Archive for the 'Blogging' Category

Hey, I’m Back! Anyone Care?

Published on November 11, 2009 in Blogging. 0 Comments

Is this thing on?

10 weeks.  10 weeks this blog has sat dormant, only updated by Twitter to let you know what I’ve been tweeting about all week.  Nine weeks into a fantasy season that I promised I would update about here; of course I haven’t.  Even the amount of my tweets have diminished, half the time I’m tweeting about either not tweeting or not posting blogs.  For the last 10 weeks I’ve been constantly reminded that I’ve neglected this blog, and I’ve been trying to find a reason as to why the thought of posting something new gives me an enormous amount of anxiety.

Back when I started this blog I had the highest hopes.  I was going to be the next Dooce.  She was the motivation behind my first post, if you’ve been following since the beginning.  I remember reading about thousands of blogs that started out great, but then for one reason or another were abandoned.  That wasn’t going to be me!  I spent countless hours learning about SEO and CSS and setting up RSS feeds and all types of other shit that you need to know in order to have a “successful” blog.  I read hundreds of blogs about blogs about other blogs, and took careful notes to make sure I had every point covered.  I poured over my Google Analytics statistics to monitor my progress.  I was sure that by this point I’d be making a comfortable living off my random ramblings.

Why?  What did I do it all for?  And what happened?

Well, simply enough: I did it to escape.  I was in a very different place in my life at the time that I started this blog, and not a good, happy place.  I had become someone that I hardly recognized anymore, and it had been going on for so long that I needed an outlet.  I’ve been writing my whole life, and it seemed easy enough.  I was searching for a community, a place where my voice could be heard, even if it was “the Internet” that rarely, if ever, engaged in conversation with me.  I felt like I had a purpose, and some control – two things I was seriously lacking in my “real life.”  It worked, for a while.  I even participated in NaBloPoMo, remember?  Then, in December – 2 posts.  January?  5.  February?  ONE.  And it’s pretty much followed that course since.

So what happened?

I don’t need that escape anymore.  I am in the best, most untroubled place in my life that I have ever been.  I’ve gotten control back.  I am myself again.  I know where I am going and I know what I want.  I’m empowered.  I am HAPPY.  I haven’t thought about CSS, or RSS, or SEO, of even Dooce in months.  I don’t need to anymore.  I have other outlets, other communities.  I’ve been having fun, and living life in the “real world.”  SO MUCH FUN.

So, does that mean I stop blogging for good?  Is this my last post ever?  Certainly not. But my purpose has changed.  I no longer care if I’ve tagged posts correctly, or if my blog is aesthetically pleasing to my readers, or if I even have readers at all.  This blog is for ME, for my own mind-wanderings and ideas and loves and hates and experiences.  Whether I post everyday, or every three months, it doesn’t matter.  No more pressure.  That in itself is liberating.

Anyway, enough of my rambling.  I guess I just wanted to say that whether you continue to check in with me or you decide to move on to greener pastures, I thank you for helping me through one of the toughest times in my life.  Stay classy.

Oh, and as far as this year’s fantasy season goes, I’m currently 4-5 in 10th place.  EPIC FAIL.

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Is Anyone Out There?

Published on July 31, 2009 in Blogging. 2 Comments

I don’t even deserve to be writing this post.  The universe should take away all of my blog-posting privileges because I have clearly taken advantage of the fact that this seriously awesome website will sit here for everyone to see whether or not I ever update it.  I’m not even here to write a real post, so I hope you weren’t expecting some witty banter at this time.  In fact, you probably want to just go to another site at this point because this will probably be really boring.  I’m only here so that two friggin’ MONTHS don’t go by without something being updated here.  I mean seriously, what the hell am I even DOING.

I’ll tell you.  I’ve been busier than I have ever been in my LIFE!  I never could have imagined how much work this accelerated graduate program would be – I clearly underestimated how time-consuming it would be.  On top of that I’ve been kicking ass and taking names, and if any of you out there have ever done this you know it keeps you super busy.  In my free time I’ve been killing ninjas and vampires, so my sleep schedule is all screwed up due to the fact that I can only hunt them in the dark.  I barely have time left over to even breathe, so I can’t possibly be expected to sit down and update my website for fuck’s sake!

No, but seriously, I’ve been busy.  I know it’s annoying to keep coming back and seeing the same damn post every time.  I hate that I’ve left you alone for so long and I promise to be back real soon.   Unless the vampires get me first….

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Happy Blogoversary!

