The Half-Eaten Mind, East London’s leading (and paywall-free) news and features blog, is pleased to announce that we have been kindly nominated for the Blogger Recognition Award by photographer and blogger Alex Smithson of Mother Nature – life at the touch of a button.
Alex was nominated himself on the 31st of March, 2016, by fellow blogger Brooke in recognition of services to blogging, so we at HEM feel we have been honoured with a very special legacy.
Via theutopiauniverse
As with many blogging awards, there are some simple rules to follow and nominations to be made. The rules are as follows:
Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to your blog
Select 15 other blogs you want to give the award to.
My blog started four years ago here on WordPress. I am a journalism graduate who has always been passionate about current affairs and the world around me since I was a small child. Sadly, although I was unable to secure the career of my dreams, I decided to keep my news reporting and writing skills fresh by writing and rewriting news myself on a blog. The name for the blog came from an expression my ex-fiance used when we used to talk for hours on messaging services. She would say she was ‘eating my mind’ when she thought she was taking up the whole of my attention when we were conversing. I was inspired by her to set up the blog, and even discussed naming it with her. She originally suggested the name “Vijay’s Blog”, but I wanted something more memorable and ‘exciting’. I remembered her mind-eating expression and from this, the name Half-Eaten Mind stuck.
My two bits of advice to new bloggers is firstly to acquaint yourself with social media, because it is one of the best ways to promote your blog and work. Don’t just involve yourself with the big social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, but also look for niche ones too that are applicable to what you blog about. I have had one post here shared more than 500 times on Facebook and I know of bloggers who have reached millions of shares, retweets etc.
Secondly, always keep at it. Blogging is fun, but it can take time too, whether building up a following and readership, or at the micro level, setting aside an hour a day to plan out and cook up a post. Some new bloggers sadly find blogging becomes a chore and abandon their blog to the internet scrapyard. Just don’t. Stick with it and blog because you love it and want to nurture your talents.
I would like to give a hearty thanks to my good friend and supporter Alex Smithson over at Mother Nature. He blogs on a lot of interesting things, such as photography, his college experiences, graphic design and gaming, and he is a ‘top lad’ as we Londoners say. I’d highly recommend checking his blog out. You can start with his nomination article for the BRA (Blogger Recognition Award) at this link.
As always it is not a massive deal if you cannot or wish not to accept the award. However, I chose you as I feel your blogging deserves to be recognised….and to those who didn’t make the list, please don’t think that I value your work any less. If the BRA rules allowed me, I’d nominate every one of you.
This weekend, the Half-Eaten Mind was nominated for the One Lovely Blog Award by Ireland-based photographer Inese of inesemjphotography. If you ever wanted to see Ireland’s outstanding natural scenery and fascinating culture, not to mention lots of sweet family and portrait photography, then you definitely need to visit her blog and see these awesome pictures for yourself.
Inese’s award is the first I have received since April this year, and will probably be the last for this year, so this is a special one. Thanks a lot Inese for your support and for picking me as a nominee.
Inese was nominated for this award on the 5th December 2015 by fellow HEM Community member Patrick Jones of the Linden Chronicles. Jones is an American indie author who has recently published two novels.
As part of the rules for the One Lovely Blog Award, I must lay my heart bare and reveal seven things about myself. So here goes:
I am really tall. 6 foot 5 inches tall. That’s the first thing everyone notices lol.
I am addicted to Indian sweets and chocolate.
I want to travel the world.
I am currently obsessed with two YouTube channels: HowTo Basic and Gifs with Sound. Be warned, the HowTo Basic guy is just plain strange.
I hate heights. Not keen on spiders either.
I love GIFs. I have a collection of them dating from 2006 and also run a blog dedicated to this most viral of image formats.
I enjoy playing Call of Duty.
And here are the blogs I am nominating – a tiny fraction of the bloggers I like.
Thank the person who nominated you and provide a link to her/his blog.
List 7 interesting facts about yourself.
Nominate up to 15 other bloggers
List the rules and display the award.
As always, it is not incumbent on nominees to accept, but of course highly appreciated if you do. Congratulations to all the lucky bloggers and look forward to spreading the love.
Ladies and gentleman, yours truly the Half-Eaten Mind has come into another great blogging award this Easter/April. On the 31st March 2015, keen young photographer and college student, Alex Smithson, who runs the Mother Nature blog out from nearby Croydon, has kindly nominated us for the Liebster Award.
