I’m being a terrible blogger again lately. I had a whole weekend to blog. But did I? Noooooo.

I got to wondering why I am going through this dry spell and I concluded there is nothing at all mysterious about it. It’s simply a proximity to my computer thing. Well that’s the bottom line of it at least.

When I was a part of the great Underemployed Class I was here at my computer during the day. Dashing off a blog when something struck me as funny, cute, stupid, or creative was easy. But being back at a 9 to 5 means I am simply here less. And, of course, I now jealously guard my weekends and refuse to sit at this desk for any length of time.

So yeah, no real mystery.

I am going to experiment with writing down things that I think about during the week. Perhaps they will inspire me to post things more often again. I am more of a spontaneous poster..but since that is not working out for me I’ll give this a try.

One thing that did inspire me…or..well…made me laugh was this below that The Bloggess made. I love the sentiment. Less freaking drama people. Please.

But it didn’t write it down and now it is gone. Poof. Like so much ephemera. How frustrating.

I hate when that happens. Same thing happens to me with dreams. I will wake up and thing “Huh, cool (or odd, or etc..) dream” and think I will have to tell people about this one. But then just a few minutes later the thing is just gone.

Of course that idea, and those dreams, are not really gone. The brain doesn’t really forget. They are in there somewhere. But for some reason they are just inaccessible. Running away as if being chased the more I try to remember them.

When you think about it memory is really an incredible process. Quick, what did you have for dinner last night? Got it? Now think about what just happened in your brain for a moment. This virtual spider web of cells throughout your brain spring into action each doings its job to retrieve the little bits of info that will make up that memory and working in perfect, and often almost instantaneous, unison they deliver that memory to your consciousness. It really is incredible isn’t it? You are with me on this one right?

The amazing thing is scientists are still trying to figure out how it all works. They are just beginning to understand how the brain delivers all the little pieces of information to make up what we perceive to be a single memory. The guys in the white coats even say that as far as they can tell at this point there is virtually no difference between thinking and the process of remembering. Yeah memory, is fascinating.

Oh I think I may be remembering that “GREAT” blog idea. And, hm, yeah maybe not so great after all. Well this is embarrassing. So never mind. Here’s a cute puppy (falling asleep!) instead…

Lightbulb photo: Aloshbennet

Brain anatomy illustration courtesy of: Brain_Blogger

Mashup photo courtesy of Obsessed with Conformity

Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.

It’s a simple truth that human beings tend learn by screwing up. There are few better teachers in this world than our own mistakes. The next best teacher is the mistakes made by others. Don’t shy away from sharing the lessons you’ve learned with your readers. A real life story of your biggest screw up ever and what you learned from it is going to be a far better received and useful than a hypothetical example you set up.

Only the shallow know themselves.

To be human is to question who we are. We are all on some level in a quest to try to answer that universal question of “who am I?” This uncertainty causes us to seek out ways to define (and redefine) ourselves constantly. As a blogger you can help answer this question for your reader. Make your reader part of “us”. And no, this doesn’t mean you have to write deep soul searching material. Your readers may be guys who like beer, people who like cats, pop culture addicts, or people obsessed with advertising. The point is your blog can and should help define who they are.

Whenever people agree with me, I always feel I must be wrong.

Nothing is going to have them reading and commenting as much as you being a bit cheeky and irreverent. Call into question some “truth” that people hold dear and instant electricity. Sure you are going to make some people angry, but you’ll likely have a lot more standing up and applauding your stand. You are never going to please all the people all the time and while you don’t want to set out to cause controversy don’t be afraid to disagree or go out on a limb sometimes.

Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about.

Stop being so darn serious. I mean it. Really. Don’t be afraid to interject some humor into your blogs. Yes, most likely you are blogging to teach people something. This is a good thing. But you don’t want to bore them to death with a school lesson. A well placed joke can be just the zing that is needed to make your blog memorable and keep them coming back for more. Teach them something valuable AND keep them laughing and you have an unbeatable combination.

First published on Obsessed With Conformity

So you’ve done it. You’ve finally gotten yourself a Twitter account. You’ve made your first tweets. You may even be following someone else’s tweets. Now what?

Now is the time to get introduced to some Twitter Apps that will enrich your Twitter experience, or at the very least amuse and entertain you for a few minutes.

Bunches of new Twitter Apps are popping up every day. Here are just a few to get you started.

