e-democracy.org Steven Clift

The trail continues to meander amongst those connected with the recent Beyond Broadcasting Conference. I met Steve at the Bird's of a Feather dinner to close out the day. If you get a chance to meet him, ask him to tell you the story of working in the library filing documents with limited training. It will give you an appreciation for where his desire for open access comes from.

E-Democracy.Org is a non-profit, non-partisan, volunteer-based project whose mission is to expand participation and build stronger democracies and communities through the power of information and communication technologies and strategies.

The e-democracy web site is full of good information. Nicely laid out. Clear and distinct.

There is also a blog with frequent updates on current event related to e-democracy.

If your city/town could use a local forum, this is one thing that e-democracy will set up with you. I am about to dive into the guidebook (PDF) and cruise through the Liftoff online group to see what it entails. Franklin used to have a forum that was moderated by one individual and it ended up getting shut down. The e-democracy forum has a couple of good points to help prevent that should this one come online in this area.

Check out the blog. Check out the site.

Planet Pocket Radio - Chris Vallance

One of the benefits of attending a conference like BeyondBroadcasting is the opportunity to meet folks with similar interests. Chris Vallance, who traveled from the UK to attend, was one of those opportunities.

Sitting in the auditorium, laptop open and operating, taking an occasional picture, he reached into his bag to get his cable to upload the pictures to his system, and then a moment of dismay. No cable. This is where I came in. Sitting behind Chris, I had already used my USB cable to upload my pictures to post. Borrow? Sure!

Our path's crossed again as he was part of the Birds of a Feather dinner group with Steve Garfield. So what does this have to do with the Hitchhiker's trail today? Chris's podcast of course! Chris reports for the BBC.

You can find his site here.

You can subscribe via RSS here.

All Things Baby Boomer and Then Some

The trail swings back around to pick up the Boomer Chronicles, an irreverent blog for baby boomers and others. It's updated every Monday through Friday, usually several times daily with all kinds of topical posts. Think of it as the Consumer Reports of all things current, as well as some good ol' blasts from the past.

For instance, one of the recent (just for fun) posts literally dissects how the old Magic 8 balls work.

If you are a baby boomer — and who isn’t — you probably had one of these Magic 8 Balls when you were a kid.

Did you ever want to break it open to see how it worked? Well, so did this guy. Check it out.

Another recent post is on the Small House Movement, an environmentally friendly (not to mention, wallet-friendly) way to live.

You'll find the writing style snappy, and the posts well researched and filled with great links. Some of that may be because of who the blog author is. Rhea is a Boston-based journalist who has also written for for People magazine and The Boston Globe. She was also managing editor of Harvard University’s newspaper, The Gazette.

NonProfit Blog Exchange

The trail turns to the non-profit world today where blogging and other social media tools are being incorporated to help increase awareness, raise funds, etc.

One good source of information around the non-profit world is the NonProfit Blog Exchange.

A source of tips and links (via a roundup of non-profit blogs) that is worthy to include in your RSS reader of choice if you have any interests in the nonprofit world.

Owen and Mzee - Friendship

Time for a special edition of the Hitchhiker's Guide. Friday was a late night with some folks at a local watering hole after work. Saturday was the BeyondBroadcasting Conference complete with Birds of a Feather dinner. But tonight, Dolores and I had dinner together. A delightful conversation took place as we caught up on the other things that had occurred which we had not already shared. Amongst the listing of things, Dolores shared that she had just previewed a book she was going to use with her kindergarten friends on Monday to kick off Read Across America Week.

The book is a story of a baby hippo and a 130 old tortoise who have become friends. The hippo was stranded upon a coral reef after the 2006 tsunami struck the shores of Kenya. After a struggle to rescue the hippo, it was named Owen and moved to Lafarge Eco Systems in Mombasa, Kenya where an old limestone is being restored. There Owen was put into a sheltered space with other animals that were not going to be challenging to it in its youth. Owen, although only 1 year old when rescued, already weighed 600 pounds and fully grown would weight about 8,000 pounds. What surprised the naturalists managing Haller Park was how Mzee, a tortoise befriended Owen.

The story of Owen and Mzee became a NY Times bestseller. The book Dolores has is a sequel to the first which brings the story up to a few months ago. Owen has done well, continued to grow and live with Mzee who has continued to take care of him. They have developed their own communications. Yes, a tortoise and a hippo communicating with each other.

