Mom Pop Pow

Las Vegas – Packing the kitchen stuff

May 17, 2012 By Diane Brogan 8 Comments

We are moving to Las Vegas. If wishes were magical, we could pack our bags and move into our new home in Vegas by the end of the week. Sadly, real life does not work like that, but that may be a good thing.

For better or worse I am one of those people who keeps things if it has value. You just never know when someone may need that particular item. I get blamed for and take credit for all the “stuff” in our house. Much of that “stuff” has moved with us from house to house, but this time is different. It is not moving to Las Vegas with us. I have come to the realization that no one is ever going to need that “stuff.”

News flash! I learned that I am not the only person responsible for all the “stuff” in our house. Steve and I went through the following exercise and he held on to more things than I did.

Yesterday, I asked Steve to help me go through the utensil stuff. The top picture shows the under cupboard containers that hold all those handy utensils that are needed to cook with. Who knew one would need 18 or so bowl scrapers? We made a valiant try to pare down the mountain of stuff. Other than getting rid of 14 bowl scrapers a couple of ladles and some spoons, we didn’t do so well. Obviously we need to hone our skills in this area.

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Moving to Las Vegas

The Power of a Smile

May 16, 2012 By Diane Brogan 1 Comment

Milchschaumgesicht (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On Monday we drove from New Hampshire to Pennsylvania to move our cats Spade and Diamond to their new home. Sad: The doctors say my allergies will improve if I live in a house without cats. Happy: The cats are going to live in a house with a loving couple, two young men and a dog. Sad: We will miss them. Happy: They will have lots of love and many new adventures. Ending: It was very emotional.

On Tuesday we drove the same route back. We listened to an audio book to keep from thinking about the cats. We drove straight through except for rest area stops along the way.

We stopped at a McDonald’s where quality and great service is always provided. I ordered a medium sized decaf coffee. The young man smiled at me as he took my order. That will be $2.44 he said and he disappeared in the back of the restaurant. While waiting, I took out two one dollar bills, two quarters and four pennies. My change would be a dime. Another young man came along to help me. I said I was waiting. He looked at the computer screen and said, “Oh, decaf coffee.” He smiled and took my money. He looked at it and then asked the supervisor a question in a language I didn’t understand. She scooped up all the money and put it in the register.

The smiling young man came back to collect my money. I explained the above and the fact that I did not get my change. The 10 cents was not a big deal to me, it was the register count. I used to work in a store and the register was expected to come out to the penny. He gave me a dime.

He smiled and asked if I wanted cream and sugar in my coffee. I said no thank you, I would like cream on the side. He returned with a small coffee. I smiled and inquired if that was a medium sized coffee. He apologized and rushed off. He returned with the medium sized black coffee and gave me cream on the side. In a hurried state he asked, “Would you like catsup and sugar with that?” We both laughed.

The coffee was good. I think it tasted especially good because of the pleasant experience that transpired all because of mystical power of a smile.

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Living

Pets and Their Owners

May 14, 2012 By Diane Brogan 3 Comments

Diamond and Spade

Pets are part of the family. In our case, they are much like having children. Many people say we treat Spade and Diamond as if they are our children. They even have their own Twitter account @SpadeBrogan and @DiamondBrogan, but they don’t tweet very often. They much prefer to walk over the keyboard rather than pick out individual keys.

Three years ago we went to Maine and brought home two baby brothers to live with us. They have been a great source of joy. I think I get the most benefit as I watch Steve come up with ideas of how to keep the cats amused.

We have a large window with a wide ledge in the hall way. It overlooks the back yard and the picnic table. Steve places wild bird seed on the table and on the widow sill. The purpose of feeding the birds is to provide amusement for the cats. The fact that the birds, squirrels, and wild turkeys get fed is only a side benefit. Squirrels are very tame and fearless. The come right up to the window sill and eat the seeds and peanuts. It is quite something to see a squirrel and a cat nose to nose separated only by a pane of glass.

As much as possible, we try to include Spade and Diamond in our blog under their own section, Feline Friday. They don’t really understand the concept of blogs and YouTube and don’t exactly cooperate in a camera friendly manner. They are more still photo, “catch me if you can” types. Steve and I often laugh at their antics and wish we could have gotten that on film, but we would have had to had several cameras set up to capture the mad dash around the house. The cats love the open layout of the house.

