I Surfed... I Think

This is just a quick short post to satiate you while I create a few longer posts that I will write covering the time Mari has spent here. As the title suggests, this one is about me surfing (or at least trying to).

Mari and I spent last weekend in Byron Bay doing many touristy things including surfing. Being from California, Mari has spent some time on a surf board and has the basic idea of what to do when that wave comes along. So I saw this as an opportunity for her to show me up yet again. And I was right.

We signed up with a company called Black Dog Surf School that actually had a dog that surfed. His name is George and he hangs out in the companies office most of the day. He has not really mastered the concept of facing the right way, but he does get on the board and surf.

We started with a few stretches (thankfully sans camera) and a few drills about foot placement and how to stand up on the board when the wave takes us... then we were in the water. For some reason the instructors thought that Mari and I should be the first two to embarrass ourselves... I was the only one to do that successfully.

It was slow going for the first few tries. I was able to stand up, but it just felt like I was standing on a board in the ocean... not really surfing. But then the instructors pushed me into some bigger waves and I finally felt like I was actually surfing. For some reason I was never able to wipe this dumb look off my face. Every picture of me, I look like I am looking at a horribly disturbing scene... but from a long ways away. So it is a bit of "squinting disgust".

On my last "surf" the fins on the board ran aground on the beach and I decided I would just step off the board instead of fall off like I had been doing all day. That turned out to be a mistake. My impossibly weak knee gave out from under me, I heard it pop, and there was quite a bit of pain that caused me to swear loudly at a crowded family beach. Thankfully it seems that I just sprained my knee, but it still put a damper on the day, since we had to change our plans.

If any of you super intelligent people want to make robotic knees, know that I am a willing guinea pig just as long as I get to keep a working pair.

That is all for this short and quick update. I will do another post soon to let you know all of the fun we got into while Mari visited from Japan. In the mean time, here is another picture of us surfing... notice my complete lack of form resulting in me falling to the back of the wave (like I said, "I think I surfed"). While Mari is making me look like a fool that is confused by the large body of water that just happened to be under me (Why am I wet? And what is that smell?).

Chat soon. Enjoy

Things I Have Learned About People via Social Media Part 2

Edit: I have recently come across this and I agree with all of it. I hope it brought a smile to your face and you enjoyed my late blog post. I will have a new post of soon!

Edit 2: I received this message today while at work. This is a PERFECT example of Lesson 3.

If you can't read the text, the guy who sent the message is claiming that he is in the picture he attached to the message. He is asking us to take it down because he does not want others to see him in it. The picture thumbnail is the entirety of the picture... So he is either claiming that he is one of the snakes or the faceless torso and hands holding the snakes. Also, this is a picture that was taken by one of the photographers at the company, and consent forms have been signed for all people photographed... so it is not him. Man I love the internet.

Lesson 6: Sailors have cleaner mouths than most of you- If I went ten minutes without reading a swear word of any sort, I think I would have a mental break down. I don't think people know those words are optional and rarely strengthen the point you are trying to make. I even have a filter set on the company page to instantly hide all posts with swear words in it, but if you refer back to Lesson 1 (People are dumb), you will remember that these moronic barely evolved monkeys can't spell. So I get to comb through their stupidity and hide comments like "fcuk", "asss", "biches" etc...

Lesson 7: If it is not happening to them, it is not happening to anyone- Also seen as, "I didn't see/hear/know about it before you, it is fake". This goes back to Lesson 3. If the FB page posts about a heat wave in X city, I can guarantee you someone in Y city will post saying something along the lines of "That's not happening here, what is this sh*t. Why don't you find something that is actually happening". Even if a referenced account is verified, people instantly call out FAKE at the top of their lungs. As if I took precious time out of my day to doctor some D-list celebrities twitter post for the sake of click though stats. Don't... just stop.

Lesson 8: They think you care if they unfollow you- I am managing a page that has over 60,000 likes (while not massive, it is comparatively big). On average, there are 70 unlikes and 500 new likes per day. Around 50 of those unlikes feel it is their obligation to inform me they are unliking the page. Most of the time with no reasoning. Just a simple message or post saying "I've had enough... UNLIKE!". Sorry to burst your bubble princess, but I don't care. The internet is a free place; like, unlike, favorite, report, post, friend, unfriend whoever and whatever you want. That is the joy of this lawless wild west that is the internet. By informing me of your departure, do you think I am suddenly going to change everything and come to you hat in hand begging for you to come back to me? Not a chance. Click the button and move on, we don't care to hear your pity party as you sulk out of the room.

Lesson 9: Animals and storms rule the internet- We all know cats are the official mascot of the internet, but there seems to be a changing of the guard taking place. I am amazed at how well posts do when there is an animal, or a picture of a storm cloud/lightning. Now this maybe something that is specific to Australia or Queensland or even Brisbane, but the reach and engagement that I see with animal or storm pictures is unreal. Not complaining in the least, just surprises me that something so commonplace draws so much attention, and holds attention for so long.

Lesson 10: People are good- I know I said they were dumb back in Lesson 1, they swear like drunken angry sailors in Lesson 6, and they are self-important in Lesson 3, but as a whole they are good. They respond to posts in encouraging manners. They stand up for people that are being victimised or bullied. Over all, people on social media are encouraging challenging conversation and progressing the human psyche. So thank you all for being a part of that and thank you for allowing me to pursue a "job" like "Social Media Manager". I hate/love dealing with you people and I have learned so much about the way we act in public, private, and where we think is private.

I hope you enjoyed the lessons that I have learned. I also hope that you regularly take into consideration the person that is sitting on the other end of the magic internet tubes that is reading all of the posts, comments, and messages. Remember that majority of the time they have nothing to do with any of the operations of the company and are simply being paid to increase brand awareness and customer engagement.

I will be back to my regular...ish blogs soon, where I will update you will all the new happenings on the other side of the world. Enjoy!