When the five of us got together to consolidate our blogging efforts under the West and Clear banner, we always intended to use our platform as a way of creating discussions among and between the people of Fort Worth about Fort Worth. Until now that discussion has been a bit one-sided, due to the nature of blogs and how conversations are started through them. Today we’re pleased to announce a new forum for discussion generation: EightOneSeven.com.
EightOneSeven.com is YOUR portal — it’s a place where you can create the conversation instead of just reacting to our content. Think we missed something? Write it up and get feedback! Start the discussion with your friends and neighbors today.
The best part is that if you already have a login for commenting on West and Clear, then you also have one on EightOneSeven.com. The same username and password will work for both.
We’re always working to put out a better product for you, and we’re excited about the potential in EightOneSeven.com. We can’t wait to see you there!
You obviously came here for a reason — some of you subscribe to my feed, some of you searched Google for “what goes with pizza” (the answer is beer, BTW), some are looking for pictures of the “prettiest dog“, and then there are those loyal few who just come directly to the site and read whatever’s on my mind for the day.
Here’s what’s on my mind today — What do YOU want me to write about? What’s on your mind?
It only takes a couple of clicks — Hop on over to The Full Pint and vote for your favorite “Down South” craft brewery, which I’m assuming to be Rahr and Sons right here in FW.
It only takes a couple of minutes, and right now Rahr is losing to some toolbags in Florida. Come on — we can beat Florida, right?
Go vote now by clicking here.
Also — is Texas really “Down South?” It appears that the new owners of Ol’ South Pancake House think so, but I’ve always thought of Texas (and particularly Fort Worth) as being a Western state.
Today has really been a completely wasted day for me. I’ve gotten almost nothing done, it seems that most of my colleagues are about as productive, and it’s a BEAUTIFUL day outside.
What a crapper. I wish I had a window.
Now you’ve wasted part of your Friday reading this drivel. I’ll bet you wish you hadn’t.
Thanks to everyone who’s been including me in their roundups lately! I don’t hate or ignore you, I’m just too scatterbrained to sit down and write something.
Steve got to eat at Eddie V’s. It was a soft opening, so maybe the food was free, but if I know Steve, he racked up a booze tab rivaling the national debt.
Kevin takes us for a tour of a new-construction Bungalow style home in Fairmount. Proof that modern materials can make classic architecture better, not worse. As expensive as this thing is, though, I’m surprised that there aren’t any overt “green” features.
BTW, Bernie likes a Booty Goo. I’m just sayin’.
Sonja — Yes, we’re more hip (as you have no doubt noticed by now, since you are now one of us), and yes, even an old Apple Notebook makes you cool.
FW Foodie rants about resolutions — I like the “Keep, Stop, Start” philosophy of resolving!
Jarid Manos, the Ghetto Plainsman
, is also in a resolving/reflective mood because of the New Year.
Thimblewicket gives us some insight into why oppressive governments are threatened by a well-educated populace.
Allen at The Whited Sepulchre finally posts his “Seven Things You Didn’t Know About Me” entry.
And now I’m tired. No more linkies from me for a while. If you’re good, you’ll get a video tonight.
Supposedly I’m not supposed to ask you to click on the ads that appear on my site. So I’m not going to, but I do want to point out that I have started running a few ads which will hopefully be consistent with the content on the site — I’ll outline a couple of things I’m doing to help pay my expenses.
The first and most obvious are the Google and Amazon ads that run in the sidebar and the footer. Standard stuff — they crawl the site for content, then show you ads that their systems think are appropriate.
I’ll also be using Amazon and iTunes affiliate links when I talk about a book or a song I like. For example:
I’m currently reading Michael Pollan’s book “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” It’s fascinating, and it will make you both disgusted with how our food system is currently managed, and determined to do a better job of feeding yourself. (You’ll notice that if you click the link above, it takes you to Amazon so you can buy the book. I get a cut if you do.)
The iTunes links will take a bit more work, as I have lost my affiliate info for them. They’re forthcoming, but work basically the same as the Amazon ads — click the link and be taken to iTunes Store, where I get a percentage of what you spend.
Rest assured that I will NOT be frivolous with the things I choose to link to. I don’t believe in stuff, and I wouldn’t recommend that anyone buy more stuff than they need. If I link to something, it’s because I think it’s worth your checking out and worth owning.
Huh… It’s taken me 3 years almost to figure out what blogging/podcasting is all about…
It’s about the people you meet and the ones you touch through the things you create. It’s such a democratic medium that there’s not nearly the polish that one would get from a “mainstream” news outlet. But that’s okay. I think there are a whole lot of people out there who don’t want that. They’re tired of the sanitized and watered-down “news” they get from the big media outlets. They want context, and raw input. They want to be brought along on the pub crawl or listen to the podcast interview done “man-on-the-street” style, vs. the highly packaged and processed content they get from “traditional” outlets.
More than anything else, though, people want to feel as if their voices are heard, and there’s no better outlet for that than blogs, podcasts, and social networks. I know that’s why I got into all of this, and two years later, I can’t tell you how glad I am that I did. I’ve met so many amazing people — many that I haven’t written about — and honestly that’s worth every penny I’ve spent paying for web hosting and all the rest.
I can’t tell you how excited I am about 2009 in terms of what you’re going to be seeing and hearing from me and the rest of the Panther City Media crew. If you thought last year was good, hold on to your hat and prepare to have your socks knocked off in 2009!
This is a test of the WordPress app for iPhone. I hope to chronicle my trip to St. Croix with this, as necessary, depending on high-speed Internet access availability.
Semper Fi, everyone! If you’re “over there,” keep your head down and come home safe.
- Sgt. Pete
USMC (Fmr)
I’ve been toying around with Tumblr as a new blogging platform, and I’ve become really fond of it. It’s super-easy to use, easier even than Blogger, probably. It’s sort of intended for quick posts, and is not as robust and flexible as WordPress. I’d say it’s somewhere between Twitter and WordPress in terms of functionality. I like it!
SO… In a week or so, I’ll be redirecting www.cowtownchronicles.com to my Tumbleog. What does that mean for you? Not much, really. You may have to adjust your RSS feed, but otherwise you’ll probably come out to the positive in terms of content, since it’s MUCH easier to write a quick post and shoot it out on Tumblr.
You’ll still be able to comment and argue, you’ll just be doing it on a different service.
See you there!
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