We love these little guys so much. It is heart breaking to give them up for adoption. As my allergies get worse, my allergy doctor has become insistent that I need to think about finding a home for the cats. They keep increasing the medication and I keep the cats.

I recently went to my ophthalmologist who told me I have an eye infection. He gave me eye drops and several recommendations about living with allergies. He said I would be better without the cats. One of my greatest fears is going blind.

Steve has had a difficult time with allergies this year as well. With heavy heart, we made the decision to find a new home for Spade and Diamond. After making this very difficult decision we take turns crying. Giving our cats away is like putting our children up for adoption.

Praise God, we found a good home. When Whitney Hoffman learned Spade and Diamond were in need of a home, she immediately invited them to become members of her family. Steve and I are delighted. We know that Whitney, Matt, John, and James will give Spade and Diamond the love and care they deserve.

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Feline Friday, Living

Selling the House

May 12, 2012 By Diane Brogan Leave a Comment

77 South Road Picture by Jay McGillicuddy

Steve and I built our retirement home in the country. After living in many houses with formal rooms and formal furniture, we designed this house to fit the casual life style we have evolved to. We are very happy here. We enjoy viewing nature all around us. We enjoy the changing seasons and the wild life. Who knew we would be leaving here less than four years after moving in.

Life has a funny way of changing our lives. Who knew I would be allergic to the beautiful trees and plants I love so much. Who knew Steve would become a professional poker dealer? Allergies and poker may not seem like a natural mix, but when you add Las Vegas as the location, we are hoping it works well.

We are moving to Las Vegas. After making that decision, Steve gave me a half smile and said, now we have to find a real estate agent. I gave him a big smile and said I already had a real estate agent, my Twitter friend, @monikamcg, Monika McGillicuddy.

Monika is half of the dynamic duo known as Jay and Monika McGillicuddy. Monika has been blogging since 2006 and she is impressive in every way. Jay gives facts, statistics and wields spreadsheets, pie charts, and that is only the paper part. They are both great photographers. Not only are they impressive professionally, they are nice people.

Check out our house and their work below.

77 South Road Fremont NH | Energy Efficient For Affordable Living
MAY 10, 2012 BY MONIKA MCGILLICUDDY LEAVE A COMMENT

Offered for the first time this wonderful custom-built energy efficient home is sure to be a pleaser!
Have you been dreaming about that perfect green home? One that is welcoming, cozy, and provides every comfort imaginable, while perfect for the cost conscious buyer desiring efficient living? If so then you owe it to yourself to experience this one of a kind custom designed home built to enhance functionality, efficiency and appearance.
Affordable Living with all the comforts
Enjoy gleaming hardwood floors throughout, a wonderful first floor master bedroom suite with private bath, open concept floor plan with an AMAZING custom kitchen, 7 spacious rooms, 4 bathrooms, 2148 +/- sq ft of living space,central air and affordable gas heat. This home also offers ample storage a 2 car garage under with separate finished office/studio with half bath plus 5 acres of land to roam and enjoy all that nature has to offer.
Don’t pass this up! MLS # 4154284 listed at $299,999 call Jay or Monika at 603-944-9172 for more information or to set up an appointment to view this home.

Mom Pop Pow – Moving to Las Vegas

Share this:

Filed Under: Living

SOBCon’s Give Back Challenge

May 11, 2012 By Diane Brogan 5 Comments

The final day is here. The excitement is still coursing through my body, but there is a touch of sadness knowing this is the last day of SOBCon.

Day 1 and 2 were held at the Summit Executive Center, 205 N. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL. The closing event was held in the Ballroom of Hotel 71, 71 East Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL.

Breakfast in the Ballroom with linen tablecloths and smiling waiters at your elbow with a coffee pot enhanced the elaborate spread of food. I should have taken a picture of the giant mound of bacon that was presented – no slouching there. They must have heard that bacon is a favorite. Did I mention the tray of sausage. Scrambled eggs, hash browns, fresh muffins, fresh fruit, and much much more. Add to that, an energized group of outstanding people and – WOW! Life is good!

After breakfast Mark Carter explained how SOBCon gives back to the community by supporting four charities that it chooses each year. The representative of the non-profit program explains the mission and then asks the group for help in a particular area.

