Blog camp

blog camp krakow, anyone?

2011-01-08T10:56:00.001+01:00

New Year, New Blog Camp! How about meeting in Krakow for the first blog camp of 2011? No date is set as yet, but after some informal discussions it emerged that March, May or June would be best. Krakow is wonderful in the spring, and there is plenty to do in town. Plus it's small enough to walk everywhere. I will take care of arranging accommodation, possibly an apartment within walking distance from all sights and bars, and I'll act as hostess/tour guide/translator. All you need to do is book a flight!

Let me know if you're interested either by leaving a comment in this post of emailing me at pollyabroad at gmail dot com

**UPDATE**

How about the weekend of 27-29 May?

postcards to blog camp

2010-12-31T14:45:00.000+01:00

a little postcard from wintry denmark

blog campers - after the long year with the Blog Camp 365 photo project in flickr, we have decided to continue the sense of community, with a little less "must go take a picture every day" - and there is a new group, called Postcards to Blog Camp - if you would like to hang out in virtual blog camp and share the occasional photo, please join us!! and in the meantime, this is my little postcard to all of you to wish you a happy new year! hello 2011!!

fabulous in berlin

2010-09-25T07:38:00.001+02:00

i heard that beth had trouble with her memory card and her photos from berlin didn't really turn out. so this is for her. you looked fabulous on the streets of berlin, dahling!

ahh, berlin, i miss you already

2010-09-24T20:50:00.000+02:00

i'm looking back wistfully to last week at this time. we were having dinner in berlin, laughing and chatting and eating fabulous (yet strangely inexpensive) food and laughing some more. and kristina was the best hostess ever. you can see the pictures she was taking in this shot if you go here.

these blog campers rocked

2010-09-20T22:55:00.000+02:00

a BIG thank you to sammi, judith, kristina, beth and gwen for one of the best weekends i've had in a long, long time. i'm processing pix and will be posting them soon, both here and on flickr. i hope you all will too! and anyone else reading this, get yourself to berlin immediately. it's awesome.

blog camp berlin, here i come!

2010-09-16T17:46:00.000+02:00

the prezzies are wrapped and the suitcase is (mostly) packed. i'm feeling more excited than i've felt in months. i don't even care what the weather is in berlin, we're going to have a fantastic time!! see you tomorrow berlin blog campers!!

flocking together or autumn in berlin

2010-08-31T22:34:00.001+02:00

birds of a feather

that's it, we're going for it. blog camp berlin. and the following fabulous peeps (pun intended) will be there....

sammi of two thousand miles from here

kristina of vigdis et al

gwen of not really

bee of from the desk of bee drunken

kristina of no penny for them and mostly berlin
jude (she has a blog, but it's private), but check her out on the BC365 flickr group!

and

and my prezzies are coming along nicely.

A Midnight Sun Blog Camp?

2010-08-07T02:48:00.006+02:00

Hi, I'm Kim from *Numinosity*

I'm throwing out the idea to have a Midnight Sun blog camp at my home in Delta Junction, Alaska next summer.

The ideal time for me would be around Solstice time the weekend of June 17, the following weekend or 4th of July weekend. The nights are longest then and the weather can be at it's best (well, not this year)

I have beds for five or six and even more room for camping or floor space with pads. We live an easy 100 miles from Fairbanks which is the nearest airport. It's 6 hours from Anchorage.

It's a rural area with stunning scenery and wilderness in most directions.

Since it's a long haul for just about everybody I'm offering up lodging for a couple of days on either end of the chosen weekend. Of course you may want to take advantage of touring this vast state if you're getting all the way here.

I have studio space and some supplies if you're feeling like projects and of course the photo opportunities are as vast as the surroundings. I can even show you how to make a glass bead.

My road off of the Alaska Highway.

The Garaj Mahal where you would be staying (no snow will be present!)

I also have a place in Bisbee, Arizona that I could offer up for a blog camp in the winter but the lodging would have to be separate from my house as we don't have the room to put anyone up.

coming soon: blog camp berlin!

2010-08-03T23:56:00.001+02:00

photo by kristina of no penny for them
i lifted it from her flickr, totally without asking, but i hope she forgives me.

that's it! blog camp berlin is a go!! we'll meet in berlin on friday, september 17 for three days of cafés, sights and loads and loads of photos. oh, and nonstop laughter and intelligent conversation. we'll most likely rent a big apartment through one of those sites where you can do that and share the expenses, but kristina (of the above brilliant photo/blog) will be our official hostess and show us around (she just doesn't have room for us to stay with her).

please confirm with me if you're indeed coming, so i can find us an apartment that's the right size. you know the email address. :-)

Blog camp virgin

2010-07-28T10:02:00.001+02:00

Not blogcamp virgins

This was my first blog camp. Which was a little awkward what with me not having a public blog and everything. Because Julie and Extranjera do have blogs and I have read them, I knew much more about them than they knew about me. So far, so much potential for a Misery like weekend.

I am glad to report that the weekend was far from a Misery like weekend (well for me anyway, you'll have to ask the others their opinion). Instead, there was food, wine, talking, laughing and a bit of photography. Oh and embroidery (why do the stitches have to be so small?!) and a fantastic chance to observe the country folk of Mid-Jutland at a huge fair.

The only part remotely like the movie involved the freakish vampire/zombie flies which despite being swatted, came back to life. So the big guns of electric flyswatters were brought out and despite being roasted with visible sparks and smell, some flies came back to life. It was a little disconcerting although great fun.

I think the best adjective for the weekend would be comfortable. Now I know that this may seem pejorative but let me explain. First, it did have the potential to be uncomfortable because of the unequal balance of personal knowledge but due to the loveliness of our host, Julie, and the coolness of the other blogcamper, Extranjera, it wasn't uncomfortable. Not even when I called Extranjera, Tatiana for the first day or so. See, so nice that I didn't even need to use their correct names. Secondly, it was comfortable to simply hang out and have wide ranging conversations from serious academic subjects to frivolous and fun ones. We simply got along well. Which was nice. And although I suspected we would from their blogs, it was still a relief that we did.

Totally not in any way inebriated or anything of the sort at all.

2010-07-27T21:33:00.000+02:00

Me?

Never!

Still.

Guess what I'm doing.

Hint: It involves head injury.

Because this is how we roll at Blog Camp.

(I swear I'll post something with actual substance and possibly even the answer to my initial question soon. I'm just like totally swamped sitting on my thumbs [yes, both] at this minute. That's why I'm not writing more. With my thumbs otherwise engaged and stuff.)

creativity at blog camp!

2010-07-26T08:37:00.000+02:00

thanks to the ever-wonderful elizabeth, we began something new at blog camp 4.0. when she visited a few weeks ago, elizabeth brought me a large, beautiful vintage damask tablecloth that has hundreds of little squares built into its woven design. when she saw it, she thought it would make a fabulous blog camp project, so she knew i had to have it. and so, i asked the blog campers to embroider something - anything they wanted - on a square or squares of the tablecloth. and this was the result....

by jude - she immortalized my notion that there are no uninteresting chairs in denmark.

and extranjera - in her inimitable style, created a fabulous ~~springbok(?)~~ unicorn(?) with tree and comet.

sabin and i are still working on ours and isaac will have to come back to finish his, as we ran out of time (deciding lunch was more important) before he could finish. but, we got a good start on the blog camp art project.

blog camp is over far too quickly....

2010-07-25T19:37:00.000+02:00

stand by for the stories....

blog camp: minnesota style

2010-07-16T22:16:00.000+02:00

once upon a time there were three bloggers. they were all (originally in any case) from the upper midwest and had at least the potential to speak in that accent you've heard in the coen brothers' movie fargo, (tho' i can assure you they were not goin' crazy up here on the lake, at least not during the summer when there was no snow keeping them indoors). one of them had moved to a small european country and flying over coming for a visit, so she arranged to see them. one drove down to the big metropolis with her family to hang out. and the other one graciously agreed to host a crew of four adult and five child-sized random strangers at her house for lunch on a sunday afternoon. and it was wonderful. and we called it blog camp...

the five children who attended blog camp: minnesota.

a kitchen to worship (that's made of an altar! how cool is that?)
(that's husband and sandra in that picture)

a few four-legged blog campers

and honorary blog camper howard

after much discussion, the group finally assembled for a photo

keegan was our official photographer (man, i hope i spelled his name right)

he then passed along the mantle to his little brother (tryllen??) for a few shots.

and to end it all, an eagle soared overhead.

in all, a lovely little minnesota blog camp, thanks to jules & co. and sandra and mark. it was great meeting all of you in person at last. i hope it's not the last time. and sandra, i'll come to your gorgeous and inspiring house for lunch ANYTIME!! :-)

* * *

and speaking of blog camp - one spot just opened up for blog camp in denmark next weekend (july 23-25), so if you're feeling spontaneous and you really love old country houses that are in need of repair, email me: jknachti (at) gmail (dot) com

the one in which we all met up in Oxford

2010-06-16T00:02:00.001+02:00

It's been a week since the British contingent of bloggers converged over mongolian dinner for a very happy incident - to get to know Jelica of Budapest Bits, who, although famous by now in blog camp circles, hasn't been introduced to its British line. The meeting was, of course, in Oxford. Where else.

Despite the A406 gridlock and the new StreetCar Golf refusing to behave like expected, I have made it, with half hour delay to the Cornmarket Street Starbucks... yes, again, where else! And, as the blog camp tradition dictates, that's exactly where we sat over lattes, with cameras and iphones, catching up and getting to know each other and this wonderful meeting over a coffee really was like going back to a blog camp home. After the all the coffees were drank up it was time for food and after careful consideration of some fine Oxford eateries we settled for a mongolian wok place, as recommended by Blanca. And that's where we set up camp for the rest of the evening. Talking. Talking, taking, talking. Talking about blogging. Talking about reading and writing and phototaking, and - of course, the theme of the month - about the Lack of Inspiration. We then moved to the train station and on to the car park. Still talking...

As with all blog camps, mini and not-so-mini, I've come back inspired and full of very positive energy. I'm so glad I decided to stick to blogging and my blog friends. I look forward to seeing you all again as soon as possible!

blog camp 4.0 - we're taking it to the countryside

2010-06-04T08:57:00.002+02:00

it's not as nice as the blue room, but i have to admit that i'm totally jonesing for a blog camp. i can't let this summer go by without one, just because the house isn't renovated yet. it's liveable, there's room, there's wifi and the garden is wonderful. if the danish summer permits, we can spend the whole time outdoors. so i hereby announce a blog camp july 23-25 in denmark. email me jknachti (at) gmail (dot) com if you're up for it and i'll give you details about where to fly (or drive or take a train). :-) i have a little less room than we had at the old place, so be quick!

