Getgood Guide

A while back Julia Higginbottom asked on Twitter who we thought might be deserving of the hash tag #socialsaturday after their name, i.e. who uses Twitter and online networks to create and arrange very real live social situations from drinks down the pub to more formal gatherings.  These are people I’ve come across (in no particular order) who thoroughly deserve it and why:

Ben Whitehouse (@benjibrum)

As well as always being up for meeting for a pint and/or piece of cake, Ben organises the Birmingham Film Group.  He’s also a regular volunteer at the Social Media Surgeries and joined me and the We Share Stuff crew for a very sociable couple of days at the Digital Inclusion Conference, peaking with his fantastic interview of a protester in Parliament Square, That London.  He’s currently working on an emotional tour of Birmingham and, because he’s so sharing and caring, has asked for our input.  Please give him the back the love he so freely gives out with your suggestions!

Michael Grimes (@citizensheep)

He’s just utterly lovely.  So lovely, in fact, that Pete Ashton saw fit to create We Love Michael Grimes, which the Birmingham crew have been only too happy to contribute to.  Michael sees Twitter as a great social tool that can create and reinforce friendships in the real world, and wrote this incredibly touching post explaining how that’s helped him personally.  He’ll be mortified I’ve written this, just as he is when anyone sings his praises.  It’s one of the things that makes him so utterly lovely.

Shona McQuillan (@graphiquillan)

Shona can’t just organise a piss-up in a brewery, she can organise it at the drop of a hat.  A Stetson hat, that is.  First came WxWM for us Brummies not in the exodus to SXSWi, then came its bouncing baby Moseley Barcamp.  But in between the two, because Shona decided she didn’t have quite enough on her plate organising barcamps and creating beautiful art, is WxWM2: Sue Ellen’s Almighty Hangover.  It will be an almighty hangover if tonight’s tweets are anything to go by.  It’s ten hours away yet but she’s already started on the cider. Go on.

Nikki Pugh (@genzaichi) and Charlie Pinder (@pindec)

Sorry to lump these two together, as I’m sure they do amazing things separately, but they’re here for the fun and games that are BARG and the Birmingham Hack Space (along with Antonio Roberts and Midge).  Come and play!

Nick Booth (@podnosh)

A lovely, sociable guy who shares the love and knowledge with Social Media Surgeries for Birmingham charities and voluntary groups, organising the Brumbloggers into passing on their knowledge on a monthly basis.

Karen Strunks (@karenstrunks)

Getting social on global scale with her magical 4am Project, which had photographers up at that ungodly hour snapping away before, in Birmingham’s case, eating gargantuan breakfasts.  Also responsible for a Twitter Flashmob.  Karen always seems to be thinking up imaginative ideas to get people connecting online together in the real world.

I’m sure I’ve missed people out, please feel free to comment any omissions.  In fact, I’ve just thought of another one:

Me (@getgood)

Being a pale imitation of those above and jumping on the bandwagon by organising an outing to Friction Arts’ Echoes From The Edge this Saturday 31st May at 2pm, which I’ve been to before but am going back for more because I loved it so much.  Please let me know if you’d like to come!

Citizensheep – Michael Grimes debates the dilema of using friends’ expertise for free. This is something I’ve been seriously guilty of myself, both for Digbeth is Good and more increasingly for work, so it’s something I need to be mindful of.

Michael’s also written a brilliant explanation of RSS – it’s a way to see your very favourite fish amongst the many shoals, apparently.

On 22nd Feb I joined Mark Steadman and Michael Grimes as a guest on their Rhubarb Radio Sunday Social show to talk about what I’ve been up to on Digbeth is Good.  We talked about things like The Rainbow’s current problems and translating the Big City Plan for Big City Talk.  Mark very kindly given me an MP3 of the conversation bits of the show on their own, so you can listen to our chat here:

Bruce Lawson chain-lettered Michael Grimes (aka Citizensheep), who in turn chain-lettered me into blogging about the 7 things you may not know about me.  So here we are – the good, the bad and the ugly:

1. When no-one else is around I talk to myself. Out loud.  I have full-blown conversations with myself about things that are on my mind.  I’ve done this for as long as I can remember.  Of course, sometimes I’ll think I’m home alone when I’m actually not, which has led to some embarrassing situations.
2. As I’m drifting off to sleep, I can hear a soft babble of voices, like I’m in a train station and can hear lots of conversations without being able to make out what people are saying.  I’ve had this for as long as I can remember.  I read a letter from a woman who had the same thing to psychic problem-solver Ruth The Truth, who told her it was ghosts trying to talk to her.  Ever since then I’ve fallen asleep with Radio 4 on.  I don’t like the idea of falling asleep to the dulcet tones of dead people.
3. After a bad experience aged 19 to up until about two years ago, I had an overwhelming, all-consuming phobia of the dentist.  I had to go through therapy with the fantastic Beyond Fear to get it sorted out.  I can never thank Andrew Solecki enough for getting me to join a dentist after a twelve-year gap.  Amazingly, my teeth were fine.
4. I love mind-numblingly rubbish telly.  I watch Hollyoaks, endless Friends repeats and all manner of reality telly shows.  It’s my crack, and probably the reason for my celebrity crush on Charlie Brooker.  I feel he’s the only one who would understand.
5. I think starting blogging is one of the best things I’ve ever done.  Someone once said to me, “with your blog you’ve discovered your art form.”  I understand why some may scoff at the idea of a blogging being an art form, but I don’t care.  I feel like I’m expressing myself and being creative in a way I’ve not managed to before.  I don’t care if this sounds pretentious, I bloody love it.
6. My current dream is to do a lone, lengthy road-trip around Ireland.  Armed with a blog, obviously.  If I won the lottery you wouldn’t see me for dust.
7. I didn’t talk until I was three.  My parents thought there was something seriously wrong with me and took me to all sorts of specialists, until one of them concluded I was just plain lazy.  One of my earliest memories is of going to see one of these specialists and having to name plastic farmyard animals laid out on the table.  Maybe that’s the reason for Item 1 – I’m making up for lost time.

Okay, so that’s me.  It seems I have to pass the buck now.  I choose Antonio Gould, Ed Russell, Karen Strunks, Snow Blind, Ben Whitehouse, Midge Diabolik and Daniel Davies.  Have fun!