If I think back, my longest standing hobby must surely be photography. From borrowing my dad's camera (who was passionate about photography himself, I think he once won a prize for an owl picture, and he kept with black and white long after colour was all in vogue) to getting a first camera, to being bequeathed the old SLR, all manual, and the calculating that goes with having to do aperture and speed for every single picture. Going on to saving and buying an automatic SLR. Resisting the digital revolution until I could afford a DSLR - if there's one thing I couldn't stand about digital cameras it was the shutter delay so while I owned a non DSLR I didn't use it much and continued to use my SLR when most people would stare at this monster in disbelief that such things existed.
In between I seriously considered an apprenticeship as photographer as my career path (and thought better of it when I realised that I'd most likely spend my days taking photos of weddings and kids in the same old positions). Even when I still wasn't quite sure what to do with my life I'd decided that photography was to be my hobby. It wasn't ever to be my profession because sometimes, you have to guard your interest and make it special by keeping it as a hobby.
And what a hobby. Even before the digital age, I pressed that shutter button a lot. A two week holiday has been known to produce 10 rolls of 36 exp film. I recently threw out years of taking photos at tennis tournaments - I was into sports photography in a seriously big way when I was 15-17. Looking back, it's quite unbelievable just how many photo one person can take of Jonas Svensson's double handed back hand.
Now of course most of my photos are of my kids. I'm forever looking for a new perspective, a new angle, a new expression and I love creating things from the photos. Now that little Miss Snowflake is up on her feet good and proper my arms are occasionally free again to take along the camera. Of course I still often miss a perfect moment because I decided the camera was too heavy to carry amongst all the other kids' stuff.
When two of my favourite bloggers announced that they'd be doing ecourses on improving your skills to take photos of your kids I just had to register for the first course "Capturing the Moments". I know that I don't really have the time, but on the other hand this summer at least is in theory the one where I have more time than I will have in the foreseeable future, and really, sometimes you just have to go with it. Just seeing the trailer was so snap watering that I picked up the camera one evening and took a whole pile of photos.
And that's one of the great things about blogging - although I don't as such follow photography blogs, I've often been inspired by a shot by one blogger or another, and while I don't post many of my photos here, reading blogs has made sure that my longest standing hobby was alive and kicking. And I think the sharing of photos during the e-course will provide another boost of inspiration, new ideas and things to try out on its own, never mind the actual course that I hope will develop how I take photos and maybe even let me get on a better foot with the camera's manual setting.
The batteries are charged and the SD card has been emptied, it's all go for the start of the course at the end of this month!
Mummy do that!
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Thursday, 3 May 2012
Wednesday, 9 February 2011
What were you born to?
Have you every asked yourself the question what you were born to?
It's a difficult one, isn't it. We are all complex human beings with lots of interests and passions, and nailing it down to just one is just a tiny gigantorous bit hard. I for one have never been particularly good at nailing the essence of who I am and what I am about onto the head. Stick me into any personal development course or session and I come out more confused than before.
Maybe I was born to write. I like to write and have always done some writing, without ever being ambitious about it. Honest, I know I'm not a poet, a novelist and that's fine. It doesn't mean that I don't enjoy expressing myself in writing. That's probably why I blog, and why I'm never pushed to find time for blogging, something many people find odd. It's something I enjoy, which relaxes me, just like reading and knitting does, or watching a good film or gigging.
The other passion I have is that for social justice and equalities. It's always been with me, I really can't tell where and when it started. I grew up in the height of the cold war and always thought it was ridiculous the way the "Russians" were portrayed as the baddies. I voiced my views loud and clear as a teenager and promptly got labelled a communist (which back then was a major insult - I shrugged and just said that they should check what a communist is first - and if you think that sounds rather petty, it wasn't at the time). I loved to discuss politics but I could and still can get angry when views extremely opposed to my sense of justice are put forward, it really upsets me which is why I wouldn't be any good as a politician, it would tear me up from the inside I'm sure.
Much safer from this bloggy corner of mine because, let's be honest, if someone reads this and doesn't like my views, they will mostly just not read again. Debate usually is within a shared understanding and without upset. A debate that I find challenges my views and lets me look deeper and develop. The kind of debate that's good and constructive.
Some time ago, when I was still at school and uni, I worked as a freelance journalist, while I studied languages and politics. It became clear though that to be a successful journalist you needed more than a talent to write, it took a bit of elbows where I was and as someone who always waits their turn and is a bit on the shy side, it didn't feel right at the time to pursue this career. Of course I still wish sometimes I would have, it still is the one career that combines my two passions. Instead, I wrote a PhD, instead I now write reports and a blog. Which is pretty close. I still wish I was a more poignant debater/writer, and that I had the time to properly research the points I'd like to make, which is why I love reading posts by people who somehow manage to do this in their busy lives. You guys rule.