Alex was himself nominated by Chey from the blog Socially Awkward Chey, and it is his second blog awardnomination for 2015. The first one was awarded by little old me 😀 !!!. Like other awards in the blogging community, the Liebster, whose name is derived from the German word ‘liebe‘ (love) is an award designed to promote connections and love between bloggers and strengthen our special community.
As part of Alex’s nomination, he has fielded ten questions to all nominees, which I’m now going to answer, once I can find my thinking cap which seems to have found itself lodged behind one of those god-awful ugly black leather sofas downstairs.
(c) A. Smithson/Mother Nature
Without further ado, here are the questions….
Alex’s Liebster Questions
1. What made you want to take up this hobby?
I took up news-writing as a hobby for this blog, as I am a big fan of news, views and current affairs. From my childhood days when I used to sit with the parents in the living room and watch Moira Stewart and John Sissons (I think his name was) presenting the Six O’Clock News, I had a fascination with the world around me. Add to that a well enhanced vocabulary and a degree in journalism, and I knew my ideal destiny was in the media. It is because of this dream I set up this blog, so I could practice being a reporter and use this as a step-up into that highly competitive career path.
2. Who inspired you to set up your blog/website and why?
The original idea for a blog came from a university classmate named Kshitij, but who was usually called Mike. We kept in contact after I graduated, and while discussing our future plans, he suggested I set up a blog to showcase my talents. This was way back in 2007, and due to certain difficulties back then, I couldn’t get the blog ball rolling. It wasn’t until 2012, when I was in a relationship with a girl in India whom I was planning to marry, that I started the blog formally. I was very happy to be in a relationship at last, and was buoyed up by my new confidence. I told her I wanted to start a blog while talking with her on Skype. In fact the name of the blog comes from an expression she used to use every time we talked, and that was that she was disturbing me by “eating my mind”. Sadly the blog outlived the relationship, but blogging is still my passion.
3. What do you love the most about life?
I love my family because they bring so much happiness, I love God, I love seeing beautiful things (and people), and discovering new experiences. I cherish the diversity and opportunities that life can bring and that there are many good and decent people in this world that help negate the more dark and painful experiences that everyone has to go through. I adore my friends and supporters, both inside and outside the blogging world.
4. If there is one thing you could do in life, what would it be?
I suppose now in this point in time, it would be to get married, settle down and have a family. That is my number one priority now in life.
5. What is your blog/website about?
My blog is an news site covering news stories and features for London, the U.K. and the world. Think of it being like an online newspaper but with less political bias and no pressure from advertisers *laughs*. I also write personal articles, often relating to stuff concerning the blog but not always. I also feature contributions from readers and clients and sometimes use the blog to show off my photography and graphic design skills.
6. Are you the kind of person who loves to go for opportunities whilst they’re still available?
There is this one saying that I sometimes quote. It goes: “when opportunity knocks, open the damn door!“. Sometimes you have to seize the moment, because it may never come round again. So, yes, generally I will take the opportunity if the time and situation is right. You never know what could happen, and if it doesn’t work out then that’s a learning experience for you.
7. If there was something you wanted to do other than what you currently do now, what would it be?
I would love to travel the world. Career-wise, it would be to work as a journalist. I’m currently doing a data entry/admin job.
8. What is your most favourite quote of all time?
“Rise above it all” – I can’t remember who created the quote, but it’s sort of a good metaphor for my life.
9. Do you like writing or reading books?
I like both, although reading books expends less effort and you’re less at risk of succumbing to that dreaded ‘writer’s cramp’. I haven’t read a book in a while though. Writing is definitely a passion of mine too.
10. Did you like being nominated for the Liebster Award? If so, has it made your blog/website become stronger?
I thought it was a nice gesture from Alex. Although I have received the exact badge before, this gives me an opportunity to work up those creative skills and create my own interpretation, which you find below. Being a Liebster nominee will hopefully gain me some new followers and put a smile on my face as my own nominees receive a nice little pingback-flavoured surprise.
