Tag: twitter

  • Dear Geeks, may I borrow your brains a moment?

    So Rachel and I had an idea – or more accurately, I had an idea, and Rachel endorsed my crazy and agreed that it should happen and she’d help make it so (…Number One… sorry.)

    Want to Skip Right to the Survey?

    Anyway.

    The idea began percolating in my brain almost a year ago:

    …I wondered if there was some sort of consolidated calendar or website listing all the conferences, conventions, concerts, tweetups, meetups, and other random events and gatherings which draw the geeky masses… and for lack of a better search term, googled “nerdy events” (true story).

    Through that Google search, I discovered WordCamp Philly, a couple good sites to keep an eye on for certain types of nerdy events in my area (and corresponding ones for many other interests and locations), and a sudden desire to move to Portland or Seattle or Vancouver… but no big consolidated calendar of assorted geekery!

    But surely, there must be something!
    • Geeks, by the now-consensus definition, are really enthusiastic about the things we like, and have been known to… enthuse… together. In groups. On specific, pre-planned occasions.
    • A possibly substantial-if-stereotypical subset of us are the sort who like to collect, organize, and display Doctor Who memorabilia information.
    • AND the internet is basically our homeland; a disproportional number of us have some capability to produce a website.

    Surely, those characteristics had overlapped in at least one person crazy enough who thought it worthwhile to create such a website.

    So, I kept an eye out for one.

    I asked around. I periodically repeated said googly search and many variations thereof.

    I found:
    . . . Many, many good websites and calendars for nerds of a particular locale.
    . . . Many for certain geeky/technical professions.
    . . . A veritable crazyton of genre/fandom convention calendars.
    . . . Half a gazillion nerd-relevant groups on MeetUp.com.
    . . . Nerdy musicians and authors and internet celebrities list their tour schedules.

    But nowhere that WordCamp Philly and San Diego Comic Con and a Marian Call show and a monthly table-top gaming night and a NASA Social might all make appearances on the same website!

    “Darn. Somebody should do that.”

    And then I realized, No, I should do that. It would be a hellalotta work, which is probably why no one has, but it should be done, I know it can be done and roughly how to go about doing it and can learn the rest… and the thought wouldn’t leave me alone. >.< A few weeks ago, I mentioned it to Rachel, and she agreed: This is a thing that should exist.

    So, we’re doing it. 🙂

    As we sort out the details and get going, however, we’re in need of some outside input from other folks who would potentially use/enjoy such a website.

    We’ve talked to a few geeky friends about it, and I’ve scrabbled vaguely at twitter for name inspiration, and now we’re going to slightly-more-systematically ask you for some ideas and opinions, kay? Could you spare a few moments to share the contents of your brain with us?

    Take the quick 10.5 Question Survey!

  • Can you believe it? – a #NASAtweetup post

    This is a re-post of one I wrote on the 134tweetup group blog. The original is here.

    Endeavour! Image credit: NASA.gov

    In less than 90 hours,

    (assuming the weather holds…)

    we get to see this beauty →

    fly.

    Think about that for a minute. Take a moment to contemplate how awesome it is that this gorgeous machine, with its six occupants, will soon ride a “controlled” explosion out of our atmosphere, while we watch, close enough to feel the sound of liftoff, to go meet another amazing bit of technology and its occupants in orbit and do science.

    We, collectively, as humanity, are pretty darn impressive sometimes. We, individually, as tweetup participants, are all sorts of fortunate to have this opportunity.

    [And then, as this was my first post on 134tweetup.com, I introduced myself.
    But this is my own little corner of the blogosphere, so that would be silly.    ]

    I’ve grown up with the shuttle program. Well, it’s got a few years on me, so it’s kind of like I’m the awkward, not-nearly-as-cool kid sister watching the shuttle doing its awesome “big kid” stuff from my stroller… wait, that actually happened. I have family in Cocoa, FL, close enough to have a pretty decent view (even from itty-bitty height) the couple of times when there happened to be a launch scheduled while we were visiting.

    I was always a space geek… the kid in the home-made spacesuit that my mom sewed from one of those silver thermal blankets with a plastic pretzel tub over my head. 🙂 I remained a space geek, and a geek in general. The one who dragged Dad to the Space Center on the days of vacation when the rest of the family went to the beach.

    Rocket Garden at KSCVC
    Discovery on the pad, through binoculars
    The VAB through a tour bus window

    Somewhere along the way I discovered Twitter, and promptly followed @NASA.

    In 2009, NASA started hosting “Tweetups” (twitter + meet-up = tweetup, in case you missed that). That summer, the first one at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC was held, with the recently returned crew of Space Shuttle Atlantis mission STS-125… and it just so happened to be on my birthday. Figuring it was destiny or somesuch, I signed up, and more-or-less informed my dad that we were going to DC for my birthday, to meet astronauts.

    He was a little confused at that, but once I explained, he agreed. He’s been following the shuttle program since its beginning, and NASA’s various missions since he was pint-sized, so he was equally excited. So we spent my 21st birthday roaming the Air & Space Museum, hearing all about STS-125’s adventures in space with the Hubble, and meeting some cool “tweeps”, astronauts, and the occasional astronaut tweep. (See below left.)

    @Astro_Mike! (Mike Massimino) & @ohlauren (me)

    with Andrew Feustel (also on STS-134) & Mike Good!

    When @NASAtweetup announced there would be a tweetup at KSC for the STS-134 launch, I didn’t really figure on going… I mean, Pennsylvania and Florida aren’t exactly neighbors, and I’m not exactly rolling in money… but I thought, “What the heck, I probably won’t get in anyway,” and registered just in case. Then I got an email that started with “Congratulations”… o.O

    And suddenly, it all became clear. I have family to stay within the area. My job is portable. I have just enough gas money and don’t mind long drives. I have a chance not just to see a space shuttle launch, but to see the second-to-last NASA shuttle launch probably ever, from as close as anyone not somehow involved in the mission is ever going to get. (Not to mention all the other assorted tweetup awesomeness.) So with that realization, and a blinding flash of whimsy, I sent in my confirmation and started making plans.

    When I told my dad, he informed me he was coming along. We called the relatives to give them a heads up on impending visitors, and got him a ticket to another launch viewing site. Heck, we’re still sorting out the details for getting home, but we’re going. Driving, of course, like the crazy people we are, leaving in the awkward hours of Wednesday morning that are still basically Tuesday night and driving straight through. The way things are looking, I’ll spend more time in the car than in Florida, but I don’t care!

    Tweetup participants check in at KSC in less than 60 hours.

    Endeavor launches in about 90 hours.

    ARE YOU PSYCHED YET?

    I am!