Published on May 15, 2009 in Blogging. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

My blog is officially one year old! I can’t believe a whole year has already gone by!! I feel like it was just yesterday that I was sitting next to Dooce in a Brooklyn bar, visualizing what my first post was going to say. Except that it wasn’t yesterday it was a whole year ago and I feel like that person sitting in that bar is a million miles away. I feel like I’ve learned so much in the last year, much of which I can attribute to writing somewhat regularly on this blog. I know I haven’t kept up with it as much as I should have or probably could have, but it’s been cathartic and therapeutic to have this outlet to turn to when the mood strikes. I’m incredibly proud of myself for having stuck with it for this long, and the simple fact that I’ve made it through one whole year just provides enormous motivation to keep on trucking. I’m excited for what the next year of Mambabyte will bring, and I hope that those of you that have come this far with me will continue on this crazy ride. I promise not to disappoint.

With that corny shit out of the way, can you believe what a year this has been? It was the year of Obama, we said goodbye to the great George Carlin, I actually participated in NaBloPoMo, and I got laid off! What I haven’t told you about yet is how I had to cram for one of the hardest tests I’ve ever taken in only three weeks (and I still don’t know whether or not I’ve passed), I was accepted into the Masters program for my dream job, I moved into a beautiful new apartment with two of my closest girlfriends, I’ve reconnected with some of my old friends that I’ve missed terribly and didn’t think I would ever see again, and have started to learn that when you begin to surround yourself with positive people, things, and ideas, positive things start to come your way much more easily than you ever could have imagined. I’m feeling more myself than I have in a really long time, and I know that it is only the beginning of what’s to come for me.

I’ve been celebrating this first blogoversary by browsing through the past year’s archives. I was interested in getting an update on all of the artist’s I’ve featured in my Music Bytes:

• The Morning Benders: “Talking Through Tin Cans” has been released for a little over a year now, and the band is still touring like crazy and even made an appearance at this year’s SXSW.
• Coldplay: Duh.
• Katy Perry: Well now she’s lasted a lot longer than I originally gave her credit for, and while her songs are getting really annoying and I think she sucks live, I’m pleasantly surprised she’s considered “headliner” material.
• Adele: Go girl! Adele’s since won two Grammy Awards, for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Love her!
• Gaslight Anthem: They just seem to be snowballing into bigger and better things, opening for both Bruce Springsteen AND Dave Matthews this year. Holy!
• Sikamor Rooney: They’re still doing their thing and could use some more exposure, so go check them out again and give them a chance!
• Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head: I can’t get enough of these guys, HA! They were featured on Perez Hilton and they’ll be the supporting act for Lily Allen’s North American tour this year. So much fun!
• Rachael Yamagata: Those who love her, love her dearly.
• Leslie Hall: Since this wasn’t technically a music byte, I don’t technically have an update, but it’s still hilarious so go take a look and enjoy a chuckle on me.
• Kings of Leon: Ahhhh, by far my favorite music byte and favorite band of the whole year. They’re just huge. I almost had a heart attack when they arrived on the cover of a recent Rolling Stone issue. I can’t say enough.
• Zee Avi: Her album still won’t be released for another four days, but if you were lucky enough to check her out at SXSW, I’m sure you’ll agree it won’t be long before we hear much more about her.

Make sure to send me any ideas for Music Bytes you might have! I sure as hell can’t keep up with everything, what do you think I look like?

In pure Mamba style, I’ve decided to end this Happy One Year Post by listing my top eight posts of the year. Because I love the number 8. So I picked 8 posts. Out of 71. I don’t think 71 is a lot at all, so I made sure to write that here so next year I can make sure the number is much higher. Anyway, enjoy.

• My Most Romantic Moment
• A Moment in Time: The Best Worst Date
• Why Brett Favre Will Never See My Tits
• The Shoes Don’t Help
• Commuters Are Fucking Crazy
• Justin Should Be A Regular on SNL
• Saturn Has Returned With a Can of Whoop Ass
• Advice: Don’t Try This At Home

Now I’m going to drink right out of the bottle pour myself a glass of wine and congratulate myself on one year of blogging. Thanks to all you fuckers who’ve stuck with me. Air cheers!

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Good Thing I’m Used to Pulling All-Nighters

Published on April 11, 2009 in Blogging. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

I have soooo many things to write about! I have, like, a million hundred posts swirling in my head. My notebooks are filling up faster these days with little phrases or keywords that I jot down with the hopes that I’ll remember what they mean when I finally get around to reviewing them and composing some sort of banter to post on this blog. Why is it, then, that this blog sits here untouched, neglected, unloved?