The bottom line though is that whatever I was born to do, I had the opportunity to explore and follow my dreams. The world was my oyster and I explored a lot of avenues, single road tracks, motorways, dirt tracks and dead ends. I'm one of the lucky ones. I even got a free third level education and only my parents nagged me about my choice of subject which they labelled a "brotlose Kunst" (breadless art, i.e. won't get you a job). Many children today are not born into such luck.
Save the Children have been working long and hard to launch a new campaign. I've known about it for a good while (after all I work for them) and I'm rather excited to see it all happening now and lots of bloggers sign up to it and spread the word. The great thing about this campaign is that it really engages with everyone, asking them what each of you were born to do. What's more, it links the international work Safe the Children does, which is all about child survival, with the UK work on eradicating child poverty. The vision of the charity is for a world where no child is born to die, and where every child is allowed to live a life where his or her ambitions stand the possibility of being fulfilled, where they can life to their full potential.
And that vision applies equally to the developing and the developed world. In the UK, children born into poverty, compared to all other Western countries, are the least likely to succeed in school and to raise themselves out of poverty; giving rise to intergenerational poverty, low ambitions and a whole section of society who disengage because they know there is no real possibility to fulfil their ambitions. Crime and violence, or depression are the consequence of a generation growing up without hope, without the possibility of a brighter future. With living in poverty comes a poorer diet, poorer health and severe health inequalities (in some parts of Glasgow average life expectancy is around 65 years, while in other parts of the city it's 85).
With the cuts and the age of austerity this is set to get even worse. As the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, our society is breaking apart from the inside and we are denying our children the future they deserve.
It's time to do something about it, at home and internationally. Join Save the Children's No Child Born to Die Campaign.
If you are a blogger, blog about it and you may have a chance to win a ticket to a special blogging conference that Save the Children is running on 26th February 2011 in London. It's full of workshop sessions and a masterclass with best-selling author Melvin Burgess. I'd love to be there but I'm currently born to lactate, so maybe next year ;)
You can also help spread the word by:
It's a difficult one, isn't it. We are all complex human beings with lots of interests and passions, and nailing it down to just one is just a tiny gigantorous bit hard. I for one have never been particularly good at nailing the essence of who I am and what I am about onto the head. Stick me into any personal development course or session and I come out more confused than before.
Maybe I was born to write. I like to write and have always done some writing, without ever being ambitious about it. Honest, I know I'm not a poet, a novelist and that's fine. It doesn't mean that I don't enjoy expressing myself in writing. That's probably why I blog, and why I'm never pushed to find time for blogging, something many people find odd. It's something I enjoy, which relaxes me, just like reading and knitting does, or watching a good film or gigging.
The other passion I have is that for social justice and equalities. It's always been with me, I really can't tell where and when it started. I grew up in the height of the cold war and always thought it was ridiculous the way the "Russians" were portrayed as the baddies. I voiced my views loud and clear as a teenager and promptly got labelled a communist (which back then was a major insult - I shrugged and just said that they should check what a communist is first - and if you think that sounds rather petty, it wasn't at the time). I loved to discuss politics but I could and still can get angry when views extremely opposed to my sense of justice are put forward, it really upsets me which is why I wouldn't be any good as a politician, it would tear me up from the inside I'm sure.
Much safer from this bloggy corner of mine because, let's be honest, if someone reads this and doesn't like my views, they will mostly just not read again. Debate usually is within a shared understanding and without upset. A debate that I find challenges my views and lets me look deeper and develop. The kind of debate that's good and constructive.
Some time ago, when I was still at school and uni, I worked as a freelance journalist, while I studied languages and politics. It became clear though that to be a successful journalist you needed more than a talent to write, it took a bit of elbows where I was and as someone who always waits their turn and is a bit on the shy side, it didn't feel right at the time to pursue this career. Of course I still wish sometimes I would have, it still is the one career that combines my two passions. Instead, I wrote a PhD, instead I now write reports and a blog. Which is pretty close. I still wish I was a more poignant debater/writer, and that I had the time to properly research the points I'd like to make, which is why I love reading posts by people who somehow manage to do this in their busy lives. You guys rule.
The bottom line though is that whatever I was born to do, I had the opportunity to explore and follow my dreams. The world was my oyster and I explored a lot of avenues, single road tracks, motorways, dirt tracks and dead ends. I'm one of the lucky ones. I even got a free third level education and only my parents nagged me about my choice of subject which they labelled a "brotlose Kunst" (breadless art, i.e. won't get you a job). Many children today are not born into such luck.
