That? Is a sheep. Yes, because I was jealous of Kate's sheep.

But this is a special sheep. This particular sheep, at least its image, belongs to Tim and the whole picture is so much cooler than that snapshot.

Why a sheep? I'm glad you asked. Because it is an Icelandic sheep. And today, CD gave a presentation at Bear's co-op school (he goes one day a week with other homeschoolers.)

This is notable because a) CD has never given a presentation on his native Iceland before and b) CD is about the least likely person to ever GIVE a presentation on anything. He's incredibly shy. But a couple of years ago, he took that required "Speech" class at college and didn't suck. So he girded up his loins and... more...

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I've been spending time on Facebook lately. So, duh, what else is new? I'm still all gosh-gee-whiz about the mix of high school, corporate, real life, and online contacts all gathered in one place. It sort of feels like how the Internet used to be. Back when Gore had just pulled it out of the oven, fresh and steamy.

I have a beef, though.

An itty, bitty little beef. One I am soooo feeling funny about admitting.

Here it is: I don't get the de-be-friending thing.

One day I noticed that my number of "friends" had decreased overnight. I went looking at the list, up and down, and scratched my head. I could see who wasn't there anymore - I just didn't know why.

I started writing the person an email; "did your Facebook break? You seem to have fallen off my friend list." God saved me from making an ass out of myself by taking down the Internet before I could send it. ('Cuz God does little things like that, just for me.)

By the time systems were back up, a real-life person had set me straight. "Hun," she said. "Don't send that email. People will de-friend and be-friend left and right. Lots of people will friend you just to look at your info and then drop you again. It's the way it is. If you make a fuss, you'll totally look like a dweeb."

She said that; dweeb.

I didn't believe her. So I asked an acknowledged expert in the field: an actual college student. (Yes, free-range.)

"Don't sweat it," he advised.

"I'm not sweating anything. I just want to know why."

"You don't get to know why. It's not your 'why'."

"But they dropped me!"

"Yeah, it happens."

"But they DROPPED me!"

"What are you, 12?"

So, in my expansive research I have discovered that the no-ask no-tell policy of de-Friending on Facebook is just a long-standing bit of culture. One that has given rise to some interesting behaviors. Not to get all Margaret Mead but it started making me curious.

"So, will they re-beFriend me?"

"Depends."

"On what?" I was a little outraged. This felt like when we were voting for peer advisor, back in college. It was a perked-up job, with a patina of aloofness about it. People who wanted the the job would screw themselves if ever seen actually lobbying for it.

"If you run into them at a party or something, maybe they'll send you a friend invite again. Otherwise, it's on you."

"To do what?"

"Get closer to them in real life so that they'd want to know you on FB."

Oh. God.

I am, in the words of our beloved Indy, getting too damn old for this. Which may be the point. This is a medium originally created for college campuses.

So people you don't know, friend you. And people you do? Unfriend. And in between, well, a world that sucks too much of my time and still leaves me a little curious about the why. (Or is that just me?)

Posted by: Elizabeth at 11:07 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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Sometimes, I watch those commercials for Lysol or Fabreze and wonder if there was a product like that for life - would I use it?

Blogs seem to fall into two groups - the anonymous, outrageous ones where people are free to be exactly what they want to be and the real, identified ones which have to be carefully edited.

This one falls somewhere in between: I mean, it started out anonymous, but I wasn't very good at it. And eventually, I dropped the curtain and had to start being careful what I said.

It didn't go well at first. I though "coming out of the closet" would make me feel more free. As it turns out, I actually felt hog-tied.

What followed has been a long ramp of learning how to write again. more...

Posted by: Elizabeth at 11:55 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 I do not have an answer for you - I keep a written journal, but I intend it for my son to read, so it's heavily edited. I would hide what you want/need to. Rebecca U.

Posted by: Rebecca U. at January 28, 2009 11:01 AM (wOMm/)

2 Thanks, R

Posted by: Elizabeth at January 28, 2009 12:11 PM (Y/P20)

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By the time I went to bed last night, I felt like someone had poured concrete into my brain and it had dripped and hardened all the way down to my sinuses.

I may not even brush my teeth today.

As I crawl for the comfort of the bed, all I can think is.... "Nyquil, oh where art thou, Nyquil...?"

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The Corporate Mommy website is officially re-launched!

Opinions? Ideas? Tomatoes?

Yes, I did all the code myself. And boy, are my arms tired.

I wanted more white space, and like a dozen other things, but this is what I was able to do with my limited skills. I think it is a vast improvement, but then - I'm biased. I put more time into this than into labor, giving birth!

