaded. That's why the titles look different. Blogger emails a copy of the blog to Multiply where it is posted. I can do the same from Multiply and used to do that. The weekend was busy so I didn't do any downloading but I'm hoping to finish up the videos this week.  Once I'm done with that, I'll start deleting albums. I still would like to see an import feature for the blogs. So far they appear to have made no efforts in this direction. I hate the copy paste feature! We'll see what happens.

Oh, one other thing. My friend, Kris, had a great idea - a Photo tab a the top as well! I think it is awesome. I'm going to put one for my Youtube Channel, too. So cool!

A Great Idea

I stole a great idea from Jilly, one of my friends on Blogger. Blogger has a feature where you can have more than one page on your site. The page can be a "Post" page showing where you can post a variety of links or something special you want to be readily available but no a link on your home page. Or you can make the tab a link to another site. 

On Jilly's blog she created "Quick Notes" where you can leave comments. She can see these comments and respond. It makes it possible to have threaded comments, sort of like the guest book feature on Multiply. Really wonderful idea really. And I've copied it a and expanded on it. You have to turn on threaded comments in Blogger, by the way.

As I've said before I have about six Blogger blogs that are active. Some are closed to everyone but invited readers. A few are open to all. I've used Blogger's "pages" feature to add these as tabs at the top of my page. I'm thrilled! It is easily visible and so handy. Clicking on a tab from my home page takes you right to my other blog. I occasionally let people in to read some of these and this makes it easier than sending a bunch of links.

Thank you, Jilly!

More Assorted Questions

The Reader questions are now coming in. Don't worry! This one is easy. Just so you know, my reader says I have 1000+ items. Yeah, daunting. But really, it is simply not a problem.  I usually just go in and mark them as unread if it is something I'm not going to have time for. If I want to come back later, I leave it "unread". They're still on my list, I just don't have to bother with them.

The reader doesn't "get rid" of things. It marks them as read if you ask it. Or, when you click on one, it will be grayed out from that point on unless go back and mark it as unread. You can tell the reader to mark ALL as read. New items show up with a darker title. You will be able to easily tell when you have not read something in the reader. 

You can sort your list several way. Look at the buttons with drop down menus. Virtually every item has one. You can sort the list of subscribed items by "drag and drop". I put all the blogs I'm subscribing to in together. I did this by dragging them to where I wanted them. I also subscribe to some news sites. I don't read those all the time so they're at the bottom of my list. I've just deleted the subscriptions to Blogster I had because they don't work. I can't read them in the reader. I have to go to the actual site and I can't go from the reader title, which I should be able to do. So for me, that's it for Blogster. Too many things I can't do.

Multiply inbox uses this same principle that the reader does. Yes, items disappear when you read a blog but if you select "Posted by me" or on the name of a person in your list, you will get all the post they ever made... both read and unread. The read ones are grayed out. The difference in the reader and the Multiply inbox is that, in your inbox they vanish but in the reader they don't. New items are just put at the top. 

Another thing you can do, if you don't like the Google Feed Reader is find another reader. Do a search for Feed Reader and you'll be able to look at some others. Try them. Your email program probably has a way to read feeds. Outlook, Windows Live Mail, Thunderbird, Firefox, Netscape, etc. all have a way to do feeds. 

So no, you can't "delete" things from a reader. It updates the feed. Feeds are live updates that belong to the person and you're being allowed to read them, typically offsite. As I commented on Wendy's Waffle, think of the reader as the daily mail. Sometimes you get junk. Sometimes you get good stuff. In the reader, as you scroll over the items, they are marked as read IF you tell the reader to do that in your settings. Once marked, it is still on the list but grayed out. You can ignore it in the future. You will only scroll down as far as you haven't read anyway.

Ideas for Photo Storage

I'm looking for places to store my photos. I use photobucket now for various items but it is limited unless you pay. Since I won't be paying for Multiply anymore, and blogger is free, I may actually save money. Paid service is $1.67 a month. In all honesty, I doubt I'll do this anymore. It was one of Multiply's best features. You could share dozens of photos in albums for friends and family to see.

Picasa has software you download free to edit photos. Integrates with Google.

Photobucket is good.

Here is a list of 20 low cost/free photo/video storage sites.

http://web.appstorm.net/roundups/media-roundups/top-20-photo-storage-and-sharing-sites/

A Busy Day Ahead

It is a gorgeous day here. Beautiful sunny skies, 75 degrees! I had coffee on my front porch and read my devotional there. Then read a bit. I am getting ready now to do the bills before heading out to lunch with my children.

For my multiply friends, go to Cheryl's g+ page and you will see how the comment interaction really works. I got a notice on my G+ button that comments were posted. I went to read them and saw Cheryl's post and the comments listed. I'm going to post this blog and you should be able to go to my G+ page FROM Cheryl's and read the post I link. You can comment on the G+ page to that blog because the Blog if you have your browser set for tab uses, the blog should open in a separate tab.

