• I wanted to become a professional blogger.
• I wanted to earn passive income from blogging and other internet strategies.
• I wanted to be able to add to my pension.
• I wanted to be able to help others in need via blogging.
• I wanted to be around more and not on the road speaking away from my mom since I am the only child and I am her” assisted living.”
• I wanted to help my husband sell his artwork online

I STILL WANT THO KEEP THESE DREAMS SO I HAVE MADE THEM GOALS

Ray and I decided to take an eight week webinar training in the evenings. These were great date nights. We would eat dinner then sit at the dinner table around the lap top or downstairs around the desk top with speakers turned high as we listened to Jeannette Cates talk about starting a business online.

Now we were already primed by other internet gurus we like and admire. But this series by Cates promised to help us set up our own website! I admit I thought it was going to be a static site and I would learn more about Dreamweaver. But before we knew it we had jumped into deep water and was swimming with Wordpress.org. Oh my, that was the program that looked so hard on the VTC training that I decided it was far easier to stick with Blogger.

But it was too late. We were assigned to create this Wordpress.org site and host it. We did it. We are glad we did.

Later as, as time went on, we went deeper with Wordpress.org with the guidence of my friend Cathy Perkins, the infamous Wordpress Wizard.

Ray and I were not born bloggers. But as baby boomers we were determined to learn. We now have many blogs and still learning.

What about you? What is your blogging story? Please, Please share. You can post as a comment or just email the story to me using rhspeak(at)aol.com

If we get enough stories we will publish them in an ebook to share with others

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This is a day that made me think of physical, mental and spiritual freedoms. I thought about my personal spiritual freedom during my personal quiet time this morning. I was thankful for the physical  freedom from pain that my mom had. I pray for those who are in emotional and physical pain for them to have some freedom from it.

If you have never felt the pain of physical, emotional or spiritual bondage you will never, ever appreciate how it feels to feel free. Sometimes it is just the freedom a pain pill brings. Other times it is the freedom from crying out of grief or lost of a loved one because someone cared enough to call and talk to you.

As a baby boomers we have a lot more of a history to reflect upon. They range from personal freedoms to job related freedoms. That’s right many of you are free of your jobs but not by choice. Yet, you have created an opportunities out of the pain of job loss. Every successful baby boomer internet marketer has a story to tell you that would probably encourage you.

Well, I could go on and on but must make a trip to my moms. So, I leave

Are their some freedoms you have but have thought to give thanks for? If yes, take a few minutes to appreciate them between the fireworks and fun.

Enjoy the day!

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Then it hit me. Hey, how would I know about the online activity during a holiday unless I was online? That’s right I am one of those folks blogging and doing other stuff online, when I can, during the holidays.

So, although, I am supposed to be working on an  upcoming presentation for next week, I thought I would share this post I was writing in my mind while running my errands today.

10 Top Reasons to Blog on the 4th of July

1.  Everyone online does not celebrate the holiday so you can focus on your oversea readers

2. You just never liked hot dogs ,hamburgers and ribs. Plus everyone is not into vegi, vegan and tofu so you might as well stay home.

3. If you are blogging and remember an issue you wanted to ask your host about you can get almost instant access to 24 hour support because everyone else is busy having fun.

4. If you are have your laptop at the barbercue you can impress your friends and family

5. You can blog about holiday sales and specials.

6. You don’t have a life.

7. You might get more comments from other bloggers online who don’t have a life

8. If you blog for your job you will look like a go getter if folks see you posted on a holiday.

9. It is a good time to volunteer to be a guest blogger for someone who needs a break to get a life.

10. If you blog then Tweet someone may bring you a dinner or invite you over to their celebration.

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I even see where some other forms need to be developed. So, that is on the agenda also. I am doing a 4th of July Special just until July 6, 2010. The forms will only be $1.00 if you  use the discount code #blog30. You can see the ad in the sidebar.

Now, you are probably thinking, “Total waste of time” or “Too much work”. But try it and see if you like it.

Meanwhile, Have a safe and wonderful holiday weekend!

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Blogging can be like peeling potatoes

Tonight while preparing for tommorrow’s dinner I discovered five (5) ways blogging can be like peeling potatoes.

1. You seldom look forward to peeling potatoes. But you have a vision for the results.With blogging there are times that you really don’t feel like doing it. But you know that when you make that post the hoped for results can really happen!

2. You wash and scrub the potatoes. Then make sure your knife or peeler is sharp. With blogging you start with fresh content and a sharp mind.

3. Slowly peel using your own style. With blogging you want to blog with your own style that will get the job done.

4. Avoid cutting too much of the potato with the peel. With blogging you want to cut away all the stuff your readers may not want to hear. Note: If you are doing a rant you might leave the skin on and just slice and dice.

5. Get rid of the peels or find other uses. (For example, does anyone live on a farm?) With blogging you get rid of the content you did not use or find other places to use it.

Sure we could also look at  cooking, and recipes that include the potatoes. Then there is the presentation, eating and digestiong of the potatoes. And did I hear anyone say leftovers? Well  it is the same way with blogging. There are so many simple yet complex dimensions of blogging. That’s what keeps us serving and eating our blogs

But I am sure you can come up with many other aspects of blogging as it relates to the simplicity of peeling potatoes. Thanks for listening.

