Category: Burningbird

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Just Shelley Weblogging

I feel orange

Recovered from the Wayback Machine.

I just had a comment from Dave (“Not Winer or Whiner” Dave, an anonymous and very lovable and supportive reader who I would link to if he ONLY LEFT HIS WEB ADDRESS) about sticking your hand into water and feeling ‘green’. First — cool comment.

Second: feeling colors. Tasting colors.

I think that purple would “feel” like velvet, and taste rich. None of this “It would taste like grapes, Bird”. We need to stretch out little horizons today, let our little imagines out to play, screw with people’s minds who accidentally wonder into this weblog without any prior warning.

Purple would feel like velvet and taste rich. “I feel like purple today” means I’m feeling seductive today.

Black would feel cold, cold, cold and taste like steel. “I feel like black today” means I’m feeling cold, emotionless, depressed, elegant, or controlled.

Green would feel soft, and taste fresh. “I feel like green today” means I’m feeling soft, new, and open.

Red would feel hot, and taste spicy (well, my imagine didn’t wander far for that one, did it?) “I feel like red today” means…well, it means something I can’t say even on my weblog.

Yellow would feel gooey (a nice gooey) and taste tangy. “I feel yellow today” means I’m springy, light, effervescent, maybe even a little silly.

Blue would feel strong, and taste refreshing. “I feel blue” means I’m calm, intellectual, good humored.

White would feel like diamonds and taste like crystals. “I feel white today” means everything’s crystal clear, ringing true, and the battle is about to begin. “I am BurningBird, white knight!”

Tan or brown would feel like suede and taste like chocolate (only real food item I’m allowing — after all chocalate is chocolate). “I feel chocolate today” means sometimes I feel like a nut, and sometimes I don’t.

Rose would feel delicate, and taste ephemeral. “I feel rose today” means I’m loving, gentle, nuturing, even a tad clingy, but in a nice way. (And everyone’s saying, “I bet it’ll be a cold day in hell before Bird feels rose.”)

and…

Orange would feel rough, and taste bitter-sweet. “I feel orange today” means I’m edgy, quick tempered, a little manic, and in your face. With charm, though.

Categories
Weblogging Writing

Dave Winer/Winerlog Controversy

Recovered from the Wayback Machine.

Sorry, not in a funny mood today.

Yesterday as a result of the Fairvue awards, I thought it would be nice to take time to tell favorite bloggers how much we like them. Based on this, I had some wonderful exchanges with some of the nicest people — and not just within the weblogging world.

No buzz generation. No blogrolling. No ulterior motives. Just, a thought that I don’t need an awards system to tell people that I like their weblogs and that they make my day a little brighter, funner, more interesting.

However, my admittedly utupian thought took a turn to the right at some point and some weblogging politics entered the picture, my weblog posting right in the middle of it.

It has to do with my original linking of Dave Winer and the Winerlog websites under the heading of Polar Opposites. I originally did this not to be mean, but to be funny. Really, if you have one weblog that’s nothing more than the antithesis of the other, your first inclination is to point this out — and I did. However, when Dave Winer put a comment in my notes that he found it hurtful, I separated the two. Dave and I also exchanged some emails on a related subject, content not to be shared here as it was private communication between us.

I was concerned that the comments would actually be communicated to Winerlog, and they were. Now at the beginning and end of all these really nice comments from my weblogging friends, I have Dave’s comment in the beginning and a slam at Dave at the end. And Winerlog has posted a shot at Dave’s comment.

I was delighted with my exchanges with favorite webloggers yestereday (TX Meryl, NJ Meryl, Sharon, Justin, Dane. Stav, Jonathon, Rageboy (earlier communication), and Gary) as well as my delight in getting to know other webloggers better (such as Mike).

I am really disappointed that the whole Dave Winer/Winerlog thing got brought into this. I’m disappointed at the person who pointed out Dave’s comments to Winerlog. I’m disappointed at the email exchange with Dave yesterday. I’m disappointed that Winerlog published a weblog posting on this subject, and not the original posting. Remember that original posting?

