Old school

Despite being a somewhat geeky lover of the interwebs and all things techno-cool, in many ways, I don't like change. I don't want my entire life to be digitized. I don't want to spend the majority of my days tethered to my smartphone. I don't want to buy only e-books. I don't want my music to exist only in some theoretical "cloud." I like real books. I like holding them, and turning the pages as I read. I like buying actual CDs, so I can read the liner notes and (hopefully) lyrics. I still believe in my iPod over my phone, and I still have an actual CD/cassette player in my house.

And despite all appearances to the contrary, I still love this blog. Today, I went on a nostalgia-fueled tour of some of my old favorite blogs -- some are still active (Bookslut!), some naturally went the way of the dinosaur (Papel-blog), and some are still there, but more and more infrequent (me?).

Which is all just a way to say: I got a new CD for my birthday, and I dig liner notes (but not in that "I'm such a cool hipster I only listen to vinyl" way).

Of blogs and widgets

I don't blog as much as I used to, or even as much as I'd like to -- I'd like to blame Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and the million other media tools we have now, but truthfully, it's all my own doing (or lack of doing). My love of this blog, however, is unchanged, and I stubbornly refuse to give it up, despite the world and my own life moving forward. This is all spurred, of course, by a simple thing: I had to change my Blogger template. All Consuming, my favorite site for keeping track of what I'm reading, watching, and listening to is going away, so I've had to make do with a Goodreads widget. Don't get me wrong; I like Goodreads a lot, too. It's just I'm not a fan of the widget. Bygones. You'll still be kept current on what I'm reading, which is something I'm sure you're all excited to know, and I'll still keep trying to blog more.

Geek girl's first con

Over the weekend, J.R. and I went to Emerald City Comic Con -- it was my first time at ECCC and my first con ever, really. (Unless you count work conferences that center on publishing, and since I did get to talk to the editor of Playboy, perhaps it should count? Bygones.) J.R. and the kids have been going the past few years, and I've been too busy with work to take off for a Friday through Sunday escapade to hang out with out other geeked-out fans. Until now!

I have to admit, it was pretty awesome, and not just because I got to see multiple panels on Supernatural, my current TV obsession of choice. (Okay, it was due in large part to all things Supernatural.) I got to see Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura to those who don't know) help a couple get engaged; I got to see many, many tricked out costumes (we can't figure out why Poison Ivy is such a popular costume, but our weekend tally was somewhere around 19 Ivys); and I got to see both Jim Beaver and Mark Sheppard (Bobby and Crowley!) twice (and Kevin Chan, aka Osric Chau, lined up for a question for Mark). In sum, it was fucking awesome. I highly recommend, and I hope I can go again next year.

More pictures here, but really, a phone camera can only do so much, people.

Shiny new toy

My precious new Surface.

It's like the Neverending Story but without the cool luck dragon or any fun at all

I'm trying once again to get my sorry ass in shape. Much like eating healthy, I feel this is a never-ending battle that I will probably bitch about for the rest of my life. (Sorry.) For those of you who've been following along for far too long, the days of my being able to run a 10K (hell, even a 5K at this point) are long past. I'd like to get back there, however, as getting out of breath going up the stairs is distinctly un-cool. To that end, I've made a goal with a friend to be able to run a 5K again by Thanksgiving. The only stipulations: no walking, no puking, no falling. It may take me three days to run this bitch, but by god, I'll do it. To further that end, J.R. and I bought FitBits last night. Sure, website-enabled activity tracking, blah, blah, blah. There are badges, people. And what are badges like? Achievements. And I think we all know what I will do for those.

Falling down on the job

It's already Feb. 3, and I haven't posted yet. Ah, well, New Year's resolutions were meant to be broken within a month. I've been busy deleting all my comment spam (WTF?), and buying apps for my Windows 7 Phone. (On a side note, Microsoft's downfall continues to be its shitty marketing. Windows 7 Phone? Really? Couldn't come up with anything, I don't know, shorter? Like iPhone or f-ing Droid? Bygones. The phone is good, and I will henceforth refer to it as my Win7 phone. Which is so much shorter.)

