a blog by howard jameson @ gatheringgrace.org

Blogging Bishops...

...seem to be becoming two a penny these days, but it was great to see the fruits of a meeting we had for this area some months ago finally coming to bear.

Go and read from the Bishop of Ramsbury.

Speaking, blogging and writing

I was asked twice recently how much time I spent blogging. The answer (at least in my mind) is very little, that is if I spent no time at all writing posts I would not get a whole bunch of other stuff done, because for me blogging is merely a means of developing thoughts and ideas - and I would have to be doing that anyway.

I have been writing a little more deeply on a couple of recent posts and found myself a little frustrated. I want to write stuff that is researched, thought out and worth reading - but my blogging is a "minimal extra work" approach.

I was surprised when it came to reading Theology how much I actually enjoyed writing essays, a rigourous, disciplined and appraised method of synthesising and working out ideas. However I used to reckon on writing something like 500 words per week (with all the reading behind it) and that was effectively a full time occupation. There's no way I can go back to that unless I drop out or take an extended break...and I'm not sure its me anyway. Maybe one day...

I have also tried podcasting a couple of times and really enjoyed that. Again it is similar to blogging, for me, although because it is trickier to edit I found that I need to keep it fairly short and to the point. Some of the best podcasts I listen to are actually dialogues or conversations. If you're interested in talking about joining in on something then please drop me a mail.

So it looks like half thought out posts based on some or no reading is what I'm reasonably going to be able to produce for the foreseeable.

On a similar vein I have recently had a go with Facebook. Its not that exciting, I find it is aimed at a level of relationship which is too superficial and doesn't have the depth I require for most of my thinking and so many of the applications that you can bling your profile with are pants (IMHO). However I notice that the list of possible Networks I am in is limited to a very small round number. If you're local and especially if you're doing anything interesting in worship or youthwork things then again drop me a link so that I can give the impression of having some Network or Group friends.

Summer silly season

I think I'm right in saying that in Press circles the silly season refers to periods when there is not much news about and so all sorts of rubbish gets printed (how can they tell?).

In the blogging world I seem to detect a no-news dip starting around now and going through August. I guess people go away and do interesting things, rather than write about stuff. Certainly the number of page downloads drops off pretty sharply. However, I find for 11 months I am so focussed on certain things that my blogging feels biased away from some of the things I want to write about which demand a more concentrated approach and background reading.

So here I am facing the imminent radio silence in the blogosphere wanting to read and write a lot but wanting it to be read and not just deleted from an RSS feed due to information overload at the beginning of September...

Old friends

Was great to bump into old friends (even if only over the web).

John and Lee are both blogging (I think I've still got Lee's mobile number on my phone somewhere).

Web 2.0 Howard 0

Hat tip to Paul for showing me how to do what I have been trying to do for a while, that is display on the blog the last bits of music I have been listening to. You can now see what I have been doing instead of Vicaring.

www.gatheringrace.org

A slight modification to the banner for the blog as the previous one has been around a while. I had previously been using www.gatheringgrace.org as a separate website, but have put a redirect to here on it (the address is easier for people to remember and is much easier to type!!).

Technorati

I'm trying to add Technorati links to the blog, so lots of fiddling for little obvious advantage for the next hour or two!!!

Whoah!

I realise this morning that it is a week since I last posted. I am still here and I am still alive. My hope of having a quieter ease in the the New Year after the busyness of Christmas proved to be in vain. Lots of the usual winter things (funerals etc) and, what I had forgotten, the need to start new things with the new term. So that's what I've been doing instead.

Several posts I have picked up from elsewhere in recent days seem to perhaps indicate some change in the emerging Church/alternative worship blog arena. Certainly many (like me) seem to be posting less frequently. I don't think there's anything to be ashamed of in the sense that we had a lot to say and we spent a good deal of time saying it, but now it may be right to move on a little.

Others (h.t. Maggi) seem to have been rather bruised by some of the experience, certainly the internet public domain can be a harsh judge and critic. I have not had too rough a ride in that area, but we all get sick comment spam and people stopping by and adding a comment to boost their own egos (or sales). Even worse (IMHO) those who stop by and barrage with bile, but provide no space of their own to express their views in a similar way (a bit like those who log on to Friendsreunited as Mickey Mouse or who leave no current news). I put this down ot laziness, shallowness or having something to hide.

I for one found my best and most productive thinking came out of the experience of creating a network Church, and learning as I did it. This is currently taking a sabbatical, although I am pleased to hear rumours of the Gathering still continuing without me in Wareham!

But joy of joys amidst the hectic diary I am reading some stuff and loving seeing other people's ideas!

...the quality of my blogging is somewhat strained...

Okay, I know. Quantity recently poor. Quality very poor.

But there are several reasons for this.

Weblogs

I have been enjoying deli.cio.us as a means of tagging favourite sites (and then sharing them and seeing who else is onto similar things). Scroll down the left hand column a little and I have my five most recent additions shown.

I am also enjoying using Librarything (a bit of a scroll down the right hand column) to display a random selection of books I own. I can then compare my library with others and see who has a similar taste in books. Now that's nice.

43 things is another thing I've tried (not so far down the left hand column), but is less funky. Maybe I haven't really worked it out yet. It seems a bit too static and unwieldy. Many of the things that people say are one of their 43 things to do are things that either I have no interest in doing, or things that I wouldn't want to confess to wanting to do in the public domain. If that doesn't get you looking at the 43 things site then nothing will.

I would love a widget that took the name of the track currently playing in Media Player and displayed that on the blog. I think I know how to do this in the latest versions of Messenger, but not in Typepad. The Typepad type lists are a bit too slow to update, and its hard to check whether you have put something in properly. Any suggestions of other social bookmarking type software and sites?