Ultimately, I’m disappointed with both Dave and Winerlog for only seeing the spite and not the focus of the bloody posting — appreciation. News for you both:

Dave, you need a sense of humor. The Romans during the time of the Caesar’s, before they reached their ultimate corruption, thought that one’s ultimate enemy is, in actuality one’s most powerful friend. Your enemy spends more time thinking about you than your friends do. Your enemy points out all your weaknesses, allowing you to learn how to become stronger. Your enemy will be honest when others, fearing to offend, will lie.

In this looking glass world whereby we are defined by others perception of ourselves our enemy is our harshest, but truest, mirror. If your enemy goes silent, you have achieved perfection.

And Winerlog, you need to get a life. What is your name? You hide behind the shield of the anonymous, which is nothing more than the ultimate betrayal of self. I would dearly love to see what you have to say about other things in life. Music. Favorite foods. Favorite people — you only measure the people listed within your weblog by their degree of difficulty with Dave. I know, because I’m on that list — something I thought was funny at first, not any longer. Not anymore.

I’m a richer person than your listing implies. I have more facets to my character than just the fact that I sometimes don’t agree with Dave. No offense to you, and to Dave, this is such a trivial part of my life.

Both of you betrayed a simple request that I made — that people take a moment and tell their favorite webloggers how much you like them. Simple. Uncomplicated.

I’m removing both your links from my blogroll, and won’t return them until I have an apology from both of you. If you want to hate me for this and this posting, go ahead. If you want to stop mentioning me in your weblog again, Dave, go ahead. Winerlog if you want to pull my link, than go ahead.

I would rather my weblog go unread and unlinked than continue to be a party to this foolishness. If I get only one person visiting me in a day, but that person visits because they like what I say, then I’m ahead. I’ll take that person, and dammit I’ll be happy.

Categories
Just Shelley

Crossed Emails

Recovered from the Wayback Machine.

I’ve had three crossed email incidents in the last two days. In case you’re wondering, crossed email is when you send an email and the person you’re sending it to sends you an incoming email at the exact same time. Unless you’re in a furious exchange of emails, this is pretty rare.

You know what crossed emails mean, don’t ya? Every time you exchange simultaneous emails with another person, an evil email spammer goes to hell.

Really! I’m not making this up! I received the instructions when I answered the following email:

Moved offline because original was taking up too much room.

Categories
Just Shelley

Criminally Cute

Recovered from the Wayback Machine.

When BurningBird takes a walk on cute side, she doesn’t screw around.

Is there some form of criminal offense to put something this absolutely terminally cute on the internet?

I thought my hamster in the pink dress was cute earlier, but this…don’t view if cute makes your toes curl.

(Actually, I thought some of it bordered on the scary myself.)

Categories
Just Shelley Writing

Sleepless Night

Recovered from the Wayback Machine.

The Bay’s remarkably clear tonight. The lights on the other side sparkle like wadded up gum tinfoil on the ground.

I was thinking tonight that writers are either abysmally insecure or abominably arrogant —we don’t fall in-between. And I think the arrogant ones among us are nothing more than insecure writers that got so tired of being insecure that they got mad and then remained in that state.

Go to a bookstore and stand between any two bookshelves. If you close your ears and open your mind, you’ll be deafened by the sound of a thousand authors whispering their insecurities into the night. What will people say? Will they like it? Why did that critic hate it so much? Why did that jackass give me only one star at Amazon? What if no one reads it?

Chances are if you’re reading this, you’re a weblogger. If so, then you know what I’m saying. Close your eyes now, and in your mind you’ll hear a thousand webloggers whispering their insecurities into the threaded void of the Internet. Will they like it? Will I get any hits? Will I get flamed? What’s my Blogdex index? Why is no one linking to me?