In no particular order, here are the 10 nominees I have chosen to receive the Liebster Award:
Here are my own ten questions for the above nominees:
1. What inspired you to first start blogging?
2. What has been your best blogging moment of 2015 so far?
3. What ambitions for your blog do you have for the rest of 2015?
4. What is the one thing that’s guaranteed to put a smile on your face?
5. What three things are you most passionate about?
6. What three things do you love most in life?
7. Which blogger has made the biggest impression on you this year?
8. If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
9. Do you have any blogging routines, rituals or quirks. If you do, what are they?
10. If I was a first-time visitor to your blog and you were giving me a virtual guided tour, what would be the first thing you’d show me?
The Badges
As befitting the nature and meaning of the Liebster Award, I’m offering you two badges to choose from, the original and also a special Half-Eaten Mind edition, created by myself.
Via Diana/Part Time Monster(c) V. Shah via piZap
As always, you are free to accept or decline the nomination as you wish and you can accept this award at any time, no pressures or worries.
Many, many thanks to my good friend Alex for considering me, especially given the intensity of his college coursework. I’m pleased and honoured that he has taken time out of a busy schedule to make this kind gesture. Also, a big congratulations to the ten Half-Eaten Mind nominees who all richly deserve this lovely Liebster.
You can see Alex’s original Liebster article here.
In both my family and on this blog, I value creativity. Creativity is that very thing that makes the world a more beautiful place, from the goofy cartoon characters on your breakfast cereal box to the interiors of the tombs and pyramids of ancient Egypt. Since from thousands of years before humans were inventors, they were artists.
Creativity is that joyous segment of the human spirit because it is so diverse and democratic. Regardless of your means or talents, you can let the ‘creative juices’ flow as they say. Being creative is a skills that nearly anyone can tap into. You just need to discover it and let it sing. For me, being a journalist and a blogger is about telling a story, and it is my creativity that helps mould and flavour that story, especially when it is a personal article. Whether it is a witty play on words (like the title of this article) or creating a graphic image for the blog, the Half-Eaten Mind has been a perfect vehicle for my creativity.
In recognition of that creativity, a very good and supportive blogging friend, Sally from “Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life“, has kindly awarded me the Creative Blogger Award for services to creative blogging. If you are not familiar with the work of Sally, then believe me, you are missing out. She is a blogger and author who lives in the mountains of Spain. She has worked in administration, hospitality and dentistry nursing and has led a very eclectic life, moving between various countries in her youth. Her creative career has also been diverse, with short stories and poems a specialty since her childhood, as well as writing newspaper columns in both the UK and in her current hometown near Madrid, Spain. She has also penned books and being recently involved in TV and online video work as well as blogging on Smorgasbord.
(c) MAKE ME UP MARIE via S. Cronin.(c) S. Cronin
Just like the Scandinavian dish the blog is named for, Sally writes a bit about everything. Her blog runs the gamut from short stories and humorous scribblings to factual information on medical issues from brain health to the endocrine system. There is a lot of interesting stuff there and you are highly recommended to pay a visit.
If you happen to not accept awards or do not have the time, please instead accept this virtual bottle of that all-time awesome and indigenous Mauritian soft drink Eski and some nice snacks too. It’s not quite the Smorgasbord 2015 Rioja that Sally is offering but at least you can boast you ate some food from paradise!!
(c) melane_wong via Pinsta.me
Here are the guidelines for this award.
Contact all of your nominees and notify them of their award. You can pick as many blogs as you like, but five is the minimum.
Give a shout-out to the blogger that nominated you and post a link to their website.
Share five random facts about yourself.
Display the Creative Blogger Award image above your post.
Pass along these rules to the nominees.
Here are the lucky nominees with an excerpt taken from their intros so you can get a flavour of their creativity and check out their blogs. All richly deserved of this fine award….!
Cred in autocunoastere, in iubire, bunatate, in eficienta muncii facuta din suflet. Mai cred in Dumnezeu, in creativitate si vocea inimii, sunt sociabila, rabdatoare, egoista, gandire unica, calma, romantica si Directa. Datorita faptului ca sunt Directa, asta deranjeaza pe foarte multa lume si…ajung sa ma inteleg doar eu pe mine. In rest sunt o persoana obisnuita ce plang…rad…sunt serioasa, independenta de situatie. Oricum Sunt Eu! “De ce ii este omului de astazi foame? De iubire si de sens” spunea Nicolae Steinhardt in Jurnalul Fericirii. Va multumesc pentru ca ati ales sa va petreceti o parte din timp pe blogul meu. Va astept in continuare cu drag… (I believe in self-awareness, in love, kindness, making the soul work efficiently. Believe in God, the creativity and the voice of the heart, being sociable, patient, selfish, thinking, calm, romantic and having direction…. Anyway I Am! “The man she is hungry today? The love and respect, “said Nicolae Steinhardt in the Journal of Happiness. Thank you for choosing to spend some time on my blog. We expect to continue the journey…)
In order to make the blog more interesting, we will include poems, meanings and origins of phrases, inspiring quotes and other interesting facts which are closely related to the designs of our jewelry pieces.
