I was kind of a biatch last night on the Twitter.

My friends alimartell, Issa, Loukia, Flinger, a few others, and I were discussing how blogging today is SO not like it was in the olden days. The times before 2008 when Twitter wasn’t around, Facebook’s world superpowers were just a gleam in Zuckerberg’s eyeball, and MySpace was king. We met our online friends though blogging and commenting and linking to our favorite people. SEO was just for the professionals and we worried about writing before all else. The only people monetizing their blogs on any scale beyond a free pack of cupcakes were Dooce and Perez Hilton.

Three-plus years later, we are where we are. Social media is king, Twitter is a way of life, Facebook isn’t just for Farmville (unless you’re my mother-in-law), and MySpace is a fledgling music project. We are still blogging and writing and commenting and linking, but the discovery of new people among us is left to the social networks.

I like it now. I liked it then. Both eras of living on the internet have their strengths and both have their Achilles heels. I liked reading about people and their lives and having people read my words and learn about my life. I loved the validation of a comment, a link from a friend and meeting a new reader. I like Twitter, its immediacy and platform to share my thoughts, and being able to have public conversations. The same goes for Facebook. I haven’t looked at MySpace in months or maybe years, so I’m assuming Justin Timberlake is hard at work over there bringing its sexy back.

My point, and I have one, is that if we want to get back to the basics of blogging, we have to DO the basics of blogging. Be the change you want to happen. We have to write with meaning, read with connection, and comment with intention. Social media sites allow us to SHARE better and easier. Share what you’ve read other people blog. Let other people know what you’re reading by posting a link on your Facebook profile or clicking the “like” button on the blog. Send out a tweet telling your followers that there is something worth reading on a blog.

We become better writers when we read more, at least I know I do. Since writing the post about Tipping Your Bloggers and Bloggesses, I’ve made a concerted effort to read and comment more. Sometimes I forget that I need to read to write, and the socials get in the way. When I remind myself to read, 1/2 a second later I’m reading (thanks to the black magic of the Google Next button).

We can do it all. We can read, share, comment, write, befriend, love, promote, monetize, and whatever else gives you validation, and do it all with meaning.

I was trying to make my point exactly this on the Twitter last night, but I think I came across as a bitch. Sharing my feelings on blogging can’t be condensed into 140 characters. 

Exactly my point.

Share with me what you’re reading and writing. What have you discovered lately? Is there a favorite post or article you can’t stop thinking about? Is there a photo post you’ve published lately that you want people to see? TELL ME. If you don’t put yourself out there, no one will know you’re there.

I’m going to walk the walk, share what I’m reading, and I’m going to comment with intention. I hope you do the same.

_________________________

SHARING IS CARING IS HUMPING A LEG:

• On Curvy Girl Guide, I have an editorial on how teachers are getting the shaft.
• One of my most favorite people in the world, alimartell, wrote a follow-up letter to her 16-year-old self.
• One of my other most favoritest people in the world, shaunaglenn, asked for prayers for a life pileup.
• My OG BFF, Mishi, takes way a lot of pictures of her new puppy, Pepper.

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 37 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blog about blogging, Blogging, facebook, Friends, twitter

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UPDATE: We got her back! Thanks to the magical powers of the internet, some women out walking saw her wandering and had seen my Facebook notice on the neighborhood Facebook page. HOORAY! But that doesn’t change my mind that dogs are assholes.

•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

I hate to say, “I told you so,” but I totally am.

Last night, I was tired and sad and not drunk, and I posted something on Twitter AND Facebook that I knew I would regret. My next tweet was “I’m going to be really embarrassed at these tweets in the morning,” and guess what, I kind of am.

Tally, aka The Checkered Flags of Talladega, aka Tally Whaker, aka Poo Nugget Factory

I used my sads for evil and not for good.

Yesterday afternoon, both of our dogs managed to get out of our gate and took a jaunt around the neighborhood. A girl down the street found the beagle and called us from our number on her tags. That’s how we knew they were gone, but the dachshund was no where in site. She hadn’t seen her and no one I asked had either. She’s all of 12 pounds and black, so finding her or happening to see her is really not going to be easy.

Meredith was right: pets are assholes.

SURE they give you endless cuddles and snuggles and their unconditional love, but they also pee on visitors, crap on the floor, ruin furniture, and cost the equivalent of a family vacation every year in vet bills.

Maybe Tally leaving home is her way of saying, “Yo, ma. I’m busting out of this joint. You don’t appreciate me when I leave you poo nuggets in random places inside. I do this for you as a token of my love. If you don’t see that, I’m out of here, jerks.”

But she’s hella cute and snuggles in my neck and is my permanent arm rest while I work all day. I miss her.

