To MoBlog or Not To MoBlog?

(migrated from my Tripod blog on 11/05/2011)

I am REALLY getting annoyed with mobile blogging.

My trouble began when I tried out a (the) blogging app for my 2004-vintage Palm Treo 650.  Despite trying everything I could, I just couldn't get the app to connect to Blogger's API. 

Now, the app had last been updated in 2008, and I remembered a bit later that Blogger had tweaked their authentication system in late 2008/early 2009, rendering the app effectively useless.  D'oh.

So, I tested out Blogger's Mail2Blog feature by emailing an update to The Speakeasy, and it worked quite nicely.  Thank heaven for small miracles!

So, I'm going to try to post this on my Tripod blog in the same way.  Let's hope this works...

** EDIT **

It didn't.

After a quick look on Tripod's Help Forum, it appears Tripod's own mail-to-blog feature isn't working.  Several people have trouble tickets open, so let's hope it gets resolved soon... because if it doesn't, I may have to re-open C&S on Blogger. (CJ's note:  HI THERE!  -11/05/11)

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My mobile woes aren't limited to blogging, either.

I set my Facebook account up to allow posting by email as well.  After jumping through all the requisite hoops and sending my test updates to the specially tailored address Facebook provided, it was returned to me as undeliverable: recipient refused.  Turns out Facebook's server killed off my emails under the suspicion that they were spam... despite the fact that it's the same address I use to log onto FB.

This is making my head hurt.

I really, REALLY have to fix Nadia again...

40 Lenten Nights

(migrated from my Tripod blog on 11/05/2011)

If there's one thing I learned during Lent, it's not to bite off more than I can chew.

I managed to go 37 days without Internet (3 days short ).  This was pretty easy, because, as I said in a previous post, I'd gone without Internet for a year recently and found I could live quite nicely without it.  It did take a bit of discipline to keep from checking Facebook or eBay (et cetera) at work during those 37 days, but I managed.  Kept it strictly business.

The only drawback was that I missed my online friends and our witty back-and-forth.

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I surprised myself with how well I was able to avoid junk food...  no pop, no Slurpees, no chips, no chocolate bars, and no donuts for 37 days!  This took a fair bit of willpower, as my diet is usually chock full of crap.  I managed to eat healthier, but it was a battle the whole time... especially considering I kept (constantly) winning free donuts in Tim Horton's "Roll Up the Rim" contest/promotion. But, I stuck to the plan and feel a great deal better because of it.

So, how is this "biting off more than I can chew", you may ask?

Well, keep your gitch on, I'm getting to that.  Don't be so damned impatient!

The biggest challenge I faced during Lent was swearing.  I'm well-known for my rather colourful vocabulary liberally salted with rather off-colour words, and trying not to swear was, to me, a Herculean task.  My Everest, if you will.

I started out rather gung-ho and ready to exercise the less offensive parts of my vocabulary.  Now, if it came down to a mere test of wordplay, I would have made it the whole 40 days, but I had an unforeseen adversary working against me...

My temper.

I managed to last two days before losing it, cursing a (justified) blue streak at a coworker, and it's only gotten worse since then.

Sigh.

Admittedly, the plan was a bit too ambitious given my relative lack of discipline in this regard.  While reflecting on my Lenten experiences these last two days, I started thinking about the root causes of my anger and frustrations, the whys and wherefores of my rage, and came up with some interesting answers.
Ones I'll share with you one day soon.

Free Kevin, but Imprison Your Soul

(migrated from my Tripod blog on 11/05/2011)

So, I'm back from my Lenten journey... a few days early.

I almost made it.  I would have gone the distance (as far as not using the Internet was concerned), but a friend of mine told me to check my Twitter feed for a news article she was sending me.

The link never materialized, but I DID discover a bit of information that upset me no end.

Apparently one of my heroes, Kevin Mitnick, was in town yesterday and, not being online to catch the word, I MISSED OUT ON THIS ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY!

As I asked on my Twitter feed, "Was purifying my immortal soul worth missing Kevin Mitnick's visit to Winnipeg?"

Yes, but barely.