Blogger meetup

I've been talking with other local bloggers about this idea off and on for a long time, and I think it's high time we had another blogger meetup of some sort. All it takes is for someone to organize it. So here you go...

This is short notice, but I'd like to throw together a meeting this Wednesday, August 2, at 7 p.m. at Panera Bread in Vestavia. They've got Wi-Fi access there in case anyone wants to bring along a laptop.

In particular, I'd like to talk about what my company, al.com, is doing with blogs. We've been trying to recruit community bloggers for some time now, with very little success. So I want to know: Are we going about this wrong? What kind of blogs do you want to read? What kind of blogs would you want to write? What sort of features would make blogging through al.com an attractive option?

Think about those questions, and come out Wednesday evening to discuss them in person. If you can't make it to the meeting (or if you simply want to begin discussion early), feel free to leave comments here.

Oh, and please link back to this post in your own blogs to help spread the word. See you Wednesday!

Update:

Just in case anyone is checking back here to see who else is going to be there tonight before making up their mind, here's a rundown of whom I've head from...

Positive response (will be there/will try to be there): Shadowhelm, Chez, Skillzy, Elizabeth, Wade, Dre, Sarah etc.

Maybe response (uncertain or unclear): Rush

Negative response (can't make it): Kelly, SJ the Mom, Fierce Poet

That's just the people I've heard from, mind you. I e-mailed plenty of others, so hopefully we'll have a lively crowd.

Conversations with a car

Misty got a new car today — a 2006 Civic Hybrid. It has all sorts of nifty features including a navigation system and a connection for her iPod. Misty is sitting in the car now, reading the manuals and trying to get a grasp of what the car can do. She excitedly called me into the garage a few minutes ago to show me the voice recognition system. "Watch this," she said — "find nearest restaurant." The car replied, "Rear defrost on."

Seriously, though, the car just has to be programed to recognize Misty's voice. It worked on the second try, and it was really cool.

Going postal

Emily and I ran errands today, one of which included stopping at the post office. I bought some of the new superhero stamps and immediately realized that was a mistake. Emily saw them and said, "Stickers! Thank you, Daddy!" Of course, I had to explain that they weren't really stickers, and that she couldn't have any of them anyway. That didn't go over well. She simply replied with "my stickers," this time adding a slight whine to her tone. The situation could have gone downhill fast, but luckily, the woman behind the counter saved me by producing an actual sticker for my daughter. Emily was satisfied with the round sticker that proclaimed "I visited the post office today" and affixed it to her shirt.

On our way out of the post office, a woman in Army fatigues was walking in. As we passed each other in the doorway Emily exclaimed, "Police man! Hi, police man!" Some parents might have been embarassed my such a thing, but I was amused. As I buckled Emily into her car seat, I explained about the difference between the police and the Army, though I had no doubt that she didn't register any of it. As if to illustrate the futility of my efforts, two minutes later a mail truck drove by in front of us and Emily exclaimed, "Police car!"

Big news

+!

Update: Beware the Ides of March.