Going backwards. The Ugly.
A standard conversation piece or question at any blogging conference is, “so, how long have you been blogging?” I mostly get this question from the brands but bloggers do ask it as well. My answer (7 years this fall) always gets the same shocked response. “Wow, you’re like an old timer! That’s forever!”
Blogging as a business is still relatively new in terms of money-making. While I wasn’t the first to do it, I’m always hard pressed to find another Mommy blogger who’s been out there as long. (Found out last weekend that someone I’ve known forever, Liz Thompson from This Full House, has been blogging one year longer than me. You go Liz, you’re a pioneer!)
Because I’ve been around the block, and because I’ve been to many a-blogging conference, some things shouldn’t shock me. But they do. They continue to shock me.
The swag hoarders were in full force again this BlogHer conference and while I get that free stuff is fun (I’ve certainly gotten caught up in the fun of it over the years), it amazes me the lengths people will go to obtain free things.
This past weekend, I had a bag stolen from me. That’s right. While at a closed blogger-only party, a bag I had placed on a table was taken when I wasn’t looking.
It was a bag of Johnson & Johnson baby shampoos and lotions. Didn’t really care about it, to be honest. (Probably wouldn’t have put it on a table and not held if I really did care, right?)
I had planned to bring it all to the swag exchange suite (where you drop free things you don’t want to take home so others can have it if it’s appealing to them) since my kids are too old for baby shampoo. Figured someone with a baby could make better use of it.
So no, I didn’t really care about the bag or the swag for me personally. What I care about is that someone was desperate enough that they lowered themselves to take a bunch of products they probably could have gotten at their local drug store for $20. It’s just sad. They didn’t know me, they didn’t know who they were taking from. They just knew they wanted some free stuff so they took what wasn’t theirs.(They stole Colleen’s bag too, by the way.)
I’m naive. I know I am. I always, always believe the best in people. I tolerate just about everything but stealing from me? Stealing from a fellow mother and blogger? Man, it’s just wrong. When putting my bag down at the party, it never crossed my mind that someone would look at it and say “hey look, shampoo!! I can take that if no one’s looking…” It just boggles my mind. And saddens me too.
I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. It’s so ridiculous I almost want to laugh about it. So that’s my ugly.
The Bad.
For just plain bad (and a laugh for you all because hey, it’s better to leave with a laugh, right?), check out my suave dancing moves here with Julie at a party while we tested out a dancing game on the Xbox Kinect. (Julie kept getting messages like “awesome!” and “way to go!” while she was dancing and my guy said, “Almost…” and “Keep trying!”)
Good. Lots of it.
And then there’s the good of course. So much good. Friends, drinks, many laughs. Here’s some earlier posts I did, I’ll try and share more when I have time:
Day Two, Photos From #BlogHer11
First Video with my Motorola Xoom & My View in San Diego #motoxoom #blogher11
Hello from San Diego! #blogher11
hey, are those two ladies backup dancers for J-Lo???? wow- have they got ‘the moves” !!!! :o)
Thank you! I think we’re doing pretty well up there! I can’t wait for Whitney to get the Kinect so we can play at home. That is. if the boys ever give us a chance!
(notice how I said Whitney will get it? Ironic because we had the wii first, but she gets everything else first!)
You had the Wii first? No way! I don’t remember that. (But believe you of course) I can’t even remember when we first got it.
been blogging myself since 2005 – so I feel ya! =)
Hillary
ps -love your moves! =)
lol Hillary – I forgot you’re an old timer like me! (in blogging years, not real age, of course ;-))
Hey, was the dancing at the #sweetsuite11 event? I might have seen you executing your smooth moves there ladies 🙂
As to the ugly, there was so much freaking swag at blogher why on earth would anybody need to steal it? Aside from wondering what kind of person buys plane & conference tickets & pays for a hotel just to steal baby shampoo , I have to wonder about how lacking a soul a person must be to steal a another blogger’s wallet, leaving them stranded in a strange city without cash,credit cards or more importantly the ID they will need to get on the plane to get home? I can only hope that with all the cameras rolling at the various events, that these people will be outted.
Jean – yep! That was me shaking my very uncoordinated butt over in the corner with @justprecious. That was a great party and so much fun!
Oh the wallet thing is just crazy. I’m hoping that wasn’t a blogger but some desperate soul off the street and totally – hope they get caught on camera. Definitely felt for those poor ladies who were having to deal with the lack of ID and flying home – insane.
my comments are showing up!!! Testing
and there they are! Feel free to delete these 2
I cannot believe that someone took your stuff. That’s just wrong.
I know, I’m still shocked by it Nancy. Well not really, but still. Appalled?