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Now, I am not saying that I probably saw notification sent via email from Ezinearticles or heard someone mention it but I never paid any attention or read the email. Ok, 50 lashes with a wet noodle.

But today when Kevin said, “You just got to use this plug-in it’s awesome.” So, I decided to digress from my series on social bookmarking and share this information with you.

I went to my plug-in manager and did a search on ezinearticles. There it was ready for me to install. I checked to make sure it was compatible with the current version of my blog.

After installing I read more about the plug-in. You can actually post an article on Ezinearticles directly from your blog post. Now, before you say anything about duplicate content please look at this blog post on Ezinearticle’s blog.

So, tonight I dusted off my Ezinearticle’s username and password. I was missing in action for a while and decided to check the status of my over 600 articles. I submitted three (3) posts from an earlier series.

The cool thing is that the plug-in will validate your article before it allows submission. If you have too many links or other issues it lets you know. Also, remember that Ezinearticles changed the required number of words for articles to 250.

So, now I have another challenge. To get 1,000 articles submitted and approved by September, 2010.Now that it is out there please check on my status. (Why not join me?)

Note that I said approved because after I submitted my articles I got that wonderful email that said they will be reviewed in48 hours. But since I have become a blogger I know that if at first you don’t succeed you just keep trying.

OOPs, be sure to designate the right category for your article or change them when it gets approved.

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Well, I told her about the Blog Challenge I was in for the next 30 Days and she decided to come up with a fun filled way to share some blogging tips.  She is using a Hula Hoop!

Well, if you read the last two posts you know that I have transferred my static website to a blogging platform. The site is Rosie Horner. However, although I am sharing it with you now it realllllllllly is not fully ready for Prime Time. So, I will share with you some things that I have done and will be doing to complete it.

So, stay tuned, and come along with us on this adventure. Meanwhile, enjoy Blogging Betty’s Hula Tips. Why knows by the time this challenge is over she might loose an inch.

PS She wants to give special thanks to Kevin Thompson for the idea and hubby Ray Horner Jr. for the flip filming in the midst of a very busy day.

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Static Home To Blog Home Address

Now, it is important to note that I did not make the move until after I started blogging.

What Made My Website Static?

My static site  was written entirely using HTML.  (That’s the code that only the Webmasters and internet understands until you learn it) Each web page  was  a separate document and there were no databases or external files that they drew  upon. This meant that the only way to edit the site was to go into each page and edit the HTML. In my case it was done by the  a web page editor software called Dreamweaver. (Great program with a steep learning curve)

Sure my Webmasters taught me how to update the site. (I had two during the history of the site) But most of the time they updated it when they were available in the midst of their very busy, hectic schedules. Now, because I could not afford to have them dedicate their time to me only I had to quite down my only child syndrome and wait my turn. I was successful at doing some updates but too often ran into potholes and messed up my tires.

In addition I was not able to add new functions to the site quickly. Things like data feeds or a comprehensive site search. Oh, lets not forget optimizing it for the search engines like I have learned to do with blogs.

I finally purchased another web editor software package for quick creations of sales pages. This program, XSitpro eased the compulsiveness to go faster with my online activity. (Note that link is an affiliate and I will make revenue if you click on it but I fully support it for ease of use)

What Makes A Blog Home Dynamic?

In my opinion a blog is a static website on steroids!

I changed to a dynamic blogging platform when I realized the following:

* I  planned to update my website on a regular basis. This could be done because a dynamic site  is controlled by a CMS (content management system). This means that you will potentially be able to make updates without needing any knowledge of HTML or any website software. The blog platform I am using is Wordpress.org. It is still using a complex code. (PHP and HTML) but when you mess around in that code then you get help until you learn it.
* I planned to  add more functionality to my site at some time in the future
* It was very important for me to optimize my website for the search engines
Finally, each page of my new blog home is generated from information that is stored in a database or external file. The Wordpress.org content management system directly modifies this stored information.

In part 2 I will talk about a few realistic hurdles that had to made with my old apartment building. (host)

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So How Do You Password Protect Your Blog Post?

• You can locate the option to change the VISIBILITY of your blog post within the PUBLISH box on your dashboard

• Click on the  EDIT option to change the post to Password Protect or Private
• Choose Password Protect (Private means that only Administrators or Editors on your blog team can see posts)
• Key in a password

• Congratulations! You have now created a Password Protected Blog Post.

What Can You Do With a Password Protected Blog Post?

I often use password protected blog posts to host PowerPoint slide shows for trainings. Now I challenge you to allow your imagination to expand. Think about a contest, or something else that your readers can enjoy.

Click Here to see an example of a password protected blog post. Oh, the password is lead

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Now I don’t have to tell you how powerful blog comments are on your blog and the links that connect with tblog carnivals, he bloggers blog. That will produce some good link action. Plus you can read about the powerfully insightful and diverse bloggers You can also study how their blogs are designed and how they monetize their sites.

So here is my challenge to you. I am going to post a link to a current Blog Carnival. Please consider doing the following:

• Visit this host site for the current Blog Carnival
• Stop and look at this very well designed site hosting the Blog Carnival. Make a comment
• Visit at least 3 other blog sites in the Blog Carnival
• Think about contacting the host of the Blog Carnival and see how you can have the next party.
• Finally, connect via RSS feed to sites you  want to keep in touch with.

Let me know how you enjoyed the party!

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