Pizza night
Posted on September 28, 2007 in the Hiking, Ranting category
We have some friends coming up this evening - tomorrow we are hiking up 4043 foot Mt Passaconaway. Its about 4.6 miles from trail head to summit so it will be considerably longer than our first 4000 foot club hike but most of the trail is much less of an incline (until the last third or so).
So this evening we are going to make some home made pizzas. I admit, it is much cheaper to make your own pizza but the real reason is that I make a pretty good pizza. Sometimes I make my own dough but tonight - for the sake of time and my sanity - I will be using fresh pizza dough from the store. The stuff from the store is kind of bland so I usually season it with olive oil, garlic, basil, and oregano and it turns out pretty good.
I haven’t told Vinny yet - he gets so excited when we have pizza that I do not tell him about it until it is ready. He jumps around shouting “peesa, peesa!” until he actually has some on his plate - its so funny. I will take some pics and post them later. Which reminds me, I think I will be putting more pictures of the kids up - partly because they are so darn cute and because we have family that is far away that would like to see them more often.
The allure of gaming Digg
Posted on September 28, 2007 in the Uncategorized category
I started out this blog only with the intent of sharing my experiences as a work/stay at home dad. It was purely for the amusement of writing and if anyone else was actually paying attention, that was just a bonus. After all - who else but myself and (maybe) my wife would actually want to read what I was writing?
A year later and I find myself at a crossroad of sorts. I have begun to monetize the site to some extent and I find myself falling into a money-first mindset. What I am saying is that I sometimes find myself trying to come up with something to write solely based on its perceived monetary value. While there is nothing inherently wrong with earning money for your efforts, thats not my original intentions. I make no excuses for wanting to make some money with my blog but content will always come first - if quality starts to slip then readership will slip and the whole point would be moot.
Something that has caught my attention recently has been generating website traffic through the use of social networking sites. No matter how you look at a website - whether it is a purely commercial site or something like a blog - its about getting as many people as possible to visit your site (an even keep coming back!). It is partially a mission of mine and partly because I don’t have the expendable income right now that 99% of the time I use free methods to generate traffic for my website.
I have stated in the past that I missed the boat when it came to sites like Digg and Technorati, however, I have been trying to make up for lost time by researching all of the methods possible for getting my site and/or articles bookmarked by these sites. Of course it wasn’t long before I found a few sites that offer guaranteed Diggs - for a price of course. Admittedly, I was interested in both sides of this coin - getting guaranteed Diggs and getting paid to be one of the Diggers. I could use what I was getting paid to then pay for my own Diggs. All it would amount to is free marketing which fits into the overall mission, right?
Then my conscience (and reality) hit me. After reading a post over at schechterTech about trying to game the Digg system, I had a change of heart. They specialize in entrepreneurship and strategies for technology businesses and you can find a wealth of information at schechterTech on MicroISVs and start-ups. Back to the point, Schechter attempted to beat the system (as an experiment) by paying for Diggs through the User/Submitter website. He outlined on his blog that he submitted a completely unoriginal “story” that was really just a sales pitch for one of their products. He submitted, paid for hundreds of Diggs and then sat back and waited. After a couple of days he ended up with a good deal of Diggs (not as much as what was paid for - partially refunded) from people that were paid to do it. His ad/story actually ended up on the first page of its category but it was soon buried.
This failure struck a chord with me that leads me back to my original point - its about content. Digg users (that is, the ones that aren’t paid) can spot spam a mile away so if your submission isn’t about the content first then you will fail. Even though he ended up with over 60 Diggs, he didn’t actually get much in the way of additional visitors to his site nor did he make any money on the product itself. This was a purposeful experiment designed in a way that showed the real power of social bookmarking sites - Schechter would not endanger his reputation or that of his business by truly engaging in this activity.
News and changes
Posted on September 28, 2007 in the Home Business, Marketing category
Over the next couple of days I will be making a few changes to the site - nothing huge, just some layout things and links. I had to get rid of that widget box for social bookmarking because it was slow to load - I will be replacing it with a few select buttons for the most important sites like Digg, Technorati, Del.icio.us, etc. I think I will be limiting it to 4-6 buttons which will make for a cleaner presentation. So if you visit and things look a little weird its probably because I am testing things out.
On another note I am the Featured Client at the Creative Consultant starting October 1st. Owned and operated by Nicole Hayman-Sherman, she offers all kinds of design and marketing services at a great price. Check out her website above or The Idea Shop for more information.
