Monthly Archives: February 2011

Areavoices Digest #20 – From Scottish chemists to Minnesota politicians

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 Welcome back to our weekly look at areavoices blogs you might want to review. Three have been around for awhile. Two are brand spankin’ new. Enjoy!
The Corner Bar -   http://cornerbar.areavoices.com - “A place where arguments and opinion flow as freely as the imaginary libations.” This blog has had a loyal following since it began in 2007. The author, Billy Bones, posts almost daily about current events and politics. His opinions are strong and so are those that comment on his posts. (In his latest post, he calls the governor of Wisconsin “Despicably Disingenuous!”)  But from my review of this blog over the last few weeks, it seems the debate remains respectful and relevant. It’s definitely a hot topic type blog.
 
Renew ND – http://renewnd.areavoices.com – This is another long term blog. Mike Williams has been writing this blog since 2007. He concentrates on issues such as renewable energy, green living and the environment. Lately he’s been writing a lot about the Flood of 2011.
(NEW) The Scottish Chemist – Chemistry and Other Cool Science Stuff – http://scottishchemist.areavoices.com. Graeme Wyllie is a chemistry professor at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, but don’t expect this to be a dry science blog. Graeme is a great writer, witty, and entertaining. He’s making science fun in this blog and I think it makes science more approachable to the general public. He writes, “My blog will be a series of (hopefully not too technical) articles on science whether it be science in the news, bad science in the media or just materials relevant to what I am up to in the lab.” 
 
(NEW) Paul Marquart – http://paulmarquart.areavoices.com - Paul Marquart is the representative for Minnesota district 9B in the state legislature. He’s from Dilworth and serves the counties of Wilkin, Traverse, Clay and parts of Becker County.  I think Paul’s blog should be a nice source of information about Minnesota government and politics. I hope other lawmakers will start their areavoices blogs soon.
 
The Bridgehunter’s Chronicles – http://thebridgehunter.areavoices.com – The first thing that attracted me to Jason Smith’s blog was the appearance. It’s super sharp looking! Great photos and just fun to scroll through. I was also attracted to this blog because it’s a one of a kind on areavoices. Where else are you going to see such a niche topic? I think you can learn a lot from Smith, a photographer and writer, as he tells the stories of historic bridges throughout the area.  

Ole and Lena document the flood

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About a week ago on this blog I asked for your help in starting flood-related blogs for our region. Nobody documents a flood better than the people who are living through it. That’s why I wanted to make sure you heard about our newest blog. It’s called: “The Adventures of Ole and Lena – a Stud and a Hot Dish.”

The Adventures of Ole and Lena - A Stud and a Hot Dish

 Okay, I know the flood is serious business. But that is the funniest subtitle I’ve seen in areavoices!

The blog is written by Lena, a woman living along the Buffalo River near Sabin, Minnesota with her husband Ole.  In her blog, she’s included pictures from previous floods and addresses the fight so far this year. You can find it at http://oleandlena.areavoices.com.

If you’d like to document your flood experiences, just drop me an email: tracy.briggs@fccinteractive.com or just comment to this post.

Areavoices Digest #19 – February 16, 2011 “Spanning the Globe, etc”

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Remember that old “ABC Wide World of Sports” slogan….”Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport..”
Well I feel like this digest could be “spanning the region to give you a constant variety of blog.”
 
I’m particularly happy with this weeks fivesome because they come from the far reaches of Forum Communications newspapers and websites. (Western ND, South Dakota, Southern MN. Sorry Wisconsin, I don’t have any Wisconsin bloggers this time around. But I did cheer for the Packers so I’m not that horrible a person, right?)  Like last week, all of these blogs are already featured in at least one website in the company. I think they’re worth checking out.
 
The Prairie Blog – http://theprairieblog.areavoices.com  Jim Fuglie is a former writer from The Dickinson Press. He started his blog in December, took a little break but is active again. He says his blog will be about politics and prairie literature. He says he also wants to highlight “The Best of ND, etc.”  For example, he says he might write : “’Some Of The Funniest Things Ever Written About North Dakota’ over some excerpts from columns by Wayne Lubenow or Tony Bender or Lloyd Omdahl. Or ‘Some of the Best Songs Ever Sung By North Dakotans’ over songs by Chuck Suchy or Bobby Vee. You get the idea.”  I think this is really fun stuff!
Shootin the Wit – http://shootin.areavoices.com – Laura Stoneburner says her blog is “a column about life that should never, ever be taken too seriously.”  She’s written about her disdain for public grooming, why certain songs are overplayed on the radio and why Italian pasta isn’t that good in Italy. I thought it was really fun.
 