I'm currently in love with my DVDLibrary app, which, as you might imagine, contains my DVD library, which is very helpful when at the store and you see The Big Chill on sale, and you're all, "I should get that! Wait, don't I already own it?" My main complaint is the app doesn't also do TV series, which is crap, because I'm also frequently at the store saying shit like: "Wait, do I need Friends season 6 or season 7?" I haven't found the perfect books app yet, but that's next on my list. Right after "buy more games."

Necessity is the mother of great gifts

So, whilst I was in Boston for the holidays, my cell phone died. Well, it didn't die exactly, so much as crap out in a kind of interesting way. I could still make calls (to J.R. because he's the only one I programmed into my speed dial), and I could still receive calls (from anyone, though I had no idea who was calling unless it was J.R. because he had a special ringtone). Since my screen was black (or occasionally a creepy gray with a strobe effect), texts were out of the question. All in all, exactly what you want from your phone when you're traveling and don't have old-fashioned things like address books around. Bygones. The point is this: When I got back, J.R. gave me an early birthday present: a shiny new Windows 7 phone. As I am new to the smart phone world (and an admittedly reluctant entrant), I chose the LG Quantum phone, as it has the slide-out keyboard.

I have to say, I pretty much love my phone. I had some minor issues getting my Gmail account to sync up, but J.R. fixed it (and claims the problem was due to my having a massively ancient Gmail account). I was able to connect to my Xbox Live gamertag without effort, and I snagged the two free games immediately (ilomilo and Flowerz). I then proceeded to play them posthaste to grab some achievements. (Yes, I had achievements before I connected to Facebook or Twitter.) On the whole, I've got no complaints. Camera is good, keyboard is good, and I'm even getting use to the touchscreen. If you'll excuse me, I have to go find some more games for my phone. Now, if only there were some way to gift Xbox games for my phone ...

Double f

Frickin' February already. Unbelievable. And yet, it's starting just like January: with a cold. Or something evil and vile masking as a cold just to confuse my doctor who is running out of shit to test me for. Also, and I never thought this would happen, I'm running out of veins with which to give forth the blood. Bygones. The point is this: I loved Marisa de los Santos's second novel as much as the first. And the magic mouse is truly, ridiculously magic. Freaking magic, bitches! And once I figure out this whole two-finger swipe business, I'll really be rocking the internets.

Also, I love pumas. But only on my socks.

Oh, the places you'll go

I interviewed Michelle yesterday for my continuing look at the state of the Wellesley blogosphere. I get to interview Stone tomorrow. Both of us are going to make a concerted effort not to giggle. At any time. Ever. This is Very Serious Work I'm doing here, people. Even if I am having a great time whilst I'm doing it.

Portrait of the artist as a complete doofus

I thought my narcissism knew no boundaries, but I had no idea. Digital cameras are evil. I'm trying to justify taking pictures of myself -- you know, I need one for my website anyway, I just got my hair cut, how do I view myself, blah blah blah.

To take a picture of myself requires one of two things: Really long arms or a mirror. The only place I have a mirror is the bathroom, so first I have to make sure the bathroom is lovely. Then I take a picture and realize I should really Windex the mirror. I get a lovely boob shot except that there's this reflection from the flash, so then I have to play with the camera some more to figure out how to turn off the flash. And since I'm no contortionist, I really can't get a shot without either looking stupid because I'm focusing on the camera screen or having the camera obscure half of my face.

I gave up after about 10 minutes of this because I have things to do and I haven't eaten lunch yet. There shall be no pictures before Mountain Dew. It's a decree. An official decree.

And now for something completely different

I'm having a hard time readjusting to a non-blogger-based world, i.e., I'm at work. For those of you who've seen Being John Malkovich (yes, that's where I stole my blog title), this weekend was two days of malkovich-malkovich-malkovich -- just replace "malkovich" with "blog." Luckily, I can have lunch with Stone for a small fix of blogging to ease back into the real world. I'm trying to make this the last of my BloggerCon posts because, really, it's all been done (and done better) by others. And I really need to do some things that are not hypertextualized.

