Venue: The Usual Spot
Present: 4th Dwarf, Coyote, Woodsy, Independent Observer, Conch Shell (late)
Absent: Chair (with regrets, no excuse), Aggie (with regrets, reasonable excuse)
No discussion of who will takes minutes. 4D just starts taking notes.
1. Dating Format
4D asks what date it is for his minutes. This sparks discussion of the date's noteworthy binary nature (example: 11/01/10) in some dating formats. This leads to a discussion of preferred formats for listing dates. 4D, Woodsy and Coyote all advocate for year-month-day format. IO says he prefers the standard Canadian day-month-year. It appears consensus is impossible until the others convince the IO they are not advocating the evil American month-day-year format and year-month-day is far more useful for sorting computer files.
Year-month-day is formally adopted as the Elgin Street Irregular's official format for dates.
Woodsy: Can we have a page listing the ESI's Official Positions?
4D: Yes
2. Ottawa Bloggers Workshop or Something
The people who did Blog Out Loud Ottawa in conjunction with the people who once in a while bring do the Ottawa Bloggers Breakfasts have put forward the idea of a having "something like a bloggy workshop".
W: One - I don't need a f-ing workshop. Two - will there be food and drink?
IO: More blogging, less workshopping.
C: Unless we're taking minutes.
4D: Should the ESI's host a session?
W: Commitment to blogging!
IO: That's like Tiger Woods hosting a workshop on fidelity.
W: Dating.
C: Which kind? Dating people or the kind we just talked about?
The ESIs brainstorm blogging areas of their expertise that other Ottawa bloggers know precious little about:
- Blogger stalking
- How to maintain your secret identity
- How to reveal your secret identity
- Fieldwork dos and don'ts
- Proper use of a back channel
- Conflict resolution
- Pimp your blog
- Proper use of Photoshop
- Choosing the right tank top
- How to run a contest
- When to engage an ethics counselor
3. The Chair
The ESIs gossip about why the Chair is not present and has not attended the last four emergency meetings. Nobody present makes the bullwhip sound.
W: We're not bringing Aggie up.
4D: Why not?
W: I promised her I'd protect her.
All present agree that Aggie deserves our unconditional support. And with regard to the Chair, we agree that while he isn't posting, his cam choices are excellent.
4. Jo Stockton's Lock-out
Background:
Jo Stockton's Blog Also a Talker has gone invitation only. No ESIs have received invitations. The ESIs share speculation that Ms Stockton may wish to be more frank about her work or personal life. Or perhaps her Man of Science has requested more privacy.
W: We'll have to remove her from our blog roll. Unless she invites us.
4D: I don't want to read an invite-only blog. It's like how you don't give people's private information to a cabinet minister. I don't want to be in a position where I might blurt out someone's secrets.
4D: There is still her vegan blog. What is it?
C: It ain't meat, babe.
W: That makes me think of that song.
4D: It ain't me, Babe?
W: No. You're No Vegetarian 'Cuz You Eat My Meat.
5. Retirement and Hiatuses
The ESI's acknowledge that several local bloggers have recently announced their retirements or going on a hiatus. Someone asks about Aggie and the Chair.
CS: Aggie's not on hiatus, she's just tardy.
C: Megan has been talking about not blogging.
CS: How is she?
The others say that she appears to be pretty good. In a relationship and not blogging about it. Which might not be good for entertaining us, but is something we can all support for Megan's sake.
CS: And how about 5M? She gives us one paragraph for a whole year and it's loaded!
6: Is Blogging in its Sunset phase?
The IO suggests that blogging is in a new phase where it is being supplanted by other services like Twitter and that blogging, like mainstream media, is segmenting in narrow topic niches.
4D: I don't think blogging is changing, I think what you are reading is changing. Because I'm scanning all the local blogs and the mommy bloggers are still reporting every shit and burp.
C: Are they twittering them as well?
Nobody has an answer because the ESIs don't tweet.
CS: Is there any drama out there?
4D: You've got various bloggers complaining about their bitchy sisters and rotten baby daddies, but the only blogger with real, readable drama is Salted Lithium. [Shout-out to Gabriel - you are an awesome dad! And wise to only show your boy Star Wars and the Empire Strikes Back.]
7: Creating a Muse
Woodsy, Conch Shell, the IO and Coyote discuss a wacky idea that 4D just cannot get behind.
4D: There's no question that this group can take an idea and embellish it.
C: I'm not in, but go for it.
CS: We need Aggie.
IO: It could be fun.
8: Woodsy's New Contest
Woodsy shares her idea for a new contest. Everyone is supportive. Woodsy reveals she would still like to do "Tea with Woodsy" but has not had time.
9: News of the Day
Proroguing:
CS: Whatever.
C: What about proroguing the blog?
IO: Maybe we need recalibration.
4D: Please. No. I couldn't bear it if the Revolutionary New Dating Paradigm died on the order paper.
C: And you'd have to start all over? No. We're not proroguing the blog.
Hartman's Piano:4D: Let's protest the stores that never had a piano in the first place.
Mayor Larry:
CS: Will he run again?
4D: Jim Watson is going to announce he's running tomorrow morning.
W: I'll vote for anyone who brings water taxis to Ottawa.
The Coyote Hunt:
It is unanimous that we oppose all coyote hunts and this is adopted as an official position of the ESIs.
10: Pumping up the Content
CS: I have things to say about real estate.
4D: We get a whack of hits when we say anything about OC Transpo.
11: Why are people not playing with us?
C: Have we gotten boring?
IO: Is it something we said?
All these Viagra and Cialis commercials make me think there are perhaps two, maybe three, men in our great Dominion, able to get an erection. Yes, if the frequency, tone and urgency of the ads are to be believed, in the words of the incomparable Moe Berg, almost all men, with few and valiant exceptions worthy of the Order of Canada, just can't seem to get it up. 
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