Cow’s Life - Thinking Outside Of The Barn

To my fellow bloggers who are looking for blogging tips today… this is an example of babbling about some personal stuff that very few people would care about… If I’d be blogging like this everyday… yunasville would be closing down for business… I think…

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I got an E-vite to a local free concert from a girl I’ve only met a few days ago. I was hesitating since I knew nobody in that group. Don’t get me wrong, I love going out with my friends and climbing buddies. But drinking with bunch of people I don’t know sometimes is quite stressful. And it’s too late to drag anybody with me. But, on a second thought, the concert was only 5 blocks away from where I work. Doesn’t hurt to listen to some cool music and have a few cold drinks. So I went.. and… surprises!!!

• 6:15pm : Trying to remember everybody’s name
• 7;00pm: GREAT MUSIC! Party was ON!
• 7:45pm: Found out one guy is an IT company’s CTO. We had a great conversation and there might even be a potential job opportunity
• 8:15pm: Had no idea there were two guys named Eric and Chip existed on this planet
• 8:17pm: Eric and Chip were on my camera and in our PAAAARTY! AND, Chip and I work for the same company!
• 8:45pm: I was having so much fun that I threw the 4th Margarita down my throat and thought turning off my camera’s flash light would produce better photos. And here they are… “supposedly the better photos”.
• 9:00pm: We exchanged business cards, numbers and planned on meeting again!
• 9:15pm: A girl and a boy went on a date afterwards!!! I am not going to name whom…Hehehe.. No, it’s not me.

For a second I was going to be lazy and go home watching some DVDs. Glad I didn’t, otherwise, I’d lose a chance to have a good time, meet some great people, spot a potential job position and catch some “love sparks” on my camera.. hehehe… .

Ha! Life is full of surprises. You never know what is down the road until you take a step. So go out, get some fresh air, you might find more than just the fresh air.

I was flying this afternoon and came across an article in this month’s Fortune Magazine. Terence Bradford, a former Smith Barney broker, now a Citigroup banker by day, raps at night as Billy Shakes to teach the street about The Street:
Here are a few lines from his interesting lyrics:

…
I’m a paper gangsta getting stock quotes on my pager.
Stocks and drugs both the same in my eyes.
More buyers than the sellers cause the market to rise.
I know y’all out there really click-clackin’ your guns.
Hang wit’ me I’ll have you stik-stackin mutual funds.
Thousands on a whip [car] don’t make you a star.
I’m buying options on the companies that makin’ them cars.
Come on! Get stocks and bonds.
…

Bradford becomes so famous in the underground Hip-Hop Club because what he raps about sets him apart. Yes, Bradford raps about women and cars as well, but his sincerity of preaching money management and personal financing wins him the popularity and fans even from the kids who can’t spell B-O-N-D. His stuff is original, different, positive (relatively), and educational.

I don’t listen to Rap and the only Rap battle education I have is from Eminem’s 8 Mile. But I know one thing for sure, if you are up there rapping about how many pairs of shoes you bought yesterday and how long it took you to pick an outfit for the night, you’d be booed your head off and thrown out of the stage in no time.

Blogging is kind of like rapping, the only difference is that you are babbling through your keyboards instead of your voices. I remember one time when I was visiting a blog site, the author went on and on about the new sandals she bought for her boyfriend and how cute his boyfriend’s toes were in these sandals. I was there thinking… “Whoa girl! You may admire your boyfriend’s toes so much that you are gonna write a song about them. But honey, you maybe your only audience or plus your boyfriend if you are lucky. Cuz,…Who the hell cares about your boyfriend’s toes?!!” Well, as expected, I never visited that site again.

Whenever I have an idea of a piece of potential content, I type it down and ask myself the following question, “If some total stranger wrote this, would I be reading it? ” If my answer is, “What a piece of boring shit!”, I’d throw it in the recycling bin and move on. Sometimes I miss-judge, sometimes I hit the bullseye. I guess there is a learning curve for everything.

Anyway, I hope you get the idea….