So you’ll have to forgive my whining last night on Twitter when I used my sads for evil and quite literally begged for people to read and comment on yesterday’s blog post. That’s the ugly side of blogging: the sympathy comments.

I promise to do better when I’m in the throws of sads and tireds and not use the bleeding hearts of others to guilt you in to paying attention to me.

For now, I’m refreshing the Craigslist Lost & Found page, posting on the neighborhood Facebook page and local pet finder sites, calling vets and shelters, putting up fliers, and (thanks to Daisy’s advice) setting out bacon to lure her back home.

I’m sorry for my whiny-for-sympathy actions and blaming it on the asshole dog for running away. But I do blame her for ruining my carpet and being so adorable..

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: facebook, lost dog, sympathy, tally, tweet, twitter

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How appropriate that today, the day after the MTV VMAs, I’m at Curvy Girl Guide hosting a Pep Rally for the Fall TV season? My tweet-a-thon that brings out the snarkiest in me is a kick-off for all of my shows returning to my TeeVee.

In case you missed out on my crazy Live Televised Event/Award Show/Sports Game/Presidential Address Tweet-a-Thon, fear not, because my favorite gems are here:

When you’re a born and bred vidiot like me, you live for the Fall when kids return to school and the best and newest shows call to me from within the Black Box of Joy. I load up my DVR scheduler with 40 of my favorite returning series and a few of the most promising premieres.

The new shows start in the upcoming weeks, so if you want to find me, I’ll be in front of the TV, which come to think of it, is no different than any other day.

What shows are you going to watch with me?

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: curvy girl guide, fall premieres, TV, tweet a thon, twitter

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When I become famous, I can guarantee on the life of my anally-leaking dog’s butt, you will never find these photos accidentally hacked to my Twitter account:

I know, BritBrit. Celebrities are crazy mo'fos.

Flashing my Britney.

A Janet Jackson nip “slip.”

My not-so-tiny Tino.

My teeny Favre weeny.

A boxer brief Weiner bulge.

Barely-legal in the (Vanessa) Buff-dgens.

Snorting Kate Moss coke.

My very Lively Blake.

Wait.

I take that back. There was one time in college when I “accidentally” flashed my friends who happened to be holding a camera at my boobs.

I AM just like stars!

photo source unknown via google images

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: celebrities, hacked, naked pictures, photos, twitter

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… but I’m always for sale.

The trend in internetting and baby naming (how much do you love Pregnant in Heels? ZOMGS) is to have a brand. If you’re not sure exactly what that means (I didn’t until kind of recently), it’s having an across-the-board recognition under one name and one persona. Having an online presence where your focus is primarily to make money even if you’re a real person with real feelings, you need to have a recognizable name.

There are few bloggers and online personalities who have broken through to the other side of branding where their name or blog persona alone is recognizable. For example, when you see “The Pioneer Woman,” most people know exactly who I mean and what she does. When you see “Ree,” you may have no idea who I’m talking about. The same goes for The Bloggess. “Jenny” can be anyone, but The Bloggess is universal for snark, funny, and slightly-medicated awesomeness.

I am known for being Awesome. That in and of itself is not necessarily a brand, but a lifestyle. It’s also a word that annoys people and could be an adjective to describe any friend of mine. This, along with the fact that I have dubbed myself as being “Awesome” does not make for a brand meant for extending my internet reach.

I have names I’ve used around the internet:

Angie
Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing}
Angie Lynch
Angie Pangie
Pangie
Dr Pangie
@alotofnothing
awholelotofnothing

It’s not really a list of ingredients for a recipe meant for internet domination. My goal is not for internet domination, but rather for Awesome Maker of Money Using the Internet As My Vehicle. For that, I need more of a focused, recognizable moniker that is both Awesome, includes my name, and says who I am. You know, easy stuff.

Back in 2007 when I started this here blog that has rolled into my subsequent money-making endeavors, “branding” wasn’t even in my radar as a possibility. Now, 4 years later and the internet as my oyster, I need a name change.

I’m not changing my blog name. I like it. I like introducing myself to people at blog events saying, “I’m Angie and I write A Whole Lot of Nothing.” It’s catchy. It’s me.

My twitter name, on the other hand, needs a makeover. @awholelotofnothing is too long. @awholelotofangie is too long. @angiepangie is taken. @angie is taken.

@alotofangie is available.

I can change my twitter name and you still know who I am without losing followers. I’m also pretty sure that if you send me a message to @alotofnothing that it still goes to @alotofangie (someone tell me differently?).

My question for you, my dear friends: should I change my twitter name to @alotofangie?
Do you have a better name idea?
Or do you not care and want to tell me to eff off?