The blog campers... get creative!

2010-01-20T22:15:00.000+01:00

Bee:
One of the many, many topics discussed at Blog Camp was the subject of creativity. If you feed the creative mind with the right sort of oxygen, can anyone light up?

Having thought of myself as a deeply uncreative person for most of my life, the company of bloggers has challenged my pre-conceptions of myself. Are we all a little bit guilty of ring-fencing artistic expression and then filing it away into mental drawers that read CAN or CAN'T? Some of us cook, some of us knit, some of us can draw, or sew, or take beautiful photographs, but can we all do a little bit of whatever we put our minds to?

When Julochka told the January Blog Campers to bring art journals, my mental "I can't do that" switch was immediately short-circuited.

Julochka, in the fabled Blue Room

She brought out her treasures

and shared them with us

But when confronted with stacks and stacks of "pretty papers" and every imaginable sort of doo-dad, I was so impatient to begin that I started yelling (not altogether politely) for some glue and scissors. It was a wonderfully relaxing thing to do with our group, especially since it didn't inhibit me (in the slightest) from keeping up a steady stream of chat.

Camille captures that rare expression:

me, with my mouth closed

(the child kept grabbing the new Nikon off of me;

she's not nearly as intimidated by it as I am)

In the spirit of Blog Camp collaboration, B and I thought we would mingle together some of the BC moments. While my (newly) 12 year old daughter was observing everything we said and did, and then cataloguing it in her Art Journal, B was taking pictures. (The pictures of the people are mine; despite Julochka and Spud's injunctions against "flash," the lighting conditions of the blue room and the yellow room in deepest winter encouraged me to experiment with that aspect of my new Nikon.)

B:
Our very special honorary blog camper Camille created some art journaling pages for each of the blog campers. She's incredibly observant and talented, and so her pages are a perfect reflection of the different personalities at Blog Camp 3.0 and some of the crazy and silly things these people said...

Poor Kristina had a migraine...
(but she still had the sensitivity to bring my child an art journal of her very own: Bee)

Spud was talking about botox, boys and cars?
(So far, she is holding up well . . . but then she does have those Megaboys to contend with. Bee)

B obsessed about yellow and her new favourite TV series: Glee. Bee is also pretty Glee-ful, but Spud was NOT impressed.

(I loved this beautiful close-up of B's sweet face. Yellow is the perfect color for this Spanish girl -- and her ever-present sunny smile. Bee)

Julie let us play with all her pretty, pretty paper, and had something to say about Bee... :)
(Humph! Bee)

Polly, who is not called Polly, wondered why we all still call her Polly...and bossily asked B to stop drinking (which was probably a good thing!)

(Polly: absorbed by her ART. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Polly tapped into the mental skills of concentration that she honed during her long graduate-student apprenticeship. Bee)

Sabin showed Camille all her favourite animals and sweets...

(These girls will never grow up being intimidated by their lack of creativity! Sabin muddles the nature/nurture question, because in her case it is so obviously BOTH. Bee)

Elizabeth was surprised that green was supposed to be her colour according to her horoscope...

(Elizabeth, the only newbie Blog Camper in the group, proved the Blog Camp magic. Despite already well-established friendships, Elizabeth fitted in beautifully. She was a bit camera-shy, but I did manage to catch a glimpse of those graceful, capable hands. Bee)

As for my own Art Journal . . . well, did I create something equally stylish?

Frankly, I didn't really have the knack for it that my creative and observant daughter displayed.
Indeed, after completing five pages, my daughter noticed that I had put them in the journal both backwards and upside-down.

Oh well. Baby steps.

from Elizabeth's Soul Food

Even when I photographed the spinning spider, Elizabeth's symbol for creativity, I realized that I had pictured it upside-down!

if your bird needs a friend

2010-01-19T16:29:00.000+01:00

if you find your bird is lonely

and needs a friend.

go here, where you'll find the pattern

and you can make some more.

now that you know how.

post #100 - blog camp 3.0 approaches

2010-01-14T12:58:00.000+01:00

blog camp 3.0 begins tomorrow! i'm not ready at the moment of writing this...i'm still frantically finishing up prezzies and putting clean linens on the beds. but the menu is planned, the cooking will begin later this afternoon and i'm looking forward, in happy anticipation to heading in to meet everyone at the airport on friday.

this time, sabin and i have planned a number of crafty activities, in a sort of return to the original concept of blog camp - which was to share our creativity and talents. i really can't wait for everyone to arrive. tho' at the same time, i feel a bit sad that it's the last one in the famous blue room, since the house is sold. it will likely be autumn before we can host a new edition of blog camp, on the farm that we have yet to buy (husband is looking at two of them this weekend with our carpenter and our architect, so we move ever closer).

but first, we have this weekend to enjoy. check in for updates from blog camp central all weekend!

to eat or not to eat?

2010-01-07T09:00:00.000+01:00

i can't remember, was it fish in general "we" didn't like or just shrimp? let me know. i'm menu-planning and i like my fish guy, so it'll be on the list unless you tell me differently!

the time draws near

2010-01-05T16:49:00.000+01:00

hello dahlings...please do send me your flight details for the upcoming blog camp so i can be there at starbucks the airport when you arrive! and don't forget to bring a blank journal with you! i've laid in a supply of south african chardonnay and i think there is a lot of fun on the horizon!!

thinking about blog camp...

2009-12-26T17:23:00.000+01:00

blog campers...please bring a journal with you when you come to blog camp 3.0! we'll get out my stash and we can do a bit of art journaling, since the weather is likely to be rubbish and no fun for playing outside.

mini blog camp

2009-12-13T12:19:00.000+01:00

miss buckle, who came to blog camp 2.0 back in september, was in town for the COP15 climate meeting and she had some extra time on friday and saturday, so she came out to blog camp HQ to hang out and have a mini blog camp. the weather was cold, but clear and sunny (for a change), so we took advantage of that and went out to a christmas market at a little bitty castle nearby - selsø slot. the early afternoon light was beautiful there, as you can see in this shot of miss buckle. i was standing down in the dungeon, shooting up at her in the light above. other than that, we went to the christmas festivities at sabin's riding school, but i'll have to share more of that when blogger's photo uploader is working again.

mostly, we just hung out, looking at cookbooks, drinking wine and talking about food. anne is going to be competing in the norwegian version of master chef and so she's doing a lot of thinking about what she will make for the competition. we paged through cookbooks and talked food until our mouths watered. happily, my local fish guy is open again after some repairs to his building and we were able to get some beautiful mussels, salmon and halibut for an absolutely gorgeous fish soup that is one of anne's specialities. i made a thyme focaccia to go with it and we are really happy to have some leftovers for today. blogger won't let me upload the photos right now, but we'll ask anne to be a guest blogger on domestic sensualist and hopefully she'll share the recipe there. it was definitely a dish that i'll be adding to my repertoire!

but the main message in this is that if there's anyone out there who is passing through copenhagen, don't hesitate to get in touch for a mini blog camp.

News just in about the Blog Camp logo

2009-12-05T09:09:00.004+01:00

Look left...look at the Blog Camp logo....Bertie (4) has just announced that the lady in it is funny because she has a 'squashed pancake on her head'.

You heard it here first.

x

planning the fun for blog camp 3.0

2009-12-03T10:58:00.000+01:00

even tho' christmas comes first, i'm already getting really excited, making plans for blog camp 3.0 in january, right here at blog camp HQ. i've got one activity planned that i'm really excited about. and people are buying their tickets and it's all falling into place and that's exciting too!

i'm looking forward to seeing kristina, b, polly, jelica, bee and spud again and to meet elizabeth in person (tho' i feel like i've known her for ages). and i will figure out where they're all gonna sleep before they get here....i promise.

blog camp 3.0 - denmark

2009-11-15T16:01:00.001+01:00

several people have asked whether there wouldn't be one last blog camp while we've still got the blue room. and since houses in our area are taking an average of 7 months to sell, we think it's safe to schedule a blog camp in mid-january - right when everyone has recovered from christmas and is wondering how they're going to make it through the darkest, coldest days of winter. a little blog camp to make it easier to cope. laughter, hanging out in the blue room, taking pictures, blogging, drinking warm drinks, sitting around the fireplace. you know, all the usual blog camp stuff.

so start checking tickets. january 15-17, 2010. denmark. be there or miss out on your chance to partake of the blue room.

email me if you're interested. email address is in my profile (julochka). :-)

A Preposterous Hypothethis

2009-09-24T08:21:00.007+02:00

"My rhymes are so potent that in this small segment, I made all of the ladies in the area pregnant."

Stacey here.

For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of The Flight of the Conchords, here's the video that this excerpt relates to. Good kiwi boys.

Anywho, on a semi-related note. Who would put their hands up for Blogcamp NZ (or New Zealand for those of you who aren't as educated as the rest)?

Just putting it out there... seeing what kind of reaction I get.

This is as far as my plan goes:

* bloggers come from four corners of the globe, for as long as they like, but crossing over for about five days of blog camp somewhere like this or this or this.

* Around Feb/March next year?

* I'd help you guys with everything from what to do and where to go before and after the blog camp, and I'd even greet you with a complimentary beverage once you make it to Auckland city.

* ........?

So. Hands up. Who's interested? Do we look into this further?

Or is it a preposterous hypothethis?

EDIT: So looking at the notes below, would later in next year suit better? How about November/December 2010? Extrajera, I am very pleased with your plan making. 10 points :)

polly is an angel

2009-09-17T21:55:00.001+02:00

somehow i missed this photo when i downloaded, or else this aura has recently formed around polly and has only become visible in my iPhoto just today. doesn't she look amazing? it makes me feel as if something really special is about to happen to her.

ooh, i just gave myself goosebumps.

what we learned at blog camp 2.0

2009-09-09T22:50:00.000+02:00

of course you learn a lot at every blog camp. and since we love to make lists, we thought we'd assemble a list of some of the things we learned:

~ julochka has trouble turning off her inner mother and likes to make sure that everyone has visited the loo before they leave the house.

~ spudballoo has a bit of this as well and encouraged us to see if we didn't have a "secret wee" that even we didn't really know was there.

~ lesson in this: moms are really concerned with potty-related issues.

~ anne won hands down the best blog camp clay creature with her precious and elaborate caterpillar. spud with her winged penguin w/a perm and jelica with her mouse that started out as a rabbit tied for second.

~ an open heart won best blog camp prezzie at our blog camp as well as her own in reno (and there were good prezzies here). thank you so much for your thoughtful gift!!

~ sabin is really good at the wildkatten game. (only 272 pieces to go...)

~ that burning smell was NOT the bits on the bottom of the oven.

