Milblog Conference Wrap-Up

The Conference is over, and the party-crowd attendees have been dispersing all day. For those who didn't attend or watch the live feed, Princess Crabby's overview is here. I'll try to fill in the gaps a bit... Friday afternoon included a treat - a tour of the Pentagon courtesy of Army PAO Lindy Kyzer and her team. We stopped briefly at the America's Heroes Memorial at the Chapel, to honor the memory of the victims of the 9-11 attack at the Pentagon. The tour then concluded at the Conference Center, where the blog crowd (about 25 of us) met with several key players in social media related roles in the Military / DoD for over an hour. Great discussions!! Friday evening was the gathering phase, with the first panel of the Conference providing the attendees with a little perspective on Milblogging with the first panel discussion, titled "It's a Marathon, not Sprint". Several long-time milbloggers talked about their decisions to start blogging, and what the blog landscape was like in the early years of this decade. Members included Sgt. Mom, Baldilocks, Matt of Blackfive and Mitch 'Taco' Bell of Sandgram, with Grayhawk moderating. Saturday was a packed day, with a quick welcome from "T" McCreary of Military.Com, who led straight to a message from Gen. Patraeus, recorded just for the Milblog Conference! His brief message centered around social media being here to stay, and an important means of keeping troops connected with their families, while providing a way for stories from all levels of the military to be read by anyone with interest. The remaining panels covered divserse topics from military related charities and the use of social media, to a discussion of the View from the Top, which included no less than Admiral Harvey of US Fleet Forces blog. I can't begin to relate the varied topics covered across the panels. The good news is that the content should be available for viewing at YouServed, thanks to the hard work of Marcus Penn and Troy Steward, and others. The best part of this conference for me was the time I was able to spend talking with various Denizens and bloggers who I had met only briefly in the 2008 Vegas conference. This one was much more intense, but without the time pressures. We had quite a few Denizens present: Maggie, AFSister and Keith, FbL, Sgt. B, Homefront6, Bob, MaryAnn, AW1 Tim, and myself ... and we got to finally meet Boquisucio!! John and Beth were sorely missed, and not just by the Denizens crowd - many people were disappointed. I need time to digest, and I will just offer this advice: When the videos are posted, take the time to watch the wrap up and awards ceremony. 'Taco' accepted the Marine Milbloggie on behalf of America's 1st Sgt of Castra Praetoria, who is downrange. The delivery was in the fine style of a senior Marine NCO, and holding in my laughter made it hard for me to hold the video camera still properly. I do hope the video comes out well, but even if only the audio were to survive, you should not miss it! That's it, folks. If you weren't there, we missed you. If you were there, then leave a comment or trackback. I had a great time, and I am already looking forward to the next one! (cross-posted at Castle Argghhh!)

Milblog Adventures

This week the Milblog community will be holding the Fifth Annual Milblogging Conference, a gathering of the brightest and best of the Milblogging world. These fine folks even let a sometime-blogger like me join the crowd, so that's where I plan to be from April 9th through the 11th. There's just a few spots left to register for, if you're interested, so head on over. Even if you can't make it to the Conference, take the time to head over to Milblogging.Com and vote for your favorite blogs. This is the fourth year of Milbloggies, which cover all of the military related blogging categories. It's tight competition - check it out, and lodge your votes Now!. I've only been to one Conference in person, but it was a blast to meet many of my imaginary friends, and the panels are lively and enlightening. Here's a teaser: We've stacked the agenda with a substantive, engaging conference and we've filled all remaining holes with more social events than ever before. You can sit down with film director Jake Rademacher, place someone under arrest at the Jail N' Bail, witness a live acoustic performance by Saving Abel, mix and mingle at Friday night's cocktail reception and party till the wee hours at the Fifth Anniversary Awards Ceremony and Party on Saturday night. Grab a seat while you still can.... Hope to see some of you there!