This blog is a place for anyone who wants to know more about the Word of God, developing a deeper and personal relationship with Jesus Christ or get encouragement.
I write from the spiritual fruit within me–love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. I give glory to God when I can share my ebbs and flows, and stumbling experiences by walking through with faith and trust in Him. Praise The Lord for His mercy and His grace. (smile)
This is a place, you can always come for something positive and uplifting! We’ll leave the lights on for you! There is no judging here. It’s about being able to get encouragement or a good scripture to apply to a particular challenge in life and see things from a different perspective.
Some of what I learned during a long career in the media and public relations services business is reflected in the Digital Deception series of posts and in the occasional rants about publishing, online audiences and digital marketing.
I wrote the Growing Up in the 50’s stories from the unique perspective of someone who was born just hours before the start of that decade. I am thus well positioned to describe the phobias, prejudices, politics and lifestyle of those times as seen through the eyes of a child.
Welcome to my blog! I’m SO glad you’re here! Let’s get straight to the point of this blog, shall we?—To not waste our short precious lives on earth like I see SO many people do day after day. It drives me NUTS! Why do we do that to ourselves when there’s so many things to do, see, talk about, learn, and love in this world to make ourselves better and happier as people?
When I’m 357 years old, I want to be able to say I had a great time while I was here the best that I could do for me—whatever it is that makes me laugh, smile, happy, smarter, better, etc. And I, obviously, want you to do the same for yourselves. Lovin’ life, baby! That’s how we roll.
I started ‘Loving Food, Fashion, & Life’ as a hobby one day during my yearly 6-week vacation from work (yeah, that’s right). I had always wanted to do a blog and now was my opportunity. I started at zero—as someone who didn’t know the first thing about blogging—so I did weeks of research on the subject. It was a LOT of work and VERY time-consuming, but I absolutely LOVED every minute of it!
I have been a wine lover for some time now, but I try not to take it all that seriously. I am also a Cat 3 cyclist, a husband, and a father of two great (most of the time) boys. I love to combine all my passions when I vacation, especially when I am going to my in-laws. Since they live close to Napa and Sonoma I can go there and get loaded as well as ride my bike in glorious California.
Welcome to Voices from the Margins. I’m Carol Hand, an enrolled member of the Sokaogon Ojibwe Community, one of the 6 bands of Ojibwe people located in what is now the state of Wisconsin. During my early childhood, I spent my school years in New Jersey where I was born, and my summers with relatives on the Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe reservation in Wisconsin. My bi-cultural heritage has had a profound influence on my life.
Welcome! Here’s some information about my novels and works in progress. I hope you enjoy your visit.
Atonement, Tennessee is now available in paperback, Kindle, and Nook versions. It is an urban fantasy with a mystery on the side. The story pulls in characters loosely inspired by the ancient Celtic myth of Gwydion fab Don. It also features an ensemble of memorable southern personalities. I did a post sharing my thoughts about releasing the book.
Five Facts About Me
1. My maternal grandmother, mother and one of my sisters were/are either chefs or very accomplished cooks. I can just about avoid burning things when I make spaghetti Bolognese.
2. I’ve written theatre reviews for two local newspapers here in Newham, east London, as well as reviews for a listings and cultural magazine in Battersea, also in London. I still have the work stashed away in my portfolio folder.
3. I am currently working on the written material for an investment platform’s website. My friend and work colleague is setting up his advisory and consulting firm that will operate between London, Paris and west Africa, principally the Ivory Coast.
4. I can play the tabla, a type of drum from India, reasonably well.
5. Just like the person who nominated me, I also have feet bigger than the average. My ones are billed at UK size 14, and my Mum used to refer them as ‘kippers’ because they were big and flat like the salted fish fillets.
