Spatulas, Corkscrews & Suitcases

GIVEAWAY - BLOGHER FOOD BLOG Conference Ticket

 

San Francisco - September 26th, 2009 BlogHer Food Blog Conference
The BlogHer conference is SOLD OUT. You can't get tickets anywhere! I bought this ticket back in May when I thought I could make it to the conference. I even did an article on the BlogHer Food '09 San Francisco Conference!

Well, now I can't go, and that's good news for one of my food blogging peeps! At first, I thought about selling it the ticket, then I decided I wanted to give it away. Yeah, I know what you're thinking. There has to be a catch. No Catch. Not really. All I want to do is increase my readership, subscribe to my blog, to Examiner, Twitter, that kind of thing. I've given away plenty of things in the past, but never anything this BIG. So, I went to the last few really BIG blog contests I entered to see how they did it.

Jaden from Steamy Kitchen recently gave away a ticket to the premier of Julie & Julia. Just last week, David Lebovitz, Matt Bites, White on Rice Couple and Steamy Kitchen among others were taking comments to giveaway a trip to their next Club Med Food Bloggers convention. I enter them all, but have yet to win! Anyway...I thought I'd do my giveaway like the big boys & girls do!

I recently chatted with Lori from BlogHer and she said when I find the winner, to send her your name and email address, and she'll transfer the ticket over to you. She'll then email it to you with your name and info on it. Easy Peasy, right? Lori assured me all will go well. After all, they do this all the time.

GIVEAWAY SPECIFICS

• INCLUDED: ONE (1)  BlogHer Food '09 Full Conference Pass which includes; admission to the conference, programming, breakfast, lunch, breaks, and cocktail reception. Value: $99.00. Priceless because they're sold out!
  
• NOT INCLUDED:  Airfare, transportation to and from the airport, accommodations, meals other than at the conference, and Anything Else!

You Must Do All 4 To Win

1. Leave a comment on this post only. Tell me why you want to go.
2. Subscribe to this blog, Spatulas & Corkscrews, top right sidebar. (No one will see your email address.)
3. Never miss a recipe again! Subscribe to my Examiner page. (Hit the button that says, "Subscribe To Email" right next to my mug shot! Only I'll see the subscriptions come in, but again, totally secure.)
4. Follow me on Twitter (http://twitter.com/Spatulas_Corks) and RT @Spatulas_Corks for me. (Self explanatory!)

That's It! I've been working so hard to make a living lately, that I've missed out on all the blogging fun, and most of all, I've missed you, my blogging friends!

Deadline
The giveaway will start now, and run until Sunday, September 20th, midnight, EST. ONE entry only per person, NO duplicates. USA entries only. I'll take all the comments and pick ONE (1) winner using a Random Generator. To make it even more secure, I'll have another Blogger do the honors. Totally fair! I'll announce it here and also email the winner. That's when BlogHer takes over and makes the electronic transfer.

ONE MORE THING - The big reason I was going to the BlogHer convention, was to take notes and write an article for my column, National Food Blog Examiner. It would really help me out if the winner (you) would be interested in taking some photos and giving me an interview to publish on Examiner when you get back.

Let the Games Begin!

ST. PATRICK'S DAY RECIPES Round-up

                                                                        

   


St. Paddy is Irish, Don't You Know?
St. Patrick's Day is Tuesday, only two days away. St. Joseph's Day is Thursday, March 19th. Two holidays, only two days apart! And for all you Rhode Islander's out there, that's BIG news! Can you say Zeppole? So, needless to say, I've been writing like crazy in all different topics too. One thing you will notice is a number of Irish recipes.  I tacked on a few from last week just to keep the list together. I have more links to add, but these will at least get you started on the road to the pot of gold. Just kidding!

                                                  

Irish Recipes!

• Healthy Irish Soda Bread!!!
• Traditional Irish Soda Bread Recipe 
• Baileys Irish Cream Cheesecake Recipe
• Homemade Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur Recipe
• White Chocolate Baileys Irish Cream Mousse Pie Recipe

 

More Random Recipes & Articles - Week Ending 3/14

• Hello, Cupcake! Book Review
• 5 Best Selling Cupcake Cookbooks
• Nutella Chocolate Fudge Brownie Recipe
• Lots of Nutella Recipes - World Nutella Day Round-Up
• Congratulations To The Smith's Edge Winners!

 
 

FEEDS & EMAIL ALERTS
Just a note on feeds and email alerts. With a Feed, you get an almost instant message update in your reader of choice. Most people have all their feeds go to their Google reader or iGoogle page. When you get to my main page on The Examiner for instance, you'll see that familiar orange box in the upper right hand header next to "Donna's Articles". If you click that, it'll bring you straight to a page to sign up for instant alerts. Spatulas & Corkscrews on the other hand, doesn't have anything so bright and shiny. It just says, "Subscribe to this blog's feed", in the top right sidebar right under Get Email Updates. It does the same thing - instant updates so you don't miss a thing!