~ anne brought the BEST scone mix with her. they were delicious!

~ fear of tunnels can be overcome with the the help of incessant chatting.

~ in Denmark, they still have parking lots for viking ships

~ Jelica understands all kinds of clever things including fractions. We're not worthy, we're not worthy!

~ Julochka's husband is, helpfully, called 'the husband'. That's his actual name, as bestowed upon him by his parents. They must have known he was destined to be 'the husband'...inventor of the Blog Camp concept, buyer of pastries, cooker of dinner, taxi driver, wannabe chain-saw owner and all round wonderful bloke. We all hearted him.

~ jelica hates tunnels. and she had to go through several of them. during which she may or may not have held her breath and gripped her seat until her knuckles turned white.

~ anne likes to sit in the front seat and pretend to drive the train.

~ julochka has a most amazing library.

~ spud is so not huggy. She's so British like that.

~ secret ingredient vital for the success of a jump shot: rain

~ jelica will gladly translate from any language, even languages she doesn't speak (though it's hard to find a language she doesn't know!)

~ julochka is the proud owner of the pornpod, which may or may not have actual porn on it, but she's not telling.

~ anne has a 'liver lover' at home. the word for 'partner' in Norwegian can be translated as 'Together Liver'. we were very taken with this although it was quickly shortened to just 'liver'. we added the 'lover' just for fun, because we're CRAZY like that.

~ some danish coins have holes in the middle, and some have hearts on them. those Danes are so groozy, even their money is funky.

~ julochka cannot physically be present in Copenhagen airport without having a Starbucks fixed. just can't be done!

~ 'fika' is a truly filthy word in Italian and yet such a thing of beauty in Swedish. who knew?!

~ the Danes think eating chocolate for breakfast is so acceptable that they market special packets of thin slices of chocolate to eat on bread. man, we LOVE the Danes.

~ jelica is surprisingly tenacious. there was no way she was letting Spud out of her clutches until she'd had a 1:1 photography lesson on aperture, ISO and exposure compensation.

~ kristina clams up and becomes shy at blog camp, which makes her husband wonder what miracle cure blog campers used on her, and could he please have some to use at home?

~ at Blog Camp you can't eat anything, drink anything, go anywhere or nowhere without it having to be endlessly photographed. Spud was especially stern about the scones that Anne made, 'Get you hand away!' she admonished her kindly hostess at one point.

~ Spud takes pictures ALL THE TIME and shows real withdrawal symptoms when she's been sans camera for a few minutes

~ you don't actually drink that much coffee at blog camp. Tea is the most served beverage.

Just keep blogging...

2009-09-06T23:38:00.002+02:00

I'm a bit of a dunce when it comes to Blogger. I tried very hard for, oooooh, about 5 minutes to copy my Blog Camp 2.0 posts from my blog to here. Couldn't seem to make it work though. So I'm cheating and linking to them below...they are mostly photos (no surprise there then) which speak better as a diary of Blog Camp at this point than words. As with Blog Camp 1.5 I find myself needing some time to chew over our wonderful time together before writing about it with any meaning.

How do you like our fabulous necklaces? A generous and thoughtful gift from Reno Blog Camper AnOpenHeart. We wore them round Copenhagen today but they made a better photo as a still life. Thank you to you xx

If you'd like to see rather a lot of photos take a look at 'Blog Camp 2.0...live blogging!' , 'Blog Camp 2.0...the gin cocktail version' and 'Blog Camp 2.0...I'm never going to leave the Blue Room'.

More to come!

Love from your Blogger Challenged Wordpress Loving Friend, Spud x

in the meantime...

2009-09-06T23:09:00.002+02:00

While blog campers 2.0 drank their wines, ate their danish pastries and dreamt about their danish sailors, B and Polly, two blog camp 1.0 and blog camp 1.5 veterans converged in the old city of Oxford:

In true blog camp tradition, photos were taken

and coffee was drank

(blogger's edition of cream tea: coffee with scone, cream and strawberry jam...)

Possibility of blog camp 3.0 was discussed. We reckon somewhere warm would be nice. Maybe Nice. Or Rome. Or Salamanca...

Dear blog camp 2.0 bloggers: we missed you!

***

Blog Camp 2.0...10 things you need to know

2009-09-05T23:29:00.000+02:00

So we were challenged by Mari at Marinik's Blog to reveal 10 things you need need to know and so we shall. The wine is flowing, the chocolate was flowing until we truffled it all, we're in the Blue Room. Life..is...good.

So here they are, our 10 things you need to know...

1. Jamie Oliver is a pillock. After extensive debate this is now an accepted truism, although equally there is general agreement that his books rock.

2. You'd better go to the loo before leaving the house in case there is a 'secret wee' lurking up there.

3. Jelica can't handle tunnels or salad related food items. Fact.

4. A gaggle of Nikons and the occasional lonely Canon will surprisingly attract the attention of locals and cause them to SPEAK to you.

5. Spud is incapable of turning up on time for Blog Camp.

6. Axes are surprisingly absent from Blog Camp although 'the husband' extensively searched the neighbourhood for a chain saw today. Fortunately without success.

7. Anne is pronouned Anna. She does not expect to be addressed as Miss Buckle.

8. Horizontal rain focuses the mind and legs for jump shots.

9. Dull but true...blog campers are JUST like their blogs. This is good!

10. You're either a Top Dog or a Mad Cow.

That's all folks....xxx

our jump shot!

2009-09-05T21:44:00.000+02:00

check it out! we're all in the air at once!!!

an eMOTIONal arrival

2009-09-04T23:19:00.000+02:00

blog campers are really hard to catch on camera because they're always in motion.

ready?

2009-09-03T21:55:00.004+02:00

I'm beginning to realize that tomorrow, the blog campers are coming here. To my home! This is suddenly making me very nervous; will they like my apartment? Will I be able to cook them an edible lunch? Will they find something to take photos of in my hometown? (No, wait - not so nervous about the photo taking. Has certainly not been a problem before.)

And then, there's the dog. Will she behave, and hopefully, charm the blog campers?

Blog camp 2.0 - now coming to Sweden!

Almost There

2009-09-03T21:32:00.002+02:00

Pressies lined up. Suitcase packed. Blog Camp here I come. Don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight.

you will be missed!

2009-09-03T19:43:00.001+02:00

blog camp will undoubtedly be amazing, but i'm really going to miss you two!!

have a coffee for us in oxford.

and do post a picture (or twelve)!!

edited: this was not to say that i won't miss everyone else who was at blog camps 1.0 and 1.5, but B and Polly were at BOTH!! :-)

while we're waiting...

2009-09-02T21:13:00.000+02:00

these little guys have readied their cameras and they're waiting for blog camp to begin.

and these little fellas are waiting to have a bit of fun too.

are you ready for blog camp?

and don't forget the jump shot

2009-09-01T08:43:00.001+02:00

this is really a reminder to blog campers in reno, in addition to the appointed picture times and events below, you must do a jump shot!! bear in mind, you may not succeed at getting everyone in the air at once, but we can guarantee that you will laugh while you're trying.

one time at blog camp

2009-08-31T23:29:00.000+02:00

blog camp 1.0 - denmark

as we learned at the first blog camps, there's not much actual blogging done. because it's just so much fun to be together and talk in person. so, we know better than to commit to a whole lot of online stuff (i never did get stickam working properly) at times we likely can't adhere to (because that's the other lesson...when 5-6 people are walking along, taking pictures of stuff, it takes way longer than you think).

instead, we are coordinating with blog camp 2.1 in reno and have agreed that we will take photos at certain times of the day and post them as soon as we are able. due to the 9-hour time difference, we will not try to post simultaneously. instead, we will each take pictures at the same time of day, when it's that time where we are and we'll post them. that way, in the week afterwards, we'll be able to compare photographic evidence of what each group was doing. (i hope this makes sense, i'll admit it's getting late here as i write this).

so, we will photograph the following events:

arrival
departure

additionally, we will take pictures at the following appointed times and if we are at even remotely in front of the internet at these times, they will be posted as close to the appointed time as possible.

saturday at:

9 a.m.
noon
3 p.m.
6 p.m.
9 p.m.

sunday at (being realistic here):

10 a.m.
2 p.m.

a typical scene from blog camp 1.5 - england

see, talking and cameras

so, we do hope you'll check in with us and see what we've been up to. and we'll do our very best to get these pictures up as close to the appointed times as possible, for the benefit of all of you vicarious blog campers. and of course, like other blog camps, we'll definitely be gathering all of the best quotes and funny memories to share here in the week or so afterwards.

Four Rocks in the Tide

2009-08-30T22:42:00.003+02:00

Looking at a picture I just posted on my own blog I realised something.

Four stones. Adjacent. The water flowing over them, with one barely keeping its head out of the tide.

It's us. Bloggers in the world tide. The water rushing around us. Close, but easily washed away with a bigger wave.

Deep. I know. But it's late, and appropriate, and I hope you understand.

Fear (without loathing) on 2.0 trail

2009-08-26T09:47:00.003+02:00

I am going to blog camp 2.0 and I'm beginning to get scared.

I signed up for it way back in May when it was just an abstract idea and September seemed so far away. Even when I got the tickets it all seemed a bit unreal, if exciting.

And now that the countdown is starting (one more week to go!) all these questions are suddenly nagging me: am I going to fit in? how do you choose gifts for people you don't actually know? are we going to run out of topics?

Plus, all those Nikons showing off on the pictures from 1.0 and 1.5 are totally intimidating--how can I put my tiny Olympus Stylus 1010 next to these giants?

I'm off now to buy myself a guidebook to Copenhagen and hope to stop fretting.

and then there were four

2009-08-23T22:46:00.000+02:00

plans are shaping up for blog camp 2.0 in just a couple of weeks. there are now four fantastic bloggers with tickets in hand and i'm working together with sara to plot ways of getting together virtually with blog camp reno, which is going on at the same time. there will be more details about that in the coming days, as our plans come together.

in the meantime, check out spudballoo, miss buckle, one planet and jelica, because they are coming to blog camp here in denmark. and of course, we hope to coax kristina across the sound for the fun as well.

and just a reminder for anyone who is new here...blog camp isn't really camping. it's hanging out at my house, in my studio/blue room/atelier/writing house/garden house (we don't know what to call it), taking lots of pictures, drinking lots of wine, eating good food, taking some more photos and laughing and telling stories. and there's always a jump shot.

heard and seen at BC 1.5 (aka BBC - British Blog Camp)

2009-08-17T20:46:00.004+02:00

seen: beautiful B with a big, big smile.

heard: "when the back tire's not moving, it makes biking so much harder." - bee

seen: polly and spud try to understand aperture (aperture is hard).

heard: "he goes camping on those frozen mountains." - spudballoo (those would be glaciers, dear.)

seen: twittering on iPhones (this one is kristina)

heard: "there was this huge campsite with...campers." - bee

seen: lots of conferring as to timing and traffic (traffic sucks in england).