Save the Children have been working long and hard to launch a new campaign. I've known about it for a good while (after all I work for them) and I'm rather excited to see it all happening now and lots of bloggers sign up to it and spread the word. The great thing about this campaign is that it really engages with everyone, asking them what each of you were born to do. What's more, it links the international work Safe the Children does, which is all about child survival, with the UK work on eradicating child poverty. The vision of the charity is for a world where no child is born to die, and where every child is allowed to live a life where his or her ambitions stand the possibility of being fulfilled, where they can life to their full potential.
And that vision applies equally to the developing and the developed world. In the UK, children born into poverty, compared to all other Western countries, are the least likely to succeed in school and to raise themselves out of poverty; giving rise to intergenerational poverty, low ambitions and a whole section of society who disengage because they know there is no real possibility to fulfil their ambitions. Crime and violence, or depression are the consequence of a generation growing up without hope, without the possibility of a brighter future. With living in poverty comes a poorer diet, poorer health and severe health inequalities (in some parts of Glasgow average life expectancy is around 65 years, while in other parts of the city it's 85).
With the cuts and the age of austerity this is set to get even worse. As the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, our society is breaking apart from the inside and we are denying our children the future they deserve.
It's time to do something about it, at home and internationally. Join Save the Children's No Child Born to Die Campaign.
If you are a blogger, blog about it and you may have a chance to win a ticket to a special blogging conference that Save the Children is running on 26th February 2011 in London. It's full of workshop sessions and a masterclass with best-selling author Melvin Burgess. I'd love to be there but I'm currently born to lactate, so maybe next year ;)
You can also help spread the word by:
- Getting a twibbon
- Posting the bloggers badge on your blog
- Following Save the Children on Twitter using the hashtag #bornto
- Like the Save the Children Facebook Page
Thursday, 1 April 2010
Happy Blogoversary to me!
This is no April Fool, it's been exactly a year today that I started Mummy do that! Somehow, this is an ambivalent landmark (if you can have landmarks relating to time). Thing is, I've been blogging for years, and I do see Mummy do that! as a logical continuation of my original blog, Cartside. There were reasons to change - Cartside had started out as a civil society blog and then, after my daughter was born, I found myself blogging much more about pregnancy, babies, motherhood and all that comes with it. There was a feeling that my blog didn't fit into the platform of the civic society community of civiblog. On technical terms, I was also worried that civiblog might cease to exist as emails didn't get answered and generally there didn't seem to be any humans behind the platform anymore. Another reason to change was that the civiblog community never really was that - all those civic society people were very much caught up in their own very busy spheres and there was no real community to speak of.
I changed to an ostensibly mummy blog because I thought that's what my blog had become, without every intending to letting go of the other stuff that I feel passionate about. I wanted to increase my readership, engage in a debate rather than blog in isolation with hardly any readers or comments. I wanted to make sure that I was on a blogging platform that wouldn't suddenly disappear.
In the past year, I did increase my readership. I was introduced to many more blogs - so many in fact that often I spend all evening reading blogs, rather than getting around to posting myself. I'm a real comment junkie and love the way that almost every post does get some comments (even if not the same number that many other blogs get). I'm not a community junkie - I'm quite happy to engage with just a few bloggers who I value for a variety of, but specific, reasons, and even that is fleetingly because I simply have very little time at my hands (how on earth do some people manage to tweet almost constantly? No way I could ever even think of keeping that up).
The one thing that I struggle with now is that I'm still not entirely comfortable with being part of the mummy blogger community. Muddling Along Mummy eloquently raised the perception of mummy bloggers as something not as valuable, possibly limited to just talking about babies and kids and that really, mummy bloggers all have their own identity, and an impressive breadth of topics they cover. And yet we let ourselves be defined by the term mummy. I try to see the positives - it is a very supportive community, one that anyone would feel comfortable in and I like that. I also appreciate the diversity of this blogging community and never assume that a mummy blogger has nothing more to say than when the first tooth of their firstborn came through. Yet it's a question of balance and after 3 years of being a mummy, most of my posts are not about the fact that I have a child. However, my perspective on life has been influenced by just that fact, so that even if I don't blog about being a mummy, it influences my views, my interests, my passions. Just from a different angle than before.
So, in a way, I wish I hadn't maybe picked a blog title that made it so blooming obvious that this is a mummy blog. I'm still happy with the label, because I do believe that we mummy (and daddy) bloggers can make the label mean so much more than it may currently mean for some people. But having it in the title, well, not so sure if that was a good idea (though I still love the title as such, as it comes straight from the mouth of my little firecracker).