I spent my childhood in Shanghai, China. Like all other little Chinese kids, I believed all of us were the great-great-great-great-great-grandkids of the superior dragons. Pretty much like the kids believed in Santa Clause in the West. Then we all grew older and realized that Santa was our daddy and Dragon was our daddy’ bedtime story.

Paco sent me a news link today. Two dragon shaped creatures were flying in the Tibetan sky. They got photos too. But hey! Believe it or not, with today’s technology, I too can make a dragon picture and post it as Onion news.

Fake or not, it got me thinking about all the dragon stories my grandpa used to tell me; and the dragon firework we stole from the neighbors on the Chinese New Year eves; I even had a little lady dragon dress…

After all these years living in the US, I’ve let go majority of the Chinese culture I had. I talk to my parents in English and I eat Italian most of the time. I don’t even remember when was the last time I ever thought about my little dragon dress.

But deep down, I’ve always wondered if dragons have ever existed in history. I may not remember a lot of Chinese words and phrases and I may not eat a lot of stir fry, but the dragon will always live on in my heart as a symbol of my origin.

After doing text blog, photo blog, I think it is time for yunasville to upgrade to have some Video Blog! What do ya say?

Sony’s Crazy Computing Revolution
I don’t know if I should believe this or not, but it sure looks real!

Poop Frustration
I am sure all of us had an experience close to this, if not exactly the same. Turn on the volume so you can hear the fart. Hehehe…

Breast Exam
Want to have a couple of boobs in your hands? .Turn on the volume so you can learn from those guys.

Flying Skier
Ha, I wonder if I can get my snowboard to fly like that..

The Funniest Cats Video
Well… the funniest cats video it is…

Thanks to Paco for the link … Didn’t you give it to me like 5 months ago?
And thanks to Bib for the cats video.

Ok, this is Part II of my contribution to Darren’s “31 Days To Better Blogs” project.

Before we start talking about fixes, check your blog site’s health if you haven’t done so. We can’t fix problems unless we know what problems we have, right?

Now, let’s give your site a face lift

1. Fix your Meta Tags
Robots use the information in Meta tags so you want to make sure your meta tags are setup correctly and robot friendly. I use the Windexl tool to make sure all of my problems are fixed. As an example, you can take a look at my meta tags by clicking View–>Source on your web browser right now.

The most important tags are “description”, “keywords”, “robot” and title. Although title isn’t the meta tag, but it is part of the head structure. And it is the face of your site to the rest of the world. So construct your title carefully. I use a PHP function to append each post’s title:

Yuna’s Village - A Slice Of The Daily Life < ?php wp_title(); ?>

Now, finding where to change meta tags can be tricky. I use Wordpress so all I have to do is to modify header.php file under /wp-content/themeFolder to add the meta tags.

2. Select Keywords for your “Keyword” Meta tag
Now, what you decide to put in “keywords” tag is really important. That’s how the search engine sees the relevance of your site to user’s searches. You have to pick the words that people search the most. Think “self improvement” and “self development” are the same? No, not according to the Overture’s keywords analysis tool.(Under tool, click on keyword selector tool”) 22235 people use “self improvement” when they search for information in that category, only 1465 people use phrase “self development”. But 7305 people use “personal development”. That’s how I determine which keywords I want to use. So play around with that tool and pick the most optimal keywords for your Meta Tag.

3. Change your Dynamic URLs to static URLs.
If you are using PHP, mySQL or ASP to generate posts, most likely your contents are constructed dynamically when a user is requesting it. So your URL is going to have some question marks and some numbers. Before I did any changes, my URL looks like this:

www.yunasville.com/WordPress/index.php?p=15

This URL tells “index.php” to get blog entry number 15 from the database. Robot can deal with one or two parameters, anything more than that is an over kill for them and the robots will give up on you. Even with one parameter, I notice it takes a long time for the robots to index you. Another drawback of using dynamic URL is that they may not show up on your stats, so you never know which posts are popular and which ones are bums.
If you use WordPress, go to Admin page, under Option, Permalinks, put in a new structure for your URL. I use “/archieves/%post-id%”. Thus, my link becomes

www.yunasville.com/archives/15.