Many, many thanks to Sally for nominating me and please do visit the nominees I have selected, follow them and say hello there! 🙂
It has been a very difficult week for me lately (and a bit strange too), but today I have at least a small bit of good news to share with you all. The Half-Eaten Mind has picked up its first blogging award for 2015, a special gift from the news and wildlife blogger “Dear Kitty“.
In the last few months of 2014, Kitty, who is based in the Netherlands, decided to dust off her computer graphic skills and created a new, cool and delightfully simple blogging award. She gave it life and christened it the Real Neat Blogging Award. It is the first award she has made, using computer skills that she once used before embarking on her blogging journey. The Half-Eaten Mind is one of fifteen nominees for the RNBA.
(c) Dear Kitty
Kitty blogs mainly news stories on “animals, peace and war, science, social justice, women’s issues, arts, and much more“. She is a veteran of the blogger’s game, having first put nimble fingers to clunky keyboards 10 years ago after signing up with now defunct platform ModBlog in 2005. A decade later, she is the editor behind Dear Kitty – Some Blog. It originally began as a news diary and since then, Kitty now covers stories on wildlife, global conflicts, art and many other subjects. Very importantly, she aims to report on those people and organisations that fight against greed, injustice and suffering in this world and who want to make it more better and peaceful. To ‘speak truth to power‘ is Kitty’s aim.
The RNBA has a set of rules for nominees to be aware of:
1. Put the award logo on your blog.
2. Answer 7 questions asked by the person who nominated you.
3. Thank the people who nominated you, linking to their blogs.
4. Nominate any number of bloggers you like, linking to their blogs.
5. Let them know you nominated them (by commenting on their blog etc.)
KITTY’S QUESTIONS:
1. Where do most visits to your blog come from?
The vast majority of my blog visits are from the United States, which is understandable given that the blog is in English and internet penetration is very high in American homes. The United Kingdom (my base and home country) comes in second place. Since I started my blog in April of 2012, I have received exactly 27,708 visits from the US, my highest total.
2. What is your favourite sport?
I’m not the most sporty person going, but I enjoy football and cricket (watching and playing). I also enjoy WWE wrestling, although don’t count on me stepping inside the square circle any time soon. I bruise easily.
3. What has been a special moment for you in 2014?
I can’t think of anything in particular, but some highlights were my niece turning five (and growing up really fast too), some new additions to the extended family in Mauritius, but generally 2014 was a quiet year for me.
4. What is your favourite quote?
“Rise above it all”
5. What was your favourite class when still at school?
I enjoyed English, science and drama.
6. Anything you had wished to have learned earlier?
I wish I knew how to cook properly. Nowadays it’s mostly ready-made meals and that can’t be good for you!
7. What musical instrument have you tried to play?
I’ve played the conga drum, glockenspiel, xylophone and keyboards for music classes when I was in secondary school. Outside of formal lessons, I’ve messed around with my uncle’s guitar, which I turned out to be absolutely useless at. I’ve also played the tabla, a type of drum from south Asia, and I pretty much owned the instrument with my impeccable percussionist talents, if I say so myself.
A million thanks to Kitty for her kind nomination 🙂 !!! You can see her awesome and informative blog here: https://dearkitty1.wordpress.com/
As with any award nomination from the Half-Eaten Mind, there is no compulsion to accept the said nomination if you are not interested in awards or you are busy for time. Nevertheless I feel honoured to have chosen you. Congrats and a big group hug are in order!
It’s been a while….a long while since the Half-Eaten Mind last got an award for blogging services. We last hauled one in during July of 2014, and just when you thought it was all over, our great, cool and wonderful HEM Community, comes back to do it again.
This weekend, HEM has been nominated for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award by Julian Pereira, a.k.a Julx, an Emirati of Sri Lankan origin who lives and works in the uber-cool shoppers’ paradise of Dubai. He’s, in his words, “a normal, average guy with a normal, average life”. This instance of a VIBA nom comes with a brand new badge, a re-interpretation of the original retro, Art-Nouveau-esque motif in common circulation on many blogs in the English-speaking world. The normal white or cream background has been replaced by what appears to be a photo of several people triumphantly raising a trophy into the sky. A fitting triumph and nomination for HEM.
His site Julx’s Blogbegan life as a secured portal for discussions on technology and computer issues. The blog soon disappeared down the back of the Internet’s sofa, before Julian came back, pulled it out, dusted it off…and the rest is history.