The great thing about the mummy blogger community is that everything is possible, and I still feel this is where I belong. More so anyway than any of the alternatives. So you'll be glad to know that this blog will be continued. Possibly with more mummy stuff anyway, can't really ignore that bump of mine growing and taking on worrying proportions.
I changed to an ostensibly mummy blog because I thought that's what my blog had become, without every intending to letting go of the other stuff that I feel passionate about. I wanted to increase my readership, engage in a debate rather than blog in isolation with hardly any readers or comments. I wanted to make sure that I was on a blogging platform that wouldn't suddenly disappear.
In the past year, I did increase my readership. I was introduced to many more blogs - so many in fact that often I spend all evening reading blogs, rather than getting around to posting myself. I'm a real comment junkie and love the way that almost every post does get some comments (even if not the same number that many other blogs get). I'm not a community junkie - I'm quite happy to engage with just a few bloggers who I value for a variety of, but specific, reasons, and even that is fleetingly because I simply have very little time at my hands (how on earth do some people manage to tweet almost constantly? No way I could ever even think of keeping that up).
The one thing that I struggle with now is that I'm still not entirely comfortable with being part of the mummy blogger community. Muddling Along Mummy eloquently raised the perception of mummy bloggers as something not as valuable, possibly limited to just talking about babies and kids and that really, mummy bloggers all have their own identity, and an impressive breadth of topics they cover. And yet we let ourselves be defined by the term mummy. I try to see the positives - it is a very supportive community, one that anyone would feel comfortable in and I like that. I also appreciate the diversity of this blogging community and never assume that a mummy blogger has nothing more to say than when the first tooth of their firstborn came through. Yet it's a question of balance and after 3 years of being a mummy, most of my posts are not about the fact that I have a child. However, my perspective on life has been influenced by just that fact, so that even if I don't blog about being a mummy, it influences my views, my interests, my passions. Just from a different angle than before.
So, in a way, I wish I hadn't maybe picked a blog title that made it so blooming obvious that this is a mummy blog. I'm still happy with the label, because I do believe that we mummy (and daddy) bloggers can make the label mean so much more than it may currently mean for some people. But having it in the title, well, not so sure if that was a good idea (though I still love the title as such, as it comes straight from the mouth of my little firecracker).
The great thing about the mummy blogger community is that everything is possible, and I still feel this is where I belong. More so anyway than any of the alternatives. So you'll be glad to know that this blog will be continued. Possibly with more mummy stuff anyway, can't really ignore that bump of mine growing and taking on worrying proportions.
Tuesday, 20 October 2009
Part 2: Video Blogging 101
Second in line of my 3 part series on social media is a fool proof video blogging 101.
The great thing to start with is that most stuff I covered in the podcasting 101 still applies. So it would be a good idea to read that post first for basic rules on content.
What Odeo is for podcasting, Youtube is for video blogging. The advantage of using Youtube (or any other video platform for that matter) is that it's externally hosted, yet you can embed the video in your blog which makes it appear as if it actually is on your blog. Another advantage is that youtube offers channels which you can link to on your blog, you can create playlists to share etc. Have a look at my own youtube widget where I share films that young people I worked with made. Some of them are on my own youtube channel, some of them on my favourites list.
Search engines love videos. If you have a video on your blog, it'll get more readers. A video can also really promote something, including a cause, if on youtube. Then there's the viral thing. That means that people pass on video they like. It happens more than with any other media. The video blogging (just like the micro blogging market) is growing and there's no sign of an end to this growth.
So really, to be hip and happening in social media, and blogland, you should use video. And why not have a go at it, as a one off, and see if it works for you?
Here's the technical bit:
You need:
1. a camera. A webcam can do this job. The Mercedes Benz version is a Flip camera (for which Supermummy Mumpreneur currently has a competition running, but you can't win it because I want it). They will set you back £70-£150. But they are so cool. Foolproof to use, stylish and they produce high quality videos. Your camera should have an inbuilt microphone, so no need for anything else.
2. editing software. Windows Movie Maker is a likely software that you may already have on your computer and it's all you need. It's intuitive and easy to use. I use Adobe Premiere Elements which supports more formats and also is a bit more stable - that's because I do HD stuff from a camcorder. Windows Movie Maker is perfectly sufficient for video blogging needs.
3. watch your file format. Your editing software may create one file format and youtube will only accept other file formats. Check this out and if you need to convert, google for free downloadable software that does just this. Make sure to read user reviews before installation - you want something easy and virus free.
That's it, off you go.
Now you can look for content. Video blogging often uses simple formats. The blogger talking to the camera. The blogger interviewing someone. The blogger demonstrating something. It's not rocket science!