(yup, that's stonehenge behind them.)

heard: "oh no, there's loads of grockles here." - spudballoo

seen: polly posing (what a surprise. not.)

heard: "in america, we may not have health insurance, but we've got a gun and the will to succeed." - julochka

seen: spud deciding she needs a macro lens

heard: "don't rush to crush." - spudballoo

seen: stonehenge

heard: "we're sociable loners." - bee (quoting another blog friend whose name i didn't write down)

seen: cool shoes

learned: berkshire is pronounced barkshire.

2009-08-17T08:53:00.002+02:00

“Feeling fizzy”…that’s how us tired but happy Blog Camp 1.5 girls described ourselves this morning over breakfast; a kind of energetic bubbling up of excitement and giddyness at our blossoming friendships. We all went to bed very very late, but no one could sleep at first because of the ‘fizzy’ feeling. Our lovely hostess Beth, astonishingly eloquent for rather early in the morning, described it so elegantly as being that rare emotion that a few, select girlfriends can inspire, almost akin to ‘romantic love’ if you like. She explained it so perfectly, but ‘fizzy’ is a good summary of what it feels like. If we could bottle it and sell it we’d be millionaires!

I’m too zonked to write with any thought plus I’m still ‘processing’ the weekend through my mind and waiting for something insightful to drop out the other end. We talked about everything, we photographed everything, we ate, we drank, we went on a trip, some of us were 2 hours late arriving and got lost on the way despite being the only native Brit attending, there were laughs, and debate, there was teasing, some people put their foot in it but the others were too kind to make a big deal of it (phew), there were presents galore and a lot of this:

But mostly we just felt fizzy. And we liked it! And we want some more of it! And we wouldn’t mind another round of those fizzy Kir Royales (pictured above) knocked up by Beth’s super husband. Cheers!

Oh, and it turns out that the ‘Group Jump’ shot hasn’t improved since Blog Camp 1.0. Shabby…very, very…shabby.

It was the eve before Blog Camp 1.5...

2009-08-14T22:55:00.003+02:00

Oooooh so many thoughts and emotions. Mostly excitement because what could be finer than rocking up at a random stranger’s pad to spend the weekend with, um, a whole load of randoms from the interweb? Hoorah. Seriously, I’ve NEVER been disappointed by my many, many ‘real life’ encounters with people I initially met on the internet. I understand why many people feel anxious about taking the next step and meeting internet buddies for real…but my personal experience has been nothing but fabulous.

Think about it…these are people you have generally conversed with online for weeks if not months, or more. You share things you are often not comfortable sharing with ‘real life’ friends, for whatever reason. You’ve bonded, you’ve checked them out, you’ve bantered, you’ve giggled, you’ve shared stuff…and you already have the mutual interest that brought you together in the first place; it could be online dating (MrSpud, that’s you)…pregnancy/childbirth/hideous early days of motherhood and beyond (BFF and the ‘wife‘, that’s you)…and now bloggy peeps, or bleeps (that’s all of you reading this). When I think about my friends, I no longer differentiate between ‘real’ friends and internet friends, many of whom (perhaps 100 or so) I’ve never actually met. Means nothing to me – we don’t have to meet to be buddies.

But tomorrow I get to meet some of those interweb weirdies and I can’t wait. I’ve been packed for weeks…but today I made the final preparations. I finished up my crap gifts (pictured above) and wished I was capable of making something other than trouble; I packed the boot of the Shit Picasso (ek, I hate that car) with wine, gifts for bleeps, gifts for our hostesss, my dressing up box, a couple of axes for late night murdering in beds, spare liver, Blog Camp T shirt, stain remover to erase any blood splats from late night murderous activites, camera and entire lens stash for the Nikon gals (WE ROCK!), GPS, map and Grudge Book. I’m all set.

Hopefully there will be live blogging from the Camp (tequila permitting). If you don’t hear from me by Monday then they raided my axe stash and got me first. BUT REMEMBER GIRLS…I GRUDGE YOU FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE….

They don’t call me Scary Spud for nothing you know.

who is who?

2009-08-13T18:28:00.001+02:00

i've got my little blog camp 1.5 prezzies all ready. which one do you think is for whom?

blog camp 2.1 - Reno!

2009-08-11T14:53:00.000+02:00

our sister blog is up for Blog Camp: Reno! go and check it out!!

a hint

2009-08-04T14:26:00.000+02:00

i shopped here for prezzies for blog camp 1.5 i wonder what all that pretty packaging contains?

Blog Camps 1.5 and 2.0...here I come!

2009-07-30T21:19:00.005+02:00

I'm all packed and ready for Blog Camps 1.5 and 2.0...are you? On which note...still a couple of places open for Blog Camp 2.0 in Denmark at Julocka's gaff...WHY? Book now to avoid disappointment....or entry in to my Grudge Book...

Here are my boys‘ Trunkis which I think are the perfect size for the trip. One for essentials, the other I will take empty and then snaffle a couple of friends to take home with me. I don’t have any many local buddies and at this point my options seem to be (a) knit my own or (b) steal some. Well, I’m not at all crafty (so don’t be expecting any of that crochet nonsense from me, I ‘might’ manage finger knitting?) so (b) it is. The case is kind of small. Must remember to take axe to dismember Blog Camp attendees so I can squish them in my Trunki and then reassemble Chez Spud. Ta da!

Inside one I’ve packed all the essentials:

Blog Camp T shirt
Standard issue Converse
Entire lens/camera stash
Bottle of white wine (for the journey – will send 10 cases ahead. Each)
Dressing up kit
Wig (just in case)
MacBook
Passport
iphone (for non stop Tweeting)
Grudge Book (never leave home without it)
Stones for Julochka in case she needs a fix. They are special ones. From my driveway.

Still to be packed:

Spare liver
Funnies
Bleep Revision Notes (so I don’t boob and call everyone by the wrong name)

On the final point, I am aware that I am a Woman of Mystery due to my penchant for dressing up. I don’t want my fellow BC victims attendees to worry about which one I am. So I had my name printed on my Blog Camp T shirt. Thoughtful huh? So, ladies, when you spot the bearded, googly eyed, blonde swishy wig, habit wearing one…you’ll know it’s me.

blog camp 2.0 - sept. 4-7

2009-07-26T11:27:00.003+02:00

quite a new followers here on the blog camp blog since blog camp 1.0, so i thought i'd remind that there are still a couple of spots left at blog camp 2.0 - sept. 4-7 (labor day weekend in the US). it's here in denmark. it promises lots of laughing, blogging, taking pictures, hanging out and drinking quite a lot of wine. and we'll also being doing some online fun simultaneously with blog camp 2.1 in reno. if you would like to come, please send me an email (it's in my profile). me being julochka. :-)

Some truths and some outright lies - A look behind the scenes of Blog Camp 1.0

2009-06-29T16:05:00.000+02:00

How else could we keep it interesting?

The theme song to the great show BLOG CAMP plays as the dashingly handsome host runs out to the stage. The Blog Camp participants eye each other warily as they take to the stage. Someone in the audience whistles, but he is quickly silenced by the security officer and dragged outside. The atmosphere is calm but something is definitely brewing...

The dashingly handsome host: Now. Before the final episode of Blog Camp airs, we have had many requests from the viewers regarding the reality of making this show happen. And we have decided to honor your right to some answers. The ladies are here ready to take some questions. Who would like to start?

One bloody hand rises.

The dashingly handsome host: What is your name? Yes, you in the fur hat and sunglasses. And the green face paint. Yes, the woman carrying around the severed head of a beloved neighborhood postman. I'm pointing at you.

spudballoo: Erhm. ...Spud? Yes, Spudballoo. SPUD! SPUD BALLOO-oo-OO. Sing it OUT!

The dashingly handsome host: Yes, let's calm down now miss and try not to spill the blood like that. You have a question to these brave ladies Ms. Spud? Balloo-oo-OO?

Spudballoo: Why, yes I do-OO-oo. I would like to know whether it is just me or do you all look like sisters?!!!

There is a hush amongst the audience. It is obvious the person posing the question has not read the coverage concerning what is known as the licking feud between julochka and Extranjera. julochka is being represented by Seaside Girl, whilst Extranjera has engaged the services of Polly. Court documents have been sealed. Judges have been, ahem...shall we say...greased.

The dashingly handsome host: Erm. Now who would like to answer this? jjj....? E-extranjera? Please?

Extranjera raises her axe, but as if to only scare the host. She glances at her fellow stars. There is tension in the air.

Extranjera: We look nothing alike. On purpose. Early on, Blogger sent out a memo on how the Blog Camp cast was to be like the Sex and the City group of women: each different, each with their own special sort of look, each making their own daring fashion choices, each having their specific quirks... The cast was chosen because all of the women were naturally like this and the choice had nothing to do with alleged sponsor deals. We are all different, yet we are like sisters.

J asks, in a very quiet voice that no one thought her quite capable of, "i'm carrie, right?"

There is some confusion in the audience as Extranjera appears to be reading from a prompt and the other ladies wave about their Converse All Stars and Starbucks mugs.

The dashingly handsome host: Thank you for that, Erhm Extranjera. Now, onto someone else. What is your question? Hello! Yoohoo! The lady in the white coat. Stop passing around the bags of pills and ask your question please. (Also, the producers would like for you to wait with the dealing until the end of the taping of this segment and Harry from lighting would like some more of those blue pills).

rxBambi: Hello everyone. let me just tell you I'm a big fan, a big fan, like a really big fan. I love you all! But I really need blogger impressions versus real life impressions?

The dashingly handsome host: Well, Kristina? Would you like to take this one? Yes? I know the knife weighs heavily on some nerve endings right now, but please. For the fans?

Kristina turns her head slowly, making the light flicker on the blade sticking out of her head. She has the faintest smirk on her face.

Kristina: I think we all agreed that we found the others very much like their blogs, even though there are of course some things that are surprising. Extranjera's niceness, for example.

Someone in the audience gasps, but Extranjera seems to not have been listening. People in the audience nervously shuffle their feet, someone sobs quietly.

rxBambi: Oh, oh, oh, I forgot. Please! I forgot to ask for pictures of shoes, but how were they?

The dashingly handsome host: You are in luck lady. We have prepared a little, how should I say, ode to the shoes...

Hrmph? How did that get in there?
(nice stains, J)

rxBambi: Oh, oh, oh, I have one more! Please mister host. I have one more superimportant question. Here it comes: Who was the most similar to what you thought they'd be like and who was the most different?