(c) J. Pereira
Julian received his VIBA from a friend named Aly. As always with WordPress blogging awards, we have some rules to go through before we turn up the revelries to ear-splitting level and freak out ALL the neighbours in the block.
The Rules are as follows:
Thank and link the amazing person who nominated you.
List the rules and display the award.
Share seven facts about yourself.
Nominate 15 other amazing blogs and comment on their posts to let them know they have been nominated.
Optional: Proudly display the award logo on your blog and follow the blogger who nominated you.
1. Many, many thanks to Julx for kindly considering the Half-Eaten Mind and myself for the VIBA award. You are a true star in the blogosphere. Here’s his nomination article:
2. You mean this award…..?. It’s very ‘purty’!!…It’s for those blog soldiers who help keep the blogosphere a beautiful place.
Via J. Pereira
3. ONE – I am currently doing a distance-learning course on weekends. This course is being offered as a free incentive by Newham Council in east London, UK for people to obtain and update their work skills. There are different modules on offer, and the one I’m doing at the moment is for Microsoft Excel 2013.
TWO: I’m probably one of the few (obviously mutated) individuals in this world who is capable of touching the tip of their nose with their tongue. What blindingly obvious purpose this will serve me in my life I’ll never know.
THREE: The last restaurant I visited was Cabana Brazilian Barbeque in Camden, London. Their spicy chicken is simply delicious and the chocolate cake is one massive rich brownie!
FOUR: I love Eighties music!
FIVE: My blog’s Twitter account (@halfeatenmind) recently got a follow from none other than Huffington Post blogger and Welsh cutie/weather presenter Sian Lloyd.
SIX: I have hazel-coloured eyes. Very unusual for people with Indo-Mauritian heritage.
SEVEN: I’m addicted to kebabs. Really addicted. Sadly I’m sort of dieting, so the kebab intake has had a massive machete taken to it in my quest to fight the flab.
All will receive a pingback notifying them of their nominations once I get this article published this Sunday. A big congrats to each and every one of you, and remember acceptance is entirely voluntary. Each one of you has inspired me in some way.
5. As with every award we recieve, this latest VIBA will be going to a place of pride on the HEM Directories and Awards page – https://halfeatenmind.wordpress.com/links-awards/ . You can view and follow Julian’s blog at: julxrp.wordpress.com/, where he has a cute cat gazing up at the moonlight. Because everyone knows cats pretty much define the Internet…and life.
On this last award of 2014, I once again would like to thank Julian for choosing the Half-Eaten Mind as a nominee and wish him all the best in his blogging.
Today, the Half-Eaten Mind receives its fifth badge of the Versatile Blogger Award from accomplished and passionate photographer Inese, who lives in County Tipperary, Ireland. Inese runs her own blog and natural photography portfolio, “inesemjphotography” (Inese MJ Photography). Her photograph blog is a heart-warming collection of natural places, plants and animals around her home in southern Ireland, as well as street scenes in the Irish capital, Dublin (Baile Atha Cliath – Irish). She also does a side run in portraiture for babies, older children and families, and has used her camera skill to sweeten the special moments of many families. Inese is also a family history (genealogy) enthusiast and doting grandmother to two little girls, which has helped inspire her passion for creating lifetime memories of children.
Photographs mean memories. It is lovely to have a studio shot now and then, but after many years your loyal pet, your toy horse, or your favorite tree will matter as much as your sweet little face. I am not only taking your portrait; I am making memories for you.
– Inese
(c) Inese MJ Photography(c) original designer via Inese
Inese herself picked up this award from Aquileana, a friend of the HEM who writes on historic topics in English and Spanish. She was very honoured and grateful to receive this award and likewise, I am very happy and honoured that Inese has chosen to pass on this award to me. 🙂
Hot on the heels of the awesome Versatile Blogger Award picked up on Monday from Kim Gosselin, I then discovered that I have also gone and got myself a coveted Very Inspiring Blogger Award from good blogging pal Gene Gordon of the “Sourcerer” blog.
(c) original designer via G. Gordon(c) G. Gordon
Sourcerer is a blog about music, comics, photos and opinions. It is a multi-contributor outfit posting the latest happenings in the world of pop culture, humour, social commentary and geekery. If you need to learn the hard and fast facts about the state of this world, but want to get your side fill of special-edition Marvel comics and Star Trek features, let the Sourcerer work his magic on you.