That said, here's quick rundown inside the mind of JenGarrett at BloggerCon:

• Why didn't I bring my laptop? It's just as cute as everyone else's. Oh, yeah, that's right, I can't listen, think, and type at the same time. How do these people think without a pen to twirl?


• On Weblogs and Journalism: Blogs are reality TV (oh, shit, I hate reality TV). Ed Cone says that nothing is closed to the "press" anymore because everyone is a potential journalist. What does this do to the idea of being "on the record"? How does this limit the idea of the public vs. private?


• The idea of maintaing a blog "as long as it’s fun": Sometimes my blog is difficult, and frustrating, and infuriating, and … fun. Sometimes I get the most value out of a post that was the least fun to write.


• On Blogging and Education: Someone from the audience asked if blogging was a life skill, or if, like singing, some should only do it at home? Kaye Trammell said that a blog offers a voice to those who want to speak. (And I, apparently, never want to shut up.)


• Why are we using blogging in education? We're attendees of short-attention-span theater already; why should we teach students to write in short bursts, without the kind of editing we claim is valuable? Do you need to learn how to write five pages well before you learn to write five lines well?


• From the Cluetrain Manifesto: Elizabeth Spiers doesn't look how I thought she would, and somehow, her voice doesn't match her face. Adam Curry says "we're all routers." Nuh-uh, not me.

We still haven't figured out what the power of weblogs are. Gotta work on that.

Take 2

BloggerCon day 2 had some ... interesting moments. I hit the Blogging 101 session because I wanted to see what newbies are asking (and I can't believe it, but I don't remember what it was like when I was but a young blogging lass, lo, those nine months ago). Then we sat in on some interesting discussion of the technology and use of audioblogging, and then it was Winer's turn to wrap things up. At some point during the last session, we were all led in a sing-along of "Born to Be Wild" accompanied by an accordion. This is not your father's BloggerCon!

I've got lots more thoughts to share (like next year, I would like to see some vendors there ... and I don't care what Dave says, but it was basically "all Radio, all the time" without other providers present), but I have a guest coming so I'll have to post more later. Hopefully.

Smoking in the boys' room

Today was day one of BloggerCon, and it was a wild ride. First, the men definitely outnumbered the women. How could I tell? For once in my life, there was no line for the ladies' room. However, I did have to pass by the gauntlet of men waiting patiently. Second, the style of commenting definitely lent itself to the more ... masculine personality, let's say. Women tend not to like to interrupt (I'd point to some cool sociological study that backs me up, but I'm too tired to look for it. Just trust me on this one), but the men didn't let that hold them back from saying what was on their mind. Finally, one woman just busted out and said her piece, sans microphone. I was very proud. (I just made comments under my breath to Stone, who was hanging out in the back of the room with me.)

Lots of cool things were discussed and I have never been allowed to talk about blogging so much and so freely with people who didn't immediately have a panicked, "please god, get me out of here" look on their faces when the word "blog" left my mouth. It was also cool to meet a wide variety of the blogosphere, including Erin, Sooz, Shannon, Jason Goldman of Blogger fame, Lis, and Roland, as well as to run into Halley in the bathroom and to see Adam Curry up close and personal (what an '80s flashback that was).

As promised, I have pages of handwritten notes, but there is no way in hell I'm posting them now. Major kudos (and a happy birthday) to Wendy for a job well done.

A mixed bag

In honor of my scattered thought processes tonight, I give you a blog with no cohesive theme. (Yeah, like that's unusual for me).

First, I love my readers. Steve sent me a logo to iron on the back of my Blogger sweatshirt. (You all remember Steve from the great quinoa controversy of 2003.) If I can actually get the color to print right, it will look like my banner. And I think everyone should have at least one article of clothing that says my name and "Every day an adventure in mediocrity."

Second, I almost did the Friday Five today, as it relates to cars and I love cars. But I think all the answers have been posted to this blog already -- you all know I drive a beat Saturn for which I have an odd fondness, and I think we all know that if I could have any car I wanted it would either be an Eclipse (red, baby, yeah) or a Maserati (silver? red? Tough call). These are cars I would put out for. And you can't make me feel bad about that.