Just FYI - this is a totally un-sponsored, freely offered testimonial. I have used her services in the past and I am very happy with them.
What does cash look like again?
Posted on September 27, 2007 in the Uncategorized category
Sometimes I think about the what the world will be like when my children are adults. One of the things that always comes to mind is money and how it will be handled in the future. I tend to think that cold hard cash will have all but been replaced by debit cards or credit cards of some sort. Even today, I usually don’t have any cash on me (and it has nothing to do with the fact that I am usually broke anyways:)
Right now, credit card is king. There are literally thousands of options to choose from when selecting a credit card that it is tough to know where to even start. When picking out the right one for you, it is important to be able to compare features and benefits which is what The Co-Operative Bank allows you to do. From platinum cards to reward cards, they have all the details you need to know to make an informed decision. My favorite card they offer is the Clear Card. Among many other benefits, it offers a 59 day window in which to pay off a purchase interest free and a 1.25% donation for good causes when you make purchases on your card. Offers are good for UK residents only - check them out today!
Need to pay more attention
Posted on September 27, 2007 in the Parenting, Stay At Home Dad category
On occasion, we let Vinny watch TV - usually one or two shows on Disney is all he gets for the day. The other day, we let him watch Shrek . . . oh my goodness we have created a monster.
Now he goes around talking about Shrek and Donkey all day - asking for them every 30 minutes or so. It even came to the point where tonight we actually had to say goodnight to Shrek, Donkey, and Fiona before we went to bed. And to top things off, a family friend bought him a Shrek t-shirt just yesterday (complete fluke - she had no idea he was such a fan!).
The problem is that there are a couple of scenes in the first 2 Shrek movies that aren’t OK for toddlers (yes, I know they aren’t G movies). We had been fast forwarding through any of the violent parts or parts that may be scary for a young boy but one got by me today as we were watching Shrek 2. Alright - truth is I put it on as a distraction so I could clean the house because we are having guests over tomorrow . . . does that make me a bad parent? Wait, don’t answer that. Anyways, in Shrek 2 there is a scene towards the end that is reminiscent of COPS where they are chasing Shrek, Donkey, and Puss in Boots. I felt horrible when Vinny came running too me crying for “kitty” when they captured him with a noose and threw him up against a wall. Vin was so worried that “kitty” was hurt - I tried to explain things but its rather difficult with a 20 month old.
Guess the moral here is that I need to pay better attention (perhaps not even let him watch much of anything, duh) to what he sees. I am sure there are more of you out there than would want to admit that have done something similar - its just so easy to fall into this trap.
Anthony’s Song
Posted on September 27, 2007 in the Uncategorized category
Growing up we moved a lot - at least once a year. When I remember things in the past I usually can relate where we lived to the school that I was enrolled in. It wasn’t fun but we did what we had to do at the time. I have lived all over Florida, upstate New York, and now in New Hampshire. Now that I have a home of my own, I will be happy to never move again because I remember how much of a pain in the rump each move was because we never had the luxury of movers to do it for us.
I remember moving from Florida to New York very well. What amazes me when I think back are all of the logistics to have figured out before we drove one mile down the road. This was back in the 80’s, pre-historic times to say the least as there was no such thing as the internet nor the site HomeBulletin.net that specializes in free moving tips & quotes. Whether you are moving locally, across country, or even across the world, HomeBulletin can connect you to a moving company to take care of all the details for you. So now you know you don’t have to go it alone - take advantage of the free, no obligation quote from qualified moving companies in your area.
My 20 month old son loves Gwen Stefani
Posted on September 27, 2007 in the Parenting, Stay At Home Dad category
My son is infatuated with Gwen Stefani and it’s all my fault. Vincent, all of 20 months old, asks (several times a day) to watch either “Hee Hoo” (a.k.a. “Sweet Escape”) or “Tick Tock” (a.k.a.”What are you waiting for?” He will actually get up and dance along with it and try to sing along. Of course he wouldn’t even know who she was if I didn’t listen to her myself - one of those things that most guys probably wouldn’t have the kajones to admit 
I have been a fan of No Doubt since the Beacon Street days and unashamedly admit that I am excited to hear that they are in the studio together again. Its definitely time for some new material.