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 20 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blogs, branding, names, twitter

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If you have read my blog for any amount of time or know me at all, you know I’m a gay lover.

Or lover of gays.

Or a mostly straight woman who loves the gays and just happens to be happily married to a man.

I believe Gay is OK.

I’ve also been a fan of Rosie O’Donnell for the last umpteen years before, during, and after her daytime show, and now I love her Sirius radio show. I listen to it nearly every day. I’m kind of two shades away from being a stalker.

I make no apologies for who or what I like, even if the rest of the world teases or berates my choices. I enjoy Twilight, Jersey Shore, Ranch dressing on Mexican potatoes, Mama Oprah, sugar on my margarita rim, Crocs, and Rosie O’Donnell, no matter what people may think of me for liking what I like.

Rosie talked on her show Friday about responding to a negative, hateful Twitter mention directed at her. Normally, I tend to believe in ignoring the trolls, the hatred, and the darkness in people. It kind of makes it easier on my wonky heart not to add to my stress levels.

BUT HOT DIGGITY DAMN, I love Rosie’s response to Margie Phelps, Westboro Baptist Church member and God Hates F***s founder:

Responding with love and light, even sarcastic love, is better than nothing.

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: rosie o'donnell, twitter

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I’m easily confused. SHOCKER. The interwebs are not immune from confusing my brains, especially when so many damn people look the same. It’s like the social media elite have doubled themselves for even more world domination.

Note to the intenetting world: You people need to stop looking the same or my mind will explode.

Or don’t stop, and watch my crumble under the pressure of keeping all of you straight. The sad part about my confusion is that I know most of these people and have met them face-to-face. Yet, they still look the same to me.

•• •• ••

It’s not a wonder that these two lovelies are BFF. They’re from the same womb.

Tanis, Redneck Mommy and Shannon, Mr Lady (photo credit: Mandy Gratton)

•• •• ••

I don’t think these two ladies know each other, but I have known Dawn for several years. She’s actually who motivated me to start blogging. I owe my life to you, Dawn. Jen is someone I follow on Twitter, and every. single. time. I see her avatar in my stream, I think she’s Dawn. (She must have read my mind, because last night, she changed her avatar, which will only confuse me more.)

Dawn, @Mom2My6Pack and Jen, @HarleyChick76

•• •• ••

Short hair, glasses, hand to their faces, and silly names. Put these two together and you have one very confused Pangie. Even when I was putting in the links to their Twitters, I confused myself as to who was whom.

Elan, Schmutzie and Aimee, Greeblemonkey

•• •• ••

Classically beautiful with long blond hair. WHY DO YOU HAVE TO CONFUSE ME?

Loukia, MrsLouLou and Danielle, Extraordinary Mommy

•• •• ••

Both avatars taken with Instagram and both twitter names start with “A.” It’s like they’re the same person.

Alli, AlliWorthington and Adam, Avitable

•• •• ••

I have to be missing some other confusing avatars or internet doppelgängers. Who else belongs on this list?

photo credits: I have no idea, so I’m assuming the people who are in the photos took the photos. Aside from the Tanis/Shannon photo, I scrapped the pictures from their Twitter streams because I’m a rebel.

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: doppelgänger, internet, photos, twitter

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What’s the definition of obsession, anyway?

There are so many things I refrain from doing and eating and drinking, I feel like I owe it to myself to have something in my life to focus on that doesn’t include a small child.

Kind of like, I don’t drink soda or eat McDonald’s or smoke weed, therefore I Tweet.

I Tweet for fun, I Tweet for work, and I Tweet for friends.

Last night, I reached a milestone, and unbeknownst to me, my 40,000th Tweet was about my wiener having hair.

Because, naturally.

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: obsession, twitter, wiener dog

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Like a bad episode of Celebrity Rehab, drama on Twitter when it doesn’t involved me SUCKS ME IN. I can’t look away. I must find out who comes out the other side as the crazy person.

This time, it’s Kevin Smith (THAT Kevin Smith) versus the Twitter PR rep for Southwest Airlines.

VS

It’s epic.

It’s social media at its best.

It’s social media at its worst.

It’s one for the internet history books.

__________________________________________________

Here’s what the Team Kevin Smith twitterers imagined the Southwest PR rep wrote in her journal about her night of drama:

Sometime before February 13th
OH
EM
GEE

You will NOT believe the awesome job I just got. All of my 6 years of college totally paid off and I got the job I really super wanted. I’m gonna be the lead twitterer for a major airline!!!1!! I’m super duper excited to work with an awes0me company like Southwest Airlines!

I’ll get to stay home and Twitter all day long. Super awesome. All I have to do is tell people who whine about their tickets to call the Southwest 1-800 number and wait on hold for 45 minutes. It’s super duper easy cheesy.