Milblogs Silent Today

Army Master Sgt. C. J. Grisham has always led from the front, from combat that earned him the Bronze Star with V device, to doing right by the men he led. His honesty won him readership and respect, from the White House on down. Yet, when he stood up for his children in school, his command did not stand by him. You can read more at Military Times to get the full story. Please donate via PayPal; or you can log into PayPal on your own, go to the send money page, and put in his email: dj_chcknhawk -at- yahoo -dot- com Or, you can send donations directly to: Grisham Legal Fund c/o Redstone Federal Credit Union 220 Wynn Drive Huntsville, AL 35893 Please write "Grisham Legal Fund" in the memo line if you use this option. Milblogs have been a vital link in getting accurate news and information about the military, and military operations, to you. Today, many milblogs are gone and others are under attack from within and without. Today, you have the chance to imagine a world without milblogs, and to do something about it. Make your voice heard by writing your congressional representatives and others, and by making donations as you see fit. The battle for freedom of speech and the marketplace of ideas is fought on many fronts and in many ways. Without your help, the battle may well be lost.

Recent activities

Much has happened in the last few weeks, and many miles have been traveled. A few weeks ago, I hopped on an airplane with BCR and headed for Last Vegas and the MilBlogging conference. One of the best things about that weekend was getting to meet so many of my imaginary friends, and to hang out with others once again. In addition to the list below, I was tickled to chat with Francis Marion of Where I Stand again (our previous meet-up was documented here). And I shared tears and hugs with Sarah of Trying to Grok, in remembrance of Mike Reed, AKA Bunker Mulligan, who we lost in 2005. The fact that two people who were meeting in person for the first time could cry over the loss of someone neither had met in person is just one of the aspects of the blogging world that non-bloggers can't really grasp. Last weekend, I took advantage of a business trip to spend a day at Castle Argghhh, home of the Armorer of Argghhh and She Who Will Be Obeyed. I arrived late Saturday night to find a crowd in the kitchen - Bloodspite of Techography, Wendy of Girl on the Right, and Kat of The Middle Ground and Castle Argghhh were already enjoying life mightily, and we all visited into the night/morning. Among the benefits of a day at the Castle is the opportunity to throw some lead downrange with John, and several interesting and fine firearms were offered for testing. John captured the visual evidence, and provides context here and here. I'm traveling again this weekend, headed farther yet away from my PNW anchor. More later!

Milblog Party - Success

Thanks to Matt of Blackfive, and the wonderful folks at the Penthouse club, the milbloggers party was great fun. I had lots of fun meeting old friends for the first time, and putting faces and 'real names' together with blog / commenter names. The club provided a room just for our crowd, complete with dancing poles (more on that later) and an open bar staffed by comely young ladies. Matt started the night off properly, with a toast to Absent Companions, then encouraged us all to enjoy the party, which order was taken to heart. Bad Cat Robot and I greeted our fellow Denizens - John, SWWBO, AFSister, Maggie, FbL - and tracking down Homefront Six to introduce ourselves for the first time. Then it was off around the room to visit with new/old friends. One of the people I made sure to track down was blog-brother That 1 Guy. After nearly 4 years of blogging, it was nice to put a face to the guy! Along with the people who have kept me informed and amused over the years, like Matt, Froggy, Laughing Wolf and Uncle Jimbo of Blackfive, Greyhawk (but still waiting to meet Mrs. G), NZ Bear of TTLB, ChuckZ, American Soldier, Sean Dustman of Doc In The Box, and Andi of SpouseBuzz - and many more. I obviously have to do some work on the "Bloggers I have met" section of the sidebar! Of course, as HF6 says, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. But she is keeping track of the evidence. I won't say what happens next after that little series of pictures, but let's just say that there will be blackmail Fund-raising opportunities to come. Stay tuned!