You can read more of this story on line. Owen and Mzee have their own blog. Well, sort of. The keepers write it for them. But you can monitor this fascinating tale of survival from the tsunami and a unique friendship that help in the survival.

If a tortoise and a hippo can be friends, what is stopping us?


A whole other aspect to this story that makes it note worthy is that of Isabella, who at age six first saw the pictures of Owen and Mzee and convinced her father that they needed to find out more about the two animals. What was originally an e-book (PDF), is now a best-seller and has spawned the sequel.

Add this blog to your RSS Reader to follow the story of friendship and survival!


Owen
Mzee
Kenya
LaFarge Ecosystems
tsunami
survival
friendship


Updated: An hour after this was posted, I received an email from Isabella's father with a link to a new Owen and Mzee web site just being introduced. I have already viewed the documentary and music video. I encourage you to continue to check out this developing story.

PodcastingTricks.com

While on the trail I am always on the lookout for podcasting tips and tricks... well alright, "always" is since September 2006 and PodCamp Boston. So when this site popped up, it slid right into the RSS Reader and that is something you should consider also.

Now, don't get all testy 'cause I am doing this about podcasting and not using podcasting to do it....

I was recently reminded that as communicators, we’re expected to affirm our audience. Too many times, it’s the other way around. Some podcasters think this medium is all about them. There are hosts who expect the audience to affirm the host. It should ALWAYS be the other way around.

An old broadcasting coach once told me, “You have to make love to your audience.”

Read the full posting here.

I sat in on a lecture about podcasting by a “grand master” of podcasting. Time after time, the lecturer said things like, “You always have to do this,” or “You should never do that.”

I was surprised that the presenter would be so dogmatic. This brings to mind a simple point for podcasters to ponder. There are no rules. You don’t have to open your podcast with an interview just because someone else does. You don’t need to eliminate theme music just because someone else said that’s too much like “radio.”

Read the full posting here.

Who provides these tips and tricks?

Scott Bourne is an author, lecturer, teacher and new media pioneer, and the president of Podango Productions in San Francisco, CA. He is the founder of the world's first Internet-only radio network, Netradio, and is a co-host on several prominent podcasts including MacBreak Weekly, the iLifeZone and GMT. Bourne has also been a featured speaker at events such as Macworld Expo and the Podcast & Portable Media Expo.

So now that you know the man behind the tricks, you can add his site to your RSS Reader and stay in touch.

The Learning Circuits Blog

Ponder this:

How could informal learning have been encouraged? First of all, by concentrating the formal training less on the technical skills of the staff and more on the human skills of department heads. It could have included things like group dynamics and communication training, to say nothing of corporate culture itself (which I still don’t see as a significant item in training course catalogues). Although this type of action is formal, it represents a direct investment in informal learning and could be added to the column of strategic investment rather than "just in time" fixes. They could have encouraged rather than neglected the potential of the expensive and hard to deploy groupware (Lotus Notes) they began investing in during the 90s. They could have looked at questions of corporate architecture (some did, by the way, but not necessarily with the conscious idea of stimulating informal professional exchange). They could have adopted an attitude of “visionary evolution” focused on the long term, taking into account human behavior; but of course the obsession with quarterly results still makes that difficult. Executives with long-term vision write books rather than struggling to impose their vision in the real corporate environment they work in.

Read the full posting here.

Then ponder the next discussion:

Then it dawned on me what the numbers really mean; we are using the government's term of informal and formal learning -- if the money invested in learning falls under a training department's budget, it is counted as formal learning; if it falls only under payroll, then it is being counted as informal learning.

We are using monetary terms to define informal and formal learning. However, I think that most of us would define it more or less as Stephen Downes views it -- if it is managed by the learner it is informal, if it is managed by someone else it is formal.

Read the full posting (complete with charts) here.

And if these two teasers wet your whistle, then add this site to your RSS Reader to stay current.

Director Tom

Before the trail gets too cold and you begin to think nothing good will come through your RSS Reader as another blog has bitten the dust...

Quiet on the Set!

Director Tom says:

Remember, I'm a filmmaker and story katalyst; not some marketing guru.

This is how I see things; it's my 'lens.' Take what works.