It's ok to have a rough edge. You're not looking for perfection, some pauses, ehm and ahs make for authenticity and are fine. You don't need a tripod but you can use one if you prefer. However, avoide swaying the camera constantly and too quickly. That'll make your viewer dizzy.
Try to have the light facing your object. That way everything is lit.
Always check recording before you call it a day.
As with podcasting: give a bit of context, who are you? where are you? what's that noise? Make it personal: what do you think, feel?
Editing:
To edit your video files, you need to first import them to your computer. Create a folder for this to keep them in one place. Plug in the camera, import using Camera and Scanner Wizzard.
Next: Open Windows Movie Maker. Then select Import Video. Drag it into the bottom bar. Import as many individual file as you need to make up your full video. Then click "Show Timeline"
You can now edit individual files, edit how they come together, you can add music, titles, subtitles, transitions, and much more. After every change, replay to make sure you're happy with your edit.
When you're done, save movie (you may want to open the dialog for more choices and select Video for Broadband).
Now upload your video to youtube (using lots of tags so it's picked up in search engines) and get the embed code (usually beside the video when it's playing). Add the code to your blogpost, or as an element/widget to your side bar. That's it, all done. Stand in awe and admire.
The great thing to start with is that most stuff I covered in the podcasting 101 still applies. So it would be a good idea to read that post first for basic rules on content.
What Odeo is for podcasting, Youtube is for video blogging. The advantage of using Youtube (or any other video platform for that matter) is that it's externally hosted, yet you can embed the video in your blog which makes it appear as if it actually is on your blog. Another advantage is that youtube offers channels which you can link to on your blog, you can create playlists to share etc. Have a look at my own youtube widget where I share films that young people I worked with made. Some of them are on my own youtube channel, some of them on my favourites list.
Search engines love videos. If you have a video on your blog, it'll get more readers. A video can also really promote something, including a cause, if on youtube. Then there's the viral thing. That means that people pass on video they like. It happens more than with any other media. The video blogging (just like the micro blogging market) is growing and there's no sign of an end to this growth.
So really, to be hip and happening in social media, and blogland, you should use video. And why not have a go at it, as a one off, and see if it works for you?
Here's the technical bit:
You need:
1. a camera. A webcam can do this job. The Mercedes Benz version is a Flip camera (for which Supermummy Mumpreneur currently has a competition running, but you can't win it because I want it). They will set you back £70-£150. But they are so cool. Foolproof to use, stylish and they produce high quality videos. Your camera should have an inbuilt microphone, so no need for anything else.
2. editing software. Windows Movie Maker is a likely software that you may already have on your computer and it's all you need. It's intuitive and easy to use. I use Adobe Premiere Elements which supports more formats and also is a bit more stable - that's because I do HD stuff from a camcorder. Windows Movie Maker is perfectly sufficient for video blogging needs.
3. watch your file format. Your editing software may create one file format and youtube will only accept other file formats. Check this out and if you need to convert, google for free downloadable software that does just this. Make sure to read user reviews before installation - you want something easy and virus free.
That's it, off you go.
Now you can look for content. Video blogging often uses simple formats. The blogger talking to the camera. The blogger interviewing someone. The blogger demonstrating something. It's not rocket science!
It's ok to have a rough edge. You're not looking for perfection, some pauses, ehm and ahs make for authenticity and are fine. You don't need a tripod but you can use one if you prefer. However, avoide swaying the camera constantly and too quickly. That'll make your viewer dizzy.
Try to have the light facing your object. That way everything is lit.
Always check recording before you call it a day.
As with podcasting: give a bit of context, who are you? where are you? what's that noise? Make it personal: what do you think, feel?
Editing:
To edit your video files, you need to first import them to your computer. Create a folder for this to keep them in one place. Plug in the camera, import using Camera and Scanner Wizzard.
Next: Open Windows Movie Maker. Then select Import Video. Drag it into the bottom bar. Import as many individual file as you need to make up your full video. Then click "Show Timeline"
You can now edit individual files, edit how they come together, you can add music, titles, subtitles, transitions, and much more. After every change, replay to make sure you're happy with your edit.
When you're done, save movie (you may want to open the dialog for more choices and select Video for Broadband).
Now upload your video to youtube (using lots of tags so it's picked up in search engines) and get the embed code (usually beside the video when it's playing). Add the code to your blogpost, or as an element/widget to your side bar. That's it, all done. Stand in awe and admire.
Thursday, 3 September 2009
While I'm feeling rotten, please read my guest blog post
No more to say. I've moaned enough. To keep you entertained, check out these:
Here's a guest post I wrote earlier for Spanglish Baby.
I've also done some toy reviews on The Great Toy Guide.
Off to bed now, where's my hot toddy?