Third, I blame my scatteredness on two things: I spent the evening cleaning my apartment as I'm going to be gone for most of the weekend (and the visitors are coming! the visitors are coming!). And in the middle of the great sweeping extravaganza, he-who-shall-not-be-named called and threw me completely off my game. Ever notice how normally you present yourself as a reasonably sane and intelligent human being and other times you're a complete ninny? Yeah. Ninny. Big time.

BloggerCon tomorrow, bright and early. I must to bed.

I like to pay for things

I'm testing out Sideblog Premium, and I've discovered that I like to pay for things. I dig free Blogger, but when it comes to my little add-ons (comments, sideblog, etc.), I dig paying the programming fiends out there for their hard work.

Update: Dude, I don't know enough CSS. My sideblog does not look how I want it to. I sense some serious time with my (previously unread) tech books when I get home tonight.

Because I don't spend enough time blogging

I'm going to BloggerCon this weekend. Wendy and Dave are putting together quite the party. I want to say that I'm going to blog the conference, but I won't. I'll be the dorky writer/journalist chica that I am and use pen and paper the whole time. (So if you're there, I'll be the chick with the bleary eyes (I don't do well in the morning) with a notebook in one hand and a Mountain Dew in the other.)

All blogs, all the time

Biz and I went to the blog meeting at Harvard tonight -- somehow managing to sail through traffic between Wellesley and Cambridge. I'm telling you, today was a good day.

It was good to meet up with other bloggers to talk about techy things (permalinks, RSS, etc.) as well as the potential and future of blogging. Wellesley really needs to get cracking on bringing blogs into the academic sphere; the potential to share knowledge through blogs is huge.

It was also good to connect blogging to actual people, a live community. I got to see the Redhead; I got to listen to Dave Winer talk shop; and I met Christopher Lydon, who is doing some great work with audioblogging. I'm surprised by how much I enjoy listening to a "post"; Wil Wheaton's audioblog fascinates me, but I thought that was because I was listening to Wil Wheaton diss Star Wars: Episode I. Blogging, for me at least, is a solitary activity. Other people may read my posts and even comment on them, but my site is much more of a monologue than a dialogue. Somehow, listening to bloggers speak instead of write makes it feel more like a conversation. (But don't expect me to put my voice on the web anytime soon. There is nothing worse than hearing your voice recorded -- I have to do that enough for my job.)

Pure blogging enthusiasm

As you can probably tell by the increasing frequency of my posting, I've become addicted to blogging. Today, I shared my enthusiasm at a meeting about the medium. I could have talked about the topic for hours, but there was much work to be done to be ready for the 3,000 reunion attendees that will descend upon us tomorrow. (What's sick about this post in particular is I'm blogging standing up at an express computer terminal whilst I have a few minutes. Yes. I'm still at work. And instead of napping, eating, or just lying on the floor in a stupor, I wanted to blog.)

And this is what I wanted to blog: In the meeting today, I was the only woman. I think this is the first time that has occurred to me since I started at Wellesley in 1994. Even when I didn't work at the college, I worked in a small office with two other women. It didn't strike me until I was walking out of the meeting that I was the only estrogen representative there. I don't work in tech so this was the first time it really struck me that women are not wholly represented in this field. It particularly resonated because I've noticed that a lot of the "top" blogs are published by men. Are women less likely to blog? Or are they more likely to publish a journal-type blog, a genre which isn't as well-respected in the blogosphere?

Blogged down

If Sideblog actually works, I'll have another blog to post to. Is the world really ready for more Jen Garrett?

The many uses of the laptop

I've heard concerns about the heat a laptop can generate, especially when actually used on a lap. My iBook has yet to burn my legs. It really doesn't get that warm. Tonight, however, I've discovered that my power adapter is an amazing foot warmer. Sure, I could get up and close my window now that it's gotten cooler, but why bother when this cutie is keeping my tootsies warm?

Disclaimer: Using the Apple AC adapter as a foot warmer is not recommended by the manufacturer. Jen also encourages people who are surprised when coffee is hot and burns them not to use this product.