South Dakota Outdoors Adventures – http://sdoa.areavoices.com.   Do you ever hunt, fish or vacation in South Dakota? This is a nice blog about the outdoors. Good reading.
 
Staying Fit and Healthy – http://stayingfitandhealthy.areavoices.com - Laura Devine is the owner of Real Fit Workout Studio in Cottage Grove, MN. She is blogging about fitness and wellness tips for real life people.
 
The Flensburger Files – http://flensburgerfiles.areavoices.com - “Based on the travels and experiences gathered by a former Minnesotan in the last decade, the Flensburg Files takes you on a tour of the outside; namely showing you some interesting places that are worth visiting and giving you some food for thought from the eyes of the writer and photographer who has been there and done that.” 
Happy reading! And as always please let me know if you write a blog and you want to be featured on our newspaper and broadcast websites. We’re always looking for great bloggers!

More information at your fingertips with areavoices directory

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Back in college, my friends Janet and Jill and I competed in a lip sync contest as The Pointer Sisters. Why do I tell you this in my blog post about areavoices? It’s because of the song we sang, “I’m so excited!” That is how I’m feeling today upon the completion of our areavoices directory page. Maybe it’s a stretch to pull out an old song from the 80′s to communicate my feeling over this project or maybe I’m just a little loopy after going through all of the blogs featured on Forum Communications company websites over the past week or two. How many blogs is that, you ask. More than 400!!!!  That is 400 different blogs with information ranging from opera to astronomy, from Minnesota Twins to Wisconsin wildlife, from knitting up north to knoephla in North Dakota. All that, plus news and information from schools, businesses, cities and counties in our region. Check out the areavoices directory either at www.areavoices.com or by clicking on Directory link right under the titles “Featured Staff Blogs” or “Featured Area Voices” on the newspaper home page.

The directory has been out for a couple of weeks now and in that time, I’ve fielded some questions which I’ll address here:

1. Why isn’t my areavoices blog on the list?

Remember this is a featured blog list. That means at least one Forum Communications newspaper or broadcast website has chosen to feature you. In all, there are more than 2,000 areavoices blogs. These are the 400 that have been pulled out to be featured. Of course, all areavoices blogs can still be found at www.areavoices.com.

2. How can I get my blog featured?

Your first step is to make sure we know about it. I’m amazed at the fantastic blogs I’ve just stumbled upon as I look through areavoices postings. It’s my job to recommend you to the newspaper and broadcast editors, publishers and news directors. I can’t make that recommendation unless I know about you. Once I do, I can forward your blog address to the editors. In the end, it’s their decision whether your blog is appropriate for their website.

3. I’m not sure if I’m a featured blogger. How can I find out?

First, look on the directory. If you’re in the directory, you’re featured by at least one property. If you’re not on the list, you can certainly email me and I can doublecheck whether you’re a featured blog or not. tracy.briggs@fccinteractive.com.

4. I know I’m a featured blogger, but I’m still not in the directory. What’s going on?

A couple of possible things. First, I’m human. I might have messed up and for some reason not typed you into the directory. Of course, after I profusely apologize I’ll make things right. The other possible reason is more intentional. To keep our featured blog list as up to date as possible, we take blogs out of the directory if you have not made at least one post in that blog in the last 3 months.   It was our decision to do this to make sure the directory was not bogged down with blogs that are no longer active. I am more than happy to put your blog back in the directory once you start posting in that blog again. Just let me know.

5. How can I get a  next to my blog?

We put the  next to the blog if it has been created in the last 2 weeks or so. If I missed a , please let me know.

So that’s it. And while I said earlier that I was excited by the completion of this project, the fact is it will never be completed. The directory is almost a living, breathing entity. Okay, I’m being a little dramatic. But the fact is, I’ll be monitoring and managing this directory from now on. It will evolve and change. If you have questions, problems or suggestions I’m ready to hear them. I have time now that I’m no longer a Pointer Sister.