Here's a guest post I wrote earlier for Spanglish Baby.
I've also done some toy reviews on The Great Toy Guide.
Off to bed now, where's my hot toddy?
Friday, 28 August 2009
of angel babies, blogging and freebies
My niece is an angel baby. I'm writing this as she's lying in front of me, staring into this new world. She sleeps, feeds, looks about a bit, sleeps. For a mum of a spirited baby (that means babies who object to about everything except being carried or being attached to a nipple, who nap little and cry a lot, who scorn the 400 quid pram and make you wish you had invested in slings instead), this is truly amazing, I can't believe there are babies like her. Of course the unexpected worries one, while we are also thankful that she is such an angel baby and lets us spend lots of times with the toddlers too.It's a strange combination of confidence and amazement. Yes, I can still remember what to do with a newborn and feel confident enough, but she is different, reminding me that really comparisons are just plain rubbish. Cubling almost didn't posset. Whereas currently, we are all running about stinking of resurgitated milk. Like, I've never seen milk come out of the nose!!! In Cubling's case, I hardly ever saw any milk at all (which was a different worry altogether). I now understand why some parents go through a lot of muslins and babygrows (Cubling had her babygrow on for days on end).
It also reminds me acutely of why I got so into blogging when pregnant and after giving birth. In the few and precious minutes that you have when with a newborn (even if they are more of them with this particular newborn), blogging is great - you spend as little or as much time as you like/can and that's that. No bad feelings for not having managed to drink your cup of tea before it got cold yet again. No cursing that the heap of washing keeps increasing and you don't even make it to the drying rack. All you need is a laptop on standby and your get your 5 minutes of me time.
Of course, it was different 2 1/2 years ago. I could never have just put Cubling down on blankets on the ground in front of me. She would also never have napped for the greater part of the day. Or napped in general for more than 30 minutes at a time. Yet I got very proficient at typing away on my laptop while breastfeeding (believe it or not) and getting my me time during those frequent and long feeds.
I also made an interesting discovery last night, prompted by my inability to write emails from my webmail because it's programmed in a way that it won't work for Firefox, boo. So I had to use my gmail account which is there but never used. Previously, I'd wondered about all these offers and freebies that mummy bloggers apparently get which really haven't ever made their way to me unless it was me who made contact through British Mummy Bloggers. I'd put it down to my blog not being popular enough, and that was fine really (I wouldn't have said no to a box of legos though!). Well, you may guess, my inbox had a few offers. One for vitamin supplements for children over 3. How suitable. Another one something to do with school. How suitable again. Hello advertisers, check the age of my wean please. Others are offers that are so beyond my life at the moment that they made me chuckle. A pamper day, yeah right. When exactly would I want to do that? I sported a greying long head of hair for inability to make it to the hairdressers for a good few months. Then there's a free lunch with bloggers near me. In theory this lunch idea is quite attractive though considering I have yet to actually meet a fellow blogger (apart from friends who also happen to blog that is). So if you're a blogger and are around Glasgow or Clackmannanshire and fancy a free pizza lunch and meeting me, let me know in the comment box. I'll be likely to be with child(ren) though as way of warning ;)
Oops, and there she's asleep again. Not a peep. Not a whimper. This is surreal.
(Oh and you've still got a chance to send me your contribution to the first carnival on raising bilingual children - links to your post should reach me (blog @ cartside.co.uk) by 30th August. Ah go on, I'm trying to get 10 posts, and currently 3 short. It'll be fun, I promise!)
PS photo is entirely unrelated to blogpost. I just wanted to share it cause I like it - the moment before the balloon went pop in Culross a few weeks ago.
Wednesday, 26 August 2009
Young People, Youth Work and Social Networking
Now how about that: There's little me, addicted to all things internet, and social networking. Still finding my feet around stuff like social bookmarking which I don't quite get. A definite convert to Twitter although I'm sure I'm not using it to it's full potential yet. And then work sends me to a conference on social networking in the youth work context. Bliss! Official endorsement of my geeky side.
If we forget about the rather rubbish start to the day (early childminder drop off, two trains and a 20 min walk and then having to walk around a rugby stadium twice in the pouring rain to find the flipping entrance, because the conference organisers had not managed to include information on which stand/gate to use, only to arrive late and have missed the chance to sign up to the workshop that I was most interested in. Rant over.), it was all good. I have a list of social networking sites that I want to try out: Friendfeed where you can integrate all your facebooks/bebo's of the world. Ning, ning and ning again (that's for my work context mind you). The massive increase of video blogging and microblogging this very year 2009. Statistics which boggle the mind.
Did you know that Bebo is particularly popular amongst young people in Scotland? It's the no. 1 social networking site in the 16-24 age bracket.
