The Good Girl Gone Blog: Weblogs

An Experiment in Blog Love

Jan 5, 2010

Inspired by my own narcissism in conjunction with an anonymous quote in a blog entry by the fabulous Brandy, I decided to embark on a commenting challenge. The quote on Brandy's blog read:

"My boyfriend was diagnosed with cancer in November. I wrote about it on my blog and no one- not even the regular commenters said anything. You wrote about a guy you like possibly having something wrong and you’ve received over 200 emails. I’ve been struggling with this for the last few days and more and more people have rallied around you (I have too). It just seems unfair that the internet can’t show support equally to everyone who needs it. I guess I need a more popular blog? (This isn’t meant to be mean or hurtful, I am just sharing this anonymously because even I realize my jealousy is embarrassing)."

My questions:

Why do certain bloggers get more comments than others?
What makes a blog post comment-worthy?
Is it even possible to comment on all of the blogs you read?

The experiment:

Leaving comments on all of the blog posts in my google reader.

My reflections:

Two minutes ago, I finished reading and commenting on 47 blog posts. It took me over an hour...an hour that I only had because I'm waiting for my sister to wake up from her nap.

Sometimes, when bloggers (including myself) write posts that receive few if any comments, they get upset. It's completely understandable- you've lost that validation you've come to rely on.

But after completing this exercise, I've come to a realization: you can't always comment on every blog post your read. Not only is commenting time consuming, you often just don't have anything to say. Sure, you could have enjoyed the post, but why leave an unnecessary comment simply to leave a comment?

Looking back, I want you all to know, just because I (and your other readers) don't always leave comments on your blog, that does not mean we're not reading it. So thank you all for writing fantastic blog posts and for taking the time to leave comments on your favorite blogs. You guys rock :)

Notebook Doodles

Dec 10, 2009

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Happy Pink Thursday, everyone! Does this quote look familiar? It's from Audrey Hepburn and is definitely one of my favorites. (I even featured it in a previous Pink Thursday post.) It was "doodled" specifically for me by the lovely notebook doodles, who graciously offered to create 100 doodles for her readers.

Make sure you check out her blog- it's full of inspiration. You can see the other 99 doodles here.

Blog Friend Crush Award: Megan

Nov 11, 2009

Introducing this week's BFC award winner...Megan from Somewhat Voluble.

Megan is such a sweetheart, it was easy to choose her for this week's award. She's a 20-year-old writer, a Southern girl, a wife and a great friend.

Although Megan and I live extremely different lives, I still feel like we understand each other. She's probably the blogger I most want to meet in person.

And here's a little interview:

Continue reading "Blog Friend Crush Award: Megan" »

HUGE Fashion and Beauty Announcement

Sep 16, 2009

Hi ladies (ok, ok, and Nathan),

I'm extremely excited to announce the launch of a new project I've been working on in conjunction with my close friend, Rachel L...we've created a brand new blog! Though it's definitely still a work in progress, I couldn't wait any longer to share it with you.

The new blog's focus will be fashion & beauty...with a fun twist. As you know, Rach and I both intern at springpad, an awesome new startup based out of Boston that currently offers a great set of FREE online notebooks- it's a great place for collecting our favorite things and then sharing them with all of you.

Rach and I (starting in October with springpad's makeover) will be chronicling our daily outfit choices, complete with photos. Our goal is to stick to weekly challenges and to base our outfits around them. It's a great way to make sure we don't look frumpy on campus, because you never know who might be checking you out :)

In addition to wardrobe tracking, we'll also be offering a 20-something type guide to our favorite city: Boston! Whether we're discussing our favorite restaurants, beauty products, or upcoming events in the Boston area, this blog is going to be CHOCK FULL of great stuff.

So, head on over to....The Comm Ave Strut and check it out for yourself! We'd love to get your feedback- so let us know what you think.

Finally, we're looking for contributors, so if you're a lover of fashion, a Boston 20-something, or just an eager beaver looking to participate in a new project, let us know! As always, feel free to Email Me.

Special thanks to our coworkers, T-Rexa, Joe(y) and Rege for all of their help!

Inspiration + important announcement!

Sep 14, 2009

Hi everyone,

It's currently 4:51 AM and I do NOT want to be awake. Unfortunately, my nasty cold has not gone away and has been playing games with me all weekend. Though I took niquil about 45 minutes ago, I have yet to fall back into a peaceful slumber...so I'm writing a blog post!