Email Updates work a little different. When you enter your email address, Feedblitz gets the message and sends it to you the next day. If I can get a post in before midnight, you'll have an email waiting for you in the morning. If I don't, and do it anytime during the day, you'll get it the next day. They're only sent out once every 24 hours. Not that that's bad. They both have their own charms and applications. My suggestion would be to do both. Because if you're anything like me? I'll forget to look at my reader, but ALWAYS check my email! Keep in mind though, that it could be a day later. PHEW!!!


Now that I've totally confused you, I'm inviting you to subscribe to my FEEDS and EMAIL UPDATES, not only this blog, but also The Examiner and Suite101 as well. Many of you already have, and for that I'm extremely grateful. You're the reason I cook, grill, bake and drink!

 

Examiner.com - Providence Edition

                                 

Are You A Freelance Writer?
If you love to write, I came across a great online outlet for writers and a great way to make some extra money.

According to Amy from the Examiner, "Examiner.com is becoming the leading online site for local news and information. We are specifically looking for people who want to write and share their knowledge as a Local Examiner at the Providence Edition of Examiner.com. (They are looking in over 60 cities nationally)

As an Examiner you will have a great opportunity to inform others about a subject you love and to promote yourself and, further your career. The talented people we’re looking for have local expertise in one of the following subjects:

1. Arts and Entertainment 2.Bars and Clubs 3.Business and Finance 4.Careers and Workplace 5. Neighborhoods and Communities 6. Education and Schools 7. Family and Parenting 8.Fitness and Weight Loss 9.Food and Drink 10.Games and Hobbies 11.Health 12.Home and Living 13. News 14.Pets 15.Politics 16. Style and Fashion 17.Recreation 18.Relationships 19. Religion and Spirituality 20.Restaurants 21.Shopping 22.Sports 23.Gadgets and Tech 24.Transportation 25.Travel."

You can visit the site and apply for all 60 cities by going to:

About Examiner.com

Oh, and when you do, please enter Donna Diegel #4208, on the bottom of your application. That's me!

photo-rolve,sxc

"WHERE'S MY DAMN ANSWER?" - GUEST POST

                           

Got A Question?
I've been following Cathy C around for a while now. She's a wine kinda-sewer just like me, so we hit it off right away! She and three other women have this great blog called, "Where's My Damn Answer?", where they attempt to solve all the problems in the universe, and then some!

Their philosophy?
The girls say, "The main reason for doing this (their blog) so that maybe, just maybe, from one of our postings about something whether it be an experience, a statement, a rant/bitch, a hot tip, something playful or abstract that if not one of us someone out there will find their answer."

So, Where's My Damn Answer?
When they asked me to do a guest spot on "Where's My Damn Answer?" today, I was thrilled! You see, these girls are going somewhere! They have no idea where yet, but they're on their way! So, I'd love for you - all my loyal peeps - to do me a favor, and go take a look at their blog. Poke around and read some of their articles. Check out the authors page, and get to know them. And then, when you're all done with them, leave a comment and tell them what you think.

Slip, Stitch and Stab! A New Blog!

                                                        

FUGLIES!
Another off topic post, but I told my daughter Kerri that I would exploit her new blog, Slip, Stitch and Stab. Kerri's hands knit so fast, it's a total blur! There's no way you can keep up, you can't see her fingers or the needles. She doesn't even have to look at what she's doing. She can watch a full episode of Dr. Who while creating and knitting!

                                                                     Kitty Ears Hat

She's made some real impressive stuff and takes custom orders too! In fact, I'm wearing a cool set of slippers that are very "FUGLY" in nature! That's what she calls her creations - FUGLIES! I get comments wherever I wear them!

                                                              

Hostess Cupcake Hat

Go take a look at Kerri's new blog, Slip, Stitch & Stab and see what she's been up to. Her blog is brand new and a work in progress. Make sure to bookmark it, as you'll see a lot more where that came from!

I'll leave you with a few photos of what she's done and what she's working on right now. She calls it a Monster Purse! Colorful, huh?

                                                                   

Monster Purse!

PLAGIARISM AND COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT AT AN ALL TIME HIGH!

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Have you ever had someone steal content or photos from your blog or website that you worked hard for? What did you do about it? Stealing articles from someone else is just not right. It's a crime. But why does it happen and what can we do about it?

