Chip was brought into the Illinois Birddog Rescue at 1 week old with 5 littermates and his mom. Two of his sisters are very birdy (will point at birds, as English Setters should) but for some reason Chip isn’t interested in birds. He used to beautifully point and flush out Daisy a few years ago but other than that, no real pointing.
But all hope is not lost. He’s been perfecting his Owling stance!
I didn’t think it was possible to fit this much awesomeness into one month but I have been lucky enough to coordinate schedules with three fantastic tourism professionals (and incredible friends) this month. All IRL. In Real Life.
The series of meet-ups begin with Vicky Soderberg. Her twitter bio states “Creative collaboration with communities to preserve sense of place, strengthen tourism & enhance economic development” but as if that wasn’t enough, Vicky is also social media rockstar and a great friend. I can’t wait to meet her for the first time!
Mid-August is a meet-up with Katie Cook, an amazing friend and super savvy tourism geek. Need html help? Katie’s got you covered. Need to complain about geeky stuff? Katie again. I’m privileged to work with Katie professionally and even though we joke about it, I actually do miss her when one of us is out of the office for a few days.
And at the end of the month will be an epic tourism tweet-up at AJ Bombers with Betsy Decillis. Especially with all of our similarities, it’s almost incomprehensible that Betsy and I have only met up twice before. We’re #tourismchat partners in crime and constantly tease about our #catholicguilt, which is always in the form of a hashtag. Even when not on twitter. Only on rare occasions do we not communicate daily in some fashion. It’s been mentioned that we share the same brain but even more importantly, according to this amazing infographic Betsy found, we both have geeky grins. And that says it all. Read the rest of this entry
It’s been brought to my attention that some people don’t think I can be mean. And while that’s probably a good thing, sometimes I’ll go out of my way to be nice and end up sacrificing things I want to keep others happy. If you’re also like this, take a vow to change with me. From this point forward, we will be more like the Honey Badger, the most fearless animal in all of the animal kingdom.
Warning: video contains offensive language.
Honey Badger don’t care.
It’s hard to believe that an entire year has passed since I started my photography Project 365. Not a day had gone by without me taking a photo, even if it was before I went to bed at 2am. Obviously some of those photos lacked creativity but there are a number of photos that I’m proud of. Here’s a sampling:
The beginning and the end (July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011):
My series of dog noses (Aug 9, 10, 11):
One of the best sunsets I’ve ever shot (July 16):
Read the rest of this entry
Someone recently told me that it was ok to put in extra hours at work because I don’t have a commute. Really??
If you’ve worked from a home or remote office, you know what it’s like. Sure, the walking-down-the-hall commute and not having a dress code are great but with these benefits come drawbacks.
My sweet Daisy went to heaven on Friday.
Daisy was diagnosed with histiocytic sarcoma Friday and was so very tired. My vet recommended a transfer to the Purdue Veterinary Teaching Hospital Thursday as she could not control Daisy’s anemia. After multiple transfusions, an ultrasound found several masses in her spleen and in her chest. The prognosis for this type of cancer is very grave with less than 20% of dogs surviving chemo, only to live 1-3 months longer.
Some of my friends offered a donation to help with Daisy‘s medical expenses ($2500). If you’re also interested in helping, I’m accepting donations via paypal.
If you want to help more dogs, please consider a donation to the Illinois Birddog Rescue. Lisa and Christine provided a tremendous amount of support to me last week.
I know that the grieving process takes time but I miss her terribly. She was a good girl and did not deserve this. Doodle Bug, I love you.
“It came to me that every time I lose a dog they take a piece of my heart with them. And every new dog who comes into my life gifts me with a piece of their heart. If I live long enough, all the components of my heart will be dog, and I will become as generous and loving as they are.” ~ Cheryl Zuccaro
Even though both of my parents are fully Hungarian, apparently I’m not Hungarian enough as I don’t use sour cream in every meal. This was one of the conversations at Christmas dinner.
So in an effort to embrace my Hungarian heritage more this year, I downloaded a few itunes, similar to records my Dad used to play at home. These tracks are by Zoltan and his Gypsy Ensemble (by the way, Zoltan was the name of a pet chicken my Dad had as a boy) but here’s a similar piece by József Lendvay.
Now I just need to get some sour cream and paprika. Probably should pull out my violin too.
2010 was the Year of No Regrets for me. Or at least that’s what I said it would be back in January. As this year comes to a close, I don’t really have regrets. It’s more like unfinished business.
January started off great with all the usual New Year’s resolutions: working out more, eating healthier, etc. February came around and I was looking at houses. My first house. Then came that fateful day in March, March 12 to be exact, when I closed on my house. That evening, as I got back to my house, I discovered some ants in the kitchen. A couple of hours later, there were a few more. Ok, not a few. They were all over the place. After a few visits from my new Terminix BFF, the ant issue was finally resolved.
April came and so did spring. And rain and mud. And tree trimmers that didn’t want to finish the job. My old fence was too short for my dogs so taking them out became a hassle. There’s nothing fun about a dog who hates taking potty breaks while on a leash. Multiply that by three and you’ll get an idea of how tiring daily life became. As if that wasn’t enough, with the warmer weather came a musty smell from my “stove closet” room. Read the rest of this entry
To say I’m excited about SoMeT is an understatement. I’ve been waiting an entire YEAR for next week to come. Last November I attended #dmmi09 (DMAI’s Destination Management & Marketing Institute) in Indianapolis and as soon as it was over, there was talk and anticipation of #dmmi10. For whatever reasons, DMMI is no more but in its place, the incredible Dave Serino created #SoMeT (Social Media Tourism Symposium).
A case study for social conferences
The conference hasn’t even started and yet the hashtag is not only well-known but being actively used. And it’s been active for MONTHS. How did that happen? Social branding, my friends. I don’t remember exactly when Dave chose the hashtag but I know it was before February = over 9 months. Yes, that long ago.
SoMeT is special because the public was involved from the beginning. The SoMeT Facebook page has been the hub for this conference. Destinations were asked to submit RFPs and then WE had a chance to vote for our favorites in the form of a Facebook contest. In the next step we were asked to provide suggestions of who WE wanted to hear speak at SoMeT.
And then there was the tattoo. Read the rest of this entry
I remember coming home from school and watching The Donna Reed Show on Nick at Nite in the 80s. I so wanted to grow up and be just like her. Well the life of a 1950′s housewife is no longer in my future but I am still fascinated with all things retro and antique.
Luckily my parents have great saving habits so I’ve acquired a few antique items that used to belong to my grandma but I have only recently discovered the delightful experience of antiquing. Thanks to Dave Woodson‘s recommendation, I went antiquing in La Porte, IN this past weekend and came back with three great items.
My first find was a pair of gently used ice skates with a red & black houndstooth lining. It’s going to be a perfect Christmas decoration and it only cost $5. How could I pass that up?
My other two items are vintage postcards. I just loved thumbing through stacks of postcards, reading all of their messages and reliving their trips from decades ago. There’s something special about getting in the car and driving across the country. It’s the only way to experience a real road trip. Read the rest of this entry