Since I got laid off, I’ve written four posts. FOUR!!! What the hell have I been doing with my time? Sure, I could blame it on excessive partying, which is partly true, but it’s not like hangovers can literally stop you from laying in bed and typing up a post about whatever you did the night before that gave you such a fucking hangover in the first place…isn’t that what you want to read about anyway? Aren’t the stories what you stop by here barely, if ever every once in a while for? It’s not like I don’t have the time to write.

Now, after contemplating my next steps, I’ve decided to go back to school and pursue my Masters degree. I’ve found the perfect program for what I want to do (teach), however, one of the admission requirements is a passing grade on the state certification test. There is only one more test given before the application deadline, which is in three weeks. From the day I found out I needed to take and pass this test, I have three weeks. Three weeks to try and cram all those high school and undergraduate English courses back into my brain. My brain hasn’t studied more than the TV Guide for years! (Not really true.) And it’s not like English is such a cut and dry subject, it’s basically endless. I’ve been in flash card HELL eight hours a day for the past week. I have two weeks until the test. From today. And I’m terrified! If I don’t pass, I don’t get accepted, and THEN WHAT THE HELL DO I DO?!?

I feel kind of like I’m a senior in high school again, stressing over whether or not my choice school will accept me because if they don’t, like, O.M.G., like, what the heck am I gonna do then? Like, my life will be like, totally over, and like, Jonny will never want to marry me and then he’ll all, like Lauren and marry her instead, and then like omgican’teventhinkaboutit. I, like, TOTALLY HAVE TO GET IN!!!

Okay, well, maybe not exactly like that. But it’s still stressful. I’ll likely pull more than one all-nighter between now and the day of the test, and they won’t be the kind of all-nighter I’d prefer if you know what I mean…

I hope to be able to break long enough to post more since the fact that I’ve published FOUR posts in the last two months just annoys me, but I can’t promise anything really until after this test. So please bear with me and wish me luck. I’m seriously going to need it. And instead of wishing me luck if you feel like, oh sending beer money instead, that’d be cool too. I’ll need a lot of those too once this test is over.

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Mamba Did It!

Published on November 30, 2008 in Blogging. 1 Comment

30 posts in 30 days.  NaBloPoMo for November.  I own it.

I’m so high-fiving myself right now.

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You’re Gonna Need Some Kleenex For This One

Published on November 29, 2008 in Blogging. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

I’ve been following Matt Logelin’s blog for about six months now, and every time I click his link my heart sinks. I am overwhelmed by not only this man’s strength, but by his dedication and love for his daughter and his ability to rise to the occasion and be the best father he knows how to be.  Only he doesn’t know how to be anything at this point.  He is torn between losing one love of his life and gaining another, all in the course of two days.  Two days that forever live in his memory as both the worst day and the best day ever.  

It’s both humbling and inspiring to read his words, and I will let them do their own justice.  I felt though, at the opening of the usually crazy shopping season, that maybe some people would be looking to possibly make a difference in other people’s lives instead of the usual retail insanity that takes place, and stories like Matt’s really tears at my heart strings.  And if you don’t want to give directly to Matt and Madeline (why wouldn’t you?) he’s set up his own charity to help families faced with similar situations.  

This holiday season is different from any that most of us have experienced in a lifetime.  I wonder if in twenty years, when I look back, what will stick with me most: the gift certificate I got to spend at Sephora or the knowledge that $20 went to a little girl’s first Christmas.  Did she have a Merry Christmas?  I hope so.  And I hope that maybe I had a little something to do with it.  

If you are interested in learning more about Matt or Madeline, or their charity, go here.

Be thankful, and happy holidays.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

Published on November 27, 2008 in Blogging. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

It’s my blog’s first Thanksgiving!!  I hope yours was as great as mine!

It’s so nice to be with family and laugh harder than usual.  I love it!  Tomorrow I will have a real post for you, but tonight I am in my tryptophan coma and I can’t pull it together to be witty.

Love you all, Happy Thanksgiving!

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I Am So Not In The Mood

Published on November 22, 2008 in Blogging. 0 Comments

It’s late.  I’m tired.  I’ve been super lazy all day because it’s 21 degrees and I’d rather sit on my couch with blankets.  I’m late with posting.  And so it goes.  I have a few good stories to share and they’ll be coming.  But not tonight.  I need a reprieve.  Just one night. Thanks….

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