Make sure you have .htaccess file in your root directory before you do this. If you don’t use WordPress and don’t have anyway to generate code automatically to rewrite your URLs, check out this site. It gives you a dummy level of explanation on how to use mod_rewrite and “regular-expression”. That’s how I learned to modify my site. You can also check out the mod_rewrite manual. But personally, I don’t think it is written for human. If you got some Alien DNA, knock yourself out.

4. Syndicate your site
It sounds geeky, but it is really not that bad. I use www.feedburner.com. All you have to do is to locate your rss file under your blog root directory, and then provide it to feedburner. Again, I use WordPress and the file is wp-rss2.php.

Once you burned a feed on feedburner, include the feed URL it generates on your homepage so the robot can crawl it. I made a button called “Subscribe” on my homepage to include the RSS feed. The nice thing about it is that not only the human can subscribe to your site, the robots can do too. Now, every time I publish something, a few bots will come within minutes to index my site.

5. Getting other sites to link to your site
Ok, there is no easy way to do this. It’s a piece of cake for the developed sites to obtain inbound links. But for rookies like us, who would care, right? So, you have to go out and put your links on other people’s sites. I do that through leaving quality comments on well developed and high ranking sites. You noticed that every time you leave a comment, you can type your URL. If you leave quality comments, some people will click on your name to back link to your site to take a look. Believe it or not, every comment I left on other sites generated at least one back link. But that’s not enough. You will have to leave a few explicit links in your comments. However, a lot of developed sites moderate comments and won’t let you do that unless your link is relevant to their topics. Well, if that is the case, leave a comment and a link that is relevant to their topics. In addition, you can do Trackback. You write a blog on your site and then send trackback to the original post on a well known site.

6. Last and most important – Contents, contents, contents
Now, you have a healthy site built up, and people are starting to hit your site based on what they know about you from your comments. Now you want to keep them so they become part of your readership. What can you offer to these people so they will stay? Provide useful, fun contents on a daily basis. Yes, I find writing everyday is really important. If people know they can always get fun and useful information out of your site every day, they will develop a habit to check your site daily to see what’s up. Post on time and regularly. Also, robots will come a lot more often to index your site if you keep posting every day. It’s hard work, not everybody can do it. So it’s a personal choice.

How is my site doing if I am already writing tips and tricks?
Ok, first of all, I am still learning. I set up this site in late June. I got a few visits a day from my close friends. By the end of July, I had about 80+ visitors a day. (See my One month anniversary post). 11 days into Aug, my traffic has increased to over 110+ visitors a day with about 30 regulars. Today is the first day I have a link on a well developed site like Darren’s Problogger. I am seeing a 90% jump comparing with yesterday. Again, most of my traffics are driven from the sites I left comments with. So if you want traffic, start reading other people’s blogs.

According to MIT’s blog research (I took the survey in June), half blog sites get under 25 people a day. So, don’t get discouraged if there are only a few readers right now. It is possible for a rookie blog site to take off in a short period of time if you are willing to put in the work.

Think being depressed from obsessions is bad? A Korean guy quitted his job so he could play more computer games. Then one day he dropped dead from playing games non stop for 50 hours. ( See news here) I once spent 16+ hours a day playing my favorite RPG game for a week. I didn’t drop dead…(as you can see.. ) But I thought I was going to grow some beard.

For those of you who have been reading my blog or harassing me through sametime messaging everyday know that I am obsessed with a lot of things. I work 60 hours a week, rock climb 5 hours every other day, spent my night time blogging my butt off; and I hit the woods or the airports on the weekends. If I’d have any free time left, I’d lay my hands on either a XBOX or a PS2 controller. Although I am not too concerned about dropping dead from my hobbies (maybe from a rock somewhere in the Rocky Mountains), I do worry that my jammed up schedule will eventually cost me my sanity.

Just to count a few disastrous symptoms developed recently:

• For the very first time, I didn’t pay my credit card bills on time and got fined.
• I haven’t visited my mailbox since last Friday
• I have a few unpacked backpack, duffle bags, cooler and suitcases lying around by the doorway from my Aspen hiking trip, weekend home trip, volleyball event and Boulder climbing trip. Here is the evidence.
• My washier still has the clothe I washed from a week ago. I forgot to move them to the dryer. I am not going to have undie tonight. Damn!
• I ran out clean forks long time ago and have been using the plastic ones I stole from Taco Bell
• I used to talk to my Mom at least twice a week. I haven’t called her for 3 weeks.

