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Thu. March 1, 2007, 09:56pm PST
My first Coffee & Rhetoric
The first thing that comes to mind is "right on". Thanks to our hosts Julie from UrbanXchange and Josh Carter for the invite and thanks for contributing to the energy I see around local blogs and in everyday life here in Tacoma. My first Coffee & Rhetoric tonight was one I participated in as a guest along with Derek of Exit133. We were there to listen to some music and talk about blogs and our impact creating online and real-world community involvement. We talked about the character of our websites, how we do or do not make a difference here, and where we think the future will take our blogs and Tacoma itself.
The one thing I loved about tonight is how it got me thinking of our "online community". In such a local setting as Tacoma it's amazing that I might easily know someone or visa versa that I've connected with via my blog because we're physically close together. The joining and overlap from virtual to real-world is easy to do here and Coffee & Rhetoric, bocce meet-ups, and groups like the Tacoma Photo Gang are proof positive that blogs are far more than any individual's rants and raves.
An effort I've been involved in, for those of you who don't know, called FeedTacoma.com is yet another avenue to grow these collaborative possibilities. We're taking our relatively singular, individual blog voices and pooling them together in a thoughtful way to focus currently over a dozen contributing websites into a resource that reaches beyond what any one blog can offer. Check it out and keep coming back because the pace and scope of all the content is pretty exciting and there's stuff like Tacoma photos from Flickr and a growing events calendar that are open for viewing and your own contributions.
Thanks again for tonight's Coffee & Rhetoric and let's keep this stuff going. Drop by some Thursday night down there at Cutter's Point to take part and remember to keep an eye on the FeedTacoma calendar for info about this event and plenty others.
So how do you think the idea of "community" is impacted both online and off? Where do you see this stuff going?
Comments (6) | To Top
3/1/2007 @ 10:23pm
was good talking to you again. I found it really interesting that both exit133 and your blog have both organized events in the real life and it acually worked out!
by Michael
3/2/2007 @ 12:27am
Sounds like it was alot of fun. Too bad I missed it. Looks like the whole gang was there: Cassioposa, RR, Ms. Darcy and Derek and yourself of course.
"So how do you think the idea of "community" is impacted both online and off? Where do you see this stuff going?"
The blogs are helping Tacoma quite a bit by highlighting local Tacoma activities and businesses. Several businesses have remarked as how the "blogs" have made a big difference in their first few days such as St. Helens Cafe and Infinite Soups.
The blogs have served to give a fast feedback system for local government on at least three different issues in 2006.
Perhaps the larger influence the blogs have had is to increase the community focus on downtown Tacoma and areas adjacent to it and has increased the overall "buzz" downtown which has helped the efforts to revitalize it.
by Erik
3/2/2007 @ 11:55am
(Hope I haven't posted this twice...not tech-y, myself!) Wanted to thank you for the visuals, as I haven't been able to make it to one of these yet. #9 looks like some intriguing concepts are being discussed;-)
by Laura
3/2/2007 @ 11:56am
PS-Too bad Tacomaness and Thriceallamerican weren't represented...but I do know that Jamie's up in the frigid tundra of Wisconsin or something this week...
by Laura
3/2/2007 @ 12:08pm
Laura: It'll be fun to see what other topics they focus on with Coffee & Rhetoric and what kinds of guests they corral. I really enjoyed myself, that's for sure.
The aim was actually to have Paul Ellis along for a different blog perspective but that didn't happen.
by KevinFreitas
3/2/2007 @ 12:35pm
Observing the interaction between the Webmasters and meat-space civilians (including myspacers) was an exciting experience. The specter of Bellevue was not raised at any point in the conversation, which I believe is a sign of hope. Long live the sons and daughters of Tacoma!
by RR Anderson