The dashingly handsome host: Well, thank you for your insightful questions Mrs. xrayBambi, but let's give someone else a chance too, why don't we? Eh? But just this once: B, would you have something to say about this?

B looks up a little dazed. She has been zooming in with her Nikon into her pretty yellow shoes. The audience sits patiently while B tries to focus her eyes, without the help of her camera. julochka snarls at licks Extranjera (platonically on the cheek). Extranjera breaks out in hives.

B: Julochka was the most similar. Just like her blog. Spooky! And Polly was the most different and we love both Pollys, and although Polly isn't her real name, we have decided to call her Polly anyway!

The dashingly handsome host: Thank you B. We all know how hard it is for you to keep your eyes open without the help of your camera.

The dashingly handsome host: Sad but true. And, onto other questions. I have been told that we have someone special in the audience. Someone related to Extranjera.

Audience looks around bewildered. Everyone is looking around for one thing - a person with an axe.

The dashingly handsome host: Yes, indeed Extranjera's siamese twin is here in the audience today. VEG please stand up and ask the ladies your question. I think it's Seaside Girl's turn to answer?

A small-headed woman wearing a baseball cap and a pair of sunglasses over her actual glasses raises a largish yellow axe. She lets out a powerful scream. The seats around her empty quickly.

VEG: Hello everyone. Don't be afraid. I would never cut down with an axe anything that is alive. I prefer a knife. Also, what was the best story of the weekend?

Seaside Girl lets out an involuntary giggle and rushes to tell the story she has in mind. The axe she is holding seems almost an extension of her.

Seaside Girl: The best story of the weekend was when julochka's friend accidently let slip that husband was well known for opening champagne bottles by slicing the cork off with his sword. The fact that husband had a sword had hitherto not been mentioned. Nor was the fact that he was pretty darned accurate with it. We all blanched slightly at the thought that the whole axe murderer thing might be a double bluff and actually husband was a sword wielding maniac instead. So glad he turned out to be neither....

The dashingly handsome host: Thank you Seaside Girl for sharing that story. Erm...What fun indeed. Now, VEG you mentioned there was something else on your mind as well. Something you had really, really pondered about.

VEG: Yes, I asked my sister, but she only said she didn't know, and this is something that is really, extremely important to me personally. I would like to know whether anyone snores?

Everyone can feel something big is about to erupt. A scandal perhaps.... B closes her eyes and chants softly to herself. Polly joins B's chanting and a beautiful harmony is created only momentarily broken by Seaside Girl's giggles and a soft moan from Kristina. julochka and Extranjera have not broken stare for minutes now. Finally B looks up.

B: We were lucky enough to have our own rooms. And Seaside Girl was the luckiest, as she got to sleep in the blue room.

Seaside Girl shrieks loudly.

The dashingly handsome host: Now, ladies, use your inside voices please. Remember what the producer-man said. Think about it. There are some more questions. How about you? What is your name? And what would you like to ask the campers?

Elisabeth : Hello, all! My name is Elisabeth and I would like to know how breakfast was? Did julochka's husband rise early to get something nice and fresh from the bakery?

All the ladies' nostrils flare, it is as if at the mention of coffee they smell and crave it. The host knows he has to act fast before all coffee-related hell breaks loose. Extranjera runs off the stage with her arm extended and her Starbucks cup in hand. B is visibly torn between leaving the stage on Extranjera's heels and staying to answer the question. B manages to resist the pull of the imaginary coffee. Extranjera can be heard backstage wreaking havoc. julochka relaxes and waves at husband and Sabin in the audience.

B: Fantastic! Plenty of coffee, and lots of cheeses and pastries whose names some of us couldn't pronounce but loved anyway! Husband was fantastic! He went to the bakery every. single. day.

Elisabeth turns towards julochka who is blowing kisses at the blushing husband. Polly and Seaside Girl wave at Sabin, before waving their axes at each other and smiling.

Elisabeth: How is your husband anyway, did he survive all these blog-girls?

Husband looks as if he is looking for the quickest exit. Julochka lowers her axe she has been using to blow kisses with and turns to answer. Kristina moans again and longingly looks at julochka's flowery Converse All Stars.

Julochka: well, long-suffering husband couldn't really say much about it, could he. because the whole thing was his idea, tho' i don't think he was quite that grey before the weekend. and there's the part where when we first got home, he did try to lock us out of the house, saying it was closed until 2010...i wonder if he was trying to tell us something with that...

The dashingly handsome host: Julochka. Nice of you to join us in your spirit too. Don't we all just wish you and Ext could settle this thing. What do you say audience?

The audience looks baffled as the prompt reads "applause". No one moves a finger. A pregnant silence ensues, until one woman raises her hand. People next to her cover their noses. A strong odor of rosemary, ginger, lemongrass and orange fills the air. An old lady collapses.

The dashingly handsome host: Do I smell the Blog Camp Blend? You must be the Fragrant Muse? Do you have a question?

Several other people collapse and some flee to the other end of the rows of seats from TFM. The host covers his nose.

The Fragrant Muse: Oh pshaw. So I like to take essential oil baths. You get used to the smell. Just wait and see how calm and creative this blend will make you. From you women, I'm wishing for auditory peeks into the weekend - like how everyone sounded. Tell us about the various accents heard this weekend.

Polly jumps up from her seat. This is the question she has been waiting for. She holds up her axe and lets out a battle-cry. Kristina moans again and her dog, Vigdis, lets out a sympathy bark, as do julochka, Seaside Girl, and B. Extranjera is nowhere to be found.

Polly: yeah!!! aiii!!! Everyone was loud! Pretty much all the time, yeah!! Like this! Hurray! Go-OO bloo-OO-og camp!

Dashingly handsome host raises a hand to quiet overexcited Polly who doesn't want to sit down and two dashingly handsome, possibly Danish, bodyguards need to be called to calm her down.

Polly, finally calm and collected: Accents? I ain't know nothing about accents but I'm pretty sure we all sounded totally, like, Danish, like, by Sunday.

The dashingly handsome host: Thank you Polly. Also, what an excellent battle-cry. Must get myself one too. The Fragrant Muse, did you have some more to ask? From everyone?

The campers remaining on the stage stare at the Fragrant Muse with apprehension. There are certain things they don't want to talk about. There are things no one is to talk about. Could this be about blackmail...?

The Fragrant Muse: Did anyone get a tattoo?

Everyone breathes a sigh of relief, and Seaside Girl patiently expects someone to ask her about her tattoo. No one does. Julochka, Kristina, Polly and B scream in unison.

The Campers: We forgot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The dashingly handsome host: Ladies, inside voices. Don't make me tell you again... Now, there has been a question that has been asked by several of our viewers who wish to remain anonymous. I have been told they are unwilling to take up this issue in person. However, Blogger feels the issue needs to be raised.

What exactly did Extranjera crochet?

The dashingly handsome host: No one knows. Sadly, no one knows. No one. Not even Extranjera herself.

Several people in the audience nod their heads. An air of sadness and loss permeates the room. Suddenly a young woman barges in. She is out of breath and carrying a tiny dog. She brandishes the dog in front of her as if it were a symbol of some bygone era.

Fidgeting Gidget: Am I late? Oh no! I need to know something. Did you all refer to each other by your real names or your bloggy aliases....because once I know someone as one name, it's really hard for me to switch.

The dashingly handsome host: Oh, okay. This is not scripted... What? Oh. Who? B? Yes, B will answer this question.

Seaside Girl smiles knowingly. Had she bribed this person to barge in, in hopes of creating a distraction? Where have julochka's shoes disappeared to? And her Starbucks cups, her Nikon, her Mac? In fact, what exactly has happened to Extranjera? Seaside Girl places a large backpack behind her chair and whistles. She twirls her axe with ease and strength.

B: This was a mix! I think we used Julochka's and Seaside Girl's real names most of the time. Kristina was the easiest one, no confusion there! B and my real name alternated. We all tried to call Ext by her real name but it was too hard to pronounce. And we all called Polly, Polly, even thought that's not her real name. But she liked it!

The dashingly handsome host: Thank you! Ladies you are free to go.

Campers scatter like cockroaches.

And that my good folks is it for today.

Disclaimer: Thank you Kristina for putting all the questions together. Please don't blame her for the final result, but instead direct all of your complaints to Extranjera, but she'd rather you didn't complain. Thanks.

lessons learned from blog camp 1.0

2009-06-25T09:35:00.000+02:00

what i learned from blog camp 1.0 and will do differently at subsequent blog camps:

order blog camp moo cards.
test the damn stickam ahead of time.
plan the online times better and then be there.
don't have book club discussion scheduled for during blog camp.
order blog camp t-shirt farther in advance and in larger size than you think you should (zazzle is really, really SLOW!)
be more realistic about how much time will be spent online and promise accordingly. i knew it would be great, but i'll admit i hadn't taken into account exactly how wonderful it would be to be together with my blog friends analog.
buy a larger french press (or two) (or perhaps just smaller cups).
more video (which for me means buy video camera).
allow more time for photo walks (turns out when you are six people stopping to take pictures every two feet, it takes a lot longer than you would imagine).
go to tivoli (this is for blog camps in denmark, obviously).
don't forget to get a tattoo.
don't forget the G&T sorbet you made and put in the freezer (i told you i was going to forget something).

did you guys learn anything at blog camp that would benefit future blog camps?

Blog Camp Material award

2009-06-24T08:42:00.002+02:00

it became very evident during blog camp, that since we were bloggers, we would have to come up with a special blog camp award. there were a lot of people who wished they were here with us and some who couldn't be here, but went far above and beyond to make blog camp something special. so we decided to create the blog camp material award, so that we could let those who really stood out know that we think they are, in fact, blog camp material.

so, we hereby award the very first blog camp material award to the following bloggers:

VEG

we know you wished desperately that you were here and we wished you were too.

spudballoo

you figured out a little late what blog camp was all about or you would no doubt have been here. you're so hilarious, we simply wished you were here. plus, you have both a nikon and mac, which are two signs of being a true blog camper.

the fragrant muse

you went far above and beyond the call of blog camp duty--you created a special blog camp blend of essential oils and sent us a whole box of fun goodies. so this is a big thank you to you!!

the blog camp blend by the fragrant muse

we anticipate that although blog camp 1.0 is over, others will prove worthy of the blog camp material award. those who have been to blog camp and those who have received the award have the right to pass it along to bloggers who you think are blog camp material - so basically any blogger you'd like to hang out with in real life.

may the blog camp material award travel far and wide and live on and on in the blogosphere.

Please remember to link back to this here Blog Camp blog. so that we can see the campers. Thank you.

blog camp best of...

