Category Archives: blather

Blogger Conference Survival Tips: The MUST LIST

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Sparklecorn Cake

I’ve been to a bunch of conferences for work, and I started diving into the world of blogger conferences two years ago, with BlogHer’12. As I’m rolling into this year’s rather packed itinerary of BlogHer’15 and Blogger Bash running simultaneously in New York City, I figured I’d pass along some basic tips that I have for surviving any conference–but especially those with bloggers. (Yes, bloggers are a different breed from your standard conference-goer.)

 

Apps at the eppa Sangria Soiree

Tasty treats prepared by Whole Foods for the eppa Sangria Soiree on opening night of BlogHer’14

Tip #1: Eat and hydrate.

This may seem like it’s pretty obvious, but it’s easy to get distracted. And when the free booze starts flowing, another glass of wine may sound like an awesome idea. Even so, when you find the coveted bottle of water, hang onto that puppy like it’s the stuff of life. You can always refill it from a water cooler or the tap in your hotel room. I can’t count the number of conferences where booze and sodas are readily available but water is not. Dehydration, especially during the summer, is a BAD THING.

Also, make sure that you eat when the opportunities present themselves. It’s easy to eat bad food while traveling, but more and more conferences are attempting to offer healthier options at the buffet. Take advantage of that while you can, because your options when you roam may be more like the dude selling gyros from the cart across the street from the hotel. (Which, by the way, are supposed to be fabulous. Just saying.)

 

Tip #2: Get a backup battery for your phone.

I’m partial to the Mophie Juice Pack Air that I was turned on to by my friend Lori of My Kinda Rain; she suggested I buy a Mophie before BlogHer’12, and that was a genius purchase. When I get down to 20% on my iPhone, I just flip on my Mophie and it recharges me right back up to 100% in short order. Better still, I can charge the Mophie and phone overnight (simultaneously) using the Mophie’s cable. The downsides are that the battery heats up a bit while it’s charging your phone and the Mophie case is somewhat bulkier than a usual case (although par for the course if you’re used to a large case, like an OtterBox).

When these conferences consist of everyone being on their phone ALL DAY LONG, tweeting, texting, and otherwise connecting with the social media world, your Mophie makes you far less likely to be the sad panda blogger roaming around looking for a wall outlet.

 

Tip #3: Pack in a bigger bag than you need.

Blogger conferences are notorious for their swag, and some of it just isn’t that easy to carry home without extra luggage space. Sure enough, you can avoid this by heading to the shipping center at the hotel and paying to send the stuff home, but if you just pack in a larger bag than you need for what you’re bringing with you to the conference, there’s built-in space for bringing some (or all) of that swag back. If you anticipate bringing home a lot of stuff, even packing a duffle bag in your primary bag will work; if you don’t need it, you just bring it home. And if you do need it, then hey: you have a duffle bag to carry your stuff.

 

Tip #4: Use the swag exchange!

For those heading to BlogHer, in particular, there’s often (or always?) a Swag Exchange room set up as a room-sized swag equivalent of the “give a penny, take a penny” cup. Simply report to the Swag Exchange with the items you picked up/were given that you don’t want or need, and drop them off wherever it’s appropriate. (Bins are sometimes organized in categories.)

Looking for something specific? Check the Swag Exchange periodically to see if someone dropped off that item. And don’t be afraid to offer to swap with friends and fellow bloggers. These events can often be one big swag bazaar, and while it may be that you really wanted two of a particular toy to bring home to your kids, you may have something another blogger really wants to bring home to their clan that you can exchange for your own “must-have” item.

 

And this brings me to the biggest tip of all:

 

Sadie+me

<3

Tip 5: SAY HI TO PEOPLE!

We did an experiment last year, at BlogHer’14, hanging out in front of the Convention Center and saying “Hi!” to fellow bloggers as they walked out onto the street. Some said “Hi” back and others looked at us as though we had the plague. Consider this: even if you’re the most introverted person ever, you’re at a conference. You’re among people who, on some level, are like-minded, and you may just find someone that you truly connect with (like Sadie of SlapDashMom, above left, whom I clicked with instantly). But you’ll never know that if you don’t say HI to people. So get out there and make some friends. Or at least one. You won’t regret it. I know I didn’t.

Is Boston Strong enough for what’s next?

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It was a little over a month ago that I wrote about the verdict in the Dzhokhar Tsarnaev trial. Yesterday, the jury came back from deliberations and pronounced that the twelve men and women decided he should be put to death for the horrific crimes he committed. He bombed innocent people. He helped kill an MIT police officer.

And now, the twelve ruled: LET HIS GLOBAL BUS PASS BE REVOKED.

I don’t necessarily disagree with the jury. After all, if the death penalty shouldn’t be applied in the case of the Boston Marathon bomber, when should it be applied?

There are those who say that it should never be applied, whether they believe in the concept of turning the other cheek, or whether they believe in some manner of redemption…or perhaps they believe that if even one wrongly accused person is put to death then we as a society are no better than those that we would hold in contempt.

