Internet Geek Girl

I like to write on planes.  Cranking the iTunes on my MacBook.  I am on a plane today.  7 years ago, all the airports were shut down. In fact, my whole city was pretty much shut down, except for the bars and restaurants. I remember very little except drowning our deep, unfathomable sorrow together in East Village.

Since that day, there have been other “9/11s” when I have sat around my house and cried, gone to memorials. A day of mourning.

Today I’m on a plane, going to a conference sitting next to a woman who speaks very little English. I speak no Spanish unfortunately. But she is wonderful to talk to and has a very nice smile. We’ve managed to learn a little bit about each other. She was born in Puerto Rico and currently lives in Manchester, NH and is visiting her daughter in Orlando.

My friend Steve Rosenbaum is a story teller. He has helped us to define what it means to be part of the 9/11 Generation. As Steve points out:

Each of us has a personal story, memories and feelings that we’ve pushed into a corner. The drumbeat to ‘move on’ is natural, perhaps essential. But I’d gently suggest that you make sure that your story isn’t lost or forgotten, as both historians and your grandchildren will hunger for it one day.

I actually do have stories.  But I don’t feel like telling them here. What I do want to point out is that we owe it to ourselves and the world to develop more successful domestic and foreign policies that safeguard our nation and our people from the horrors of terrorism. That’s what I want our leaders to focus on!  PHILIP BOBBITT and JOHN C. DANFORTH did a great job in the NYT Op Ed piece on 9/11 providing a list of questions on this issues that both Obama and McCain should answer. I wish they would.

I realize I’m just an InternetGeekGirl trying to make her way in the world. Today was not a 9/11 full of mourning for me. It has been pretty much business as usual. But September 11th is different and always will be.  I will always stop on this day, and find gratitude and peace.  As I always do, I focus on hope for the future, and send love to the many people who suffered from that great tragedy.

Photo credit: (CC) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com and bub.blicio.us (who took this picture while he was walking around NYC on 9/11/08 finding his own moment of silence and gratitude).

In the last few weeks I’ve been chatting with my “girlz” about how important it is to me in both friendship and dating to find people who “get” the technology we’re using today… i.e. Twitter, Facebook, etc. Not only that, but we all felt like we knew so many incredible single people – both guys and girls – who we would love to introduce to our other amazing friends. I’m here in San Fran / Silicon Valley – the “mecca” if you will – attending the Web2.0 expo, and I thought – there’s no time like the present to bring it all together.

Please join fellow technophiles this coming Monday, April 21st at 8 pm, for a fun, casual way to expand our rapidly-growing social circles, IRL! We’ve planned a laid-back evening with one goal: meeting new people. We all loathe the so-called “singles” events, so this is anything but – just grab a few awesome, like-minded folks who aren’t afraid to Twitter out their most ridiculous thoughts while sipping on an adult beverage (or four.) To make it even better, we’ve teamed up with Engage; they share our views on matchmaking our incredible friends & have kindly offered to sponsor the drinks for this event! What’s better than that!? Oh yeah, plus give away some really fabulous T-Shirts.

And, what better way to celebrate Web 2.0 than to feature some of the more prominent (and single) people helping to define the new Web. Stephanie Agresta (that’s me), Tara Hunt, Pete Cashmore, Willo O’Brien, Aubrey Sabala, and many more will be running around!

RSVP HERE!!

Twitter it.

Facebook it.

Pownce it.

Get it on FriendFeed or Tumblr or talk about it on Seesmic.

The Who, What, Where, When, Why
Who: Fabulous Singles and Their Friends Who Love Them

What: A Monday night kick-off event and videos throughout the week at Web2.0 Expo

Where: Harlot, 46 Minna St., San Francisco, http://www.harlotsf.com

When: Starts at Harlot on Monday night, April 21st at 8 pm

Why: Because we believe in Love 2.0!

PLUS, if you’re single happen to be at the Web 2.0 expo, come by and record a video with The TechSet (a collaboration between InternetGeekGirl and @briansolis) .  Check out the very Bub.blicio.us Post Brian did.  We’re meeting with interviews of the best and brightest SINGLES in social media sponsored by Engage throughout week. Send me a note to stephanie.agresta@gmail.com, to set up an appointment. I can help you get a discounted pass (or even a free pass) if you need one in order to come by to shoot your segment.

