Wednesday, September 7, 2011

FAQ for my Facebook Friends


Dear Facebook Friends,
This is a blog post just for you. There are about 100 of you and I love you all. It has come to my attention that there may be one or two of you that are unaware of the fact that I have a blog. (Gasp!) There are also some of you who do know about my blog(s), but are a little puzzled by it, my facebook fan page, my new obsession with Twitter, etc. So here you are: All your questions answered. Well, maybe not all of them, but at least the ones you’ve actually asked me when you’ve run into me IRL. If you have others, let me know.

1. You have a blog?
Yes, I have a blog. This is it. It is called Sarcasm 101. (I actually have another blog, but we’ll get to that in a second.) I post about 3-4 times a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. I write about my experiences with social media; my views on the news, politics, and the world; parenting; things that I think are stupid; ask questions of my readers about their faith; and present a weekly summary of stuff I see on Twitter that makes me laugh. Yes, it's a lot like the stuff you've listened to me drone on and on about when you actually see me. And I know that if you know me IRL, you probably do not need more of this in your life. But if it’s been a while since we’ve hung out or if you just want to know about the latest thing that happens to be annoying me, you will find that here. (Also, FYI, it turns out I am way funnier on my blog than I am IRL. At least that’s what my dear husband tells me.)

2. You have another blog?
I do! It's pretty exclusively stories about the boys (the little ones, not the husband). It's called Little Ants. It is 100% grandparent safe. It is mostly only adorable if you find stories about other people's kids (specifically mine) adorable. Oh! And the boys have pseudonyms on Little Ants: Flik & Z. (Get it? They're movie ants!)

3. What’s with the Rubyspikes?
Rubyspikes, or Ruby Spikes, is my pseudonym. It's also my Twitter handle. There isn't really a story behind it. Well, there kind of is, but it's really lame and boring. So basically, Rubyspikes is just me; only the online me. 

4. What’s a fan page and why do you have one?
A Facebook fan page is just a public page on Facebook that anyone can Like; mine is Rubyspikes. Why do I have one? Well, because I have two blogs and between them, I post at least a few times a week, if not more. When I first started blogging, I would post the link on my personal page every time. I know some people clicked the links, some people ignored the links, and some people really wished I would stop with the friggin' blog links all the time. So for my dear friends who love me but aren't all about seeing my blog posts in their regular feed, I created a fan page. This way, if you want to keep up on the blog posts, you can Like Rubyspikes. If not, feel free to not Like. 

5. Fine. How do I like your fan page?
Really, do not feel like you have to Like my fan page. Hubs isn't a "fan", but he is a regular blog reader. And even if you're not a blog reader, I know you still like me. So we're all good; no worries. 
Now, if you do want to Like my fan page, it's pretty easy. Click on this link: Rubyspikes Facebook Fan Page. When you get there, click the Like button. Once you do, you will see my Rubyspikes updates in your Facebook news feed. These are 98% links to the latest blog posts, but there's an occasional random status update in there, too.

6. What if I only want to read one of your blogs?
There are actually a couple other ways to "follow" my blogs, each of which work independently, so you can choose to follow only one of the blogs. Alternative way #1: Bookmark the blog and then check in every now and then. (I do not recommend this method. It is rather manual. There are easier ways.) Alternative way #2: Up at the top of this page, there's a little box that says, "FOLLOW BY EMAIL" above it. Enter your email address and every time I publish a post, you'll get it in your email. Easy peasy. Alternative way #3: Google Friend Connect. (That's the little box on the right that shows how many members this site has.) You know what, that's a little too complicated. Stick with the first two options. You'll be happier that way. (Unless you want to read some more blogs. In that case, GFC is awesome.) 

7. Do you mind if I read your blog?
I am surprised how often I get asked this question. Of course I don't mind if you read my blog! If I didn't want people reading it, I'd write in a journal instead of on the Internet. And I'd probably stop telling people about my blog. And if we get together, feel free to mention that you read it if, especially in the event that I start telling a story that you've already read about on my blog. I tend to tell the same stories IRL because most people I know IRL don't really read my blog. So if you do visit here often, feel free to tell me to skip on to a story I haven't already blogged about.

8. What is up with the Twitter thing?
I know! You don't get it at all, right? Neither did I a few months back. Just trust me, it's awesome. In fact, I cannot relegate it's awesomeness to this one little section of this post. Maybe I'll explain all of it's awesomeness in another post. So if you want to hear all about it, you'll have to come back later for the full scoop. :)

So... Did that answer all of your questions? What did I leave out? What do you still want to know. Let me know!