Here’s the second question in the series:

Q. “In starting out, is it best to use a company name or my own name?”

A. It goes back to, “What’s your story?”

Life gives you clues to tell your “story” all the time. The hard part is being awake to notice them.

But if you pay attention, you will notice the clues.

When you catch them, noodle on them. Write them down. Blog them. Share them. Ask yourself what they mean.

You are constantly “churning” your “story.” See what rises to the top.

What will rise to the top? Better click through to Director Tom's posting and read the remainder.

Then, while you're there, cruise around a link or two check out his prior postings and see if this is stuff you could use. If so, add Director Tom to your RSS Reader.

Cut! Change the lighting and we'll roll again, from the top!

I have something to say about that - Hadley Beeman

The trail turns to one blog that had been quiet over the holidays but now appears to be back in a regular posting pattern. Hadley Beeman writes in her "about page"

In October of 2006, I found myself rewriting my CV for what felt like the thousandth time, emphasising yet another angle on my project-management/facilitating-collaboration/technology-for-business-goals career. CVs are quite restrictive in their format and content, and I was annoyed that I had to limit my communication with prospective employers to a discrete snapshot of my accomplishments when I’d prefer to include more of how I think and what interests me.

The solution came with a problem that was nagging at me: Blogs were clearly on the rise, but why on earth would anybody bother to broadcast their thoughts regularly? What normal day-to-day behaviour does this model? How do I fit this into my own life? Why should I bother? I sought out many blogging friends and colleagues for their perspectives. As the discussions built, I realised something about myself.

She writes on her iPod

Now, as a professional in a public-transport city, I don’t have the luxury of long hours in a dorm full of friends or a car stereo. For this, I now have an iPod. I can’t tell you yet what will be on the 2007 soundtrack of my life, but I can tell you this: It will come out of the 1,334 songs in my pocket.

Read Hadley's full post here on "if life had a sound track".

I recommend add Hadley's site to your RSS Reader and then joining the conversation.

Newspapergrl - Janet

The trail takes out to Utah today where we find Newspapergrl, Janet, writing about a comment that some one left on her blog:

“She is the expert on Internet marketing, and generous with her knowledge. With what she told me on our first date, I was able to increase the hits on my web site by 20%, which more than covered the cost of her meal!”

Read the full story -> A Date with me is a Wise Investment

Janet writes in her About Page:

I’m an internet marketer and writer. I’m passionate about internet marketing and business. I write about it, read about it, and try to learn everything I can about it.

Newspapergrl blog covers internet and affiliate marketing for entrepreneurs and small business owners. I talk about the tech industry and B2B marketing. Basically as a freelance journalist, or blogger, I write about what I’m thinking about and learning.

This sounds like a page you should add to your RSS Reader to keep in touch with Janet.

Valentine's Day Special

For this special day, let's do something different.

For those interested in marketing, if you have not already found Logic + Emotion, check it out.

For those interested in the confluence of ideas, if you have not already found Fire and Knowledge, check it out.

For those interested in "tools to help you change your beliefs, change your life, and create your world" then check out, Shards of Consciousness.

And after checking these out, you decide you want to create a presentation to share what you found and the connections you were able to make, for advice on this there is one place to turn, Presentation Zen.

Kavit Haria

The trail ventures forth across the pond (as they say) to old England where we find Kavit Haria. What does Kavit do? According to his about page:

Kavit Haria is regarded as UK’s #1 Music Success Coach, a public speaker and coach who helps musicians have more successful careers and live more fulfilled lives.

As an established musician himself (multi-percussionist), he has played with many top name musicians in a wide variety of genres (fusion-style music) throughout his career.

His deep interest in personal development, inspired by Wayne Dyer, Tony Robbins, Topher Morrison, Deepak Chopra, Robert Kiyosaki and others urged him to take action in his life more than ever. Kavit is a certified and licensed NLP practitioner and Time Line therapist.

As a sought after coach and the founder and current C.E.O. of Inner Rhythm, Kavit has combined accelerated learning and results psychology with the music business in order to coach musicians around the world and speak to audiences in the UK about music marketing and the psychology of music success.

Did you know how big a market Valentines Day is?

I always knew Valentines Day was a big spending day but I had no idea it was a $17 Billion market. A research by eMarketer.com said that “the “2007 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey,” conducted for NRF by BIGresearch, estimates that the average consumer will spend $119.67 this Valentine’s Day, up from $100.89 last year.“

Kavit has a series of interviews underway with the postings to be found here. The most recent is with Curt Rosengren.