If you don't want a lot of strangers on your page, just don't add people you don't know and don't follow people you have no interest in. Can other see your page? If you have everything posted to public. But you can block comments from anyone but your circles. If you post only to your circles, the Public can see. So you can shut G+ down very tightly by posting only to circles. I suggest staying public until everyone decided where they want to go so you won't miss a friend looking for you.

Don't forget to add people you want in circles. We can't get to your page if you lock up tight and don't have circles that include us. I'm public virtually always. But over time, I know my  G+ is going to be locked down a bit. This is a much larger exposure than Multiply.

Once added, I can see all your posts on G+ and blogger if you link the two through the notification process.

Ok. I'm off. If I forgot something I'll post it later.

Tips for Those Using Blogger

The Blogger Buzz is a great place to get information and help for issue in setting up various aspects of Blogger. I already posted a link from there in the previous post. Here is one with Tips for New Blogger users.

http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/09/tips-for-new-bloggers.html

Anyone using Picasa for photos may know it is already intergrated into Blogger. So for those looking for a place to move their photos, this may be helpful.

You can get a button for your browser called Blog This! If you are on a web page reading something and you suddenly get a blog idea from it, you can click the button and it goes instantly to a post page with the link already there and you can write your post.

http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/06/blog-this.html

http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/07/creator-vs-curator.html

Not for everyone but there are a number of template types in Blogger. The video here will help you see them a bit more clearly.

http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/09/dynamic-views-seven-new-ways-to-share.html

The dashboard's new look

http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/10/update-bloggers-new-look.html

You can see that the Buzz is a good place to find help on the basics.

Grow your Google Blog

The following link will show you how to connect your Blogger account with G+ and allow you to share content and comments on your blog via G+.

http://buzz.blogger.com/2012/07/socialize-with-googleplus.html

Sundries

I started this in response to a post of Jilly's! When it got so long I thought, that's rude! I decided to make it a post but Jilly.... it was in response to your's. LOL

I really wish Multiply would give us an import tool! I'd like to save all my post as there are some I posted here but not on Blogger! I think that is why people are leaving now. If we wait to the end to get our stuff off, we might lose it. If we have to go to all this trouble now, why stick around? 

I've nearly downloaded all my videos but it takes days to download one year and I've got six years of them. I already did my photos and I can only hope I got them all as I could only download full albums from the specific album page. It was so tedious. I will never save photos to a blog site again.

I shall stick with blogger. I'm having more trouble on Blogster trying to get into blogs to read and post. It is already stressful enough having to backup multiply that I don't have the patience to deal with the technical issues on a strange site. And I've been trying to help people with Blogger questions. I know it is all confusing but as Jilly said, we were in similar straits when 360 failed. I know everyone will find a suitable site and settle in... but some of us may, in fact, lose track. It is why I'm so glad everyone is exchanging emails and links. If you're my contact or just a person who pops in and reads me, my blogger link is at the bottom and send me an email. 

My Google reader is full, too, but you can get rid of some of it all at once. Just have it mark "all as read". Once you get sorted out you can go to those sites and read. I have about 20 blogs on my reader now, this doesn't include other things I subscribe to. I think it will take time to sort it all out. The one good thing about the reader is I can scan and see if it is something I'm wanting to read today. LOL! Not everything is.

I'm going to get very busy in another month. National Novel Writing Month is November but I am the Municipal Liaison for my region and I plan on starting in October to rope people in and have my meet and greet for them before the end of the month. I think it will be easier if I do that. Maybe a cake and some drinks and enough time to chat everyone up. I enjoyed it last year. 

It is now well after midnight. I stopped to watch something on t.v. and time got away. I'm posting this anyway as I can't remember if there was anything else. 

Hasta manana, amigos.

A Series of Unforeseen Circumstances

"If things improve with age, then I am approaching magnificence." - From the side of my blue coffee mug.

Insights, Ponderings, and Certainties

I've has several questions and comments on Blogger/G+ use and features. Google has intergrated Blogger and G+. This is a good marriage and I expect, over time to see it fine tuned. The features of commenting and seeing comments people make are in G+ and your Blogger links are added to G+ by the you at the time of posting. 

People can comment both places. Only G+ has a notification icon in gmail or as an extension in Chrome. I'm not sure about other browsers but I'm guessing if not it will eventually. You select who you want in your circles and who you follow.  It can be five people or as many as you like. You can limit who is allowed to comment in both G+ and Blogger. Anyone can follow you in G+ but not everyone has to be allowed to comment.  If you "Follow" a blog on G+ you will get all the updates. There is a widget on the top of my blog for that.