2009-06-23T21:59:00.001+02:00

funniest blog camp moment: looking at the jump photos on maria's camera (even funnier than actually doing the jumping part).

bravest blog camper: seaside girl. we knew the least of her and she knew the least of us when she signed up, but she was so totally blog camp material. yay for seaside girl's bravery!

biggest surprise: finding out in the eleventh hour that extranjera knew how to crochet! (tho' kristina did have to point out to her initially that she was knitting and was likely to run into problems when she didn't have a second knitting needle.)

least like blog self (a.k.a. much more wacky in real life than blog self reveals): polly!

one who posed for every picture: polly (but she is really cute, isn't she?)

bloggy name that sticks the best: polly again!

best idea to come out of blog camp: it's a tie: 1) iwantadanishman.com (must check on availability of both domain name and cute/available danish men) and 2) blog camp 1.5 in the UK in august.

most like her blog self: Julochka! What you read is what you get! (and the camera really is attached to her face!)

most clever photo of blog camp (and there were MANY): kristina! she wins this one hands down!

most memorable quote: Extranjera "I am actually quite pleasant."(said perfectly seriously with a faint note of surprise in her voice)

most determined: B - there was no way she was leaving Denmark without seeing the little mermaid

It's very little. Like the size of B's head and bears none whatsoever comparison to B's head.

blog camp: quotable

2009-06-23T14:13:00.001+02:00

gratuitous shot of blog camp loot

nothing to do with this post

i just can't post without pictures

overheard at blog camp...

"it's amazing that there are real people behind these blogs." - polly, 19/6.09

"i'm rude in my blanket." - B at café le zinc

"small towns always creep me out a little bit." - polly at café le zinc

"i'm really quite pleasant." - extranjera at café le zinc

"i can't close my mouth when i know you're looking at me." - seaside girl, 20/6.09

"this is not the tequila from your childhood." - extranjera to polly at buresø

"i think we need more wine." - extranjera, during the kongespil (that game with the sticks) at buresø

"i don't write a lot on my blog because if i did i would just spew out darkness." - kristina, in the old toyota, copenhagen, 21/6.09

"i make pretty things." - extranjera, langlinie, copenhagen, 21/6.09

INCIDENT OF NEAR-LICKING LEAVES BLOG CAMPER DISTRESSED

2009-06-22T13:21:00.001+02:00

Stay tuned for further updates as this horrifying story unfolds.

how husband survived blog camp

2009-06-22T11:19:00.002+02:00

husband spent quite a lot of time during blog camp looking like this:

naah, in all seriousness, he was an exemplary husband. he fetched pastry and fresh bread, he brought us strawberries and cream, he opened bottles of wine, he chauffeured us back and forth on our saturday evening activity. in short, he's a keeper.

and he even had a little bit of time to relax and read the paper in the sunshine. plus, he's really kinda cute, for an old guy with a bit of a farmer tan on his arms.

Blog camp's got talent

2009-06-22T00:23:00.002+02:00

Can you guess who this is?

taking questions

2009-06-21T22:37:00.004+02:00

edited: because you keep asking for it:

back row: polly, seaside girl

front row: B, julie, sabin, extranjera

i'm getting some specific questions from various commenters on my blog and others who are asking if they can ask us some questions. so please leave your questions in the comments on here blog camp and we'll do our best to answer them in the coming days (along with a lot of other fun stuff we've got planned). :-) so stay tuned. blog camp 1.0 may be over, but it's definitely going to continue here in the blogosphere!

We can be taught.....

2009-06-21T21:37:00.005+02:00

Proving the old adage that practise makes perfect here for your viewing pleasure is proof that the blog campers can be taught. After attempts in a variety of languages Finnish proved to be the one that resulted in a co-ordinated jump. I have no idea why there is a complete lack of sound but am too shattered to be able to fix it right now. Also I have no idea why I seem to be doing a walk like a constipated ostrich at the end there....

we're hyppää-ing all over the place

2009-06-20T21:58:00.001+02:00

crouching (some are better at this than others)

apparently we can't all count

should have counted in polish, perhaps?

oh look, two in the air at once. that's pretty good.

go B!

and now it's seaside girl's turn.

and yes, that's really her.

she's not a boy. despite all of our attempts to convince you otherwise.

note to self: not only axes are dangerous

2009-06-20T19:55:00.002+02:00

for some reason I had such a headache today.

to not get you seriously worried: I had a migraine today, which meant I missed day 2 of blog camp. so I'm just as envious as the rest of you today.

hmm. on the stickcam

2009-06-20T11:25:00.000+02:00

stickam is being strangely slow to load, but i shall keep trying. i've made it public tho' and if it starts up, you should be able to find it by looking for "blogcamp!" and joining in the chat - stickam.com. otherwise, we're here, so tawk to us in the comments, people. ya know. like usual. :-) we're also on twitter at the moment. you should see us all sitting here at our computers at the dining room table....

we will be here this evening, on the blog, chatting here in comments and posting what's going on.

Not so much of Girl after all....

2009-06-20T10:49:00.005+02:00

So a few of you have been wondering who is who. This is me on the right. julochka and co got a bit of a surprise when they met me. Found the conversation a little boring for a while ....

ask and ye shall receive

2009-06-20T01:56:00.001+02:00

you wanted pictures of day 1 of blog camp (far more offline than we intended...will explain that later)...

on the metro, wondering how it's all going to turn out

in front of tivoli - already laughing

i fear all of polly's pix are going to be a bit skewed

oh wait, that one's straight

hmm, i'll bet there's a similar one of me...

we observed some interesting fashion choices

scary stuff!

busy today on strøget

even the tudors were out

so, do you guys want to climb that tower?

naah, i don't think so.

perch's tea house

the best tea ever.

see anyone you know in the reflections?

quite a lot of smiling going on.

oh man, i WANT those shoes.

we KEPT SEEING this guy!

seaside girl has a dress like that.

these guys had a lot to tell us about ACDC

my friend irene came to give several warnings to blog campers:

1.) do not let husband show you how to open bottles of champagne with a sword.

2.) watch out when julochka says, "what are you gonna remember?"

i promise, this mermaid is much better than the real one.

storm - sunshine - storm - sunshine

beautiful tho'.

and i was accused to being in cahoots with google in controlling the weather.

modern-day h.c. andersen?

what awaited us at home.

what do you think will happen tomorrow?

it's happening!

2009-06-19T22:40:00.003+02:00

I'm home after spending the day with the blog camp ladies, exploring Copenhagen. Coffee, wine and beer has been drunk. Many, many photos have been taken. And you know, they're just as funny and great to be around in real life as in the blogosphere!

waiting...

2009-06-19T08:50:00.002+02:00

...for the sparks to start flying.

just a little over three hours to go.

it's sunny, warm and beautiful outside, tho' they promise some showers.

nervously waiting

2009-06-18T23:02:00.003+02:00

It's ten pm London time exactly. I'm ready to go blog-camping.

The little suitcase, surprised that it's being used, is sitting by the door ready to leave. It's mostly stuffed with alcohol and chocolates for the blogesses. I hope they'll let me out of the country with all that contraband.

It's five past ten and I'm getting more and more nervous. Alarm clock set for five am and I'm hoping for some beauty sleep despite all the nerves.

Twelve more hours to go...

Rocks and Sucks

2009-06-18T22:15:00.003+02:00

It rocks that I have found the suitcase.
It sucks that the packing fairy has once again failed to turn up to pack the darned thing.

It rocks that I have wrapped the blog camp trinkets and they look great.
It sucks that my blog camp t-shirt has failed to arrive in time.

It rocks that julochka's husband might leave a tastefully arranged axe by the door for a laugh.
It sucks that everyone who wants to be there to enjoy the fun can't (but you can join us online!).

It rocks/sucks (rucks? socks?) that I worked out that I haven't been on a plane by myself in over 12 years.

It rocks that I am going to blog camp tomorrow.
Yeah, that just rocks.

counting down

2009-06-18T11:45:00.000+02:00

a little hint

preparations are coming along nicely:

the goodie bags are finished and packed up and waiting (much more calmly than i am) on the table in the studio.
there are 15 bottles of white wine in the wine fridge.
my grocery list is made and i'm soon off to the store.
our saturday evening activities are confirmed.
the cleaning girl has already been here for 3 hours and the place is looking great!
beds will soon be made up.
we are aiming at having the last of that awful matted hairball off the cat by the time you all arrive.
camera battery is on the charger.
a selection of cameras for tomorrow's photo walk in copenhagen is prepared.
good weather has been ordered (let's hope it comes (along with my blog camp t-shirts)).

and i can't resist one more (just because nikon rocks the colors)

p.s. our blog camp site meter numbers are up this week. everyone must be quite excited!! i know i am!!

see you all tomorrow in terminal 3!

We are really doing it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-18T01:20:00.007+02:00

Yes, there is going to be lots of exclamation marks in this post!!!!!!! Blog camp is just a day away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And I'm ready for it!!!!!!!

I have my passport and tickets
Presents have been received and wrapped (with help from my PA, I mean, boyfriend!)
Suitcase is almost packed
Blog camp t-shirt arrived on time and has been packed
Real life names of blog campers have been memorized (although pronunciation may be a problem! Forgive me. I'll do my best!).

In a little bit more than 24 hours, I'll be meeting Polly at Heathrow and soon after, we'll arrive in Denmark and meet the rest. I can't believe we're really doing this!!!!!!!

I've been so excited that I've been talking about blog camp with Real World People. Some get it, some don't! There's been suspicious looks and some concerns (there's even been talk of axe murderers). There's also been some great reactions, and those are the ones I'm choosing to focus on!!

Because I know it's going to be great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

we're going to be live

2009-06-17T21:59:00.003+02:00

I've now tried out stickam and when it's time you'll be able to see us at stickam.com/blogcamp! I haven't read all the manuals, but from what I understand we'll be able to video/text chat with all of you who won't be in Denmark.

doing math is problematic

2009-06-17T11:16:00.000+02:00

i've been fidding in my head with various times we could plan to be online during blog camp this weekend and have realized, once again, with trying to figure out what time it was where at what time here, that i hate math, so i'm just going to throw some times out there and hope that some people somewhere will be able to be online then too and will come to play with us.

i'm certain we will all be posting all kinds of wacky things here outside the scheduled times, so everyone should just follow their normal urge to play along in the comments.

but, here's when we'll plan to be online (will provide stickam stuff later, as i still haven't tried it out, but it's on my list!):

we'll be back home and fed in time to get online by 9 p.m. friday

friday, june 19 - from 9 p.m. 'til we wander away (we'll also be making an appearance over at hermit book club around this time, since i'm leading the murakami book discussion there)

saturday, june 20 - 10-11 a.m. - this will hopefully be convenient for anyone east and south of here who would like to hang out with us a bit.

saturday, june 20 - 8 p.m. 'til we wander away we'll be out at buresø, but with a lot of computers and wireless, we should be able to squeeze in some time with our blog campers in north america.

this is where we'll be saturday evening

we won't make any promises about sunday morning at this time, because they might not be prudent in light of the supply of wine that has been laid in.

do bear in mind that we will be tweeting as well and you can no doubt follow what's going on there.

i'm getting very excited and really looking forward to this. it's getting that familiar feeling of chaos that happens in my head when something finally comes together and it involves a bunch of other people and you can't really envision it very clearly anymore. but i keep hearing laughter, lots of laughter in my head, so i know it's going to be great.

if you'd like to suggest other times, please do so in the comments and we'll try to accommodate.

we must have been very, very good...

