If you spend any decent amount of time on there, you will start to be able to follow other people’s conversations. The thing that I like about this, rather then say Facebook or a blog, is that the conversations show up to anyone following you; in some cases, this can be thousands of people.

I follow a lot of nerdy/tech people, and I have learned a ton by following their conversations and clicking on the links they drop. Imagine sitting in on a dinner with 10 of the most successful, smart people you can imagine; that’s Twitter. Kind of.

I use TweetDeck, and it’s pretty cool. I have heard a lot about seesmic which is a little more “Mac-ish” if that makes any sense. TweetDeck can be a little finicky, but the new version is pretty good. It has a good integration with TwitPic that I like.

TweetDeck allows you to view a good feed of what’s going on with the people you are following, and allows you to see your Friend updates on Facebook without signing on (there’s always a danger of that guy you don’t really like all that much chatting with you. I hate that).

It’s easy to use, it’s free, and it links to everything. I’m sure you will all see this blog posted in like 3 or 4 places because of good ole Twitter.

Until next time.

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Anyway. Social media is the fancy term given to the hugely growing phenomenon of websites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and all that fun/exciting stuff. You may have heard the term “Web 2.0″ for it. Web 2.0 simply means user-created sites, like a blog that people can comment on, or a MySpace page, or your Facebook page. The sites where all the coding is already done for you.

I first heard about blogging in high school about 7 years ago. I signed up for Facebook in 2005, but canceled my account with the message “Zuckerberg is a sellout” when they opened it up to the public instead of just college students. It’s all great fun, but what I keep hearing when I am talking to people about this stuff is “Who cares?”

Excellent question. The short answer is nobody. And everybody.

When I first heard about Twitter I thought it was the dumbest thing imagineable. I remember thinking, “Who cares what I’m wearing right now? Or that I’m mowing the lawn? Seriously?”

And the answer is nobody. Nobody cares if your haven’t showered yet. Or what mood you’re in.

But what I have come to realize is that there is a huge power in these little updates.

In the past 3 or 4 jobs I have had, I spent a lot of time texting while I was working. In fact, everyone did. You have a lull, and you text your friend to say hi. They text back while your busy, and you answer them an hour later, but the conversation is still going, regardless of what else is going on. It brings continuity to background noise.

I think of Twitter as the same sort of thing. The thing that got me really hooked was that you can text your tweets, and that can link to your Facebook page as a status update. So say you are going into a meeting, or closing a sale with a client. You text “Closing another one, it’s been a great week!” and all of a sudden all your friends, followers, and possible future clients can see that your busy and doing business. Powerful.

There are really countless possibilities here. I talked to a Realtor in Chicago a couple weeks ago who tweeted everything from quotes to stats to links to tax and mortgage information. Smart.

Add into that the power to hit your blog, your Facebook, and all your Twitter followers from a 5 second text message on the run. Man, this is really damn cool.

Now I’m not saying I know everything there is to know, but I do know a thing or two about how and why you should spend a little time to get onto these sites. And use them. Twitter especially requires minimal maintenance.

And hell, it’s a blast.

So join in the conversation. I have learned a ton already, and this stuff is onlt getting bigger. Facebook hit its 200 MILLIONTH user last week for cryin’ out loud.

And on that note, follow me on Twitter!

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So Cole is really nifty as well. Little boutiques with hand done, spray-painted signs. Stores selling “Zappos y Boots.” It’s like Colfax when Colfax was a little scary. In a good way.

The sub-culture group has always been the catalyst of some cool stuff going down, in my opinion. Haight is San Fran, the Bowery and the Village in NYC. Even SoHo was a hell hole not too long ago.

And while I think Denver is a little… well, a LOT less edgy then San Fran or New York, it has it’s moments. The neighborhoods that have that eclectic sub-culture tend to have a more active nightlife, more active foot traffic. How many 20 somethings do YOU know living in Cap Hill, for example?

So watch for Cole, I think it’s rad. I guess it will take a while to see if it is going to be the next Highlands, but for now, it’s a cool place to just hand around.

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For those of you who don’t know, The Decemberists are a Portland based indie (for lack of a better term) band whose sound is truly unique. Maybe call them alt-folk, maybe alt-antebellum. Colin Meloy (one BAMF, I might add), the lead singer/guitarist, went to Missoula for creative writing (and playing with the band Tarkio, who I would also highly recommend). And it shows.

The songs envoke a quite subtlty of long-lost words that we SHOULD still be using. Lines like “the royal ubiquitous handy cam” and “you had a charming air, all cheap and debonair, my widowed mother found so sweet.”

Personally, my favorite album is Castaways and Cutouts released in 2004 under the Kill Rock Stars label. Her Majesty (2004) is also a superb album, and the one I first heard. It’s hard to believe I have been following the band for near-on 5 years.