I also don’t necessarily agree with the jury, either.

From the moment he was caught, I wanted him gone. Toss him in the deepest, darkest hole in our Federal penitentiary system, I said. Let him disappear forever where he can’t harm anyone else and he will never again experience the joys of freedom. He was guilty, so much so that even his defense team acknowledged his guilt from the outset and only worked to mitigate its impact by trying to deflect blame onto anyone and everything except for their client.

In that sense, barring some kind of overturning of his conviction on appeal, at least he will be in prison for the rest of his life. He will be off the streets. He won’t get to hang out with his friends in his dorm room or at a restaurant. He committed horrible, senseless, violent acts that are utterly inexcusable, and he should be punished.

I see so much blood lust on my personal Facebook and Twitter feeds; some friends and family seem gleeful at the idea of him being taken out back and put out of our misery. And rarely is it ever that simple. In practical reality, because the verdict of death triggers an automatic appeal, his story will be in the headlines for months and years to come. Of course, there are also the candle-wavers holding virtual vigil for the idea that the death penalty is so wrong that he must be spared from a rather immediate termination and instead have a lengthy life in prison…followed by termination–voluntary or otherwise.

It’s all enough to make you wish people were still posting copious videos of cats playing pianos.

I was chatting with a co-worker yesterday and I mentioned that I knew people who were there on the day of the bombing: people inside The Forum, people at the medical tent, people hovering near the finish line as they cheered on friends and complete strangers. Anyone with a connection to prior Boston Marathons was there in some way, shape, or form that day–even if we weren’t there physically. Yesterday only dredged up some of those feelings, giving neither comfort nor solace. It was only a mile marker in a much longer marathon.

We have such a small time on this Earth, in this universe. We have but years in which to build and enjoy lives of exploration, education, and emotion. We are a blink of an eye in a natural system that tells times in eons and epochs. We are transient. We should never hurry on death and destruction. We should never rejoice in it.

I wish the verdict brought peace, but it doesn’t. It allows twelve people to go back to their lives as they were before, knowing they will never be the same. It allows the rest of us to wait impatiently and uncomfortably for whatever size and manner of shoe is next to drop. This story won’t go away anytime soon. There is no fading into obscurity.

The trauma continues.

The marathon keeps going.

Are we Strong enough for this race?

I sure as hell hope so.

If I never hear the word “asbestos” again…

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I’ve been MIA on this blog for the last few weeks, mostly because things have been in complete uproar. Actually, they’ve been in uproar for months, but I’ve been keeping it mostly quiet online until it was settled down.

Long story short: we planned to add more insulation to our attic (thanks to the Mass Save program), and before we could have electrical cleanup work done in the attic we had an ice dam that caused minor water damage to our son’s room’s ceiling, which led to a hole cut in the ceiling, which EVENTUALLY (on the day the insulators came to the house) led to the discovery that we had vermiculite in our attic. (*pants* takes a breath)

Still following?

Vermiculite is a mineral that–for many years prior to 1990–was primarily mined from a site in Montana that was contaminated with a highly toxic form of asbestos. Thus, the EPA says that once you discover vermiculite of unknown age, you have to get rid of it in the same manner as if it contains asbestos. Apparently, testing of vermiculite is inaccurate and produces too many false negatives, so you can’t just test it for asbestos and rule out the need for full-on remediation.

Thankfully, we’re insured by Amica (aka “THE BEST INSURER EVAR”) and they not only paid for the ice dam removal and water damage repair–they also paid for the asbestos remediation AND the hotel stay during the same. Since the asbestos remediation clocked in at $12,000, that’s no small investment in us and our house.

We’ve had new insulation put in, so we’re now all set–and actually insulated far more than we were to begin with, since the new stuff was done under the Mass Save program (to get us to the right level of insulation). But still…

Since the start of the year, we’ve been buried under nine feet of snow, had ice dams EVERYWHERE, had water damage, had a 2’x2′ hole cut in our ceiling, had electricians stomping all through the house and attic, had insulators come and go, had to leave our house while asbestos remediators carefully removed bag after bag of potentially hazardous material from our house, had insulators come in and re-insulate the attic…and, well, it’s all more than a little overwhelming.

When I say this was the Winter from Hell, I’m just not even exaggerating. There are few things that strike more fear in the heart of a homeowner than knowing they may have had asbestos floating around in their house. It also doesn’t help much that we lost a friend to mesothelioma not quite two years ago. Asbestos is the enemy.

So there you have it. And that’s what’s been going on. So if I’ve been too quiet, I apologize. Things have been…well, just a little busy, and sometimes I feel it’s better to share when the chaos has died down. This wasn’t a fast process, nor was it an inexpensive one, but thanks to Amica, at least we didn’t get ourselves dug into horrific debt on top of all the other stress it caused. And now, back to the normal level of chaos and stress…