2009-06-16T08:56:00.000+02:00

blog campers, i can tell you that we must have been very, very good. because yesterday, this box of fun arrived at my house, just for us! i'm not going to show you what it contained, because that's a surprise, but i can tell you that we're going to have so much fun with this! i'll keep who it's from a secret for now as well...all will be revealed in good time, my pretties.

Just going to show up...

2009-06-15T10:44:00.002+02:00

That's what I intend to do. I'll just show up and everyone will have to love me.
So much for discovering my talent.

1. I still don't know how to play anything on a guitar - acoustic, not, or hero.

4. I found out a handstand is very much out of the question, seeing as my thumbs are ready to fall off anyways from excessive golfing, and the unforeseen result of a handstand might be an entire arm doing just that, and julochka seems to think that a visit to the emergency room would not be cool. I personally think it would make for awesome tv, but if that stickam whatever thing (I have no idea) doesn't want to bend to julochka's will, I'm willing to forego the chance of waiting for hours to have someone glue my arm on. No handstand - suspicious or otherwise.

2. I only have two prepaid numbers at the moment, neither of which I know, so that's the end of memorizing mine. Also, memorizing a prepaid number is like preparing a fancy meal for a monkey, expecting an unforeheard comment on a specific literary issue from another kind of monkey, or learning the lambada in 2009. Pointless.

3. The best tequila the liquor store sells in Finland is Olmeca, which makes me want to throw down my sombrero in desperation and loot a tequila carrying post wagon. And then pretend to be the president of Mexico and draw up an angry complaint letter (referencing the queen of Denmark) to the government of Finland on the sad state of their state-owned (bad) bottle peddlers.

6. I forgot about the guacamole. There just might be some light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe.

13. My blog camp T-shirts are too small and will be forgotten home. Completely by accident.

728. I'll be finishing the Murakami Hermit Book Club book on the plane by reading every second line and underlining vigorously.

But other than that, I'm getting kind of excited. And have presents. I do.

blog camp warnings

2009-06-14T23:04:00.001+02:00

blog camp is drawing near and at the same time as i am really excited and impatient and wish it was now, now, NOW, i also know there are some things that aren't going to get done and so i'm here to warn you about those as follows:

the laundry room still looks as if a car bomb went off in it.
there are a lot of weeds and generally ungroomed areas in our garden.
i can cook, well even, but will likely go totally scatter-brained and forget to serve half of the dishes i prepared. please help me remember to put them on the table.
there will probably be dust bunnies under the beds. (don't worry, we're quite sure they're harmless).
we're probably going to pull stomach muscles laughing.
i should have gone on a diet before you all came, but i didn't.
i may have to run off for 45 minutes on saturday to sabin's riding lesson because she's incredibly worried that her father (even after a training run today) is incapable of saddling and bridling the horse.
i haven't finished painting the closet doors in the fabulous ironing room upstairs, so that room doesn't look as cool and finished as the photo i posted may have indicated.
you may find out that i'm pretty much even sleeping in my new converse all-stars. (and have you seen stacey's new ones, by the way?)
you will be asked to paint something clever on a table.
you will be asked to spontaneously compose lots of balderdash definitions.

and in order not to scare off everyone who's coming on friday by plane, train, bike and automobile, here are some good things:

i've been making some fun little blog camp surprises this weekend.
some of the others who can't actually be a blog camp have sent some fun little blog camp surprises our way. (thank you!!)
i've washed all the bedding and so there are fresh sheets on every bed in the house.
i ordered a kilo of fresh shrimp and a box of gorgeous organic peaches, nectarines and plums which will be delivered on friday along with our regular veggie box from årstiderne. so it won't be all food that's bad for us.
my cleaning girl is coming right before you all arrive, so there is a good chance those dust bunnies will be scared into submission.
we're probably going to pull stomach muscles laughing.
husband has been practicing his pastry runs.

in all seriousness, i'm really, really looking forward to hanging out with all of you totally happening blog camp babes next weekend. stay tuned this week for the schedule of online bloggy goodness...i'm going to try to play with stickam, but if it proves to be beyond me it's not working, we'll just use this blog space...posting and then "chatting" with all of you who wish you were at blog camp in the comments. ya know. like normal.

Saturday

2009-06-13T23:27:00.002+02:00

Here's for you, lovely people of the blogosphere: a flower and hoping you're having a good weekend. Next weekend is blog camp, YAY!

Blog camp to do list

2009-06-11T22:56:00.003+02:00

Find passport. Its in that cupboard. Given the state of the cupboard I need to start looking for it now as seven days might not be long enough to find it.
Find suitcases. I repeat. How is it possible to lose suitcases? I am starting to truly believe that someone has broken into my house and taken only the suitcases. I don't know why they would do that but it seems to be the only logical answer to their disappearance.
Consider which pj's will be best for hanging around in on Saturday.
Urgently need to find a talent other than the capacity to consume large quantities of alcohol.
Find out if there is anyone I can bribe at zazzle to ensure that Blog Camp T-shirt gets here before next Friday.
Seriously consider whether I am brave enough to go swimming in that lake and if so take swimwear.
Try and contain my inner child excitement about going to the airport and getting on a plane and act in the manner of seasoned traveller constantly passing through international hubs.
Still need to find out what a blurb is.
Stop wondering whether sad enjoyment of international plane travel and lack of blurb knowledge will render me the camp geek.
Stop making lists and actually do some of this stuff.

you never know...

2009-06-06T18:28:00.002+02:00

...what you might see in copenhagen...

it might be buildings with a bit of a dragon problem...

or the latest, most futuristic looking yacht...

an oxymoronic sign you NEVER thought you'd see...

or some guys riding a round bicycle...

possibly even a blue viking...

and you might even be able to pick up a cute sailor or two...

hey boys, over here.

did a little practice run of a photo afternoon in copenhagen.

we're gonna have a blast at blog camp.

idea 2 - moo moo

2009-06-05T13:41:00.001+02:00

i think we are all well aware of my obsession deep and abiding love for those whimsical little moo cards that you can make of your own fabulous pictures and use as a sort of alternative, way creative business card, but which you can also include in your decor and your paintings.

i think that we should order blog camp moo cards from the photos we take during the weekend. and then to prolong the fun of blog camp beyond actual blog camp, we should have some kind of fun contest-type activities where people can win a little selection of the blog camp moo cards.

this week's visits

2009-06-04T12:47:00.000+02:00

according to the site meter report (not sure why it comes on thursdays when all my others come on saturdays), our little blog camp blog has had 174 visitors in the past week. this week (my own blog aside), the visitors are coming predominantly from cuttings on a blog (for the second week in a row!) and from the (mis)adventures of veg. go B & VEG! you guys rock! but the last few visitors have come our way from rxbambi's keepsake award post. so go bambi!

tuesdays are our biggest visit day for blog camp (that's actually true on any blog, or at least on any of my blogs. tuesdays are are definitely blog catch-up day out there in the real world.)

i just thought you might like to hear read these site meter fun facts.

would you believe?

2009-06-04T09:27:00.000+02:00

i almost forgot to order myself a blog camp t-shirt. madness. have remedied the situation now. and even got one for husband, since it's all his idea.

you too can order one if you want--go here. even if you aren't coming to blog camp--you can feel like you're there. :-) they go very well with flannel pajama bottoms and sweatpants. and the measly proceeds (seriously, zazzle takes most of it) will go to keep blog campers in wine. and you definitely wouldn't want to see us sober...

idea 1 - a blog camp guide to copenhagen

2009-06-03T09:05:00.000+02:00

after a mad work week last week followed by a weekend of sunshine, i'm feeling rested and full of ideas. it's turned cloudy and rainy today, so i'm wrapped in a sweater with a cup of tea and ready to share at least one of those ideas...

since all of us attending the coming blog camp are a bit mad about our cameras and we intend to do a photo walk in copenhagen anyway...i was thinking that we should turn the best of all of our photos into a blurb book. inspired, as ever, by the lovely and talented tangobaby, who has made two blurb books. i have two in progress started, but sadly not finished.

i'd like to change that and i figure that if we do it together--a blog camp guide to copenhagen or some such thing, then the commitment to one another to finish it and make it available would well, sort of get rid of my procrastination.

go and check out blurb if you don't know it already. and be thinking about contents and an angle for our photos.

Style seekers or trendsetters?

2009-06-02T01:26:00.004+02:00

According to the new issue of Easy Living magazine, Copenhagen is THE place to go for style seekers! Of course, I think of ourselves, the blog camp girls, as trendsetters. It's only right as we are setting a trend by attending the first blog camp, and event that will surely become a famous blogging festival soon!
The countdown has started and I can't wait!!!!

it was bound to happen

2009-06-01T23:21:00.000+02:00

i accidentally posted a hermit book club post here...but have now removed it and put it where it belongs. so go here if you'd like to see my little ditty about the upcoming murakami.

all these blogs. i don't know where i'm at...she says as goes muttering off to bed...all that sunshine and white wine in the the garden is exhausting.

the countdown has started

2009-06-01T17:12:00.005+02:00

Since we hit June the countdown to blog camp has started. It's less than three weeks now.

Looks like I'm the only one left without a talent. I haven't been discovered yet, even though Britain clearly has got talent... (bad joke, sorry Susan).

I'm going from super excited to scared on the idea of a tattoo.

I think I need to buy Union Jack PJs,

and I need to borrow a Mac because my black Dell simply won't do.

I still can't find my tiara which I stashed somewhere, can't find those damn matching diamond slippers either so don't know WHAT I'll wear for Saturday afternoon at the lake.

I don't know how to represent my country and I'll have to review my complete collection of Eurovision song contests for inspiration...

I know I'll be stressing out about the talent thing for the next nineteen days. But perhaps as a Pole with German blood mixed in I could follow Extranjera's lecture on tequilla with my own on, say, vodka. In fact, apparently I'm good at lecturing, i.e. talking about the same thing for about hour and a half. Perhaps that could be my talent. On a suggested topic.

