Tag Archives: flood

Areavoices Digest #55 – Talking Baseball and more

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The snow might be starting to fall outside my window, but at Areavoices we’re talking Major League baseball. I’m excited that one of our favorite bloggers, Chad Jacobsen of Twins Focus has taken on the task of starting a new blog entitled: MLB Talk. Maybe it’s because the Twins were less than stellar this year, or maybe it’s just because there’s so much baseball news outside the state.  Either way, I’m happy to see that Chad is spreading his wings and broadening his topic. It’s just the first of several new blogs on Areavoices that you might want to check out. Enjoy!



MLB Talk
mlbtalk.areavoices.com
Chad Jacobsen writes Twins Focus on Areavoices, but admits sometimes baseball news
goes beyond Minnesota. MLB Talk offers the latest news from Major League Baseball.

Blogging Molly
bloggingmolly.areavoices.com
Observations and stories from WDAZ-TV anchor Molly Thorvilson. So far Molly is blogging about whatever pops into her mind, from her first visit to the Ralph Englestad Arena to her first bite of a McRib. It could be fun.

Diversion Discussion
diversiondiscussion.areavoices.com
News and updates about a potential Red River diversion project gathered by reporters from The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead.

Paw Printz
4luvofdog.areavoices.com
A blog written by 4 Luv of Dog Rescue – an effort to rescue and rehome dogs. This blog also offers practical tips and advice about caring for dogs.

Doubleduty
doubleduty.areavoices.com
Two babies….one year. Following the adventures of a mom who’s been pregnant for a year-and-a-half straight. So far I’ve enjoyed this blog from a mom who obviously has her hands full.
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Living with Water: Your thoughts and experiences wanted.

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It was almost hard to believe. Last month while we visited my husband’s parents in Iowa, we ran into an old neighbor of theirs who has since moved to Texas. He and his wife moved there to be closer to her parents and start farming down there. What they have found is incredible hardship. As you’ve no doubt seen on the news, Texas is suffering it’s worst dry spell since the 1950′s.

It was hard for us to imagine as we are coming off a third year in a row of fighting back the Red River from our Minnesota home. We’ve also watched as friends and relatives battle heartbreaking flooding in Minot, North Dakota.

The truth is: the water is in charge. Whether you live in Texas or North Dakota. It’s up to us to live with it. That’s why I’m excited to tell you about a new  project being undertaken by Forum Communications Company.

We’ve launched a company-wide reporting project designed to build understanding about water and its impact on our lives across the region, including ways that our uses of water impact other regions, and how their uses impact us.

Our reporters, photographers and editors will be sharing their stories in print, online, and over the air, but the first part involves you!

As part of the first phase of the project we’ve created an interactive website at www.water.areavoices.com, where you can participate in the project and share with our reporting staff your thoughts, feelings and experiences with water.

We’ll post our work as it progresses, but you are the most important part of this site. Please post your stories, questions, ideas and opinions. We’re also interested in documents pertaining to water. We’d like to hear family stories about drought and other issues arising from lack of water.  And we hope you’ll share your experiences of flooding. Finally, it would be fantastic if you’d share your thoughts about living by a lake, canoeing a prairie stream or getting soaked in a sudden rainstorm – anything that involves Living with Water. Please visit www.water.areavoices.com

 

We know you have stories to tell. We’ve heard you tell them over the years. We’ve interviewed you, we’ve read your letters and we’ve taken your pictures. Now, we’re asking you to do it again. Participate. Share your stories for future generations to understand what it was like for us to live with water.

Areavoices #37 – My Big Fat Greek Blog and more…

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I loved the movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” which told the story of a young Greek American woman navigating modern day romance within the confines of her traditional Greek family. So funny. Maybe that’s why I’m excited to welcome, “My Big Fat Greek Blog” to Areavoices. No, this one doesn’t involve the movie, but I think it could be equally fun!  It’s written by a woman in Fargo, North Dakota navigating what it means to run a Greek restaurant in the land of lefse and lutefisk. It’s just the latest blogs I’m recommending in this week’s digest.

My Big Fat Greek Blog – http://santalucia.areavoices.com Maria Wilson owns a Greek and Italian restaurant in Fargo. She’s a native of Winnipeg and is fairly new to blogging. But she hopes to talk about food, wine and what it’s like to run a Greek and Italian restaurant in Norwegian country. 

 
Park Christian School – http://parkchristianschool.areavoices.com The school, located in Moorhead, Minnesota, started in 1981 and it’s mission is to equip students to think biblically, live wisely and serve faithfully.
 