Another album worth listening to, if you can get your hands on, is Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey, of which they only pressed 1,000. I was lucky enough to receive a copy for my big Christmas present (thanks Chels!). The track list is as follows:

I Know Very Well How I Got My Name
Pregnant for the Last Time
Jack the Ripper
I’ve Changed My Plea to Guilty
Sister I’m a Poet
Everyday is Like Sunday (a line of which is the title of this very blog)

If you find this album for anywhere south of $200, BUY IT. It’s worth finding, and is appreciating in value very rapidly, especially with the release of only the second major-label EP from the band (the first being 2006′s The Crane Wife).

I know I’m a total Decemberists nerd. But that’s ok, I kind of like that fact. I like that I have heard the band from nearly its conception, and I like that I have watched them grow and become popular (sort of). And not sell out (you SUCK, Death Cab).

Mr. Colin Meloy and I after his Solo show at the Fox in Boulder last Spring

So when I get my shiny new 180 gram vinyl (yes, I preordered), I’ll let you know by how much it kicks ass. I’m sure it will be a lot, but we’ll see. In the mean time, I will be pining for the release, and the upcoming show at the Fillmore on May 26th. Which seems an impossibly long time away, but well worth the wait.

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I moved to my neighborhood the Summer of 2007. I think it’s called the “University” neighborhood, but perhaps Evanston/DU, perhaps Platte Park South, perhaps University Hills West, etc. The list continues.

It’s a great ‘hood. It’s directly south of Wash Park (It’s 1.5 miles from my front door to the southern border of the park, E. Virginia Ave). It encompasses the University of Denver, and a few business districts, but really it’s a bunch of 1940′s and 50′s houses. Which I like. Lots of renters, lots of DU kids (sweatpants and Uggs galore), but it has great charm and great personality.

So the question, again, is “What is the name of my belov’d hood?”

I think it’s University.

Try looking up “Denver neighborhoods- University” on Wikipedia or even Google. Here’s what I found:

“University is a neighborhood in Denver, Colorado. It is home to the University of Denver, many university students, and other residents and businesses, including the first Chipotle Mexican Grill.”

First Chipotle? That’s our claim to fame?

It is good, but not THAT good. And TWO sentences? That’s it, seriously?

And it’s a rockin hood! There’s some cool stuff- There’s Harvard Park, which has a rec center with a pool. There’s the SWAT team headquarters for the Denver PD, where they park their armored cars (DUDE I know), there’s Kaladi Brother’s Coffee, which is awesome. There’s Denver Spoke Bicycles and Brothers’ Board Shop, and a bunch of other cool stuff that very close but not technically in “The ‘Hood,” like Old South Pearl Street and Observatory Park, both an easy bikeride.

So I’ll get pics up and stuff, but I am hoping that the more we University/Evanston/DU/Platte Park South residents establish this place as ours, the better chance we have of someone knowing where the hell we are talking about when we say where we live.

I’m tired of piggybacking off of Wash Park. THEY should say “oh, I live in the North Univeristy neighborhood.”

Suckers.

Being that I cannot grow facial hair, I feel i do not fit in with the gang. But it got me thinking- is this the new trend? Instead of the Hell’s Angels, will our generation have the Hell’s Peddlers? Instead of stabbing rowdy people at Dead concerts, will we simply stand silently at emo concerts and blog about it later?

I think yes.

Denver is a pretty good city to bicycle in. It’s mostly flat in the central Denver area, only getting terribly hilly the further you get out of town. I guess Cap Hill counts as not being flat, but it’s not that bad. You big babies.

Single speed bikes work well here. And most of the city is pretty good about not running you over if you stay to the shoulder far enough. The one exception is the Tech Center. The people there don’t seem to like we cyclers. I’ve only had 3 confrontations though.

Plus, it’s a nifty way to see the neighborhoods.

I should mention, however, that upon the 800 block of S. Pearl St. there lives a villainous creature so vile and disgusting that all should tread lightly. Some may call the creature a cat, but it is far more insidious then that name implies. It chases we poor 2-wheeled folk, meowing as blood drips down his fangs.

Seriously, the little a-hole chased me for a block.

I currently reside in the lovely little ville known as Denver, Colorado. A quaint town, to be sure. It was founded in 1858 by John Larimar near a little stream known as Cherry Creek, and slowly became a hub for folks of all kind. Mostly bicycle-riding ski-types who wear shorts, Mountain Hardware jackets, and beanies year-round.

My favorite part of “D-Town” (again, note quotations) is Commons Park and Platte St, where one may find such lovely little places such as REI, Paris on the Platte, and Disrespectacles. All fine purveyors of all things nifty.

I will do my very best to update this not only often, but with things that you, the discerning public, will actually find interesting.

“Peace out.”