A Newbie’s Blog
Showing some blogroll love to classmate and fellow Tweeter and now blogger. Yes, his blog only has one entry, but let’s see if this post adds some pressure to keep blogging. 😉
Go harass darrennakao.wordpress.com.
Life
What a Week, Part 5: I am a Top Social Media Geek of Hawaii!
Let’s do this. Picking up on my What a Week series. This is when the id, ego, and super ego combust, and it’s time I lay these busters down.
Friday night, July 24, 2009. Honolulu Academy of Arts, Academy Arts Center at Linekona. Pecha Kucha Night Honolulu. Bytemarks presenting. 6 minutes and 40 seconds. His picks for the Top 20 Social Media Geeks in Hawaii. The elite in order of flow:
20. Burt Lum @bytemarks
19. Judi Clark @judico
18. Ryan Ozawa @hawaii
17. Christa Wittmier @supercw
16. Ian Kitajima @ikitajima
15. Donna Nakasue @champuru
14. Liza Pierce @amauiblog
13. Jared Kuroiwa @KGMB9
12. Dan Leuck @dleuck
11. Greg Yamane @geewhy / Susie Collins @thecanaryreport
10. Todd Cochrane @geeknews
9. Roxanne Darling @roxannedarling
8. Vernon Brown @vbrown
7. Paula Bender @lavagal
6. Mitchell Dwyer @scrivener
5. Melissa Chang @melissa808
4. Nathan Kam @nathankam
3. Nadine Kam @fashiontribe
2. Andy Bumatai @andybumatai
1. L.P. “Neenz†Faleafine @neenz
So what’s this all mean? It means I rank! Ha! Not on the list? Losers and suckas! I’m better than you!! 😉
Or maybe not. Yup, it is an honor to be on a list like this, subjective (but fun) as it may be. But hey, I did make the list of a digital ronin, and that’s cool. Thanks to Bytemarks for the compliment, and this only puts the pressure on to keep chugging away.
Oh, thanks to @ryankanno for live tweeting Bytemarks’ list while I was living the life on Lanai.
Three Things I Learned About Chris Pirillo
First off, I learned who Chris Pirillo is. 😉 To tell you the truth I had no idea until Tuesday’s impromptu tweetup at The Counter at Kahala Mall. You can read about Chris’ varied history and background on his personality-infused site.
So what did I learn about Chris Pirillo? Three things.
Speed and wit. With his nerdy background and online success, Chris is obviously a smart guy, a little kooky, but a smart guy nonetheless. What impressed me was the speed of his wit. When presented with gifts or situations, he quickly adapted and imparted his own flavor to each. And he is speedily efficient with his online updates. No sooner had he gotten his Counter burger, he was video recording his custom creation (in a single take), and uploaded the video.
Give it all you got. During lunch, you couldn’t deny Chris’ zeal and enthusiasm. With everything he did, he gave it his all (and recorded it). Showcasing his Counter burger creation and the gift of Star Wars Stormtrooper Lego figures led to loads of zaniness and pictures.
And just watch him sample Zippy’s chili and saimin. Yes sir, give it all you got.
You need thick (white) skin. Being a social media maven, Chris has a ton of followers and haters. I’m sure he’s developed some very thick skin over the years to fend off the criticisms, barbs, and brutal comments. Read some harsh comments left on Chris’ video interview with Traci Toguchi who hosted Chris during his Hawaii stay. Yikes. And about that white skin… Chris is classic shark bait. Even being out in the sun with no sun screen did nothing to change his whiteness.
So there you have it, three things I learned about Chris Pirillo from a lunch tweetup.
P.S. It was fun to meet @darrennakao, @rickyli99, @tracitoguchi, @l3379lad180r, @lauriecicotello, @trulyjoannies, @kaizenhawaii, @scsdogg, @ynoelani, @alohabruce, @alohayaling in real life. A few of my pics from the Chris Pirillo tweetup hosted by Traci Toguchi (with a special appearance by Artie Wilson).
Got Your Snow Leopard on Order?
Amazon is pre-selling the next Mac OS X version aka Snow Leopard. Current 10.5 owners can upgrade to Snow Leopard for only $29. Great price!
Pictures from A Touch of `Iolani 2009
Posted random pictures from Saturday night’s A Touch of `Iolani event. Hosted by the `Iolani Class of 1990.
The same pictures are also available on Facebook and my MobileMe gallery (no captions). Additional pictures can also be found on the “live” Touch of Iolani Posterous site.
To the next event organizers, have non-class member(s) dedicated to taking pictures. Hosting class members are too busy with various duties to take pictures of all the great things going on throughout the night.
Foot Locker Ala Moana Returns Upstairs
Foot Locker at Ala Moana reopened its upstairs doors, leaving the bottom floor. It’s near its original location seemingly switching places with The Gap.
Lots of cool kicks to see…
Thanks for Sharing, Starbucks!
Got my coupon for a free pint of Starbucks ice cream in the mail. Thanks for sharing on Facebook, Starbucks! Wonder what flavor to get? Caramel Macchiato, Java Chip Frappucino, Mocha Frappucino, or Coffee?
Caramel Macchiato sounds like a winner.
What a Week, Part 4: A Lanai Twitter Treat
If the experience at the Four Seasons Lanai at Manele Bay wasn’t enjoyable enough, a highlight had to be engaging the resort’s Twitter presence @FSlanai. I must admit that I didn’t expect much from a hotel chain’s Twitter prowess. Most corporations, even high end ones, really don’t capitalize on engaging people with social media and networking. Not so with @FSlanai!
As soon as I started tweeting about Lanai, @FSlanai was right there, tweeting back. Any interesting picture I snapped, FSlanai would relay with a retweet. And it wasn’t just @FSlanai, but seemingly, the marketing staff of the Four Seasons Lanai got involved with tweets and direct messages from @KatieonLanai and head honcho himself, @tomroelens. What a completely unexpected way to interact with their guests, supplementing the already great IRL service.
What blew me away completely was a Twitter treat I found waiting in our room after dinner on Thursday. Sitting there was a Hawaiian Mai Tai drink kit with a personalized note from @KatieonLanai.
Unbelievable!
What a Week, Part 3: Unexpected BBall News
WaW Part 3 brought some unexpected basketball news last week Thursday. Off topic, but I was surprised to hear (through Twitter) that Team Kanno won the “B†Division Championship in the `Iolani Alumni Basketball League.
I was even more surprised of the team name, Team Kanno, since their namesakes ain’t their Superman. Though his future as a basketball coach has promise.
Congrats Team Kanno.
What a Week, Part 2: Four Seasons Lanai
On Thursday, July 23, the extended family started our pseudo-staycation, going to Lanai and living the life at the Four Seasons Resorts at Manele Bay and Koele. What awesome resorts and what a great trip! I’m still sorting through everything.
You can relive my experiences by reading my tweets and posts and checking out some pictures.
What a Week, Part 1: Social Networking
What a week (Waw) it’s been! Last week Wednesday, my work organization (finally) jumped on the social networking bandwagon. We’re still in the learning phase and don’t have too much to show yet, but this small step is actually a big step in changing the culture at work.
Hopefully more to come later, but as a start, our Facebook fan page.