Going to Vegas

It's a sure thing - BCR and I are heading down to Vegas in September for the MilBlog Conference portion of the BlogWorld Expo. I'm looking forward to some very interesting panels and lively discussion, and generally to meeting up with many blog friends - many of them for the first time. Click the banner at the top of the right hand sidebar to read more about the Conference. If you want info on registering as a Milblog / supporter ... Greyhawk has the details here. Hope to see you there!

Milblog Conference registration is up!

I am planning to get to the conference this year, and I am jazzed to catch up with fellow Denizens of Argghhh, and meet some of the milbloggers who have informed and amused me for the past four years! Registration for the MilBlog Community Track June 24, 2008 • Andi The MilBlog Registration Package includes admittance into the full MilBlog Conference Track (all panels) and the exhibit hall. This package will be free of charge for milblog attendees. The BWE staff is extending the MilBlog Registration Package to milbloggers, milblog supporters, members of the military community or those who work in the troop support, non-profit community, but you must plan to attend the MilBlog Community Track in order to take advantage of this offering. We'd like to thank BWE for putting this package together for our attendees. If you want to register for additional events at Blog World Expo, you'll need to pay the associated costs. To Register: BWE will assign individual registration codes for MilBlog Track Attendees. Attendees (excluding panelists, speakers or moderators) will receive a registration code and should send an email with "Request Code" in the subject line. You need to meet the criteria laid out above to receive a code. Once your request has been received and a registration code assigned, you'll receive your registration code via email, and you can proceed with registration. If you're bringing a spouse, significant other, etc. you will need to request two codes. Each code is unique and can only be used once. You cannot share your code with someone else. Please request a code only if you plan to attend the MilBlog Track. All other registrations will need to be submitted through the BWE registration page. If you're requesting a code, but but plan to attend another event (party, workshop, etc.) in addition to the MilBlog Track, after you receive your registration code, you'll need to send an email to Kathy at BWE, tell her you are attending the milblog track and want to pay to attend another portion of the Expo and she will take care of your request. It may take a couple of days or so for you receive your code. Please don't send follow-up email or worry about it unless it's been more than seven days and you've received no response. If you're a panelist, speaker or moderator, you will register as a speaker and will not need a registration code. Information on how to register will be emailed soon to all speakers.

Sgt Hook is back...

I was happy to see his blog light up again today ... And he's got boots on the ground. Glad to see you again, Sgt Hook - Welcome back!

We have a winnah

Early this morning a visitor arrived here out of the blue (no referrer), apparently decided they were in the wrong place, and zoomed off to places unknown. That was my 50,000th visitor. The only thing I can tell is that they are located in Billings, MT ... and whoever it is likes to get up much earlier in the morning than I do! {Hugs} to you, anonymous visitor! So Amy of Gentle Whisper, and John of Castle Argghhh! ... you got close, but no ceegar. Over the two-plus years that I've been exploring the blogosphere and feeding the blog monster (sometimes on a starvation diet), I've met some great folks. We've talked about ideas large and small, cheered on our troops and honored their sacrifices, ranted against the inequities of the world, played meme games, and raised virtual glasses in joy, and to honor those who are no longer with us. This occurs largely in the virtual sense, being spread out around the world as we are. Sometimes the virtual spreads into the physical world, and real margaritas can replace virtual ones - and life is even better. Not that virtual friends are less than real, as has been discussed before in this space. ... friends are friends - whether we met first through the internet or in person matters not. Secondly, I think that not only can we form true friendships without meeting one another, it may lead a purer form of friendship. We didn't form these friendships because we happened to work together, live next to one another, etc. We formed them because we shared ideas with each other, and came back for more. As long as we have been honest, then the bonds between us are not based on age or physical parameters, or on other accidents of location. Instead the bonds are based on how we think - and that is a better, stronger bond to me. Getting to meet any of you face to face will just be the icing on the cake! I'm glad you came by, drop a comment in the box if you're so inclined. Come back anytime ... And when you get to the Pacific Northwest (Hi Chuck!), leave a comment so the virtual and real worlds can intersect.