Or perhaps I could spend that time convincing everyone that rock climbing is da best. In case there is still someone there who doesn't know that...

19 days and counting.

Thanks...

What should be my talent?

2009-05-29T10:31:00.000+02:00

I'm still woefully without any talents to teach my blogger sisters at blogger camp. However, I have three weeks to learn something worth sharing at camp. I should really have something to share... Perhaps you could vote on what that something should be.

Here are the things I could totally master in three weeks (we all know how I probably have some personality hidden in there [here?] somewhere who can devote all her time to this, as well as actually being able to learn something in a short time. It'll have to be one of the personalities who don't drink.... I think):

1. Play Metallica's Nothing Else Matters on an acoustic guitar. This would perhaps be best if I hadn't left my guitar in South Africa, but in case one of my sisters has one?

2. Memorize my own telephone number. Not a proper talent I realize, but a big feat for me. And if this one wins, I might just throw in memorizing the hubby's digits as well. No takers?

3. Stern lecture on how to properly drink tequila and how tequila and mezcal are not the same. I might do this in the interest of tequiducation anyways, but it still requires me to memorize history and read about worms. This one is my favorite, since it combines alcohol and worms. I'm gross that way.

4. Doing a suspicious handstand which might not be a handstand at all but just an illusion (giving myself a way out, since I don't know if my poor arms can support my enormous weight).

5. Fitting my entire index finger up my nose. Okay that's old news. Get it.

5. Preparing a kick-ass guacamole. Okay, so I already sort of know how to do this in theory, but so far in practice my guacamole has been less kick-ass and more singe-your-tongue-right-onto-the-roof-of-your-mouth. I'm still working on getting the balance right.

If you are not satisfied with the options, you are always welcome to suggest some more. I'm counting on you to figure out what I could be good at (besides picking my nose and drinking).

Thanks.

hmm...

2009-05-28T11:29:00.000+02:00

i just got the site meter report for this trusty blog camp blog. and one of the visitors who stopped by came from a google korea search on "nude stewardess pic." isn't that hilarious? i hadn't noticed any nude stewardess pics here, had you?'

other than that, the site meter tells me that many people who click in do it from cuttings on a blog and from the lovely mrs. rotty's blog. mrs. rotty, i know you only just got home, but are you coming to blog camp in september? :-)

i've been thinking...

2009-05-25T00:30:00.000+02:00

...do we need tiaras for blog camp?

this one's from cartier. but i was thinking about it after rxbambi 's post. maybe something a little more understated?

blog camp goodies

2009-05-24T12:14:00.000+02:00

when i should have been working this weekend, instead i worked on blog camp goodies. it was much more fun. and we wouldn't want to mix up our coffees.

at blog camp

2009-05-22T19:34:00.000+02:00

one of the things i want us to do at blog camp (other than get a tattoo, which has fast become much more serious for me now that polly wants one too) is come up with our own blog award that we send out there into the world and see if comes back to us and how. like a message in a bottle. or a balloon released on the wind. wouldn't that be cool?

be thinking about what it should be and how it should look.

asking yourself...

2009-05-19T19:59:00.000+02:00

....do i fit in at blog camp? if you can answer yes to more than one of the following, blog camp is for you. (and yes, maybe i just felt like making a list. it's my blog camp and i'll list if i want to. :-p)

do i...

like to stay in my pajamas all day long?
love to blog?
want to meet some of my blog friends in person?
like to drink wine?
and lattes?
know a lot of funny stories that i love to tell?
want a bunch of new funny stories to tell?
love to laugh?
have any good skills? (yup, that sounds a little napoleon dynamite.)
think about getting a(nother) tattoo? (whoa, where's she going with that? she never said anything about that before.)
like really good pastry?
like to have burgers beside a beautiful lake?
ever get down on the ground to take a picture?
wonder what my blog friends look like in real life?
ever take pictures with my friends where we all go like this:

if you answered yes to more than one, or wanted to answer yes, you're gonna have a blast at blog camp.

This could actually be my talent - the only one

2009-05-17T22:34:00.000+02:00

I know. I could in fact be alienating quite a few people. That's why I'm not doing this in my own blog.

Love you people, and too bad for you that photobooth pictures will upload, even in Zambia.

the pictures in my head

2009-05-17T13:21:00.000+02:00

in my head i have a picture of mma ramotswe, from the no. 1 ladies detective series. that picture actually makes me rather afraid of seeing the t.v. series that was done of those books, because i'm really quite afraid it won't match the picture in my head and i don't want that picture spoiled. this is because i once had a picture of john irving in my head--it was more than a picture really, as i'd seen pictures of him--it involved a whole construction of how he was to hang out with. and then i went to hear him speak one time in iowa city and he turned out to be a really arrogant asshole kind of a guy, which almost ruined his books for me. thankfully, i got over that.

but my point in bringing this up is to say that we all do it--we formulate a picture of the people behind the blogs we read. we feel that we know people, but very often we don't actually know what they look like. me, i mostly hide behind a camera on my blog, tho' there is the occasional picture of me without. but more than a physical picture, we formulate an idea of what people are like.

i'm sure that none of you will be that far from the picture i have of you in my head, because the medium of the blog is a personal one. it's diary-style and i think it exposes a lot of who we are. so, i'm really interested to see if the pictures i've formed of you in my head will correspond to how you actually look in real life.

so, i'm going to reveal what i think each of you looks like right here and now before i actually find out in real life. i wanted to get my impressions down here, so we can compare and perhaps laugh uproariously at how wrong or right i was. i'm putting myself out on a limb here and i'm going to write for all to read what i think each of you will be like. coming up. like right now. (this is kinda hard.)

B - i have a mixed image of you in my head. your profile picture is from the back, so it's tough to know. i think i have this basic picture of you as a really natural backpacker girl--you don't mind pulling a pair of wrinkled linen trousers out of the backpack in the morning, pairing them with the easy elegance of a white v-neck t-shirt, tying on a colorful scarf, maybe just a titch of mascara and you're good to go, secure in the knowledge that you can wear those wrinkles out of the linen as the day progresses. my picture of your work clothes is similar, but minus the wrinkles and maybe with a colorful, bright skirt or two and perhaps some bold silver jewelry. but, that doesn't entirely jibe in my head with the belly dancer. but, i realize people are so complex, so i'm looking forward to seeing how you bring those two images together.

extranjera - you have a lot of funny descriptions of yourself here and there on your blog. most often eastern european and shot putter (that might be my interpretation) come up, and something about not being satisfied with your eyes, but i don't really buy that. i picture you as looking like the rock singer pink.

kristina - i'll admit that my view of you has lots to do with a general picture of swedes in my head. longish blonde hair, great-fitting, classic clothes, nicely ironed shirts, just the right shoes. you also avoid pictures of yourself on your blog, choosing beautiful scenes and pictures of your dog in motion. they say people choose a dog that looks like them, so based on vigdis, i'd guess that you are small and quick and fine-featured.

seaside girl - you are perhaps the most difficult. maybe because you've not been blogging for long and so the picture you've painted for me isn't as filled in. but because the picture i have formed in my head from your words and your dilemmas with the prince of darkness doesn't actually fit at all with your recent post on getting a cut & color. i would have thought you were really quite glam--all dark sleek hair, great makeup and while not exactly balancing around on stilettos, a fan of a good pair of heels. i can't wait to see the merel streep dungarees at blog camp tho'.

polly - the picture i have of you in my head is one that matches my pictures of favorite female professors through the years. i think because your posts have an intellectual bent and i know that you live without a t.v. (SOooo wish we had the courage to go there). i picture you having an academic look and by that i don't mean disheveled and lacking in any clothing update since 1978. i mean blondish hair in a chin-length bob (might not be totally fair since i think you've had a couple of pictures of yourself on your blog that more or less match this), nice cardigans, business-like trousers, a really great roomy leather bag. i don't know if you wear glasses, but i picture you with glasses.

so, guys, i've put myself out there. laugh all you want. but we'll see when blog camp comes whether you match these pictures in my head. :-) and next, your voices. i wonder what they'll be like...

balderdash

2009-05-15T13:39:00.000+02:00

all blog campers have just been invited to be contributors to balderdash, since you will be put to work writing definitions at some point during blog camp. :-) and you should probably start practicing now.

For you, ladies!

2009-05-15T00:56:00.005+02:00

I'm giving this award to all the ladies who are coming to blog camp (or are organizing a South Africa one).

I've said it on my blog but wanted to say it here too: I think that blog camp is the perfect example of the great things that can happen in the blogosphere, and a sign of true sisterhood.

So for you ladies, no need to pass it on, just enjoy! (But if you do want to pass it on, rules here. I say other nice things about you there too!)

Update: Mrs Rotty had the same idea and nominated us all here! How crazy is that?

what happens at blog camp...

2009-05-14T18:37:00.000+02:00

...stays at blog camp.

except of course the bits that get blogged.

a tentative plan

2009-05-13T23:14:00.000+02:00

i'm not really one to plan too much ahead, but i am excited about blog camp and despite my general neglect of the blogosphere this week due to having actually gotten a life, i'm ready for a little brain break before bed and thought i'd share the rough blog camp plan that's forming in my head.

since y'all get in at a reasonably early time on friday, i thought we could go to the central station in copenhagen, stow your bags and go immediately on a photo walk in copenhagen, if the weather is good, of course. :-) here's some examples of what we could do...

then, we'll head home and make some dinner (if we haven't stuffed ourselves on the best sharwarmas in the world and a sausage or two) and perhaps get in a virtual session (must look at time differences more closely at a moment when brain not fried). saturday, we'll hang out and do a virtual session (or two) and learn belly dancing, crocheting and possibly how to knit (as if there's hope for me and the retarded monkey stance). then, we do the buresø burger thing in the evening (and no doubt consume vast quantities of wine) and have LOTS of laughs along the way.

any additions/corrections/suggestions for times for virtual sessions are most welcome. :-)

some things needs to be said

2009-05-13T09:46:00.002+02:00

Since I'm on a roll with the confession extravaganza here's another one - even thought it's not quite Friday.

This is Wednesday edition of a blog camp confession. I've been thinking about this lately so here it is:

I'm a PC, not a Mac...

(wait, it gets worse!)

I'm a... Dell

(does the fact that it's a black Dell help?!?!)

I know this is just not cool enought but it's purely cost driven. No ideology behind my PCness whatsoever.

As penance, I'll be pouring wine making sure that noone's glass is empty.

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And speaking of wine - Julie, the t-shirts are lovely, and with the proceeds going to such a worthy cause, I'm getting mine soon!

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