Author Archives: crossn81

10 Basic Blog Building Bloks

5 Replies

I occasionally do some consulting work, helping non-profits and groups with fund raising and web communications strategies. I recently was helping a client with some Internet integration strategies and we walked through the basics of blogging. Here are my 11 Basic Blog Building Bloks.

  1. Blog First off what is a blog? You may have been visiting this site for awhile, but do you know the difference between a blog and a website? Blogger (major blog hosting company) defines a blog:

    In simple terms, a blog is a web site, where you write stuff on an ongoing basis. New stuff shows up at the top, so your visitors can read what’s new. Then they comment on it or link to it or email you. Or not.

    The term was derived from web log, which was shortened to BLOG!

  2. Posting This is a fancy way of saying writing a note on your blog. I’m not sure where the term came from specifically, but it is similar to posting something on the wall for everyone to see!
  3. Feeds or RSS RSS is Really Simple Syndication. Wikipedia says,

    RSS makes it possible for people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated manner that’s easier than checking them manually.

    In other words a Feed or RSS allows you the reader to get blogs delivered to you or you are fed the blog.

  4. Feed Reader A feed reader or feed aggregator is a website or software that gathers all of your feeds and puts them in one location. It mixes all the ingredients (feeds) and serves them to your favorite meal on a silver platter (feed reader). I personally use Google Reader I have also set up this blog to provide you with an e-mail option.
  5. Interaction Part of the beauty of blogging is that there is the opportunity for interaction. The most common form of interaction is through commenting. Many readers express their thoughts about a particular post in a comment. I have appreciated those who comment on my posts and provide feedback! Anyone can comment even if you don’t have a blog. I have also provided ways for you to e-mail me more personal thoughts.
  6. Advertising Some people are able to blog for a full time job! That would be nice, but not a reality for me. They do that through a variety of revenue generating functions. The most common is through advertisements. A quick browse through this site shows a variety of ads. Most of these generate pennies per click and some a % of the final sale of a product. It is a balance to make sure that you are not overwhelmed by ads but also optimize my ability to generate a small revenue stream! These ads are targeted so they are actually of interest to us and not a complete waste of space!
  7. Content A blog is pretty worthless without content! You would stop coming to my blog if I stopped writing on it. You would never have come if it was just any empty shell. I am definitely not the best blogger in the blogosphere, but I try to present polished and relevant content for you. Consistency and relevancy are two important words related to content.
  8. HTML Hyper Text Mark-up Language is the Internet standard language used to create websites. With something like Blogger it is quite easy to have a blog without any knowledge of HTML and most bloggers probably don’t. For some of the more advanced functions of this site I’ve had to learn bits and pieces of HTML code, but am not an expert. I often am having to search tutorial sites to find some specific piece of code.
  9. Publicize Similar to advertising, but this is getting your blog known throughout the web community. There are lots of ways to publicize your site, but the easiest is to join a blog network such as the Complete Running Network. Getting yourself on their blog roll will exponentially increase your readership! Become active in running forums, sharing your stories and ideas and linking to your blog when appropriate. Making sure that your friends and family know about your site, even adding it to your e-mail signature! Commenting on other people’s blogs is also important. Blogging is about community, when you comment on someones blog others will see that and look back at your blog.
  10. Blogging Platforms There are a variety of different companies that offer blogs. The most popular is probably Blogger (owned by Google). Team Cross Runs is being written on the WordPress platform (they have 2 options, either a hosted platform or a web-based platform). Typepad is also a popular blogging platform. I would say that Blogger is probably the all around easiest to use, but WordPress offers some great benefits that once you understand can really add value to your blog.

PS I purposely misspelled Bloks in the same way as Clif’s Shot Bloks!

Technorati tags: , ,

A Very Stupid Mistake or Series of Mistakes

4 Replies

I made a very stupid mistake yesterday when I went for an easy 5 mile run. I didn’t really know what the temperature was (first mistake) and didn’t have enough clothes/layers (second mistake) on over my core, let alone my extremities. Back in December I gave 9 Winter Weather Tips, I should follow my own advice!