See this adorable girl? Her name is Zooey, and she's my new style icon. Maybe it's because people tell me I look like her, or maybe it's because I think she's absolutely adorable, but I currently have this cotton advertisement on the wall above my bed as part of an "inspiration" collage. (I'll have to take a photo of it and share it with you later!) Plus, I just discovered Zooey's stylebook (part of the cotton campaign) and I must say, I'm slightly tempted to make my own!

In other news, I'm happy to announce the winner of my blogoversary giveaway. I know, I know, I wasn't supposed to announce it until next week, but I have patience issues. Like I've said before, it means so much to me that you all come back and read my blog. Thanks so much for being super blog readers!

Anyway, with the help of my roommate's super-keen random number choosing skills, I've chosen a winner! I'm extremely excited that the winner is one of my new favorite bloggers- she's sweet, adorable and a great writer...

Continue reading "Inspiration + important announcement!" »

Harvard says we're journalists!

Sep 1, 2009

I unexpectedly stumbled upon this Harvard class in a search for new blogs to read. Now I feel like a legitimate journalist. Thanks, Harvard!

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Wow- 4 whole credits to learn about blogging? That sounds like an amazing class...I'd love to teach it! How awesome would it be to add "Harvard professor" to my resume?

And oh, BU administrators, Harvard CANNOT have better communication classes than us. Please get on this before my last semester on campus begins...you have approximately 2 days!

Erin's Pretty Pretty Princess Pink Popcorn

Aug 20, 2009

Happy Pink Thursday everyone! I'm writing to you from work in a pink (ok mostly purple) dress. It was too low cut and showed off a very beautiful scratch on my chest (I have no idea how I get these things!), so I'm wearing a cute purple tube top under it.

Did I mention it's covered in sequins? But it's ok, I work at a startup. We do what we WANT!

For today's post, I wanted to feature this awesome pink popcorn recipe from Erin Cooks. Erin, another Boston area blogger, also happens to be the adoptive "blog mother" of my favorite baker, Elissa. Erin's blog is chock full of beautiful food photos and super tasty recipes. You should check her out!

Doesn't this just make you want to have a Pink Princess Party? Am I too old to have a Pink Princess Party? Recipe and photo via

Ingredients: Spring the recipe!

popcorn
vegetable oil or olive oil
kosher salt
8 ounces of good white chocolate
red food coloring

Instructions:

Pop a batch of popcorn. The stove top method is best, but you could also use microwave popcorn if you must — just try to avoid the flavored kind. Either way you will need approximately 8 cups of popcorn. (Erin’s Note: I love my Whirley-Pop. You may want to consider purchasing one. I personally will never go back to the traditional pot shaking method ever again).
Spread the popcorn over a baking sheet lined with a silpat or wax paper. Pick out any unpopped kernels — you don’t want anyone to break a tooth!
Melt 8 ounces of white chocolate until smooth. You can use a double-boiler to melt the chocolate, or put it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on medium power, stirring after each round. Once the chocolate is smooth, add a few drops of food coloring, and stir to blend.

Use a spoon to drizzle the melted chocolate across the popcorn. Mix the popcorn around with the spoon to evenly distribute the chocolate. Then place the baking sheet in the refridgerator for 20 minutes to allow the chocolate to harden. Finally, serve and enjoy!

Now, I'm not the biggest fan of white chocolate, but I'm going to try this recipe anyway. Thanks so much Erin- I'll let you know how it turns out!

A Pink Giveaway Extravaganza!

Aug 17, 2009

Today is a very special day. Today is my blogoversary and I am ECSTATIC.

Who would have thought that just a year ago I thought blogs were stupid? Just a year ago, I hadn't joined 20sb. I'd never heard of twitter. I'd never looked at...google analytics! If I wasn't blogging, reading blogs, or tweeting back then, how the heck did I spend my time?

Anyway, I just wanted to thank you all for being such great readers. I'm still amazed that people I've never met have such strong opinions on what I have to say. Though it sounds cheesy, I love reading all of your comments. Well, except the really mean ones. But hey, if Andrea keeps threatening to beat up the haters, then screw it. Be mean to me, cause she's got my back and she's a true blog friend. It's people like Andrea, and probably like you, who make blogging so special for me.