As for Vincent - the poor boy doesn’t have a chance when it comes to music. Where I have yet to develop any real music skills of my own (someday I will) I still consider myself a “musical” person, which is to say that I love music and I hope to pass on my enthusiasm to my children. And to that end (and for my own enjoyment) I Tivo Gwen or No Doubt every chance I get. The funny thing was that it took only one viewing for Vinny to fall in love. I should clarify, though, that I am pretty sure he actually likes the music too, not just Gwen or the videos, as he enjoys listening to it in the car as well. Which just reminded me - when he was quite young, from about 2 months until about 1 year old, he was a big fan of Dave Matthews’ Band (again, my fault). The second track on the newest album “Stand Up” called “Old Dirt Hill” would be the only thing that would soothe him enough to fall asleep in the car. He still likes listening to Dave Matthews but its no longer necessary to get him to fall asleep.
Another tool for my arsenal
Posted on September 26, 2007 in the Uncategorized category
If you are a return reader of this blog, you know that I am always looking for a way to market my business - and cost is always an issue. Primarily my business is marketed via word of mouth from friends, family, past clients, etc. but I do, on occasion, spend money on actual marketing materials.
This past spring I bought some vinyl letters for the back window of my Jeep Cherokee. It was great for a while but because it was on my back window, the window wiper started ripping letters off. So now I am looking for another inexpensive idea to help market my business.
I learned about magnetic truck signs by checking out BuildASign. I just spent some time on the website designing my own custom magnetic truck sign. The interface they have is quite easy to use and is intuitive. Take a look at the sign I created at the end of this post - it took only about 10 minutes (and that was going through multiple versions). You can upload images, clip art, change the text or location of any item on the sign, and you can customize the colors you want. The great thing about magnetic signs is that you can put them on different vehicles - not so with vinyl lettering. BuildASign does all of this at a great price - even huge discounts for multiple signs.
This says it all
Posted on September 25, 2007 in the Politics category
I don’t often talk about politics here - simply because most of what I am focussed on is my family life. Even still, there is, on occasion, something that will pique my interest for some reason and this is one of them.
This satire of American Democrats is much more accurate than you may think at first blush. Voting for president is a hugely important issue that should be approached with solemnity deserving of the office. However all too often it becomes a race of glittering generalities about which candidate is more deserving or more qualified. Frankly it makes me ill every time I hear the questions “is America ready for a woman president” or “is America ready for a black president.”
Can the questions get any more shallow?
I truly do not care what color you are or what gender you are - I want to know what kind of human being you are, what do you stand for, what are your values, how are you going to be a true leader? We do not need another pandering politician who governs by mob rule and opinion polls instead of doing what is right. A leader is someone who is able to articulate his/her plans for the country and rally people behind them not someone who is looking to cater to the fleeting whims of society.
One last thought for now - are you going to vote based on gender or race? Should this even enter into your decision. I don’t think so - wouldn’t this be considered reverse discrimination?
Here is how I will decide who to vote for as next President of the United States. I encourage everyone to try this on your own. I will warn you, it wont be easy. It will require decisiveness, introspection, and a little bit of effort.
I am going to write down what I truly believe in. Examine every issue from a personal, local, and national standpoint and decide what I hold as truth. I need to know what I think is important - I don’t necessarily care what the candidates feel is important. From this my decision will be all but made for me. The idea here is that you need to be comfortable with your own beliefs before you can vote for someone based on theirs. This is far too important to vote based on some shallow media talking points.
The art of war
Posted on September 25, 2007 in the Uncategorized category
I have tried many tactics to market my business, some more successful than others. One thing that I have done was attend a trade show. The first one (and only one so far) that I attended was just this past March. It so happens that it was the day after Simon was born which made it a bit stressful but it was a good experience nonetheless. Even though most trade shows can cost anywhere from $500 - $1500 to attend, this one was much more reasonable. For this first one, I was much more interested in seeing how things are done and using it as an opportunity to prepare for larger, more expensive shows - and if I happened to gain some clients then that was just gravy.
I would say the most important aspect of trade shows that I took away from this experience was that a stack of fliers, business cards, and an 18×24 inch sign does not a trade show booth make. A real trade show booth needs to be so much more, after all this may be a prospective client’s first impression of your company so it better be a good one.
The Godfrey Group has been in the trade show booth business for over 35 years now. They do it all in their 130,000 square foot facility, from design & production of an entire custom display to supplying the extra features for your existing display to stand out from the crowd. One thing I was excited to see was the ability to rent displays. For those of you who are on a tight marketing budget (aren’t we all) or if you are looking to see if trade shows are a right fit for your company, this is a great way to get all the benefits of a professional booth at a huge discount. The beginning of the trade show season is now upon us so now is the time to get your booth up and running by checking out The Godfrey Group today.