Then I found out how social networking on the go, i.e. with your iphone or equivalent is the taste of things to come. How particularly young people tend to use their mobiles for social networking. How MSM and Instant Messaging, and chat rooms, are still very popular among the young. How scarily easy it is to find out a lot of info on young people through their social networking profiles and what we need to do to protect them from those risks.
Above all, there was lots of food for thought. Youth workers and organisations working with young people are scared of social networking. And yes, there are risks. However, you don't avoid them by putting on blinkers and signalling three crosses. You can't make social networking sites go away, they are THE most used parts of the internet. And they do rock, to be fair. So in my view it's all about knowing the medium and working with young people to make them aware of risks and enable them to protect themselves. They're not daft, they can use that stuff better than middle aged me, so they can learn how to do it safely.
Another biggie for me was the fact how much it is assumed that because social networking is so prevalent, that everyone is using it. Well people, they're not. The young people I meet through my work often don't have a landline, never mind a broadband connection or an iphone. A phone that costs £30 a month? You must be joking. So social networking is all good and well but does also contribute to another social, digital divide. Another facet of a society tainted by deep running inequalities. You may say, well, they can do it on school or library computers. Hm, nice try, however, you can't access social networking sites from libraries, schools and many other public computers because of the restrictions put on such computers (see previous paragraph on the fear of the social network amongst youth workers/teachers).
There's a massive piece of work where we would like to use lots of social networking tools and we'll have to get our heads around the fact that we won't be able to create online communities amongst young people and their families who live in poverty, simply because they don't have the access to the internet that is needed for this. Of course, in our work we can offer, facilitate and provide such access, but that also means it's on our terms, and not entirely owned by the participants in our programme. Compromise is written all over it.
Not ideal, but at the same time I'm excited about all the stuff that's out there. To link in with my post on child protection and blogging, there was also a draft document on best practice of using social networking in the youth work context which also gave lots of food for thought. Specifically I've learned that young people should not disclose full name, name of their families, the name of their school (or show photos with school uniform), their address and that such disclosure may go through their friends. Add to that to only post photos of yourself that you would show your mum and you're on the right track.
I did go away with a strong urge to own an iphone. Ideal for feeding the habit. Oh dear, how far have I fallen.
Some interesting links on the topic:
http://blogs.nya.org.uk/ywsn/
http://econsultancy.com/blog/3982-10-superb-social-media-presentations
http://ukyouthonline.ning.com/
And if I figure out SU and digg, maybe I even stand a chance of bookmarking it online.
If we forget about the rather rubbish start to the day (early childminder drop off, two trains and a 20 min walk and then having to walk around a rugby stadium twice in the pouring rain to find the flipping entrance, because the conference organisers had not managed to include information on which stand/gate to use, only to arrive late and have missed the chance to sign up to the workshop that I was most interested in. Rant over.), it was all good. I have a list of social networking sites that I want to try out: Friendfeed where you can integrate all your facebooks/bebo's of the world. Ning, ning and ning again (that's for my work context mind you). The massive increase of video blogging and microblogging this very year 2009. Statistics which boggle the mind.
Did you know that Bebo is particularly popular amongst young people in Scotland? It's the no. 1 social networking site in the 16-24 age bracket.
Then I found out how social networking on the go, i.e. with your iphone or equivalent is the taste of things to come. How particularly young people tend to use their mobiles for social networking. How MSM and Instant Messaging, and chat rooms, are still very popular among the young. How scarily easy it is to find out a lot of info on young people through their social networking profiles and what we need to do to protect them from those risks.
Above all, there was lots of food for thought. Youth workers and organisations working with young people are scared of social networking. And yes, there are risks. However, you don't avoid them by putting on blinkers and signalling three crosses. You can't make social networking sites go away, they are THE most used parts of the internet. And they do rock, to be fair. So in my view it's all about knowing the medium and working with young people to make them aware of risks and enable them to protect themselves. They're not daft, they can use that stuff better than middle aged me, so they can learn how to do it safely.
Another biggie for me was the fact how much it is assumed that because social networking is so prevalent, that everyone is using it. Well people, they're not. The young people I meet through my work often don't have a landline, never mind a broadband connection or an iphone. A phone that costs £30 a month? You must be joking. So social networking is all good and well but does also contribute to another social, digital divide. Another facet of a society tainted by deep running inequalities. You may say, well, they can do it on school or library computers. Hm, nice try, however, you can't access social networking sites from libraries, schools and many other public computers because of the restrictions put on such computers (see previous paragraph on the fear of the social network amongst youth workers/teachers).
