Archived Posts from September 2008
Blame it on the summer but as September gets into full gear, it is with a little embarrassment that I turn back to my blogging. Yes, I have new responsibilities and the deadlines that go along with it. Yes, my son has now returned to KU for his final semester. And yes, my landscaping is ‘finally’ done, but the summer has come and gone without a single road trip of any kind. This is a first for me since I moved to California in 1978. Road trips have always signified adventure, freedom, and new experiences. But this year I am off to India next month for a three week ‘tea tour’ so I have been hoarding my dollars, my time, and my energy for what will surely be an adventure – a little non-standard – but definitely an adventure.
So what does this have to do with Twitter. During this summer I have found Twitter amusing, educational, and a way to broadcast great moments – meeting Joan Baez on the airplane or finding a tweet from Bill Johnston that the most interesting negative RSVP for the Community Summit (which I really wanted to go to) was ‘on a tea tour in India’ – which made me laugh out loud at the Vet’s office, and, of course, post a ‘that would be me’ tweet in response. Or tweeting about sitting under the stars, with a full moon rising at the Concord Pavilion listening to George Benson and drinking smuggled in coffee, kahlua, and whipped cream with good friends.
Or listening in to a great twitter conversation about appointing a national CTO and who might that person be – lists of possible names and thoughts about each. Twitter lets me in on observations and comments – and takes me way beyond my normal awareness – there’s a lot of information out there and simply not enough time to find it all. It’s great that so much of it comes to me.
Following Barack Obama on Twitter and Facebook, and observing how strongly he has embraced social media in general. Check out Brent Leary’s Barack 2.0 for an interesting take on this (not about politics here but about how the candidate is using web 2.0 technologies in his campaign). And another of my favorite sites, slideshare.net, has a great presentation on the monetization of social networks and it closes with views of how Obama and McCain are embracing social media in their campaigns.
(Chris LeHane on KQED’s Friday’s Forum call this is ‘hinge election’.
He defined ‘hinge’ as a transition from era to era. Not only is the country facing globalization, environmental issues and global warming, but the social trends and demographics, many of which started in California are trickling (interesting use of words) across the country. Granted he lives in California, but his perception that the days of red and blues states will be a thing of the past in 6-8 years is astonishing. The population demographics - ethnic mix, millenials, digitaI centricity – not to mention global warming, energy realities, rapid re-emergence of Russia, new superpowers coming onto the scene – is pressuring us, propelling us forward, just as the gas prices have forced many of us to change our behavior. I digress.
I got to watch Barry Libert tweet the key messages to one of his ‘Power of WE’ presentations, not the first time I had seen this done, but powerful and a good use of the tool.
Our Cisco CTO, Padmasree Warrior, has embraced Twitter and I was pleasantly stunned when she mentioned that she uses Twitter for questions to the universe on the future of the internet and its uses.
The creator of the ‘Twitter Mandate’ has moved on to greener pastures – in the social media space no less. (Was that the real impetus behind that 11 PM email?) The Mandate worked. I am a Twitter fan. It’s simple. It’s portable (Twitter more from my iPhone than my laptop). When Twitter makes the NYTimes Sunday magazine in a great article, Brave New World of Digital Intimacy, that chronicles much of my own experience with Facebook and Twitter - well, Welcome to Main Street!
The summer may be gone, but here comes my favorite of all the seasons - the heralding of crisp mornings, shorter days, and, this year, that trip to India.