Molly Catrell-Kraig, Mark Horvath, Diane Brogan

Molly Cantrell-Kraig, Founder and Executive Director, of Women With Drive Foundation told us about her organization. There are many programs that help women get educated and find a job, but none that help them with transportation to and from the job. That is where Women With Drive fits in. WWD provides a used car to women. It is a great program, but it needs to grow and it needs financial support.

Molly’s ask: She needs someone who can help her be a better communicator.

Jeff Power, US Partner Development Team, for Adopt a Village told a heart warming story about helping the poorest people in the world transform themselves. Concept: Adopt a village for $15,000 a year with a 3-5 year commitment.

Jeff’s ask: Who can you introduce me to for adopting a village. Second request, build the Adopt a Village newsletter to 5000 people.

Cortez Alexander is a Student Representative, Communications Committee. From their web site: ”Dreams For Kids empowers at-risk youth and those with disabilities through dynamic leadership programs and life-changing activities that inspires them to fearlessly pursue their dreams and compassionately change the world.” They are located in Chicago.

Cortez explained they have three major programs. The following is copied from their website because I didn’t do a perfect job of note taking.
Dream Leaders – At-risk youth and those with disabilities empowered by serving others.

Holiday for Hope – The world’s largest holiday event for homeless and underprivileged kids.

Extreme Recess – The first adaptive sports program of its kind for kids of all disabilities.

Cortez’s Ask: To be better known through social media.

Mark Horvath, founder of Invisible People tv, is a one man crusader for the rights of the homeless. Mark says people give to vision. We need local representation. “Homelessness isn’t a sexy cause unless it is next to you.”

Mark asks: For creative ways to get money or sponsorships to expand what he is doing to reach many other people across the county.

When the speakers finished talking, the audience sit with the non-profit of their choice to brain storm ways to help the cause. It was a dynamic experience.

The more I learn about SOBCon, the more I understand why people refer to SOBCon as a community instead of a conference.

Thank you Liz Strauss and Terry St.Marie for allowing us to be part of this great SOBCon experience.

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Learning, Social Media

SOBCon – Second Day

May 10, 2012 By Diane Brogan 2 Comments

Full of excitement and enthusiasm, Steve and I are up and at’em early as we prepare for the second day of SOBCon enlightenment. Yesterday, I gave you a pretty formal review of what happened. What I didn’t include was the excitement that happens on the sidelines. Meeting the people we Tweet with daily is an adrenaline rush for sure and then we meet new friends. Oh my goodness, I was thrilled with the warmth, encouragement, friendliness and brilliance of the people we met at SOBCon.

After breakfast and the formal opening, the day began with a panel discussion DECISIONS: RAISING BOTTOM LINE AND IMPROVING INFLUENCE
Carol Roth, NY Times Bestselling author was the moderator
Gary W. Goldstein, producer of the movie “Pretty Woman” and many other movies and Scriptwriting Consultant
Laura Fitton, Inbound Marketing Evangelist, @HubSpot
Angel Djambazov, OPM for KEEN Footwear, MedicalRecords.com, as well as Editor-in-Chief of ReveNews.com

First question: What is a decision? (Wow! Glad I didn’t have to answer that one.)
Gary: Every moment in life is a decision. Every decision is a devotion. Goals often play badly into making decisions. If you can keep it together after the crash and burn, you will have conquered the world.
Laura: Never make a decision in fear.
Gary: Make a decision that you will be proud you made in five years. Relationships trump results.
Carol: Make decisions that are right for you and not for others. Don’t try to chase that someone else’s path.

Question two: Process of making a decision?
Angel: What is going to keep us in business? On line is much different than brick and mortar where one can wonder around, enjoy the ambiance and pick up things as we go along. On line, customers need guidelines and pointers to help them along.
Laura: Celebrate failure.
Gary: Every film is a start-up. Three years is a fast track for a film. It is living in a constant state of triage. When you crash and burn, you still go forward.
Laura: Being patient with yourself, when everything is falling apart, is capacity expansion when it is over.
Gary: Failure and screw-ups – the worst that can happen is death or poor health.

After that outstanding panel discussion, we had a group exercise to look at Decisions: Raising The Bottom Line and Improving Influence

The block model was delivered by Charlie Gildey who had a great decision guide.