My big worry now is... will there be anything to read? I haven't written professionally since last August. Or personally, really. Writing is a muscle; and mine has been increasingly unused for a year due to... well... OK there's no good way to say 'Brain Infection'.

I've come up with an exercise regime to get my writing back into shape: I'm going to scribe 30 posts in the next 30 days. I don't know if this will all come back to me, or some, or none.

What would really, really, with sprinkles on top help is...feedback. Comments letting me know what YOU think.

Because of the generosity of a wonderful person, I have some $25 Amazon gift certificates to give away.

ANY LEGITIMATE COMMENT IS ELIGIBLE (in other words? no spammers, 'bots, blood relatives, or 'this is a comment' comments). If you don't leave a valid email address with your comment, then you can't win on account that Amazon sends the gift certificate via email.

Be assured: I do not collect email addresses, sell them, use them, whatever. Also? Email addresses are garbled into the code of this blog so no one can scrape them (go ahead and "view page source" to see what I mean).

This is just a little splash of gratitude and fizz to thank you for your help.

Details: I'll be giving away one AMAZON gift card ($25) every Friday for the next month to a different commenter each week.

At the end of each of the next 4 weeks (a week being Friday to Thursday) - I'll pick a comment randomly (I'll post the results here). The giveaways will happen on: Jan 23, Jan 30, Feb 6, and Feb 13. The gift cards are virtual and will be immediately sent to the email address associated with the comment.

That's 25 big ol' smackeroos just for stopping by.

So, help a girl out - get some money for those "Lost" DVD's. It's that easy.

Ready?

Set?

Wait, wait... did I say thanks for your help? Because, really. THANKS.

GO!

(PS, I still have some link-cleaning and CSS edits to do but the website overhaul is mostly done. Please let me know if you find a broken link or something looks wonky. )

Posted by: Elizabeth at 09:03 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 "Now it's time to the fun/agonizing stuff" - I think you missed a word, or meant to replace 'to' with 'for' there. (Feel free to revoke the call for editing any time - my virtual red pen is a bit too hot to trot. ) And there's no need for giveaways, though if it makes things feel more Real and Official for you, go for it. Looking forward to seeing what comes in the coming days!

Posted by: Alice at January 16, 2009 02:14 PM (8Xs3q)

2 NO bribe needed. I'm so glad to see you back... however, not green, go blue! Or if that it too much, PURPLE!!! My Elizabeth would just love it and your mom would HATE it. Too much fun! Love you lots

Posted by: Cathy at January 16, 2009 02:47 PM (22e6i)

3 So glad you're back. No reward needed. I check your site regularly to see if there's anything new. Now there will be and I'm happy! And I think the writing will come more easily the more you do it - just have to get those joints limbered up again. WELCOME BACK!

Posted by: Amy at January 17, 2009 10:07 AM (I9LMv)

4 well, I am just glad you are going to be writing 30 posts in 30 days. Great for you, and so glad the wait is over.. I have missed you!!! I apologize in advance but could not possibly be of any help with the kind of feedback you are looking for, though. Every time I see you have posted is a thrill for me to read you and I love everything you write. I guess I love and respect you too much as a lovely person to even try to be an objective critic of the writing alone ... I feel too close and connected to you. Cannot be a judge, darling. Sorry, does that make any sense? I can try to explain better via email because I guess my English is getting rusty as well as I got away from the Corporate world myself!

Posted by: Sol at January 18, 2009 01:48 AM (5lTHx)

5 I just checked. I added you to my favorites on my birthday in 2005. Glad you will be posting more. I have been at home with my pre-teen daughter 6 months now. So I want to know..what do you see outside your house besides what Bear does? (No cheating from current events either) I got to go to 'town' with my family and visit the local college campus. I felt like some 85 year old aunt being taken for a ride. I was sooo glad to get out. What about you?

Posted by: christine at January 19, 2009 04:28 AM (qPWnh)

6 Found your blog by accident about a year ago. I have found your words and experiences comforting and since some of them paralleled some of my life experiences. It will be nice to see your thoughts expressed. I envy you and your ability to convey your thoughts and emotions through the written word. Please blog on. And as many have said no compensation is required.

Posted by: Sorcha at January 19, 2009 12:42 PM (rW1I2)

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I woke up to an interesting mailbox.

The Case of the Novice Newspaper

First of all, my daily drop from my local newspaper informed me that the blizzard warning had been dropped. OK. That's gotta be good news - right?

Except: Horrible weather still predicted. Plus they spelled it 'Bizzard' - right there in the headline. Which made me briefly wonder if, as a cost-saving measure, they fired all the real reporters and hired eager high school kids instead. Then I slapped my head and realized - high school kids would actually know how to use the spell-checker.

