Breaks

I took a little Twitter break last week. It was partly because I wasn't feeling at my best and we all know there's some on Twitter who'd rather you didn't talk about the sometimes rotten things in life because it upsets their equilibrium when they're high from winning that new job or taking delivery of their iPad2, that sits well on the desk at home along with their iPod, Shuffle, Macbook, iPad1, iPhone 4, MacBook Air and their 27" iMac. But also because I couldn't be bothered with the moaning of some folk.

I did observe a lot though. I learned a lot of things. That some (whether they wish to admit it or not) are using scheduled tweets. Some will *never* say anything remotely down incase it has a negative effect on their brand, personal or business. (I ask though, is that being real? I mean is it??...). Some have the monopoly on the woe is me syndrome and they use it to full effect every day, sometimes every hour - tedium. Some people are genuinely funny and tweet great tweets, magical tweets that I'd like to have the imagination to write. Some are genuine real nice people. They stick out like a sore thumb in an increasingly tough environment where lots seem to be fighting to impress with every tweet. There's the shameless pluggers who are trying to get you take up their services. I'd give them a brief sentence of advice - LESS IS MORE. Too many plugging tweets and it begins to look a bit desperate. If your product is that great why do you need to keep pushing it and using tricks to fool people into thinking that someone very famous uses your service and when they click the link said famous person clearly does not use your product. There's the bloggers i like to follow who are creative, imaginative, not overly pushy and best of all they are the real people who inspire me because usually they're doing a job out of love and not out of making as many bucks in as quick a time as possible. There's the parents with children that you occasionally get a glimpse of but you almost always get an idea of how their days have gone. There's the forty-somethings who flirt their way through the stream. The people who RT their pals, not because they have something good to say but because it's their pal. The wonderfuls who take pictures of things - I love seeing other peoples pictures. Their's trusted friends who actually remember that they haven't seen you in a while. There's tried-hards that try too hard. The people with social media in their job titles who post blogs on the same old stuff but regurgitate it in their own way. Much like the folk who take a story and post it to their blog, tweet the link to it and ... well you know the rest. The people who live their whole lives on Twitter. The gurus who are trying everything to convince you they aren't gurus, usually by criticising folk who have the audacity to use it on their bios. Makes me laugh.

Thank goodness for the good ones though eh.

What things do you observe on Twitter?

Angela x

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2010: the year, the people

I haven't blogged for a few weeks because I wasn't feeling it. I can't force my writing (not that i'm a writer or anything) but i feel i've got to want to blog, to blog. I just can't come up with things on demand. But it's Christmas, nearly New Years and as the sun sets on 2010 and rises on 2011 I wanted to do a blog post to all those people who have helped make 2010 quite a decent year. Indulge me for a few minutes as there's lots of people and so many reasons to give you all a special mention.

Firstly, Linda. Great friend and work colleague. She helped me through the trauma of last Christmas and New Year with her funny texts - "a fucking telly!!" haha. We've laughed together and cried together in the office too many times to mention. We've talked rubbish in a language that only we could understand. Our little sayings are legendary and they're listed on one of the many notepads on my desk for when the book is published. A friend in every way.

January 2010 saw me try to shift this blog over to SquareSpace and redesign it and in doing so I got into a conversation on Twitter with Mark (@markofrespect). Mark I now consider to be a friend. A good friend. Hope he doesn't go all showbiz now he's moved to Londonshire.

Then in my twitter stream a giant electrical structure appeared. It turned out to be @Pyllon. One of life's good guys. Always there, always listening, always around in the background. A machine of a man with the kind of determination and grit I could only dream of. I'm proud to call him a friend.

Which leads me on to Nicola (@LilacSwizzle). One half of the bro-sis tag team. When I came across Nicola and then met her i couldn't believe how alike and yet how different we were. She is one amazing lady and despite everything that 2010 has thrown at her she's still here, still smiling and hopefully riding the bike to fight another day. We had a good day out on the bikes when i fell off for the second time, it wasn't even steep but it was into a jaggy nettle bush. Ouch! good times.

Ah the bike... this brings me nicely on to Petesy (@Petesy)  and Phil (@Bobinson1). A few good summer nights out on the bikes in the Kilpatricks were had. I like going out with these guys because the banter is good, I don't get left behind and there's tea and sandwiches at the garage when we finish. I don't even mind the grilling I get every time we meet. :o)

Talking of bikes there's Ross (@ThirdSectorLab) who encouraged me to join the MTB group. A genuinely nice guy. Not a bad word about anyone, thoroughly decent and a trainer geek to boot! Win.

I was pleased to finally meet Craig (@CraigZielinski) on a night-time bike ride with Petesy and Phil. He was running, we were cycling. No, seriously. He ran all the way up and all the way down. A no-nonsense, straight-talking, lovely guy. Get some.

There were a few themeet140 meetups in Glasgow this year and that gave me the opportunity to meet a lot of really nice people. Kevin O'Neill, Ali McGill, Brian Barnes, Julie Broadfoot, Stuart Glen, Stephen O'Donnell, Geraldine Coleman, Michelle Rodgers, Kelly Forbes, Electro Ross Burns, Aaron Bassett ... this list could go on. Sorry if i've missed anyone.

Plus it was good to finally meet these two great fellas too Allan Barr and Martin Keane. Top, top guys and one has a very impressive tattoo sleeve (not Allan!). And a fab young lady in Holly Smith. I've read her blog for over a year so to meet her was cool.

I knew i'd forgotten someone else i finally met. Mr Stephen Bonnar - that fantastical drawing machine whose print will soon hang in a room when i get a frame from Ikea. Go check his work out.

People I have not met but would love to meet, have and keep in my life are, what i affectionately call, my Southern Crew. A good bunch of tweeters that in 2011, i will make it my mission to meet (Oh dear, have I really said that!!). You are all great for various reasons but mostly for being friendly tweeters whom I've taken to my heart. The straight talking passionate Miss Andie Kiss; fabulous husband and wife team of Ben and Carly Woodall (are you preparing a blog as i type Ben?); lovely lovely Laura Woods. I owe her lots for reading my emails; that scamp Paul O'Neill and the lovely Anna Rosenberg; fab Miss Kat; little Miss Embot; Richard Baker; Mr Jamie9A - he's living in the 80's this week; very cool Mr JJ Kilpatrick; lovely John Heath; and the inspirational and truly fantastic Mr Neil Fox. He will change the face of 2011, big time.

A very special mention goes to Adam Morland. My friend. Producer of the first baby in my twitterstream - little gorgeous Zak! I can't remember when our first contact was but i'm glad we connected. He's a friend, a confidante and a wonderful father and husband to his gorgeous family. Big love Mr.

And finally to these nice people, thanks for your tweets over this year. A pleasure talking to you and hearing your stories: Al Christou; Mark Kalch; Annie Beee - will we ever meet?!; Chris Pritchard; Mark Beaumont; Owen Philipson; Chris Hall; Claire Edge; Mark Cooper (truly inspiring winner at life!); Annanyah; Mr Rob Green; that wonderful landscape photographer Stewart Smith (buy his work, please!); Nick Dixon; Ceasar Lopez who was genuinely interested in my graphics class; Stuart Witts; the very wise Raam Dev; Lorne Rutherford. I've probably missed a few, if i have sorry!

Angela x