Make a decision list

Schedule a time to make decisions

Who can help you work through this decision

What information do you need to make a decision

If you don’t have a decision model, every decision is harder

What are the questions you need to ask to get to a yes/no list

There was a one on one interview … to be announced (how clever of Liz Strauss and Terry St. Marie to add suspense)

Ric, Dup, Ric - Picture by Shashi Bellamkonda

Ric Dragon interviewed Duleepa Wijayawardhana (Dup),CEO, and Ric Williams, COO, of Empire Avenue. They talked about their purpose and vision for Empire Avenue.
Dup: The purpose of Empire Avenue is to see the profit of what you do online. Generally companies don’t know how to play the social media game. Empire Avenue supports not for profits. It is about connecting with others without making deep friend like connections. Content is very important. If you give someone a number, they will try to make that number higher.

Oops – forgot to mention the fine breakfast and snacks we had today. For lunch we had tacos and other dishes to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.

Steve Farber Picture by Shashi Bellamkonda

Steve Farber, best selling author, talked about NETWORKS; CONNECTING WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.

- Broadcast your body of work – This is who I am
- Leadership is an act of love
- At the core of any great work – cultivate love
- Do what you love in the service of people who love what you do
- Respond personally
- Introduce people to each other – Be the connector
- Ask how you can help

Steve explained OS!M – (oh s#!t moment) which happens often in extreme sports. Imagine being at the top of a vertical drop with very little body protection. You lean over, look down and the…..

“The first time I went down that run, I was going way too fast and I realized I’d just made the biggest mistake in my life. When I got to the bottom, I couldn’t wait to get up and do it again.” -Jimmy Shea

Great speaker, great ideas. I will be buying his book Radical Leap – Re-Energized.

Tingling with lots of energy, we participated in our next group session to learn more about how we can personally connect with the right people. NETWORKS: CONNECTING WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.

Steve, Chris, Diane Brogan Picture by Shashi Bellamkonda

Next up – The Brogans
Chris Brogan has a conversation with his parents Steve and Diane Brogan. The premise of the conversation was to talk about our journey into social media. Being Chris Brogan’s parents gets us a polite smile and a hello in the social media world. We have learned that one can never ride someone else’s coat tails – at least not for long. Steve and I both have our own friends on Twitter and in the social media community. We have our own blog, Mom Pop Pow, and Steve has Dad’s Poker Blog.

Having Chris and all his knowledge available is a great asset. It is also a great challenge. When he first told us about Twitter, I said, that’s nice and went on my way. End of subject. Then he would visit us and laugh out loud at messages on his phone. Being nosey, I would ask, what’s so funny – oh just a Tweet he would reply. You can guess, it didn’t take long for me to engage on Twitter. I mostly followed Chris and Guy Kawasaki and then started following other interesting people. In early 2011 I was named to Twitter’s Top 75 Badass Women list. The name is interesting. All of the women are successful women in business and have many side interests. They really don’t have the time or inclination to be “Badass” in the dictionary sense of the word. We get together for a chat the first Thursday of the month at 9PM, EST for the #BA75 chat.

The #BA75 has broadened my horizon considerably. These women are awesome and they have great friends who I have become friends with. Life is good.

Yes, back to our conversation with Chris…

Chris is great at conversations and interviews. He skillfully directed the talk to the big news in our life. Steve and I are moving to Las Vegas.

We built a beautiful retirement home in the woodlands of New Hampshire. We planned for everything except for the fact that I am allergic to trees and most of the environment. Because I need to live somewhere with very limited vegetation and Steve is a professional poker dealer, Las Vegas seems like a logical place to move.

I told Chris I would be the hostess with the mostess. Chris said “as well you should be.” A seed was planted at that moment. It germinated and grew and became a real desire to create a business in Las Vegas. I will be the hostess with the mostess. More to follow on that later.

Lucky for us, we attended SOBCon. It is the right time, right place, and right people to help us on our way. After our talk, several wonderful people came to us with great ideas. We are excited and thankful to be part of this great community.

Picture by Shashi Bellamkonda

A great follow-up to the Brogan interview and a total change of pace was “The interactive team challenge.” It provides SOBCon attendees the opportunity to ask questions of the whole community. People are given the chance to stand up and ask a question such as the ones below.

How can I move into the speaker arena?

Is there a model to monetize my social media stream?