 

That's what G+ is for, really. People comment on blogs on G+ and notification is sent to you by means of a little red button extension in Chrome or your gmail account. It's all linked and will become more so I think.  I see a notification about every post I commented on when someone else comments through G+. 

G+ is doing everything Multiply and FB do because of this integration. I'm not crazy about some G+ features but I wasn't crazy about all of M's either. And I really don't like FB. Google is known for modifying things to meet the demands of their members. I suspect some features will morph over time.

Getting all kinds of questions from all quarters on the features, or lack thereof, of Blogger. I'm definately going to be using Blogger/G+ as my primary blog. I've been experimenting with Blogster and I just don't find it any fun at all. It has basic blog features and comments with a list you can read them from but I'm getting all kinds of glitches. 

I've been using Blogster to see how I like it. I don't really like it at all. I'm not finding a lot to interest me there. Or maybe I'm just bored with the whole thing. But it has issues I don't like.

For instances, I usually can't get in Jilly's blog there. We're on each other's lists and notices arrive but the links don't work. I'm not going to mess with that long... I've already reached my limit, in fact. There are problems with fonts being small and you can't adjust them half the time. Most of the people I've been running into are nice enough but most of the material is not as interesting as the bloggers I ran into here. Could be because it is still small and I don't really know more four or five people. There is limited "decorating" ability and I really enjoyed that. It's rather boring to look at, actually. I can't email post to the blog. I can't cross post to any other blog. This is a great feature to have and multiply and blogger both have it. In fact, with both I could cross post to half a dozen other sites! So this means I can blog on breaks at work even if I can't get into the site. I also get emails of your posts. That is a feature of Multiply and Blogger. I have it turned on for Multiply but not Blogger. I subscribe to a lot of blogger blogs! The reader works better for reading them and the active link allows me to got to it to comment.

Some mentioned you can't get the threaded comment feature in blogger and the responses to your comments. Yes, you can. When you comment on a Blogger post, you just have to "subscribe to the comments". You will get a notification when other people make a comment to a blog you've commented on. IT goes to the email you have in Blogger.

I elect to get things via my gmail because everything is integrated and it just makes it easier since I'm at work 40 hours a week. And even at home it is convenient at times. For a long time I've been using the email features of Multiply and most of you didn't know unless I said so. I even comment on comments via email. I'm writing this post in email in response to comments to another post that I got in email. In Blogger you can't see comments on other blogs without going back to the blog unless you are getting email notifications for that. 

Threaded comments are possible in blogger. Someone mentioned this previously. Under Post and comments > Settings make sure you select "Full" for embedding. Under Settings> Other, Allow Blog feed should be set to "full". 

Instructions here: http://support.google.com/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=1725597&topic=12456&ctx=topic

To seen comments you leave on other blogs, you have to backlink feature on and you also need to subscribe by email to the comments on the blog you comment on. As with all sites you have to select the features you want to work. The backlink instructions are here: http://support.google.com/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=42533

Subscribe to comments to get updates: http://support.google.com/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=79117

Ultimately, you're not going to find every feature you want anywhere. You are also going to have to learn something new.That's hard for most of us. Annoying for all.  Every site has features you're not going to know how to use unless you learn. I've been using Blogger long before 360. There are features available now that were not available when I started there. It has evolved tremendously but it is a stable site that will probably be around when others leave. I should know. I've been on two sinking ships. The fact that Google bought blogger several years ago is good indication of its stability. So, for me, that makes it a good choice, even though I can't do some of the things I want in the way I'm used to doing them. I've compensated for the social interaction by utilizing G+ for hangouts and FB. If more friends sign up, it will become feasible to utilize G+ more than Facebook. My writing group is already using it for meetings. We use FB for group interaction on a group page. So there are ways to link up and make do. 

Unfortunately, it is difficult to start over at anything. Most of us took a long time to set up our page and get it like we wanted it. We liked changing wall paper for each season, hanging photos, videos, and  gifs that reflected our personality. There are places that offer all that without the depth of social interaction found on Multiply. But if you want to keep in touch the way you have here, there are alternatives that make it possible, too. You just won't have as much of the other.

I'm not letting Multiply rob me of the friends I've made and I'm not going to sweat over recreating the wheel. I'm almost done downloading my videos and photos. I should be done in another week. I'm gradually learning more on how to coordinate blogger and G+ to get features as much like the ones I've used here and to utilize the features of FB to my advantage. I'm having a great time in my group page. I'm enjoying G+ and the hangout feature. I have always loved Blogger and more so now. So, all I really have to do is keep up with all the people who have been with me through some wonderful times and who have held my hands through the darkest time of my life. 

We'll all survive. We've done this before. We're pros at surviving sinking ships.

"The greatest blessings are not seen, they are experienced." -- Dixie

A Series of Unforeseen Circumstances

"If things improve with age, then I am approaching magnificence." - From the side of my blue coffee mug.