I looked outside. The sun is blindingly bright over an inch of fresh snow. You're batting 0 for 2, Lee. (*Updated: They fixed it.) more...

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I found this old picture while cleaning up my archives. Those jeans? Are paisley.

I'll give you a minute to wipe the milk out of your nose.

Almost as bad as the fact that I bought, and wore, and thought I was COOL in those terrifying pants is that I still had them in my closet in 1998.

I can remember, grudgingly, making more room for CD. He used a bureau. I hate bureaus. I like shelves and baskets. It seems all good on paper - but in reality, he's a clothes horse. The fashion encroached, and I had to make room.

And there I was, with paisley jeans in hand, thinking: I should save these. Styles always come around again.

Memo from Above: No, Virginia. Paisley jeans will not come back. Nor should they.

I was thinking about that as I've been working.

Schooling my son, figuring out how to crock pot a pot roast (because the oven's dying), and teaching myself about RSS and Digg and Slashdot and Tags vs. Keywords and meta crawling...

Paisley jeans. Will Technorati ever be like Paisley jeans? Will StumbleOn? When Kalisa and Helen and RP and Ben (both of them) and who-all-else and I all started blogging - 5 years ago, now - "social media consultant" was a made-up phrase for "spends too much time on the Internet".

I just organized 5 years' worth of mastheads. Watched as trends came and went, as my skill with photoshop matured...

For the first time in my life, my insatiable curiosity has become a little...sated. At least around the edges. My neck is sore. My brains is stuffed.

I need a good, stiff drink.

Posted by: Elizabeth at 03:33 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Although far from done, I see a light at the end of the tunnel. And it's not a train.

Disturbingly, I was looking at a magazine article the other day and began imagining how it would be coded if I wanted to use the layout online.

Time to take a break. And cut back on the Dunkie's. Cuz, seriously.

Oh, and last night I saw "Zach and Miri make a porno". Can I just saw that I never, ever needed to see Jason Mewes naked? Now I need an itty bitty scrub brush for my eyeballs.

Posted by: Elizabeth at 10:25 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Helen has declared it "International Internet Reveal Your Horrid Teenage Years Picture Day".

It would be crazy to go along with this - and I wouldn't - but a) I happened to be organizing my backups and found some old (old, old) pictures of me that made me all nostalgic (although wondering why - the good ol' days weren't particularly good) and b) after seeing what she posted of herself, I couldn't help but have a bit of a laugh. A lot of a laugh. So, it's only fair.

Here's me, about 2 months before turning 13. It's the last time I'll be cute for at least a decade.

Want proof? more...

Posted by: Elizabeth at 11:00 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 Not even close, babe. Your teen years look happy, wholesome, and super-cute. Horrid has not touched you. Be glad.

Posted by: Helen at January 09, 2009 09:23 PM (aPO+r)

2 Definitely the girl next door that all the boys had crushes on.

Posted by: Angie at January 11, 2009 10:03 AM (x2XWI)

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Walking the tightrope. If you've visited lately (despite my radio silence) you have probably noticed that I'm editing live.

It's a long story why.

Don't I have a program in which to build this site before uploading? Why yes, yes I do. FIVE of them.

But Pixy, Dude amongst Dudes, hosts me on Movable Type 2.something. Pixy? Is faboo. I do not complain about MT 2.prehistoric. However, my site-building programs DO. They are ungrateful bitches, every last one of them. And reward my situation by confirming code that absolutely looks different (if it works at all) once uploaded.

So...armed with a text editor and sheer chocolate-fueled will, I have been weeble-wobbling a design. This front page is the prototype of the new site. It has not yet been propagated. Comments and archives are limping behind. But the core is here. The style sheets are lovely and simple. The layout is decided.

I would give a small kingdom (say, Lichtenstein) to be able to use American Typewriter (see Title Font on background) for my titles, Costa for my subtitles, and my all-time favorite, Optima, for my text. But it turns out that even in 2009, one can not have everything.

And I? Can have even less. Simply because I don't know what I am doing. It's my own dumb fault. While smarter folk were diving into the curvy deliciousness of CSS, HTML, and Java - I was sitting cross-legged with my massive SAN boxes while the EMC-rep crooned 'This Land is Your Land' to the data center.

So this is what I have so far. I thought it would take me 3 days to upload. It's taken me 3 weeks. And I'm not all the way there yet. But I've got my "Style for Dummies" book, a bagful of Hershey Kisses, and a half-full bottle of acetaminophen.

Yeah. Hit it.

Posted by: Elizabeth at 02:18 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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