How do you motivate people without rewards or money?

How do I find my purpose? (Love the answer to this one) Help someone else with theirs until you find your own.

How do you use SEO to get more site views?

How do you fail with a family?

How do you maintain focus when you meet your OSM?

Break with delicious and healthful foods – yummy they were!

Terry St. Marie Picture by Shashi Bellamkonda

Terry St. Marie did the final presentation of the day: SYSTEMS: PROCESSES THAT RUN THE BUSINESS.

“If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” -Peter Drucker

Terry gave us key points to great customer feedback
He explained the customer interview process:

The experience with the product or service
The experience with the people behind the product
The overall brand
Feedback that would make the experience better
Identify things that are less important to the customer.

Most effective question:

On a scale of 1-10, how likely are you to recommend this product to a friend?
0-6 Detractors – Saying bad things about the product
7-8 Neutral
9-10 Promoters – Saying good things about the product

Questions:

Who do you ask?
When do you ask?
Who’s going to do the ask?
How will you respond?
How do you use the data

BIG BONUS

Thank you for your business.

Our group exercise was SYSTEMS: PROCESSES THE RUN THE BUSINESS
We had some really tough questions, but working in a group makes the task easier.

We had the final debriefing of the day and we were on our own for dinner.

Early in the day Shashi Bellamkonda invited some 25 people or so to the “Star of Siam” the Singha Thai Restaurant on 11 E. Illinois Street, Chicago. I was most fortunate to sit beside Jeannie Walters, Founder and CEO of Connext. She is interesting and added much to our group conversation about transitions in business. Across the table from me and beside Steve was Derek Overbey, Sr. Social Media Manger for Vertical Response. Derek’s Mom just happens to live in Las Vegas and he will be introducing us. Yeah!

I was all excited to go to the Blue Frog for Karaoke after dinner because I thought the event started at 7PM. Alas, the 9PM start would mean a late night so Steve and I returned to the hotel. It is best to get plenty of sleep to keep the migraines at bay. Next year we will sleep through dinner and go to Karaoke.

Wow! Another wonderful day at #SOBCon 2012

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Learning, Living, Social Media

SOBCon = Successful Online Business Conference

May 9, 2012 By Diane Brogan 3 Comments

Miss_Dazey, this was my Day 1 at #SOBCon. It’s a little long, but I wanted to make a complete record. When I tried to learn about SOBCon, all I could find was how wonderful it was, but I didn’t find anything about the format.

The day starts with a very healthy breakfast which serves two purposes; nourishment for the body and the opportunity for attendees to greet each other.

Me with Phil Gerbyshak

Attendees sit at tables and get ready for the day. Carol Roth was the mistress of ceremonies for SOBCon 2012. She talked about the secret handshake and other things we should know.

Terry St.Marie welcomed everyone.

Liz Strauss talked about Creating Opportunity: Strategy and Execution. She talked about the importance of balance. She Talked about fear and how it can destroy you. She explained the difference between a plan and a strategy. She made a very profound statement: People you make relationships with will last and they will grow with you. Relationships will last longer than computer systems.

In case you don’t know, I am a Liz Strauss fan girl. My adoration comes from the way she expresses her thoughts and her insight. She is very kind, but her generosity is on the QT. She is helpful, encouraging, and inclusive. So you know the speaker after Liz Strauss has to be someone special.

Tim Sanders was just the person to step up to the plate. He talked about VISION & MISSION: SETTING THE INTENTION AND GETTING THE ATTENTION. He told us how to claim our quest and get others to join us. Smart, dynamic, enthusiastic, convincing, and interesting are a few of the words I would use to describe Tim Sanders.

He gave this helpful outline: 1. Have a higher purpose. 2. Passion 3. Focus – know the why behind the what. 4. Leverage.
Everyone needs vision and purpose.

After Tim’s speech, our team, (table of 5) worked individually and together to define our personal purpose. This is where the magic and mystic of SOBCon becomes real. Everyone at SOBCon is helpful and more than happy to share their expertise. Collaborating with a group of experts gives a whole new meaning to the word brainstorming.

After the break that had healthy delicious snacks, we had a surprise guest.

Brian Solis, just happened to be in Chicago, so he dropped by SOBCon to say hi and share his thoughts.

