blog

this in part from a post I put up on TechCrunch today. I hope you can support the cause.

A cause that's hot on Twitter today is Frozen Pea Friday, a Breast Cancer Awareness and fundraising day in support of well regarded blogger Susan Reynolds.

Reynolds for those who don't know her was diagnosed with breast cancer December 7. In an open, transparent and honest process she started blogging about her experience with breast cancer at Boobs on Ice. The story in Susan's words:

When I discovered a very thick area in my breast I called the doctor. The next day I was in her office. A half hour after that I was in the diagnostic radiologist’s.

A full afternoon and multiple stab wounds later we had a variety of samples of malignant tentacles of tissue that were on their way to the lab.

I was in a little pain - it would increase as the local anesthetic wore off - but left his office with a soft cold pack in my bra.

To keep bleeding down & relieve pain I’d need to keep things cool. Traditional ice packs are hard and heavy. As much as I try to be a good sport I’m not into having a brick sitting on my chest.

Enter a bag of frozen peas.

I tucked it in my bra, took a picture, and was ready to tell the story later that night. That bag of peas added a touch of lightness to what could have been a sad and serious tale.

* A bag of peas was something everybody could relate to.
* Some people love them, some hate them, some use them for their own injuries.
* A bag of frozen peas was a vehicle for conversation and let people tease me instead of having to cry.
* It let people share instead of bemoaning.

I napped a lot during the first few days after the biopsy. The news was sudden and stunning after all and my body was being assaulted.

Mmmm peas for lunch?

When I fell asleep with peas in my cleavage I’d wake to the smell of freshly cooked peas. That made the story funnier, and more human. Of course I shared it because what is life but a series of stories.

After enough cooked peas I moved on to baggies with ice cubes or larger gel-packs which truth be told still are too big and too heavy to be comfy but help with pain.

The peas however live on in the form of stories from others about their use of pea-packs and the line-up of twitter avatars sporting peas in support of my struggle.

This makes them a comfort in more than one way

The peas for a cause movement involves not only giving to breast cancer research, but supporting Susan through pea themed imagery. On Twitter users are encouraged to add a pea themed avatar to their profile. Facebook users are also encouraged to do the same with their avatars. There's even a Flickr Group: upload your pea themed avatar or image and join the group here.

I've never met Susan in person but I've got to known her over the last six months via Twitter. In my interactions with her she has come across as a genuine, open and honest person, one of a limited few who loves life without hate, who is happy to participate in conversations and contribute positively and intelligently at the same time. Even if you can't contribute to breast cancer support today, add peas to your avatar today in moral support for a lady that the world will be far worse off without. Here's hoping that her treatment is successful and she'll be with us for many more years to come.

I've just written up a post covering the new release of social browser Flock (here).

I was one of the biggest Flock haters of them all in the past, but I've go to say Flock today is a whole lot different to the Flock of the past. The Facebook integration is great and the web clipping service will make it a handy tool for online marketers who do a lot of reading and research.

Launch Day! Welcome to all the new Gooruze Members. As a founding Gooruze I'm here to provide advice, comment and write the odd blog post and article. If you're interested in something in particular let me know, either as an article request or via Q&A. My background is in Web 2.0 and blogging, as a writer, developer, speaking and blogging evangelist. The last title might sound corny but it fits perfectly with a lot of the speaking gigs I do in Australia, basically turning up to conferences to speak to people about the benefits of blogging. Enjoy Gooruze. I have so far and it will be interesting to watch it develop now it has officially launched.

I've got a post up on TechCrunch today (here) about the decline in the US dollar. That post isn't personal, but this Gooruze post it: it hurts, and it hurts a lot.

The more people I talk to who rely on US dollar income streams the more I hear the same thing: it hurts.

Does it hurt for you?

Interesting question on Twitter today from Richard Giles who is looking at viral marketing opportunities for Scouta. I recommended Facebook, and also targeting the platform releases of Hi5 and Bebo.

Facebook is a hard one because of the noise factor: there are now far too many apps and not enough viewers, with first mover being the key to success, an opportunity that has since passed.

I think there is still scope to do well on Facebook, presuming that the app is offering something new and/or different. The problem from me with Facebook apps has always been monetization: great, so ppl show where they've visited or what not, but where's the business model and revenue coming from.

Full details in my TechCrunch post here

I've long since learnt that nothing is out of the ordinary when it comes to potential Google acquisitions. Imagine that Google does acquire Sirius then uses the Satellites to pump internet access to cars: complete James Bond stuff. Here's hoping that they put the spare Sirius Satellite up over Australia to compliment the Google owned trans-Pacific Cable venture.

Microsoft may Invest in Facebook At a Valuation of $10 billion

I like Facebook, certainly I get Facebook's appeal where I never got the appeal of MySpace, but $10 billion for a valuation? WOW!

From an online marketing perspective though the Facebook/ Mark Zuckerberg story, much like the Chad Hurley/ YouTube story gives hope to us all. I had the opportunity of being in the second row (spitting distance) at TechCrunch40 last week where Michael Arrington interviewed Mark Zuckerberg on stage in front of a packed house. Here's the thing: he's 24 and normal. Really, really normal, aside from the fact that he's got the corporate mumbo-jumbo down-pat when avoiding answering a question he doesn't want to answer. The moral is that with hard work and a good idea the opportunities are still there for all of us to make it big. Sure, not everyone will, but it's still there none the less.

A short note of welcome to those reading me for the first time, and those who I've known before.

It's great privelege to be part of this project, working with two great people from the State I now call home: Clay and Rachel Cook. I could probably bio their past but I'll leave it to them; what I will say though is that if Gooruze can be half as good as Minti (and it runs on the same Vibe Engine) then this will soon become a top destination for online marketing advice.

You can see my recent Minti review at TechCrunch here

The part of the Gooruze pitch that particularly appealed to me was the notion of making online marketing information accessible. Lets face it: this isn't exactly an under-represented vertical, and there are many, many good SEO and general online marketing sites out there. What does lack though is accessible content, particularly for folks who may be starting out or looking to upgrade their knowledge sets. I'm confident that Gooruze will deliver just that and I'm happy to be helping out and helping others.

If anyone needs to contact me: questions or otherwise, use Gooruze or my contact details can be found on my personal blog here

/ cheers.