Maybe I am losing my life over my obsessions. I am sure a lot of us are out there having troubles keeping our sanities because of the jobs or family responsibilities. Screaming kids, loads of laundries plus assignments from your boss will do that to you. So I made a list of the things we can try to get our busy lives in order:

1. Get the “Getting organized” habit going.
   I still think getting organized is a habit. Some hot shot speakers are trying to sell you those cutting edge “systems” to get your life organized. That’s bull until the habit kicks in. Pick up the mess right after you leave it; sort out the paperwork everyday before you leave the office; put your shopping goodies away after you’ve done some serious damage to your wallet… For majority of us, once we get the habit going, the size of the clutter will go down. Box, cabinet, basket or toilet, it’s just a personal preference, so sort your junks in anyway you like.
2. Have a routine and try to keep it.
   The only routine I have right now is my exercise schedule. I work out on either Mondays or Wednesdays and climb every Tuesday and Thursday from 6pm to 11pm. Since it is a team event, the routine is pretty easy to keep. If I dedicate a time slot to clean my room once a week and 20 minutes every other day to read my mails, I’d be in a much better shape. The key is to stick with the routine.
3. Say “No” to massive To-Do-List.
   Making multi-page, contextual, cross-referencing to-do lists just adds stress to our already mind losing lives. Instead, try the “Not-Insane” To Do List. Pick three most important things so we can knock out the valuable works and go to bed afterwards.
4. Discipline, Discipline, Discipline.
   I lose control when I am doing something I really like, such as surfing the net and playing games. Blog and XBOX will still be there tomorrow. So, if 11pm is the bedtime, I better move my ass into the bedroom and turn off the lights.
5. Go outside and get some fresh air.
   Then come back, do the three things that matter and go to bed.

Now, I am going to bed. Lights off.

To my usual readers: Sorry to be super nerdy with this post. I am writing this article in anticipation of Darren’s “31 Days To Better Blogs” project. If you feel geeky right now, read on.

I have only been blogging for 6 weeks. Although I am a baby blogger, I’ve accumulated a few things that might be helpful to other rookie bloggers who are trying to get out of the deserted islands so we can finally stop talking to ourselves.

Let’s first do a “SEO physical” for your blog site:

Is your site indexed?
More specifically, is your site indexed by Google? Open a Google page, type Cache:http://yourblogsite and see what comes back. If your site has been around for more than a few weeks, Google should have indexed your home page.
Now you need to check how many pages Google has indexed your site. The more the better. Again, open a Google page, type site:yoursiteURL. If you have built hundreds of pages and Google only returns a few, you have a problem

Are you in any directories?
Don’t be confused between web search and directory search. They are two different things. The directories that really matter are Yahoo and Open Directory Project. Go to www.yahoo.com, click on directory, then search your site. If your site is listed, Yahoo will show you the category you belong to. Open Directory Project is probably the most important directory. It directly links to a lot of major search engines such as Google and Hotbot. Go to domz.org and search your site.

What is your site ranking?
You can check your Google page rank by downloading the Google toolbar. There are also two major places to check your rankings.
Claim your site with Technorati and the site will show you your ranking among 14 million blog sites worldwide.
Go to www.alexa.com, on the top, click “Traffic ranking” and enter your blog URL. It will show you your ranking based on the data Alexa toolbar has collected. If your site is too new, Alexa won’t have data for you. Wait a few months and check again.

How many incoming links do you have?
We all know how important the incoming links are. Go get a link popularity check. There are tons of sites, but I like windexl’s tools. Check it out.

Do you have the correct Meta tags setup?
You want to give your homepage’s meta-tags a health check. Again, go to Windexl and check the health of your meta tags. The tool tells you exactly what is wrong with your settings.