I had been playing on the Internet, so I had no excuse for not checking the weather at a variety of weather sites (including this blog and my browser’s weather plug-in). The temperature was in the mid-teens with wind chills in the single digits. Not too bad if you are prepared. So what was I wearing? I had a long-sleeve dry fit shirt and a fleece vest, with shorts and warm-up pants. I had normal socks, cloth gloves, and a silk balaclava. My run was an out and back. During the out section I was comfortable, even using the balaclava as a hat.

When I turned around, I came back into the wind and quickly realized my folly. The wind quickly became biting and I first really felt it on my exposed face, so I pulled down the balaclava. Then I began feeling my abs get really cold, then my fingers and arms, finally I felt the sweat in the crook of my elbow freezing. It was a long 2.5 mile run home.

I made it back, peeled off some of the layers and jumped into the bed, between the top 2 covers. My core temperature didn’t seem very low, but my stomach and back were very red (think sun/wind burn). After warming up a little bit I got into a cool shower. You don’t want to warm your body up with water that is too warm, you can slowly increase the temperature as your body thaws.

So hopefully I have learned my lesson and will dress smarter for my runs. I have plenty of clothes for layering and I have nicer gloves that will stop the wind. My run was officially 5.03 in 41:24. I didn’t really want to run today, but decided I needed a few more miles for the week to continue building up my mileage.

[tags] Winter, Running, Safety [/tags]

Foto Friday

4 Replies

If you look closely you can see the icicles that formed on my goatee! This was
taken on New Year’s Day.

Yesterday’s Workout:I ran 5 miles at the beautiful Lake Calhoun. I did one lap (approx 3.1) around and then added extra to get the full 5 miles. The lake is frozen over with snow on top and quite beautiful. The sun was bright and shiny, a nice change, and the trail was 99% cleared which was a very nice change. I did the 5 miles in 38:26.[tags] Foto Friday, Minneapolis [/tags]

Race Plan for 2008

5 Replies

Last night I bit the bullet and registered for my first 2008 race. My plan has been to run a spring 1/2 marathon before my fall marathon debut. There was a lot to consider:

  1. Time to rest/recover before starting marathon training
  2. Potential weather
  3. Course – flat vs hilly
  4. Longevity of race – I found an inaugural race, but they make me a little nervous
  5. Proximity to home – I don’t want to spend lots of money and travel around the country for races if I can help it.
  6. Cost – This was $25 which is pretty cheap for a half marathon

So with all of the those factors combined I chose the Earth Day Half Marathon to be held on April 19, 2008 or Earth Day. I’ll begin my 12 week training program on January 27, 2008.  Until then I will be increasing my mileage and doing base-building.



My goals (may be subject to change):1st – Break 1:30

2nd – PR – sub- 1:34

Scary Sidewalks

Leave a reply

Sidewalks are generally a safe place for us to run.  Though I found out yesterday that that might not always be the case.  As we are adjusting to a new city and schedules I have been running in the morning.  This is fine except that it is dark and since I don’t have a light or much reflective clothing, I thought it would be safer to stick to the sidewalks.

There are plenty of sidewalks near us, so that isn’t a problem.  Except that as I reported on Monday the roads aren’t all plowed to  smooth surface, so goes the sidewalks.  I would be running for awhile on smooth sidewalk, then hit a patch of frozen snow that has been tramped through, thawed and re-frozen.  This makes for a running surface that is worse than most of the trails I’ve run on.

Other times the sidewalk is clear, except for a thin layer of ice.  As the snow thaws during the day, it makes for wet sidewalks, which re-freezes at night.  Finally and maybe the worst, I was running along and stepped into puddles.  It was dark enough that I couldn’t tell when water had pooled and frozen.  My feet didn’t really get wet, which made me very happy.

What’s the Cure?

  • Run with a light on the road
  • Run with a flashlight/head lamp
  • Run at a different time
  • Suck it up and keep running

I’m not sure which I’ll do, but I will probably keep running on the sidewalks and do the roads whenever possible.

I ran 3.59 miles in 32:29 which is 9:03 pace.  That’s not too impressive, but given the conditions I was happy with that.  My maximum pace was 7 minutes at one point according to my Garmin.