Consider adding Kavit's page to your RSS reader of choice!

In Pursuit of Happily Ever After: An East Coast Girl's Search for Love

The trail turns to the classroom today where it finds Miss BrowneyedGirlie writing at In Pursuit of Happily Ever After: An East Coast Girl's Search for Love. Miss Browneyedgirlie writes in Tales of a Substitute Student Teacher:

The one thing I failed to realize, mainly because it was the first fill-in experience with children who had no idea who I was, is that developing a bond with your students, a sense of respect, trust, and understanding, is paramount in teaching. Having the opportunity to do so while substituting is darn near impossible. Instead, the day played out with me glancing at the clock every now and then to see how much longer I needed to hold on.

Ah, yes. Those were the days. I did frequent the halls as a substitute myself and know of what she speaks. It is the truth. However in order to survive as a sub, one does have the opportunity to develop some defensive tactics. But that is for another time and place.

Here Miss Browneyedgirlie writes in Head Way Above Water:

There has also been talk around New College about the Job Fair, scheduled for March 9. My friends are terrified that we now have to start looking for real teacher jobs. Me? I say, "Bring it ON!" I'm beyond eager to begin searching for a school district in which to call home. To get to know the teachers - both new and veteran - with whom I will work closely and go to for advice. To get to have a classroom of my own, that I can decorate with pretty bulletin boards, a diverse student library, and in which I can design and teach lessons that will make them think, laugh, and expand their minds.

She also writes in Irony:

We were practicing with them during my observation, which was also being videotaped. Like I wasn't nervous enough. The children were holding up their individual cards (greater than or less than) when they had the answer to a question I placed on the board. As I noted each child's selection, I noted whether or not I'd been able to trick them.

I used this same phrasing and playful tone during Thursday's lesson and thus, didn't think anything of it. The kids are always excited that Miss Browneyedgirlie can't trick them. Well, today I did. In fact, I tricked the same girl - twice.

Some students were tricked yesterday and didn't seem phased by it. This little girl cried. On camera. With my supervisor, her classmates, and my cooperating teacher in the room. I wanted to crawl under the rug.

So if this teaser has worked, you can add Miss Browneyedgirlie to your RSS Reader of choice and follow on with her exploits as she completes student teaching and then hunts for a permanent job.

Planet Nomad

The dusty trail winds up on the edge of the Sahara Desert at Planet Nomad, which "Nomad" describes:

Sometimes, it’s like another planet–one filled with nomads, where sandstorms are a part of life and where things just look a bit different. We’re an American family living and working in Nouakchott, Mauritania, located where the sands of the Sahara Desert meet the waters of the Atlantic. This blog chronicles the various aspects of our lives, from university students to leaking water heaters to the kids learning Arabic in the French school. I am wife to Donn and mother to Elliot, 11, and boy-girl twins Abel and Ilsa, 9.

Nomad's blog is one of many "expat" or expatriot blogs, which are blogs written by Americans living in other countries. There's a whole directory for you to puruse, if you like reading about how life goes on for some Americans in other parts of the world. Culture shock is often the least of what they routinely deal with.

Here, Nomad shares insights from one of her friendships:

I love my friend Aicha for many reasons. We have that soul connection that makes friendship possible across the boundaries of culture, language, political and religious views, and even diverse topics like race, or what constitutes beauty. Why are we good friends? We just like each other, in that mystical way that happens when you find a real friend. We like being together; we like talking about things. We may disagree, but we listen to each other.

One of the many things I appreciate about her is the way she has, more than any other single person, introduced me to Mauritanian culture. She has opened the door to me. Aicha comes from a very conservative tribe but she is university-educated. Her traditional background makes her a great source of information. The culture was always somewhat divers, made up of various tribes each with their own oddities and special areas of expertise--the scholarly tribe; the warrior tribe; the tribe of griots, or singers. Different tribes have embraced modernity to varying degrees. Aicha's tribe is well-connected and educated in general, but they have also fiercely held on to their traditions. Talking to her, I get a glimpse into another world.

Here, she chronicals the "simple" adventure of taking a trip to a conference in a post entitled: You Never Know What Skills You'll End Up Needing.