Angel Djambazov interviewed Tim Storm, founder of Fat Wallet. The information was interesting and very informative. When you learn that Tim treats his employees as if they are guests in his home, it is easy to understand why he is being nominated as entrepreneur of the year.

This is my first experience of the interview presentation. It is different and I like the format.

Lunch was a delicious spread of yummy food fit for royalty.

Rick Turoczy, of the Portland Incubator Experiment (PIE) talked about ASSESSING WHERE YOU STAND & WHAT YOU VALUE.
PIE teaches people to be great entrepreneurs.
Where You Stand + What You Value = Your Value Proposition
Position – Be brutally honest with yourself about where your are right now and where you are going to go.

Then we did a group exercise: Assessing Where You Stand and What You Value. Having everyone share their experience is priceless.

Break – Another healthy break. The snacks were outstanding.

Emily Harris interviewed Sammy Haroon, mind behind the GE Innovation Summit, on finding opportunity in position. The interview was so great and I got so involved, I didn’t take many notes. I do remember the very strong and thought provoking visual he gave us. He had us hold our hand in the air with the fingers spread. Then he had us join our hand with the hand of the person beside us. He pointed out that “one hand is weak, but two hands are strong.” Sammy says personal relationships are what causes him to excel.

DexOne did an interactive challenge of Who’s the Most Findable at SOBCon facilitated by Helen Graham (hope I got the name right) and Rebecca Saltman.

WOW! SOBCon is an amazing place to be.

Les McKeown, best selling author of Predictable Success was the final speaker of the day. With his delightful Irish brogue, he talked about CONDITIONS; WORKING WITH TRENDS, CYCLES AND CHANGE.
He said we are all just trying to get things done. We are trying to go South in a North bound lane. He said we have an inner voice the is usually not helpful. Many teachings revolve around trying to quiet the inner voice. We are now using Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and RTing them.

He explained the cycles of a business: Early struggle; Fun; White water; Predictable success; treadmill; the big rut; death rattle.

You can read more about it in his book entitled Predictable Success.

After his speech, we did a group exercise to explore Trends, Cycles and Change.

At the end of the day, we had a debriefing when everyone was asked to share what they learned, experienced, realized, or wanted to contribute to the debriefing. WOW! Brilliant idea. It was a great end to the day.

Most conferences kick you out and you are on your own, but SOBCon invited everyone to the Speakeasy at Billy Dec’s Underground.

Steve and I went to dinner with Chris Brogan, Jacq Carly, Jane Boyd, Tee Are, Lego Man and Lego Woman. I have to tell you, those Lego folks are hard to keep up with. They just keep going.

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Learning, Social Media

Chicago Social Media Club welcomes SOBCon

May 8, 2012 By Diane Brogan 14 Comments

A little late with this post, but it will give you a chance to relive the excitement. @Miss_Dazey this is how it went.

#SOBCon started for us on Thursday evening when we attended the meet and greet presented by the Chicago Social Media Club. It was like the first time I went to Disney World. I was so star struck, it is a wonder my eyes didn’t pop out of my head.

I got to meet people I chat with on Twitter. I got to hug @boydjane, Jane Boyd, and @angeloakley and then I saw the person I went there especially to meet @deafmom, Karen Putz. She and I are part of a special group known as “the sunshine girls.” We enjoy the Chicago harbor pictures that @lizstruass posts in the morning. I met Karen Putz a year ago at an event honoring our son Chris Brogan. She came up to me and said “Hi, I’m Karen Putz. I’m happy to meet you.” She probably said something about Chris in the middle, but the part I most remember is that she greeted ME.

Smiles and hugs were in abundance. The very distinguished @caroljsroth, Carol Roth, was there all dressed up in her party clothes. I told her I barely recognized her without her tie that she wears in her business picture. When she is not talking business, she has a brilliant smile that lights up the room.

@BeckyMcCray and @shielas, Shiela Scarborough, were there. @raffle, Jim Raffel, was there. I met @DvinMsM , Marla Schulman, in real life. @PhilGerb was there with his magnificent smile and great personality. I met @erictstrauss, Eric Struass, who reminds me in many ways of my own son.

I was so excited, I the one who normally has a camera in my hand, forgot to take pictures. If I haven’t mentioned your name, it is only because I am/was on brain overload. It was such a wonderful evening. That must be how it feels to be on the red carpet. @LizStrauss and @Starbucker (Terry St. Marie) were there. They truly are movie stars.