The Extreme Weather Community Blog Team – http://extremeteam.areavoices.com  Isn’t part of living here talking about the weather? This is an interesting and informative blog for any weather junkie written by individuals who love to write about the extreme weather in North Dakota and Minnesota.
 
Speaking of weather blogs that have really taken off… a reminder about the community blog regarding the Flood in West-Central North Dakota. You can find it at http://centralwestflood.areavoices.com. Since it’s start last week, it’s getting thousands of page views. Again, it’s everyday people writing about the flooding in Minot, ND and the surrounding area.
 
East Side Professor – http://dahlenje.areavoices.com This teacher from Fisher, Minnesota  writes about life in a fun and entertaining way. She’s an active blogger who’s been writing since 2008.
 
Rural Cass County Community Theatre – http://rccct.areavoices.com This blog covers news and productions from this theatre group out of Casselton, North Dakota.

Bloggers react to Minot Flood Crisis

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As the news continues to worsen out of flood-ravaged Minot, North Dakota thousands of people around the world are logging in and tuning in for updates.

Hollywood star and Minot native Josh Duhamel called Minot TV station KXMC today from Moscow where he says he’s been glued to live stream coverage. He says he’s staying in touch with his sister and mother back in Minot for the latest updates.

But even people who don’t know a soul in the city of 36,000 in the North Central part of the state are watching. As I write this from Fargo, North Dakota(4 hours away) I’m sickened by what I see. We’ve fought floods three years in a row along the Red River, but we didn’t have to endure what the people of Minot are facing now. Today’s news that 3 additional feet of water is expected to surge into town means the number of people evacuating the city has risen from 11,000 to thousands more. My heart goes out to the people of Minot today. Something in me (and presumably) in so many others feels the need to stay connected.

In addition to logging onto your favorite newspaper or TV station websites, Areavoices bloggers have joined in a community blog set up by Shane Mercer of The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. In a very short time, after only 4 posts, the number of page views was close to 10,000. People are craving the latest from Minot. And who better to give it to us than the people in Minot themselves? So far two community members are contributing to the blog, but more are needed. If you want to share news from the flooded regions of Central and Western North Dakota, go to http://centralwestflood.areavoices.com. You can also read the latest from Minot and other affected areas.

AREAVOICES #13 – March 16, 2011 – A Big Pot of Gold!

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Maybe, I’m getting into the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day a little early (sharing my pot of gold at the end of the rainbow) or maybe it’s just been a big week for bloggers. Either way, in this week’s areavoices digest I’m going to share 9 recommended blogs with you. That’s right – 9! An abundance of great information to share! Makes you want to dance a jig, doesn’t it? Go ahead. I know you want to. Just read my blog first.

TRAVEL AND LIVING – http://travel.areavoices.com  – This is the official Forum Communications Travel blog. In my most recent blog posts, I’ve talked about the popularity of travel blogs in sharing travel and tourism information. This blog provides general travel news for anybody looking to plan a trip.  

E-MOTION -  Emotional Healing, Happiness and Hope -   http://healinghope.areavoices.com  -  Beth Kern is a graphic designer at the Wadena Pioneer Journal who is is studying Emotion Release Therapy and hopes to help others in their emotional healing.

 GRAPHIC CONTENT -  http://troybecker.areavoices.com   – Troy Becker is a graphic artist with The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. His blogs gives readers a behind the scenes look at graphic arts in the newspaper business. 

 VALLEY GIRL DISH – http://valleygirldish.areavoices.com – Abbie Testaberg is a co-owner of a cafe in River Falls, Wisconsin. Her blog is intended to connect people, places and recipes of the St. Croix Valley area.   

SALVATION ARMY FARGO – http://salvationarmyfargo.areavoices.com. The Salvation Army- Fargo serves Cass County (ND) and Clay County (MN). This blog will tell people about Salvation Army services and distribute important announcements during the upcoming spring flooding on the Red River.

 FARGO PUBLIC LIBRARY - http://fargolibrary.areavoices.com - News and information from the Fargo Public Library. 

 WEST FARGO PUBLIC WORKS- http://wfpublicworks.areavoices.com - News and important announcements for residents of West Fargo, North Dakota. 

FARGO PARKS - http://fargoparks.areavoices.com – Informing the public about the happenings at the Fargo, North Dakota Parks and Recreation Department.
WEST FARGO PACKATAHNAS- http://westfargopackatahnas – If you say, “What the heck is a ‘Packatahna’?” you’ve obviously never seen West Fargo High School’s top notch competitive dance team. We hope this becomes one of many high school organizations sharing news on areavoices.

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.

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!