So, as a thank you, I've put together a little giveaway for you chock full of my pink favorites. (Well, actually, it started out just pink...but now it's gotten a bit more colorful!) Though I'm still putting together the final gift basket, it will definitely include:

The "Pink Ladies" bath bomb gift set from Lush
A sugar scrub of your choice from my friend and fellow blogger, Megan
A collection of super cute Poppy Pencils from my excursion to Coach for my internship at springpad
Pink hair accessories
A signed photo of your choice from David H. Brooks photography (I wonder if he has any photos of flamingos...I sort of want one for my new room!)
Most likely some sort of baked good

Interested? I hope so! I'd love for you to enter. Details below:

To enter:

Simply comment on this post with a link to your favorite pink product online (not including the ones in this giveaway) and tell me why you love it! Once you do this, I will add it to my pink collection, so that I can share your fab pink finds with everyone.
To double your chances: comment with a link to a pink product you've already added to your springpad. Don't have one yet? Sign up! It's a FREE tool for organizing all your favorite things. Plus, I'd love to start following you and check out your fab finds!

Other important info:

Though I'd love for you to re-blog/tweet about this giveaway, you by no means have to.
Because I'm super busy packing/cleaning/moving/traveling to weddings, this giveaway will be open until September 18 at 12:00 AM EST. (This also happens to be my best friend's birthday. Happy 21st, Becca!)
Winner will be announced during the week of September 20th.
Contest open to residents of the US and Canada ONLY. (Sorry people in Finland. I know you're reading because you come up in my analytics, but sadly, I won't be able to ship overseas.)

To my male readers:

Sorry this giveaway is so girly...but I'm sure you have female friends/relatives that might be interested in some free pink stuff! I think it would be hysterical if you won, so enter anyway!

Julie & Julia...& Alana

Aug 13, 2009

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I'm not a food blogger, let alone a talented chef, but I felt a huge connection with Julie, played by Amy Adams, of Julie & Julia. I don't remember the last time I felt so emotionally linked with a character in a movie. When Julie got her first blog comment, I laughed along with her when she saw it was from her mother...my first blog comment was probably from my mom as well. I felt giddy when her blog reached #3, and when she started getting calls from publicists, I could hardly contain my glee. I sympathized with her when she wrote a paragraph about her fight with her husband, and then deleted it- it's something I do all the time. I watched as her writing alienated her husband, who later called her a narcissist. I pondered a serious question: Does blogging make you a narcissist? Am I a narcissist?

Though my friend Julia claimed the movie was "entertaining, but not the best or funniest movie she'd ever seen," I thought it was amazing. It captured the emotions every blogger feels, the journey from writing for no one but yourself, to feeling accountable to...your readers!

I left the theatre in pure awe. I want to be Julie.

Oh, and Meryl Streep wasn't too bad either. In fact, she was amazing ;) Have you seen it yet? As a blogger (or a reader, or a chef) how did it make you feel?

I'm excited...are you?

Aug 12, 2009

A few exciting things:

1) I've been listed as one of the 100 Best Blogs for Career-Minded Students. Though I'm flattered, of course, I'm a bit confused...I don't think G3B is very career minded, but still. Quite an honor. (Number 84 under "Blogs from Career Minded Students.")

2) I've finally created a blog award of my very own so that I can spread the love. You'll hopefully be getting more details next week. Yes, I'm being mysterious...

3)I've updated my blogroll to include some of my new favorite blogs! Check it out- you're probably included.

4) The lovely and talented Elissa has just given me the "kreativ blogger" award. Guest blogger Caz passed on the "one lovely blog award" (which coincidentally, Elissa gave me about a month ago-ha). Thank you ladies- I've added your awards to my sidebar. It's truly an honor!

5) I'm pleased to introduce a new blog, Diamond in the Rough, that I've had the pleasure of helping create. When A Chick Named Hermia wrote:

"I want to draw attention to the blogs that you follow religiously,
and whose bloggers are good and loving blogger souls who blog their
little hearts out and are kind and supportive to their fellow bloggers..."

I knew exactly who I wanted to nominate- sorry, can't tell you who just yet! So go over and check out the blog- I'm loving reading about everyone's favorite bloggers, and am hoping that my favorite will be chosen soon!

6) My blogoversery is in t-5 days and that means I'll soon be announcing a FANTASTIC giveaway. Hint: it revolves around pink!