Joining Friends on the Other Side

            Unlike a lot of people, I actually like Friday the 13^th. Maybe it’s just because I’ve always been one of those kids who preferred to go against the grain. I’m not particularly superstitious either. Mostly, I just like to think of this day as something where odd magic takes place. Not bad, just weird.

            In my area of the Carolinas, it started out as a gloomy day, which just seems absolutely perfect for making an entire pot of coffee, mixing it with Bailey’s coffee creamer cup by cup, and sitting at my desk, writing the day away. My desk is situated against the window that faces the backyard which, since we live in town, faces someone else’s backyard. But it’s a quiet neighborhood, lots of space and grass between us and them. It invites a writer to just sit and gaze out the window.

            I originally intended to post this on Friday the 13^th, not in the wee hours of June 14^th, but life got in the way of writing. When I got off work Bear and I grabbed a pizza and hit Wal-Mart to pick up some essentials for the house, which I assembled for once! Watching Smackdown and then finishing off the second season of Orange is the New Black (I made it last a week, I’m quite proud of myself), the evening got away from me. But it’s okay. There’ll always be writing to be done and time to do it.

            I’ve decided to make today the last day that I post to Blogger. Officially switching over to WordPress for the Kelswitch, with the first post coming Monday. Remember, that’s www.carolinakel.wordpress.com. Basically, the same url I always have, with a different website listed behind my name. See? This is why I use Carolina Kel across platforms. Makes it easy to find me, especially since it’s a name I’ve been using a long time.

            I sincerely hope you follow me as I expand and move forward on this writing and blogging journey. Thanks for the memories, blogspot.

An Open Letter to Social Media

We all have our reasons for using social media. Business. Keep up with family. To be nosy. But whatever our motive, we're all impacted by changes when the big wigs decide to roll them out for no other reason than because they can. Contrary to what they think, these changes are not always good. Sometimes they hurt the consumer, which you would think in business is the last thing you want to do. Yet, they continue to do it, all in the name of a profit. Particularly in Facebook's case, they get away with it because the consumer doesn't pay their bills. They're a free service. Their money comes from advertisers and anyone who wants access to the information we all post online without even thinking.

The breaking point for consumers of social media has yet to be reached, but most days, I can't help but wonder if we're close. Or maybe we're all too narcissistic to ever walk away from it, no matter how much of our soul they demand as payment. Let's face it. Social media is all about narcissism. We try to portray our lives in the best possible light, or at the very least the most dramatic. Why?

Human beings are social creatures. On the surface, Facebook and Google+ and Twitter seem to meet that innate need of ours, all while cutting out the awkward in-person bit. It's convenient in an increasingly busy, go go go society.

Now that I've summed up a bit about social media, let me get to my point and why I wanted to write this particular post. It would be easy to say that, as of now, Facebook still dominates the social media scene. Twitter is probably a close second. Google+ is probably nowhere near where its creators expected it to be right now. Which might explain why Google is so pushy but it does not excuse it.

My blog is connected to my Google account, and thus the Google+ account. When I created a Gmail after getting my first smartphone in 2010, Google automatically created a YouTube account for me too. That was was odd, but okay, whatever. I use it and enjoy the benefits of having playlists. Then, about a year ago I'd say, Google decided to start using these venues to push Google+ down my throat. Repeatedly, I did not express interest in engaging on that platform and yet they persist.

The final straw is a notification that my blogs will now be automatically posted to Google+, when I have repeatedly opted against that. Of course, I can change that in my settings, if I can ever find where.

Facebook is probably just as pushy as Google, but at least they're a little more subtle about it. Congratulations Google, your business tactics have tipped the scale and pushed me right into the arms of Wordpress. Blogger has been good to me, but it no longer meets my needs as a blogger. So, as a consumer, I am exercising my free will and changing services.

Thanks for the memories. I'll be back to visit my friends who still use this service, but starting in July, the Kelswitch will be posted exclusively to Wordpress. From there, I will continue to explore my writing and the opportunities available to me as such.

I can pick my poisons, thank you very much.

I do not own this picture. It was obtained via Pinterest.