@jwillie, Jeff Willinger, was giving a speech and I was being polite and attentive, like the good girl I am, when I happened to see a tweet pop up on my phone from @houseofbrew, Jonathan Brewer, “I spy @dianebrogan” Guess where my attention went at that point. Did I mention that Karen and I were sitting at the table directly in front of the podium if view of everyone. I did what I hoped was a nonchalant head turn to look for Brew. No luck.

I do an under the table tweet “Are you in Chicago?” @houseofbrew replies ” If you say Marco…” OMG I am so excited. Then @ambercleveland tweets “I can see you both.” OMG can this night get any better? Amber Cleveland is here and I have never met her in person either.

When the speech ended, I made a mad dash to meet Jonathan Brewer, Amber Cleveland, and Xan Pearson and many others. Oh what a glorious night.

@Xanpearson is in the room. That makes three #BA75 ladies all together in the same room. Amber, Xan and I took a picture and sent it to the #BA75 chat that was in progress.

@chrisbrogan asked me how is it different for me to meet people in real life than on twitter. I instantly replied that a virtual hug, although nice, isn’t the real thing. Nothing tops meeting people in real life. There is a dynamic that happens that can’t be duplicated in a virtual world.

For example, I had no idea Jonathan Brewer is so tall and has broad shoulders. And I probably would not have met his interesting brother-in-law, @bradgrass, who just happens to be a great communicator.

A year ago we were supposed to meet Jonathan Brewer, but Steve and I got stuck in traffic. After waiting around for two hours, Brew, as he is more commonly known, finally gave up and whet home. As we were landing in Chicago, I thought of Brew and wished we had time enough to go to Milwaukee to meet him, but alas that would not happen. At the Chicago Social Media Club party, I was all excited because Brew was at #SOBCon. He said no, he was only at the party to meet Steve and me. He saw our names on the the Eventbright list. How wonderful is that.

The #SOBCon magic is happening already.

Special thanks to Steve Brogan for helping me get the names and Twitter handles correct and behind the scene technical stuff.

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Share this:

Filed Under: Learning, Living, Social Media

Pop pops his cell phone … again.

May 3, 2012 By Steve Brogan 3 Comments

Last Sunday evening, Diane and I do what we always do for an evening of free poker. We drive to Manchester NH to the City Sports Grille located on 216 Maple Street.

We play free bar poker sponsored by City Sports and run by TavernTainmenT. This weekly event draws more than 45+ serious people to play No Limit HoldEm tournaments. There are two sessions, the first starting at 5 pm and the second around 7:30 pm, depending on if the first session has completed.

Player experience runs from total newbies to extremely skilled. Usually someone volunteers to deal at each table. There are usually five and sometimes six tables filled with poker players, young and old, male and female. For the most part, the tables are cordial and fun (at least at my table, where I am dealing; fun people come to my table even though the seating is random).

The only costs that the players have are those for buying drinks, snacks and meals from the City Sports Grille. It is a win win for the bar and for TavernTainmenT.

That being said, the costs at the City Sports Grille are not extremely expensive. Except last Sunday night. For me personally.

I forgot to charge my cell phone and before the evening was out, my phone shut off due to the battery running down. I placed my dead phone in my back pocket and forgot about it. Later, while in the restroom, I some how managed to drop my phone into a body of water (Don’t ask!).

Needless to say, the phone did not survive. Luckily, I had insurance so the total cost to me to replace it, was $90 plus my annual premiums of $96 a year. This is the second time that I used it this year, so I am ahead. If I had to pay for the phone itself, out of pocket would be about $600, so the insurance is a good thing. I now have to be extremely careful as I have used up my entire benefit for the year.

—- Note: This post also appears on DadsPokerBlog.com

Share this:

Filed Under: About Pop, Poker

Mom Pop Pow

Las Vegas – Packing the kitchen stuff

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

The Power of a Smile

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Pets and Their Owners

Mom Pop Pow – Where You Can Do It If You Try

Selling the House

Mom Pop Pow – Moving to Las Vegas

Pop pops his cell phone … again.

Deal of the Day! Click on the shirt!

Call us

Search our site

Follow us on Twitter:

Archives

Blogroll

Post by Categories

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Recent Comments