I'm Popular!

There are wildly successful blogs out there.  Hyperbole & 1/2 is the first to come to mind (though she's been slacking as the whole book deal comes through).  There are blogs that have been going for years.  Blogs with tens of thousands of followers.  I'm fairly new to blogs.  I didn't read or follow any until I started one.  Then, much like when you first start playing a successful video game, the reason everyone has been into them becomes apparent.  It's actually overwhelming for a budding blogger who feels like he has a voice that hasn't been overdone yet, but wonders if all of this writing will ever be noticed by people beyond his Facebook friends.

Yesterday, when I logged in, Blogger at least gave me one small ounce of satisfaction that what I'm doing may work.  Blogger told me to keep thinking the way I do, and to keep baring my uncensored thoughts to the general public.  Blogger told me this by calling my blog something that I've never been called before:  popular.

Yes, I realize that it is just a ploy for people that make money from this to make more money.  However, this hasn't happened before.  I like to think that it is due to the number of people that have been reading my blog lately.  I'm on track to break 3,000 pageviews for the month of August.  I regularly consider adding some sort of money-making features to my blog, but I'm not desperate yet.  The day it happens, I will apologize, but I will probably do it nonetheless.

When I started this blog, I figured that it would be something that Annie and I would read, comment on, and it would be another fad that I would forget about in a few months.  What if I was meant to be a blogger, though?  What if I am a good story teller, or I can become one through practice?  What if this is my way of being popular?  (Too bad I didn't have any way of being popular in college...)  Ha, popular...

Thank you, K-chen, for putting that into perspective.
And thank you, readers, for making me feel popular,
~RoB

First View of ~RtL

I got an email from a friend who, in trying to kill some time, finally checked out my blog for the first time.  The front page story at that time was... a swollen, poison-ivy penis.  That's the only post she's ever read, and she might be scarred for life.  Unfortunately for her, she's both vegetarian, and she has to see me, in person, regularly.

So, let's say that you had only one post that you had to forward on to someone to give them a good taste of what this blog is about.  Which one would you pick?  Which posts would you avoid?

I know some of you could do without ever having to look at the Kiwis (& Ewoks) post again,
~RoB

HTDE Power Couple

Faithful readers of ~RtL probably know way more about Annie and I than you ever cared to.  Well, this might make you happy, since you feel so close to us now.

Annie and I were coined the 'first HTDE power couple' by the people who run the How to Do Everything facebook page.  Why, you ask?  We were both featured on this week's podcast episode, Episode 7.  I sent the following email to Ian and Mike regarding Pandora:

---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: Rob Reed <roberree@xxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, Mar 15, 2011 at 9:12 AM
Subject: Pandora
To: howto@npr.org

Hey guys,
I love your new podcast.  I can't tell you how often I think about the
'nuclear option for hiccups'.  I am half-tempted to buy a coke (they
always give me hiccups) and blog about rather it really works or not.

Anyway, my question is regarding Pandora.  Is it better to 'thumb up'
or 'thumb down' every song, or if you're feeling apathetic toward a
song, just to let it play out?  I know Pandora records songs that you
'up' or 'down', but there are always songs that I'm on the fence
about.  I just wonder if the station will be more perfect for me if I
decided that I had to vote every song either 'up' or 'down'.

Thanks, and I'm already addicted,
~RoB
-----------------------------------------

They quoted my question (15:03) on their podcast and had it answered by the chief technologist of Pandora.  (By the way, Pandora keeps track of thumb-ing, skipping, and listening to songs.)

The episode also had a shoutout to Annie (9:06) for being the person directly in front of Blythe Haaga in their March Madness bracket pool.  (I was the one that sent Annie the link and convinced her to join the pool).  Anyway, the person in front of Blythe at the end has to go on the podcast and "insult Blythe".  Ian Chillag (the Ian Chillag that Peter Sagal says at the end of every Wait Wait Don't Tell Me!) just sent Annie a message saying that she better prepare herself, because it looks like she is going to be the one to do it.  Annie is the least offensive person I know, so this is going to be so awkwardly amazing!!

While you're listening, you should find out what I'm referring to as the 'nuclear option for hiccups' in their old podcasts and enjoy the mental image of me doing the experiment for the knowledge of my devoted readers,
~RoB