One Problem Solved!

I'd like one a day, please!

I've been fretting over Multiply closing and not being able to keep up with all my friends in the variety of formats they are choosing. I mean Blogster, Blogger, G+, FB.... my head is spinning and I'm going nuts trying to keep up. Also, I don't want to register with another potential sinking ship. I know things change on the internet. It is in constant flux. But come on... Multiply was a badly thought out decision and they will be the ones to pay. I just don't want to do this again.

So, my solution was right in front of me. RSS feeds. Yes. I went to my Friends on Blogster and subscribed via RSS Feed. I have Google reader in Chrome but you can get it in IE, too. Or you can chose another reader. Doesn't matter. For me, every single blog I subscribe to on Blogger is already out there. Every blog I subscribe to on Blogster via RSS fed is also on the reader. I now have all the blogs of I subscribe to in ONE place. I can read them! For the blogger blogs I have only to click on the title and it takes me right to that posts where I can then comment. I can't seem to get into Blogster that way but I can at least read and when I have time, go comment on the site.

Jilly, I can't get into your second blogger site. Not sure it if matters if you aren't going to be on there but I can get into one of them. Blogster gave me trouble today getting into your site. I tried on clicking on the notice of your post at the top and it would only take me to the home page. You're site was the only one to do that so not sure what caused it.

I feel better. But I also see that I have more blog friends that I realized! Still, it is nice to know I can still read them.

Lost and Found

A lost post.... found in my drafts and written a month ago.


I don't know what it is about a quiet day in the back yard, at least my back yard. The sound of the fountain chuckling, the cicada trilling in the trees, and Sarah's incessant chatter only add to feeling that things are how they should be. It isn't a feeling I've been able to hang onto for very long.

The absence of family to fill the yard is a great sorrow. Sarah is the only child who plays here now. Even she feels the emptiness at times, constantly demanding that I "watch" her. Children like an audience, either of their peers or someone they know who likes them. There is little likelihood that this will change. She is five and  will start school on Wednesday. Instead of my family growing it has all but disappeared. There are days when I would almost think I had no children at all. I spend a lot of days wanting to go home but that is no  longer there. They're all dead. Jerry's death left the greatest hole of all, impossible to fill.

I have been contemplating what I should do. More and more I've thought of quitting my job, selling my house  and leaving. I stay the reason we all do, medical insurance. And I have six years before I'll have 20 years  with my employer. I know that the house will be impossible to maintain on my own but the thought of leaving  the last place I was ever happy is painful. I don't want to go but I don't want to stay. There is nothing here but memories and they are marred. There is not much here that makes me happy anymore.

I've been thinking, maybe too much, that the job doesn't matter, the insurance doesn't matter, the house  doesn't matter. Nothing does. It is a depressing thought, yes, but maybe true. I work to live, nothing more and life is no longer much fun. One is forced to reason if that is the case, they why am I doing what I'm doing? I have no answers.

Maybe I'll feel differently after my trip in September. I'm supposed to go to Gatlinburg with my aunt and uncle. I like being around them. They are the youngest 72 year olds I know. They're younger than me, at
least where it counts. We will spend a week at a cabin. There's a hot tub and the RA and fibro will love that. Sitting on a deck looking at the mountains with no one wanting something sounds good.

I keep asking myself if I was ever a positive person. Did I ever do anything but complain and grumble? I'll have to read back over my blog. It goes back to 2005 and surely I haven't always been this much
of a bummer.

Someone ask me how I was this week and I said I'd been having a rough couple of weeks. That's probably an understatement.

Busy Saturday

I spent the morning doing very little. It took a bit to get moving but once I did I went to lunch at my favorite restuarant and on the way home picked up my granddaughter, Sarah and then we went and picked up Uncle Mike. They came home with me and Mike started on the yard while Sarah and I played Old Maid and Go Fish before getting out and helping Mike take care of the yard work.

Thankfully, the day was mild compared to the triple digit temps we've had all summer. I think it might have gotten to the low 80's today but it was beautiful out and not unplesant.

We pulled weeds and got things cleaned up. The yard actually looks more like a yard at this point. Green grass... although it is spotty.

There is a penalty for this. I shall very likely pay it tomorrow. For those new here, I have rhuematoid arthritis and fibromyalgia. My husband died  January 29, 2009 of a massive heartattack around 3 a.m. during the worst ice storm in memory. So, I have good days and bad ones and there is no way to predict what it will tomorrow will be like but with all the weed pulling I'm not expecting it to be good.

After I took Sarah and Mike home I came back, got a hot shower and have sat and watched Midsomer Murders on Netflix. I think that now it is time for me to turn out the lights and attempt to get a good nights sleep. I'm tired.