In addition to Gene, the blog also showcases the works of four other bloggers, Gene’s sister Diana, who blogs under ‘Part Time Monster’ (a previous award sender of the Half-Eaten Mind), Comp Geek David, Quaint Jeremy and Marissa Bergen. An operation of family and friends, the Sourcerer is all about blogging for enjoyment, sharing the contributors’ individual and varied talents and reaching out to people with similar interests. They like to keep things loose and funny, but occasionally venture into the territory of political and social issues.
Gene himself was nominated for the VIBA by Nerd in the Brain on the 6th of July 2014 (Sunday) which he was very happy about and commented that it had come at a perfect time. All of the nominees Gene chose have been those who have inspired him in one way or another. I have inspired Gene on his Twitter journey and we have given each other a lot of support. I admire and am inspired by his writing skill, his grasp of multitudinous topics and the fact that he is an awesome guy to have known. Thanks very much!!
The Two Rules:
1) The nominee shall display the Very Inspiring Blogger Awardlogo on her/his blog, and link to the blog they got nominated from.
This award nomination was from Gene Gordon of ‘Sourcerer’. His nomination article can be foundhere.
2) The nominee shall nominate fifteen (15) bloggers she/he admires, by linking to their blogs and informing them about it.
On the 7th of July, 2014 (this past Monday) the Half-Eaten Mind has been kindly blessed with its first peer-offered blogging award since May. The Versatile Blogger Award, complete with a special trophy badge, was awarded by a good friend, Kim Gosselin, who writes on the blog “Chronic Conditions & Life Lessons“. We would like to humbly thank Kim for considering this blog to be adorned with a very fine and shining gold accolade.
(c) original designer via K. Gosselin
Kim’s blog consists of a series of articles revolving around her family, parenthood, life issues and general observations. Born in the northern American state of Michigan, home to big lakes and big cars, Kim is the eldest of five children. Deeply family-oriented, she lives her life without prejudice and celebrates the diversity of the world around her. Her hobbies are many and wide-ranging, running the gamut from films, travelling, nature,and spending time with her family and friends, to morning coffees, reading, writing, mentoring, music and the theatre.
She married in her twenties and is blessed with two sons. While her children have always brought her joy and happiness, she has also had to be a strong mother in that her boys both were diagnosed with chronic conditions, namely Type A diabetes and asthma. She has used her writing talents to produce books for other mothers in her social circle to help them better understand raising and understanding children with such impacting health issues. She is also a grandmother to a baby girl and boy. Her life experiences and writing skills, honed as a self-employed business owner/children’s author of 16 titles and 26 other published works, were brought into the online world in October 2013, when she began acquainting herself with the blogging platform WordPress, and “Chronic Conditions & Life Lessons” eventually took shape.
“To my surprise the words came spewing out. Not like the books I used to write for children years ago. Instead, a whole new voice burst forth from inside my head. I couldn’t sleep at night or wait to get up before the sun would rise. With coffee by my side, I’d hunt for letters on my keyboard in the moon of the morning. Passion hooked me once again!“
– Kim Gosselin
(c) K. Gosselin
Kim received her award from Susanne Leist at http://susanneleist.wordpress.com/. Kim described this award as “beautiful in gold, tall and true, it is a symbol of support and admiration for my work”. Unlike other versions of the Versatile Blogger award badge, which feature old-fashioned print graphics, Kim’s version from her friend Susanne depicts a golden trophy engraved with the name of the award. It is quite like the little trophies you might get for winning a class football tournament at school.
1. I must be the luckiest man in the world when it comes to buying lunch at work, as my office sits directly above a Sainsbury’s supermarket. I therefore do not have to walk very far to get snacked up on sandwiches, chocolates, fruits or whatever I feel like, within Sainsbury’s remit.
2. I’m normally a quiet person, but I can talk for ages and ages until my mouth gives up on me.
3. I’ve recently got the hang of cooking rice. A very useful skill if you’re half South Asian.
4. I am very fascinated by the ins and outs of journalism, especially the latest developments in it. It is the career I studied for at university and why I have this blog.
5. I am very fussy about cleanliness and personal hygiene, but will leave stuff all over my room’s floor.
6. I was recently stung by a wasp on my way to work. It somehow found itself between my vest and stomach and discharged its sting as my clothing rubbed on it while I was walking. It stung like hell, before the insect, which was probably at the end of its lifespan anyway, fell to the pavement. Talk about going out with a bang!