Getting more people to your blog from your website

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As I meet with people to sing the praises of areavoices, I’ve heard, “Oh, we don’t need a blog. We have a great website.” I usually say something along the lines of “Why not have both?” Experienced bloggers will tell you blogs and websites work best when they work together. You’ll end up picking up more audience by using both platforms. While some people will go directly to your website, many people will not seek it out. It’s for those people that areavoices blogging is so perfect. By being a featured blogger on areavoices and being picked up by some or all of our Forum Communications newspapers and broadcast websites, you have the opportunity for 1. 5 million people to just “stumble upon” your blog post. And because we encourage you to provide links on your blog, some of those people will then be directed to your website.
But it works the other way around as well. On Friday, I told you how Cass County, North Dakota government is starting a blog to keep it’s residents up to date on important news and events. They felt the need to start such a blog because of the looming flooding on the Red River of the North. However, many government entities have started fantastic blogs in recent months. (For example, you can read news about happenings at Duluth’s city hall on the blog Buzz.duluth. from Duluth News Tribune reporter Peter Passi, Stutsman County (ND) Emergency Management is running its “Are you Prepared?” blog and Clay county (MN) will be up and running soon.) Now Cass County is not only linking from its blog back to it’s website, it’s linking from its website back to it’s blog by using the areavoices logo right on their site, along with logos from Twitter and Facebook. See photo below.
You are allowed to use our logo on your websites in this way. As I said earlier, “Why not?” In the end, it means more people finding more avenues to your news and information. Let me know if you have any questions. And please let me know how we can help you start your blog!

Check out Cass County Emergency Management Blog!

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Speaking of flood blogs (which I did in my last blog entry) I just wanted to let you know another one has popped up. The Cass County (ND) Emergency Management Department has started it’s blog. It’s already full of relevant flood related information.  Just go to http://casscountyem.areavoices.com to see it.

If any other county/city/state departments want to join us on areavoices, just let me know!

We want you to blog about the flood!

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Those of us who’ve lived through the flood of ’09 and ’97 (and seemingly countless others) can spend hours telling you our stories. We’ll tell you where we were when we heard our neighborhood was being evacuated or tell you how the water in our backyard rose 2 feet overnight. Maybe we tell these stories as therapy. It makes us feel better to share our hardships. It gives us a sense of community to know, as the kids in High School Musical sang, “We’re all in this together!”

This time around, for Flood 2011, we don’t just want to HEAR your stories, we want you to blog about them. Remember BLOG stands for WEB LOG. And while, in recent years, it’s come to mean so much more at its very core it still can be defined as “a frequently updated personal journal.”  What a great way to chronicle your flood experiences by building an online diary. Tell us what it’s like in your neighborhood, add pictures and video. It’s a great way to document, day by day, how the flood is affecting you.

In addition to hearing your stories, areavoices blogs will be a great place to find important flood information, no matter what part of the region you call home.  Just today, I added “FLOOD” as a category in our blog directory. You’ll be able to see all of the flood blogs that are being written about this flood. In the last couple of days, we have two new flood blogs. First Link, the agency which coordinates volunteers during times of community need, has started a nice blog. http://myfirstlink.areavoices.com. The Forum has also started it’s Community Flood blog, http://communityflood.areavoices.com.

My blog is full of information about how to start your blog. If you need further assistance, I’m just an email away. We’d love to hear from you this flood season and always!

Areavoices Digest #18 – Feb 9, 2011 – Have you seen these blogs?

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Thanks for your feedback about the areavoices directory. I’m still wading through it blog by blog, revising and updating information. You can now see the directory on the blog sections of your home pages as well as on the areavoices homepage. I realize we still have featured blogs that might be missing. If you notice a blog that is not in the directory please shoot me an email. I will make sure to get it on the directory as soon as possible. As I said last week, this process is giving me the opportunity to find some wonderful blogs that might be deserving of a second look.
 
Powerful Perspectives – http://powerfulperspectives.areavoices.com – When I asked everyone for feedback on great bloggers this is what Phil from River Falls told me, “Sam Bluhm’s Powerful Perspective’s blog is by far the hottest of the 25 local bloggers we have at the River Falls Journal. She brings a life coach perspective, is a professional business writer and weaves some heartwarming stories that generate lots of feedback.”  I looked through the blog and found it well written and interesting.
 