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This is totally off track from what I normally write on my own blog, Spatulas, Corkscrews & Suitcases, but this copyright infringement and plagiarism issue has really gotten me down lately. In December, 74 of my articles from Suite101 were taken and copied word for word. I had to track them down and send a cease & desist letter to the offending website. I started out by being polite. That soon changed to leaving comments.They disabled the comments so no one would see them. After so many comments, I got an error notice telling me to stop leaving duplicate comments. A few more, and I was shut down for spamming. ME? Spamming my own articles? I thought about taking the total number of articles, multiplying by the number of words, and charging them the going rate of .10 cents per word. YIKES! The total came to  $4440.00! I could really use that money to pay down my boat loan. The articles were eventually removed from the site, but I never got an apology or anything. The worse thing is, this guy's website is still up and running and probably stealing more content because he was never held accountable for the last theft.

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The 74 articles were written over a period of one year. Suit101 and I hold the copyright. There's a little  © at the bottom of each of my articles. The offending website included my name at the top, but left no link. It didn't go anywhere. It could have been handled a different way. It's acceptable to cut & paste up to 50 words as long as the author and website are cited. A link back to the original article is appreciated. That way, I still make money. This was copyright infringement, pure and simple.

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To make matters worse, this is my bread and butter. Suite101 pays me for what I write through Google Adsense. Some of the stolen articles are coming up higher than my own (I know, how is this possible?) in the Google search pages. So, the reader that is searching for my article lands on the stolen content, with no need to go any further and click on my article. Bottom line - Lost revenue and income out of my pocket. And while many bloggers write for the ultimate fun of the craft, I do it for both - love of food & writing, AND income.

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Today, I find out that a bunch more have been plagiarized by another site. I haven't finished counting, but it's over 20. This time copying & pasting my articles and using their own name as the author. I'm getting weary of this. I am totally fed up with internet thievery. I've had it! I don't have time for it. I have better things to do with my time...like write more articles so someone else can steal them from me.

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Now, before I offend anyone here, I am NOT talking about "you". When I say "you", I am generalizing. I mean the offending parties, In my experience that happens to be major websites taking my work from Suite101. OK, now that I've put your mind at ease let me go on with my rant.....

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Years ago plagiarism and copyright infringement were harder to accomplish. You actually had to copy the text directly from a book or magazine using a pen and paper or typewriter. It took a lot of time (just so you know, I'm not talking about me here). Todays internet makes it so much easier. Ooooh, look at this! You like whatever she's writing. You like her photos. Just cut & paste something you like and copy it into your own blog! Lift a photo or two from someone else and away you go. Add your own name and viola! Instant content with no work!

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Well, stealing content, articles and photos without permission is not always flattery. And flattery doesn't always get you everywhere! It's just common sense and courtesy to ask permission before you take something.That's why there's a little © at the end of most articles, on the inside cover of most books and magazines, and watermarks on photos. 

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This is happening at an alarming rate. But what can we little old bloggers do about it?
Check out this article from Wikipedia on Plagiarism. It'll help inform you on what that dirty word - plagiarism - really is. You can set up a Google Alerts feature that will track certain words that you deem important. Like your name for one, and maybe a few other very specific keywords pr phrases that link directly back to you. It's free and they even have a Feeds For Google Alerts option to alert you instantly if your name or keywords shows up. If you find that someone is stealing your work, the first thing you need to do is send the offending party a polite note asking for your content to be removed or at the very least to add a link directly to your post. This usually works the first time. The offending website or blogger is usually ignorant of copyright laws and plagiarism protocol.

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If that doesn't work, you may have to send them a cease & desist letter. This happens with big websites that think they are above the law, or that no one will catch them. Most times they'll just ignore you. Sometimes, they're tricky and open new websites and do it all over again. In some cases, it's just too big to go after and you feel violated, like someone went through your underwear drawer. Don't expect an apology from these big sites. You suck it up and take it like a man.

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Have you ever had another blog or website steal your work? How did you handle it? How do you protect your work?                                                   

TWITTER, TWITTER, WHAT IS TWITTER?

                                                      

What is Twitter All About?
What's all this about Twitter lately? First I sign up for Facebook. I finally get that down pat. Then everybody's telling me I have to have Twitter. I did, but I have no idea what I'm doing, so please be patient!

The updates on Twitter are called "Tweets". The tweets, or mini-blogs, can only be 140 characters or less, just enough to let your friends and readers know what you're up to.

According to Mia Carter from Suite101, "Twitter members sign up for free on the Twitter website, where it takes just a few minutes to set up a profile and upload a photo. Once that’s complete, Twitter members can start sending out messages (also known as “twittering” or “tweeting”) to friends, family members and co-workers." To learn more about Twitter, check out the rest of this article by Mia. She explains it so much better than I can!

So, look over to the right...right there ---->>>>
There's a block of Twitter Updates in the right hand side bar. At the bottom it says Follow Me On Twitter.  Just click the button , follow the instructions, and you can follow me whenever I post.  Then, invite your friends to follow you, and they'll invite their friends, and they'll invite their friends and so on and so forth!

Looking forward to Twittering with you!

(photo by coolza,sxc)