7. At my workplace, there are two ladies who seem to have crushes on me. Both are redheads (one is more ginger). I also had a stalker who pretty much obsessed over me for four years. I gave her short shrift.
Nominate 15 Deserving Bloggers for This Prestigious Award
Congratulations to all the lucky recipients of the Versatile Blogger Award. It is not incumbent upon you to accept, but it is my way of showing gratitude for your support and just for being cool people really.
All nominees were chosen from recent likes on my blog around 6th to 7th June.
CORRECTION:
Kim Gosselin would like to state for the record, that she sold her children’s publishing company back in 2000. Although she retained author’s copyrights, she does not receive royalty fees, etc.
Is it a bird?….is it a plane?…no, it’s a Superman-tastic The Most Influential Blogger Award from Don Charisma!!. On the 21st May 2014 (this past Wednesday), the indefatigable Don nominated the Half-Eaten Mind as part of his superhero themed giveaway for this renowned and influential award, which he has given his own special twist to.
As part of the giveaway, the Don is offering two such badges to nominees, a Superman badge for the guys and a Superwoman badge for the ladies, although of course you do not have to choose according to gender. When nominated for awards, Don Charisma likes to take the old badges and rework them in his own cool style. Since 2013, he has been nominated seven times himself.
At first he was not sure how to create a badge that would reflect the idea behind the Most Influential Blogger Award. He started by asking around for opinions on the most influential personalities in human history, but soon concluded that all the most influential people in days gone past had an Achilles heel – they were not universally accepted as influential paragons of civilisation. Don shelved the idea and instead opted for the most popular superheroes the world has ever seen leap from the pages of a comic book: Superman and Superwoman.
The Badges:
(c) Don Charisma
Don Charisma’s Superman badge.
(c) Don Charisma
His alternative Superwoman badge.
(c) original designer via Don Charisma
The original badge awarded to the Don.
The Rules:
To accept this award, the awardee must do the following:
Display the Award on your Blog.
Announce your win with a blog post and thank the Blogger who awarded you. Do not lump this award with any other award in a “basket”, “bouquet” or “collection” etc, I would rather you didn’t accept the award.
Present 10 deserving Bloggers with the Award.
Link your awardees in the post and let them know of their being awarded with a comment (or a pingback).
Include an embedded video of your current favourite song (YouTube has virtually everything, just copy and paste the link into your WordPress editor). If a video is not possible you can embed a SoundCloud track.
(rules reproduced from DonCharisma.org)
HEM Takes on The Rules:
1. All three badges up for display and nominees’ use.
2. I would like to humbly thank Don Charisma for kindly considering me for the Most Influential Blogger Award, especially as he has made the effort to produce these awe-inspiring badges. Superman was a significant part of my childhood and I enjoyed seeing the film series that were made in the 1980s and to a lesser extent, the more recent ‘Smallville’ drama series based on the character. I also thought Superwoman was the perfect role model for girls and she kicked baddie ass differently.
You can see Don Charisma’s original nomination post at the link below.
All nominees chosen largely at random from the Twitter feed entitled “HEM Bloggers List” on the official @halfeatenmindaccount. The ten lucky awardees above will each be individually notified via an ‘at’ mention on their feeds on Twitter, plus those who have enabled pingbacks will also get those notifications via the links published in this article.
The Half-Eaten Mind wishes to happily congratulate all the ten awardees and may they always be influential and successful.
5. The video/song I have chosen is “On a Ragga Tip” by SL2. An electronic/ragga hit influenced by Jamaican musical traditions, this party anthem made it into the UK national music charts for three weeks and stayed at Top 10 for two months in 1992. Over the years I have heard this song a few times and always loved its beat. I only recently heard it again while walking to work and the DJ had the good sense to tell everyone the artist and name at the end of the record. I ended up downloading “On a Ragga Tip” into the music library on my mobile phone and it’s become again one of my favourite tracks on there.
SOURCES/IMAGE CREDITS/VIDEO CREDIT:
“The Most Influential Blogger Award” – Don Charisma, DonCharisma.org (21 May 2014) LINK
“SL2 – On A Ragga Tip 1992 Slipmatt & Lime” – thedjslipmatt, YouTube GB (9 October 2007) LINK
