Picking up on my friend Gabe Bullard‘s tradition (in turn borrowed from the Thomas Crone), here’s a monthly list of 7 things I’m enjoying these days. There is no particular order to the list, just a chance to pass along some genuinely worthwhile ideas and trends that wouldn’t warrant a blog post otherwise
Blog: Dork Yearbook. This is why Tumblr is great; Like Mortified, only geekier. I could probably submit my own pics here, except I didn’t have a computer until I was 9 years old. Just because a good blog doesn’t fit into a professional website’s blogroll doesn’t mean it need remain my guilty pleasure.
Meme: #sillyhats . It started out innocently enough when @laurenreid photoshopped a whimsical hat on top of @gbullard‘s profile pic. At some point, we’re not sure when, it became a meme of sorts. You’re more than welcome to join in of course, with the right hashtag.
Music: Cover songs. All my favorite musicians are making cover songs (or having their songs covered). Nothing new there, except there seems to be a dearth lately, or at least I finally have taken an interest. This started well before Beck/Sonic Youth’s split-single covering each other’s songs. Why re-invent the wheel when you can acknowledge your influences directly.
Social Network: FourSquare. Before I moved to DC I couldn’t really use Dodgeball, now resurrected as FourSqaure. So I was skeptical about the usefulness of the network, versus my beloved Brightkite. Something about the gaming aspect, earning badges like Mayor of local establishments, makes this incredibly addictive. Try the iPhone app, connect with Twitter, and see you around town!
Theory: Social Marketing. Contrary to the online connotations of it’s name, social marketing does not describe social media marketing. Applying marketing techniques to positively change behaviors that benefit the public good has impressed me with it’s results. And it’s not Plato’s Noble Lie.
Video: Let Me Twitter That. As if my obsession with all things Twitter weren’t enough, this Andy Milonakis video has become something like a theme song. The video itself is ironic, original, and full of in-jokes that Twitterati will recognize immediately.
Word Game: Scrabble. I never thought I’d give this Hasbro classic a try after the Scrabulous fallout. But now that I can play with friends on Facebook, and make plays on my iPhone, this game is hard to put away.