Rambling River Repair – http://ramblingriverrepair.areavoices.com – Sue and Bill Kropelnicki are fairly new to blogging, but I think this auto repair blog has a lot of potential. They own and operate their own shop in Farmington, Minnesota. Their last post addressed keeping tires in top shape during winter driving, so obviously, something we can all relate to.  The focus of their blog is to make cars and car repair understandable to the average Joe and Jane.

Rural Reflections – http://rreflection.areavoices.com – Grant Nelson writes about rural life and farm projects. His column is featured weekly in the Northern Watch newspaper in Thief River Falls, Minnesota. His Radio program is also posted on his blog every Thursday by noon.

 
Music Moves – Perspectives & Insights from a Local Music Therapist – http://musicmoves.areavoices.com -  Natasha Thomas is a board certified music therapist. She says the purpose of her blog is “for any individual looking to learn how music can enhance their own life or the lives of their loved ones, co-workers, or friends.  Weekly posts will include such topics as “how music can aid academic learning”, “using music for stress relief”, and other perspectives on the many ways in which music can impact your life.”
 
Who Needs Who? – Stories of love from a special needs mom – http://whoneedswho.areavoices.com – Kerri Kava is blogging about her life with her special needs son. He has Williams Syndrome or WS. But she writes, “I’m an extremely positive person and in no way am I wanting this blog to be a “poor me” bucket. But rather, a place to share, vent, and brag about the love and joy brought, as well as the everyday journey we experience.”
 
And finally I just wanted to point out two of our newest education-type blogs.
 
Detroit Lakes Public Schools is now blogging – http://detroitlakesschools.areavoices.com. They’ve used their blog to make school announcements and deliver other news. It’s a great use of blogging.
 
And Dr. Christopher Markwood, Interim Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Superior, has started a blog for UW Superior. I was really excited to see this one. I believe he’s the first Chancellor to blog with areavoices.  Very cool! http://uwsuperior.areavoices.com. 
 

Areavoices Digest #17 – Feb 2, 2011 – New way to find our blogs

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Did you see it? There, right above my blog, to the right? Right next to ”start a blog.”  It’s the new areavoices “directory” link.

Over the past week or so, we’ve been refining and revising a list of the featured blogs on all Forum Communications websites.  To make it easier to find the blogs, we’ve placed them in categories, so you’ll be able to read blogs that have the most interest to you.  I’m still working on the list and it will be finalized soon. I’ll update you as I go.

In the meantime, there’s been a residual effect to all of this blog examination. By going through the blogs with  a fine tooth comb, I’ve found more blogs that are worth a second look. They are all featured on at least one of our websites.

 
Grapes and Grains – http://grapes.areavoices.com  I’m not sure I’ve seen a blog like this anywhere else on areavoices. Greg Rixen blogs about wines, spirits and food pairings. The blog is full of interesting content and great advice.  
 
Courage in the Kitchen – http://kitchencourage.areavoices.com Chuck Rang blogs about “reminiscences and recipes.” He brings a down home quality to his food blog. He says: 
“I have been cooking since I was old enough to hold a spoon.  My teachers have been my mother, my wife, my sisters and friends who are still trying to make me into a real cook.  I like to read recipes and experiment in the kitchen, and though the results have occasionally been disastrous (sherried squash and walnuts with maple syrup comes to mind), I think that I have learned from most of my mistakes.”
 
BBB Buzz -  http://thefirstbbb.areavoices.com The Better Business Bureau of North Dakota and Minnesota  blog contains helpful consumer tips, updates on the latest scams and reflections on trends in the marketplace. This blog is brand new! 

 
Horse Shoes -  http://horseshoes.areavoices.com  – News, information, and insight from a horse racing enthusiast. I think this blog is well done. I’m not a horse person, but I think Wendy is a good writer and I was interested in what she had to say.

 
Isaac on Tech -  http://isaacontech.areavoices.com  – Isaac Grover shares technology news and related thoughts. It looks like Isaac is blogging frequently about some very buzz worthy tech topics.