Gary Vaynerchuk is good people. In addition to WineLibrary.TV, Gary hosts an inspirational show at GaryVaynerchuk.com that reminds me regularly to count my blessings and remember the BPP. Tonight Gary announced a FlashHoliday (thanks @pistachio).

Watch it here.

Tomorrow I celebrate all the good people in my life.

The truth is, my whole life is about good people and I try hard to meditate on that every single day. The success I have had in business is solely due to the good people I surround myself with. And ultimately, I care more about the people than the business. I guess that’s why I succeed.

To put a list of all the good people I appreciate and care about would be impossible. My friends, family, and cherished colleagues that give me strength, love and support mean everything to me. Really – I know you know who you are. I do my best to tell you and show you regularly. I am grateful for each and every one of you.

Money, career success, big home, fancy car? Means NOTHING! Good energy people are everything. For me, success is defined by how much LOVE you share!!! That’s it. Thanks for the reminder @garyvee.

Namaste my friends (the light in me honors the light in you).

It’s a good time of the year to join a club. A good friend of mine is doing a “21 Club” – 21 days of yoga in a row. And now we have Blog 365.

What a great idea. I’m a little late to commit to the whole 365, but I really do want to make sure that blogging becomes more of a daily routine (it is if you add Twitter in, but that is a theoretical discussion for another time). Here are the suggested “rules” of the Blog 365 group (which is on Ning incidentally):

Rules:
- Blog everyday for 365 days.

- Feb.29th is a Free Day and will be the Blog365 day of rest!
(Thanks Leap Year)

- You do not HAVE to post to the same blog as long as you post everyday.

- No internet? Write your post locally and post it once you are back on the grid.

- Computer Broken? Grab some paper and do some old school blogging.

- A post is a post, not everything has to be in writing. Photos, YouTube videos, and the like are all considered content.

- Have fun, because that’s the whole point!

Note:
If you post offline work, consider changing the date on the post to reflect the day you actually created the content

Hmm.. I’m thinking of making another club. Call it…BlogOm! Let’s try 30 days in a row of doing yoga and writing a blog post everyday. Now that sounds heavenly. Any other yogi bloggers out there want to join me?

BlogOMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

Social media has the power to heal. From the Frozen Pea Fund to the stories of support and friendship that pop up on Twitter – I see daily examples of how important this medium has become to our social fabric.

Lance Armstrong and The Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) team have long used the Internet to drive grassroots support for their charitable efforts. Many of you know that I’m all about LIVESTRONG. Well – Lance is on the road again, and he and his team of awesome volunteers will be in New Orleans on January 29th and 30th, helping to build new homes for cancer survivors and their families. Working with Habitat for Humanity (HFH), the LAF team will relocate New Orleans-area families who have faced the twin challenges of fighting cancer and displacement by Hurricane Katrina.

Can you believe it’s been almost two and a half years since Hurricane Katrina and there are still so many people lacking basic shelter? To use a favorite geek phrase: WTF?!? This is truly one of the great tragedies of our collective journey these last few years. I hope that our country elects a President that can start showing true leadership and unite us in efforts to improve ourselves and the world. Let’s not wait until November. Let’s start using our energy, skills, resources and talent TODAY to help those around us and send out positive vibes every where we go. Please make a donation to help Lance, LAF and HFH build homes for cancer survivors in New Orleans. Even $10 makes a difference.

There is no question that social media has the power to transform markets, communities, culture, and news. And let’s not forget the impact it has had on plain old socializing. Like all powerful tools, it can be used to harm and to heal. I choose HEAL. I hope you join me in the effort to make things just a little bit better. I realize we all don’t have time and resources to give of ourselves every day, but every little bit counts so please give something, no matter how small. Your support can come in many ways. The LiveStrong Facebook App (which Scott and Jeff Rozic developed) has over 80,000 users! That’s 80,000 small acts that have added value and support to hundreds of thousands of REAL PEOPLE. Please do whatever you can: yes, give some $, but also consider adding a social cause app on your facebook profile, telling a friend about your favorite charity, putting frozen peas in your avatar, VOTING, smiling at a stranger, bringing food to a food bank, hugging your family! Spread the LOVE.

Lance, Susan, Chris B (my house buildin’ pal), and all the cancer survivors out there that are using the Internet to help others HEAL – we are with you!!