These things are making me incredibly happy right now...

Okay, so my first happy item is a cheesy one, but that doesn't make it any less true -- I am so happy I have over 140 followers! I still remember when I had maybe five followers, and so it's just unbelievable to me that this many people are actually interested in what I have to say. I began blogging for myself, but now I can honestly say blogging is no longer just a solitary past time for me -- it's now a means of communication as well. Thanks for making it a two-way street, bloggy readers. :)

Today my AP English Language students took their exam, after 10 long months of preparation. What this means is that I can finally breathe a sigh of relief now -- the hard part is over. Now begins the second hard part: the waiting!

I'm loving the offer Starbucks is currently having for their frappes  -- all frappes are half price from now until Sunday, only between the hours of 3-5 PM. Let's just say my local Starbucks has come to know me very well. ;)

I recently discovered some online vendors through Amazon that sell books by a favorite author of mine, Patricia Veryan, for dirt cheap. (I'm talking pennies.) Score!

It took forever for my bangs to grow out again, but now that they're a bit past my chin, my hair is getting close to my desired length -- I have layers and I want the longest part, currently just past my shoulders, to reach the middle of my back. I love that I can style my hair differently now that it has gotten longer!

Okay, so while this may not be conducive to my diet, I am totally in love with Nature Valley's new Nut Clusters -- they're little bits of heaven mixed with joy. Trust.

I'm loving that le boyf's birthday is next Monday because that means I get to spoil him, something he doesn't always let me do!

picture via we heart it

 What's making you happy today?

Wanted: Danger Magnet #2

I never thought I’d see the day when I’d be looking for a bloggy partner in crime, but here I am, meekly asking for that very thing.

Let me give you some background in case you are just joining this here blog: I run another blog other than this one, The Danger Magnet. It's a Twilight fan-site. The Danger Magnet is currently being written single-handedly by one little lady, and that little lady is YOURS TRULY. But YOURS TRULY also happens to run three blogs other than this one, not to mention a column for Examiner.com, so YOURS TRULY is getting overwhelmed. Oh, and did I mention YOURS TRULY also happens to be a full-time English teacher whose school year is starting again in just 2 weeks, plus she has a master’s thesis she still needs to write, plus-plus she has a loving boyf whom she routinely neglects for fictional characters?

I think you can see where I’m coming from…

So this is what I need: I need another blogger to step in and help me publish regular posts on this blog. I will continue to host weekly discussions on the books, but I would love someone to publish news-related (NON-PAPARAZZI!) items. I used to publish more news-related stuff before Real Life stepped in, and I miss being up-to-date with the amazing likes of TwiCrack Addict, Twilight Moonlighter, and Eyes of Amber. The post will be temporary (a few months) unless you wow me with your extraordinary writing prowess, at which point I might be persuaded to make you a permanent addition.

You still interested? Here are the requirements:

1. You must have a firm grip on modern English conventions (good writing skills required!).
2. You must have read all four books in the Twilight Saga (yes, there will be a quiz ;p).
3. You must love all things Twilight-related (duh).
4. You must be willing to publish at least 3-5 separate items a week (more if you like, of course!).
5. You must be willing to do all the above for free.

If you think you meet all 5 requirements and you are crazy willing to help me out and co-write this blog, e-mail me at ASimon78@aol.com with a brief description as to why you think you should be considered for the post. Of course, you should familiarize yourself with this site and its content before applying. I will be accepting submissions until August 31st, at which point hopefully I will have made my final decision.

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All content on this site is the sole property of Ana Cristina Simon, unless otherwise stated, and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Basic Blogging Etiquette

A big Thank-You to Ann Marie who led me to Cherie's Tips on Blogging Etiquette, and much gratitude goes Cherie's way for being so gracious in allowing me to re-post this. :-) This is truly a must-read for every blogger.

- Basic Blogging Etiquette -

There are some "rules" to this blogging thing that make it a whole lot more fun for yourself and everyone out there.

1. Comment, Comment, Comment. I wrote a post awhile back on comments that was very popular. We all love them. When you get a comment it is like receiving a "Blog hug" and who doesn't need a hug on a regular basis. Make new friends, don't just lurk, comment and make someone's day and validate what they wrote.

2. The pictures and words on someone's blog are their property. If you are going to use a picture or you like what someone wrote and want to use it on your blog - first, ask permission. There is nothing worse than seeing your pictures or your words show up somewhere and the person who borrowed them didn't leave a comment or ask permission. It is usually just courtesy to link back to whoever's blog the idea, etc... comes from. If you look at my Valentines Goodies post below you will see how I have linked each person's blog to the craft I talked about so that they would get blog traffic and also get credit for their craft. Likewise with pictures - tell where you got it if you did not take the photo yourself.

3. Respond to people who comment on your blog. I have made many great friends and am still making friends through great comments and blog dialog. It lets people know you appreciate their comments, and that you want them to visit again.
If you are not receiving many comments on your blog and you want more, you need to look at how often you are commenting on other peoples blogs. From what I can tell the more comments you give the more you receive. Likewise if I comment on someones blog for awhile and they never respond I will probably quit commenting - it's a 2 way street.

4. My pet peeve - Don't use small pictures on your blog. OK this is just my own personal thing but for heaven's sake if you are going to go through the trouble of posting a picture do it large so we can see it! (In another post I will have a tutorial on not allowing your pictures to be enlarged to screen size if this is what worries you - no one will really see those wrinkles around your eyes - haha). Also, if you decide to make your blog into a book in the future, if you use small pictures the quality will not be as good.

5. Some people write a lot like me, others have short posts. If you write a long post make sure you put breaks or pictures between your paragraphs. Looking at a page full of words can put some people off. They might not want to tackle reading it. If it is broken up it is easier on the eyes.

6. Music. The majority of people out there say "Get rid of your music". There is nothing worse than clicking onto someone's blog and having their music blare out at you, especially if it is late at night or early in the morning. We know you love your music so do keep it on your blog, but don't have it on auto play. Leave it at the top where people can press play if they wish to hear it.
Other problems with an automatic music player is that if you put a video on your blog then the person has to go find your music player to shut off your music so they can hear the video. Annoying.
The last problem is that people who are sight impaired often use a machine to help them vocally "read" your blog. If you have a music player going they will never find it to shut it off.

Hey lady, what's with all the Ficlets?!

In case you've been wondering what's with all the massive posting on my blog, Ficlets, an online collaborative site for creative writers is shutting down on January 15th. I have been a member of this site for a little over a year now and have published literally hundreds of pieces on this site.

Hence the scurry to back up everything of mine here.

So my apologies if you've been inundated with posts lately, especially to my subscribed readers. I'll be back to my regularly scheduled blogging very soon. :D