Debbie and I decided to attend a conference being held in Dakar, Senegal. Neither of us wanted to drive, because when driving cross-country in Africa it’s handy to have some men around; to deal with police checks (police relate better to men), to change flat tires or deal with engine trouble, to scrape locusts off the grill in the event of an invasion, to deal with the myriad problems that can arise. Flying is expensive. So we decided to take bush taxis.

The ride from Dakar to Rosso takes about 8 hours. We left about 6 a.m. The taxi whizzed along, stopping occasionally in tiny roadside villages for cold drinks and snacks. By about 11 a.m. we were in dire straits. The taxi had stopped in a really remote village, and Debbie and I crawled out to stretch our cramped limbs. We were desperate for a spot of privacy, so in great determination we crossed the road, heading for a field with some lovely big tall weeds. We soon discovered, however, an obstacle; a deep ditch full of fetid water, too large to leap, extending as far as we could see alongside the highway. What to do? We glanced back at the taxi and saw that it was ready to depart, waiting just for us, a taxi full of men glancing our way. Some of the villagers were also out for a glimpse of the white women squished in the back of a taxi. We looked at each other in despair. There was no way we could get back in that taxi and wait any longer to relieve ourselves.

Nomad writes with insight, humor, and compassion, while giving us more than just a peek at life on the Sahara.

Ramblings from a gypsy soul

From France to the Philippines can be a long flight, or a single mouse click. In this case, the click worked and we find ourselves visiting Christine at Ramblings from a gypsy soul. Good thing that we are kind of hungry, there are plenty of appetizing recipes here.

Come along and see how to make chutney:

Yesterday, I did just that. I almost danced a little jig as I crossed out mango chutney from my 'list of food to try and make at home', from hereon we will refer to simply as The List. Our chutney supply comes from my tita who lives in our village. The fact that our source is only a few blocks away has proven to be so convenient especially when curry is served for Sunday lunch and we whip out the jar only to find that we're running dangerously low on chutney. So while on one of these chutney runs I thought, why don't I make my own? And so that was the day it was added to The List.

And read about Lunch at Charley's

I think we were all so excited about the food and the company that we weren't prepared for the scene that awaited us. Hidden behind a massive stone wall lined by mahogany trees, was a beautiful first-class ranch complete with thoroughbreds roaming freely. Perhaps I was expecting something a little more rustic because it was out in the country. But whatever it was, I was pleasantly surprised.

If these items wet your appetite, then make one click to add Christine's page to your RSS Reader of choice.

A Girl's Guide to Managing Projects - Elizabeth

The trail takes us to France where Elizabeth writes A Girl's Guide to Managing Projects. In her post this week she writes:

This is the difference between skills and knowledge - let’s leave aside innate ability for the moment which our prof de danse obviously had in spadefuls. Skills are things that help you gather knowledge: competences, abilities, whatever buzzword you want to use. Knowledge is teachable and therefore learnable. Some people would argue that skills are teachable. I agree to a certain extent but there is a difference between teaching communication skills and teaching how to manage a risk. Skills are things you can build on, improve with practice and awareness and you can cover up your lack of them by being excellent in other things. Missing knowledge lets you down with a bump.

Read the full post here.

She writes in her about page:

Although I work as a senior project manager and writer, the views on this site don’t necessarily represent the views of my employer or my co-workers. They are just my ramblings!

All links on this site open in a new window, except when they refer to another blog post here.

This site looks best using Mozilla Firefox.

Terms of engagement: I’ll endeavour to post an article each Monday. If you get something else during the week, count it as a bonus.

I can confirm that her site works better in Firefox. I tried to copy the text above initially with IE and failed. Firefox was able to copy the text nicely.

Consider adding Elizabeth to your RSS Reader to keep current with A Girl's Guide to Managing Projects.

Balanced Life Center Blog

Continuing to explore the trail amongst the long tail, we find Nneka writing at the Balanced Life Center Blog:

Hi, I’m Nneka (pronounced en-nay-kah), the daughter of a musician and a closet fashionista. That’s me singing. I was born and raised in the southern-most island in the Caribbean, Trinidad. At 8, I was taught to meditate and I’ve been experimenting with it since (present commitment to daily meditation). I was exposed and acculturalized to diverse creeds and cultures.