** I can’t believe how lucky I am. **

Saturday, February 13th ~ 9pm est
OH
EM
GEE

You will NOT believe that I have to actually sit on twitter on Valentine’s Day Eve instead of go out with my fiancee. I mean, he planned an awesome dinner at Olive Garden, but noooooo… I have to be on the stupid computer answering stupid customer questions just to tell them to call the stupid 1-800 number. GAH. I wanna go OUUUUUUT….

** I can’t believe how much this sucks. **

Saturday, February 13th ~ 10pm est
OH
EM
GEE

You would NOT believe that I have to respond to some fat guy on twitter who got kicked off a plane. I mean, he’s fat. He needs at least two seats. What’s his deal? Doesn’t EVERYbody know fat people need two seats? So what if he could put down the armrest like our policy claims is the difference between fat (two seats) or not fat (one seat). He deserves to be kicked off.

GAH. What a whiner.

** I can’t believe people are so stoopid. **

Saturday, February 13th ~ 10:03pm est
OH
FUCK

You would NOT believe how many twitteres are harrassing ME. Like it’s MY fault that guy got kicked off the plane. Whatevs. He got his $100 voucher. What else does he expect? A cookie? (ha! a cookie for a fat guy. LOLZ)

** I can’t believe people like this guy. **

Saturday, February 13th ~ 10:30pm est
OH
SWEET
JEEBUS

You would not believe how many times my boss has called my cell. I’m SO not answering that. I mean, this is all gonna go away overnight, right? It’s not like people are going to talk about this in the morning, right? I already tried to DM him to give him another $100, but he’s not even following me. Like, everyone should follow me, I mean SouthwestAir. We’re like the best airline in the world.

** I can’t believe I have to do this dumb job on a Saturday night when I could be making out with my fiancee at the Olive Garden. **

Saturday, February 13th ~ 11:00pm est
SHIT

You would not believe that I got fired. Even after I wrote that super awesome post on the Southwest blog about how it’s totally not our fault that that fat guy got kicked off, they fired me. I even titled it something super duper cute ’cause he’s all “Silent Bob” and he’s not so silent. I mean, that’s a gem.  And it’s totally not our fault he couldn’t fly on our plane just cause he could put down his armrests but was still fat.

** I can’t believe the internet hates me. **

__________________________________________________

Dedicated to Sarah in MI

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 89 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: drama, i'm fat too, kevin smith, southwest, southwest airlines, thatkevinsmith, twitter

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Normally, I’m not crazy-excited about television awards shows. It really depends on the host if I’ll watch intently or not. Tonight for the Golden Globes, Ricky Gervais is the host.

I loves me some Ricky Gervais. Hard.

Being the internet nerd that I am, I also love live-tweeting awards shows. (You don’t like it, unfollow, bitches.)

Tonight’s broadcast will be FILLED with people talking about the devastation in Haiti. Like, incessantly. The people of Haiti need our help. Us people who have the opportunity to sit at home with our lappys and watch brainless award shows could do something to help.

So I’m combining my love of watching award shows and live-tweeting, and suggesting that we couch potatoes do something. Think of it like a drinking game for Haiti. Just without the drinks (unless you wanna – what happens on the couch, stays on the couch), and with some monies.

I know you’re asking, “What exactly are you talking about, woman? Get on with it. I gots some tweeting to do.”

Every time someone mentions “Haiti” in any part of the show (accepting an award, announcing an award, a precursor to a poorly written joke), you tweet that you’re donating $1 to help Haiti. Use hashtag #d4haiti (“d” meaning “dollar” or “dime” or “drink” or “dummy”).

It’s totally up to you to give the amount you can. Some have suggested $.10 a mention, or you could put a cap on your donation. I’m capping my donation at $50. I’ve already given to the Red Cross and my business is donating a portion of sales, so I’m doing what I can comfortably give for my family.

If you can’t commit to any $ amount, no biggie. Leave a comment, and help the rest of us do what we can to raise awareness by tweeting tonight. Make sure you use the hashtag #d4haiti and take a drink. You can make it a drinking game at your house.

If you’re in, PLEASE leave a comment below saying you’re in and what you’re committing to donating. If you know of any companies who would like to match our donations, let me know. After the Golden Globes broadcast is over, make sure to come back and reply to your comment telling how much you’re giving.

Full disclosure: I’m totally doing this to give myself a reason to sit on my arse for 4 hours tonight and laugh with my Twitter friends. I might as well do something good while I’m here.

© Angie [A Whole Lot of Nothing] for A Whole Lot of Nothing • Your Favorite Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: charity, golden globes, haiti, twitter

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