Seek and Find: Summize

Twitter itself runs pretty lean so a search app can really come in handy to help you find like-minded people or find out what people are saying on a subject.

Whether you are into baking or football, whether you want to find out what people think about the new Brittany Spears album or public healthcare policies a Twitter search engine can help you find people with tweets on those subjects.

Probably the most popular Twitter search app is actually Twitter’s own easy to use and very useful Summize. Originally written as a third party app Twitter realized the value of this well designed and easy to use app and acquired it.

Just like any other search engine type your search word or phrase into the box and click on the search button. Summize will return a list of recent tweets using the word or phrase. You can refresh to see results that come in after your initial search or click on the “older” button on the bottom to see some less fresh tweets.

You oughta be in pictures: Twitpic

With Twitpic you can start sharing pictures with your Twitter followers and perhaps gain new ones.  Once you start your account posting your pictures is literally as easy as following the 1, 2, 3 steps on the “upload photo” page.

Your newly uploaded picture will automatically be added as a tweet for you (how cool is that!?) or you can choose to just upload the picture and not have it post to your Twitter profile. You can also upload photos from your phone.

Love…Hate…Think…Believe …Feel… Wish: Twistori

Twistori is perhaps better categorized as a social experiment than an app. It pulls tweets using the Twitter search engine Summize using the specific keyword phrases I love, I hate, I think, I believe, I feel, and I wish.

The tweets are then anonymously published in a free flowing stream-of- consciousness. The result is a mesmerizing mix of whatever the Twitter Community is feeling that day. If you have used one of the key phrases in a tweet before your tweet may very well have found its way into this surprisingly addictive river of thought before.

Beautifully and simply designed Twistori is worth a visit. Once there a category will be automatically chosen for you. Click on the word of your choice to the left to switch the focus word.

Browse or Twitter?  Why choose?: TwitBin

If you are a true twittererholic and use Firefox as a browser TwitBin is a must have app for you.  TwitBin brings all your friends tweets right into your browser in an easy to use sidebar interface.

The app is totally free to use and while it does serve up a tiny ad in the corner of the sidebar it is unobtrusive and allows its creators to offset some of their server costs.

Everybody sing: TwittyTunes

Another fun add on for Firefox users TwittyTunes which allows users to share what they are listening to on Twitter. The plugin supports dozens of players so the chances are very good that whatever player you are currently using will work; allowing you all your Twitter followers to know what you are singing along to.

Oh and a nice built in feature is that TwittyTunes does not automatically submit everything you play to Twitter. Instead you are in control submitting songs you specifically want to post. This way your friends never have to know about your guilty pleasures unless you want them to.

Lights, camera phone, post: MobyPicture

For those of us with a camera phone habit the perfect way to marry our Twitter and Camera Phone obsessions is a cool little app called MobyPicture. Incredibly easy to use MobyPicture allows you to shoot and then share pictures taken on your camera phone right away with your followers.

The best part is since you already have a Twitter account you don’t even need to sign up! You simply send an email or MMS with the photo, a title (the subject line), and an additional optional description or comment (the body) to: twituser.twitpass@mobypicture.com. So for example: joesmith.joespassword@mobypicture.com.  MobyPicture will process the message and post your update to Twitter. Yes, it really is that easy!

MobyPicture will also send you a direct message on Twitter to complete your registration with them. But this is totally optional allowing you to post your pictures on other service as well. If you just want to post pics to Twitter there is no need to register.

Oh *%#@!#*: Cursebird

The final Twitter app I am going to cover is a downright silly one. Warning, this one may not be work appropriate, so use discretion when visiting the site. Cursebird is very simply a real time feed of Tweets in which people swear. Silly? Yes, certainly. Funny? Yes, absolutely.

The incredible variety of Tweets you see on Cursebird is fascinating and a good way to waste a few minutes while getting a few laughs. Watching last evening I saw everything from a guy’s Tweet about his neighbors house being engulfed in flames at that very moment (certainly might call for a swear word or two)  to an angst ridden teenager mad that her father was forcing her to wear her new ugly glasses which she hates (ah we have all been there haven’t we?).

These are but a few of the many Twitter Apps out that just waiting for you to discover them. Some are practical, many are just plain fun. But with more Apps being created every day you are bound to find a few to your liking.  Go forth and explore.