Is your site robot friendly?
If you are using frames, javascript, flashes and lots of images and little text, you are in trouble.
If most of your pages are dynamic and there are more than 2 parameters, you might be in trouble too. The dynamic page URL normally consists of a question mark and bunch of numbers and equal signs. If you are using session ID as part of your URL, you are screwed.

Are you compliant with Google’s Webmaster guideline?
If you want to build a Search Engine optimized site, don’t ignore Google’s guideline.

Ok, now you should have a pretty good idea of what is missing. I will write another post to give your blog site a face lift based on the health check results you receive.

Awww… poor guys… Are we really so evil?

Note: Don’t read the song, get a headphone if you are in the office. It’s a Microsoft Powerpoint show file. So you want to click on the link, and then click “open” to view it on the website. As long as you have a better browser than IE 4.0, it will play the file without Microsoft Powerpoint software.

Thanks to Rina for the content feeds.

March of Dimes Colorado chapter does a fantastic job organizing the Mudd Volleyball tournament every year. Want to get dirty? Let’s play some Mudd Volleyball and save a baby! See, I wasn’t joking about the “dirty” part, was I?

Although I was on call and had to work, I went anyway last Saturday as our teams’ amateur photographer. Thanks to Brenda, our captain for putting 3 teams together, it was a very exciting dirty day for everybody. I tried to stay on the dry land to keep a few cameras and my phone free of the mud, but my teammates still managed to get me dirty by giving me a lot of muddy hugs. Check out the photos here.

Anita also got a set of photos on her site. Check it out!

If the “Yo baby, let’s get dirty” idea sounds appealing to you, sign up for the next year’s Mudd Volleyball! You have an opportunity to contribute to the human society by playing with mud. Not a bad idea, yeah?

Check out more fund raising ideas that are quite appealing.

Ok, I can understand why people are paying premium for a redesigned 2006 Land Cruiser. After all, the new model is getting 40 more horsepower. There are a few things on the market that I just don’t understand the difference between the current year model vs. the last year model. And the marketing hype is talking people into sinking hundreds of dollars in exchange of the newest style for practically no functional gain.

Snowboard is one of the many items that charge you a premium if you want to ride in style. I was shopping a board last weekend for the upcoming season. (Yes, I know it is still too early.;-) ) When I was going through the boards, I noticed huge markdowns on a lot of the boards in the shop. I am talking about some 350 dollar boards are on sale for 200 bucks. The Salomon Women’s IVY ERA 2005 board (The white board shown in the picture) was on sale for $275 on the web now. Guess how much that green 2006 IVY costs… $425!!! Did they put a computer chip in the new board so I can jump 100 feet higher? I researched both board’s tech specs and I am still scratching my head trying to figure out what $150 buys me other than the greener look.

It’s amazing what the marketers can do to get us to open our wallet and pour our hard earned money into their pockets in exchange of … nothing.

Before buying any board, I’d like to go over some reviews from the normal folks who’ve used them and listen to their opinions. A cool place you can go is the eXtreme Forum. There are plenty of topics covered and you can exchange some questions and ideas with other boarders. (well… more than just boarders)

I also really like Alan Raetz’s Snowboard buyer’s guide because the tips he is sharing with us can be applied to a lot of other things, not just boards:

1. Rent before you buy
2. Don’t trust the marketing information
3. Don’t trust the sales person
4. Don’t trust me.
5. Cheap bindings are cheap.
   Ok, you have to spend some serious money on certain things that need precise engineering or deliver major functions. Backpacking sleeping bag is another example if you don’t want to carry 10 pounds or freeze your ass off in a below zero environment
6. … (board specific advice)
7. …(board specific advice)
8. Cheap is good.
   Sometimes you don’t have to gear up on EVERYTHING. I once got the best and fastest rollerblades on the market before I even knew how to rollerblade. I fell hard on my butt. If I knew better, I’d get a pair of Wal-Mart rollerblades to get the basics first before pursuing performance.
9. Old is good.
   Once you’ve broken in your gears, they are good for a long time. You don’t have to chase the latest style every other year.
10. Rule of Thumb – Ignore Rule of Thumb
    Whatever works for you is the best gear. Don’t worry about what other people or experts tell ya.