Future planning

Well, this post might show if people are actually reading my blog. I am starting to envision how my post-UB life will look. Timing is changing, but it should happen by the end of 2023. So, if you are looking for freelance help with web content, social media, WordPress, technical writing, proofreading or special events, let me know. I'd love to talk to you.

Curating Twitter to "shut down"

Concerned about deleting my business Twitter account fully, so instead I'm parking it. I deleted all of my followers and stopped following everyone, and turned the account private. The I discovered that they created an "interests" section where they checked everything I ever tweeted about along with the current owner's name and his personal interests. I'm now unchecking all those boxes. In the process of deleting some old tweets I was reminded of all the ways I worked to start this business again in 2009. I took a class and started a website at http://offpeak DOT comxa DOT com/. It no longer exists, but I did one. I also brainstormed lots of ideas and wrote a lot of pitch letters. And 14 years later I continue to have a side hustle. Perseverance does pay off.

Saving cool stuff

Off Peak is leaving Twitter. There is so much spam on X now that it is not worth the time. And so many new followers I don't understand. 

Anyone remember Empire Avenue? I am starting to think somebody thought the gamification process was real. 

I learned the hard way with another job not to delete an account, but only to cleanse it and park it. That way no one can steal your handle.

As part of the curation process, I'm saving some cool things and wondering if I need a link tree :)

https://linktr.ee/efa_editors

https://linktr.ee/bels_editors

https://linktr.ee/Thewriterscoop

https://www.webemployed.com/

https://linktr.ee/mrdeadlier

https://linktr.ee/buffalofambase

https://www.upwork.com/

https://www.fiverr.com/

https://linktr.ee/fwj

I am also sad to see how hard it is to find people I already like on Mastodon and I already lost one iteration to a dead server farm and overwhelmed admin. Pinning my first account (@cpd623@masthead.social) in case it ever comes back. Launching new social feels much harder this time. 

Twitter is now X

 And all I can think is that the new owner is a quitter. Although the person who called it Xitter and pronounced the X like SH might have a point. 

Going to delete my Off Peak Twitter account this week. Currently running my archive and then I'll delete everything and make it private. I don't want someone else to take my handle, but I'm not going to engage over there anymore. 

Twitter was such an astounding place once it got going. Mastodon isn't quite there yet and I don't trust Meta.  

Where are you heading now to participate in a social space? 

GA4

On Saturday, Google Analytics as we know it will stop. 

This is a Google blogging platform. It does not play well with the new GA4. 

Crossing fingers that the code snippet I just added to the site works. I don't get a lot of traffic here, but I do like to know what works :)

And now for something completely different...

I had the opportunity to attend a student convention on campus last year. It was one the geekiest events I've ever attended and one of the best things was the pop-up shops all over campus. I had so much fun browsing and adding games to lists and buying stuff, but one game in particular stood out.

Dino Dude Ranch: https://www.letimangames.com/dino-dude-ranch.html 

It's a kid's game for learning how to manage resources and start to learn how to prep for more complicated games. The store only had one copy for ordering and I forgot to put my name down. Tagging here so I remember to go shop for it again! 

2023: A year of change

Looking back at this blog, I see how much has changed AGAIN.  Not only is Facebook still being difficult, now Twitter is no longer a positive place to be. I'm hanging in with it to stay connected to people I've learned so much from, but I'm finding more connections with LinkedIn alongside dipping my toes into Mastodon.  

From a work perspective, this image represents my year. Do you think it means taking a chance on change? Or make a change to get a better chance? I think both-and will be the goal for the year. 

The number 23 is significant to me and I am happy to be in 2023 contemplating next steps across the board. Let me know if I can help your business do the same... what changes do you need to make? What cleanup are you doing post-pandemic to clear the decks for your next big adventure?