There's a massive piece of work where we would like to use lots of social networking tools and we'll have to get our heads around the fact that we won't be able to create online communities amongst young people and their families who live in poverty, simply because they don't have the access to the internet that is needed for this. Of course, in our work we can offer, facilitate and provide such access, but that also means it's on our terms, and not entirely owned by the participants in our programme. Compromise is written all over it.
Not ideal, but at the same time I'm excited about all the stuff that's out there. To link in with my post on child protection and blogging, there was also a draft document on best practice of using social networking in the youth work context which also gave lots of food for thought. Specifically I've learned that young people should not disclose full name, name of their families, the name of their school (or show photos with school uniform), their address and that such disclosure may go through their friends. Add to that to only post photos of yourself that you would show your mum and you're on the right track.
I did go away with a strong urge to own an iphone. Ideal for feeding the habit. Oh dear, how far have I fallen.
Some interesting links on the topic:
http://blogs.nya.org.uk/ywsn/
http://econsultancy.com/blog/3982-10-superb-social-media-presentations
http://ukyouthonline.ning.com/
And if I figure out SU and digg, maybe I even stand a chance of bookmarking it online.
Tuesday, 25 August 2009
blogging, photos and child protection
There was a bit of a discussion in the Cartside home about my posting of my niece's photo. And I thought it was a useful one, maybe one that every blogger should have.
As you may have noticed, I don't tend to post images that show Cubling's face and I also don't use her real name. Working for a children's charity which has child protection as one of its guiding principles, I'm well acquainted with how to protect identities using the internet for the protection of children. It's simple really:
a) you need parental consent to post a picture of a child. At work, that means written consent. I also always ask the child if they are happy for photos to be used (they are generally old enough to say)
b) If you post a picture of a child, you only identify her/him with first name and city, no other details, or to be super safe, use a fake first name.
So when it comes to Cubling and this blog, I'm more than following the guidelines. Parental consent can be implied, both hubby and I prefer not to show her face. I never use Cubling's real name. However, on Facebook, I post full face pictures and use her first name, making pictures visible to my friends only.
When I posted the photo of my niece, I did not seek parental consent before posting the photo on this blog. This is clearly wrong, so I've taken the photo down and try my best in future not to get carried away. Why did I do it in spite of knowing better? An urge to share with my readers the majority of whom I know, and because after all, she's a 2 day old baby on the photo which doesn't really mean she could be identified. The face is out of focus. The face is not fully shown, I consciously didn't pick the "best" photo. These are excuses of course. I should have sought parental consent first, and I didn't. I have no right to post her photo.
There is a more general issue here though: while it's up to each parent blogger to decide to post photos of their own child(ren) or not. However, there are plenty of photos out there in the blogosphere where children other than the blogger's own are shown. Somehow I doubt that the parents of the other children have given consent.
It's a tricky area, and of course nobody expects a blogger to be an expert on child protection. It's worth considering though so this is why I put this out for discussion. What are your views on posting photos of your child? And do you think it's ok to post a photo where other children are visible? Do you use real names or not?
As you may have noticed, I don't tend to post images that show Cubling's face and I also don't use her real name. Working for a children's charity which has child protection as one of its guiding principles, I'm well acquainted with how to protect identities using the internet for the protection of children. It's simple really:
a) you need parental consent to post a picture of a child. At work, that means written consent. I also always ask the child if they are happy for photos to be used (they are generally old enough to say)
b) If you post a picture of a child, you only identify her/him with first name and city, no other details, or to be super safe, use a fake first name.
So when it comes to Cubling and this blog, I'm more than following the guidelines. Parental consent can be implied, both hubby and I prefer not to show her face. I never use Cubling's real name. However, on Facebook, I post full face pictures and use her first name, making pictures visible to my friends only.
When I posted the photo of my niece, I did not seek parental consent before posting the photo on this blog. This is clearly wrong, so I've taken the photo down and try my best in future not to get carried away. Why did I do it in spite of knowing better? An urge to share with my readers the majority of whom I know, and because after all, she's a 2 day old baby on the photo which doesn't really mean she could be identified. The face is out of focus. The face is not fully shown, I consciously didn't pick the "best" photo. These are excuses of course. I should have sought parental consent first, and I didn't. I have no right to post her photo.
There is a more general issue here though: while it's up to each parent blogger to decide to post photos of their own child(ren) or not. However, there are plenty of photos out there in the blogosphere where children other than the blogger's own are shown. Somehow I doubt that the parents of the other children have given consent.
It's a tricky area, and of course nobody expects a blogger to be an expert on child protection. It's worth considering though so this is why I put this out for discussion. What are your views on posting photos of your child? And do you think it's ok to post a photo where other children are visible? Do you use real names or not?
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