I’m passionate about expressing Spirit in my life and helping you do the same. For me, right now, that means writing about spirituality and how to apply it to life on Balanced Life Center. For you it may mean composing a symphony, being a conscious entrepreneur, a magnetic salesperson, or a patient, loving stay-at-home mom.

In the Fab 5 on Friday posting, she writes:

Going even further down the rabbit hole with Steve Olson’s post Do You Know What is Real? We can go in circles all day long with this stuff, but Steve explains it in everyday language that takes the circular logic out of it. The concept is still mind bending, but it’s easier to swallow in this post.

She recently interviewed good buddy Phil Gerbyshak:

Nneka: What do you enjoy most about blogging?
Phil: I love the community and relationship aspect of blogging. Since I started blogging in March of 2005, I’ve been able to call many bloggers, yourself included, my friends. Not readers, like you would call people who read a newspaper or magazine column, but friends. People that if they were coming to town, you would change your plans so you could spend time with them. And the old saying of birds of a feather flocking together is true. If you want great people to come into your life, start a blog and share of yourself in an authentic way. Soon, you’ll have more friends and more community than you ever dreamed possible.

Read all that she talked about with Phil here.

Consider adding Nneka's site to your RSS Reader.

All Things Workplace- Steve Roesler

Another blog on the plentiful trail amongst the 2000 Bloggers, we find All Things Workplace where Steve Roesler writes:

Have you ever noticed that business people seem to read the same popular business books?

Then we ask people to "think differently" about business.

I'm keen on exploring new ways to look at how we live, work, and connect. I find that the latest "10 Things You Must Do To__________" gets stale. I don't want to just think about what to do. I want to know "why" and "how" and then apply it to my own situation.

Do you sometimes feel the same way?

Read Steve's full posting here.

Steve's writes in his profile page:

I'm Steve Roesler, the guy behind the blog. Let me take a moment to give you a glimpse of who I am before telling the business story.

I am married to "B" and we live 20 miles from Philadelphia in a tranquil, wooded area surrounded by lakes. (We don't live in the woods because we were asked to leave the city--we just like it here). It's a welcome break from the many days of international and domestic travel that are a part of the consulting business.

Read Steve's full profile here.

Consider adding Steve's blog to your RSS Reader.

Family Oral History Using Digital Tools - Susan Kitchens

At Family Oral History Using Digital Tools, Susan Kitchens writes:

They tell where you come from. They hold secrets to who you are. This site explores how to use digital tools and media to record and preserve spoken memories of family members. Your host: Susan A. Kitchens (I got into this by talking to my grandpa; at the time he was 99 years old.)

Good idea. With all the tools around to use, why not capture your family history?

Read on for tips and tricks!

Trinity Rep Blogs!

Yes, Trinity Rep has not just one blog but two. One for their normal theater business, the other for customer reviews of their performances.

Their blog is TRC Blog. A list of the recent posts reveals the following:

• Speak Your Mind!
• Acting company workshops continue in the New Year
• Check out the OUR TOWN TV spot!

The posting on Speak Your Mind! announced the re-opening of the Public Square, their customer review blog. The blog actually is one post per show with comments allowed and moderated to enable the customer participation. I submitted my review/comment with the link to the full review on my main blog.

If you are in New England, try to schedule some time to catch a performance at Trinity! You'll be glad you did. No matter where you are, you can at least keep up with what is on stage.

Kelly Mooney's Blog

Continuing along the trail of the 2000 Bloggers, I find Kelly Mooney writing about shopping and the online experience. Kelly writes:

I admit it. I am a demanding consumer. But, aren't we all? We want everything better, faster, easier, and more personalized than ever before. We want to feel like we're important to the companies we do business with. But why is it that despite every marketing milestone and breakthrough many web experiences often fail to meet our expectations?

Blame company structure or budget or legacy systems or leadership or the weather. But the more you excuse it, the worse it gets.

I've made a career out of studying, advocating for, and creating customer experiences and sharing them with clients, in columns, speeches, a book, and now this blog.

A listing of her recent posts reveals:

• 'Twas the Season to be Shopping Online
• Williams-Sonoma Delivers Hot Chili on a Cold Day
• Beware the Risks of, um, Personalization
• Banana's Checkout a Slippery Deal

Consider adding Kelly's site to your RSS Reader!