All about the people

The most exciting thing that has happened to me in awhile has been that Judy O'Connell has nominated my blog for the Eddies as a Best New Blog. Unfortunately I didn't make the final list, but just being nominated was such a boost. I have been thinking what I wanted to write about to respond to this and I have tried to start a post several times. Blogging less lately and mostly just putting up new gadgets or sites makes me feel that perhaps I am not really blogging in the sense that Will Richardson has challenged us about on the PLP project- sorry can't link to this one it is a private ning. I seem to just be collecting ideas and information. The more thoughtful and detailed posts I see on the other nominees blogs are so powerful and make me think- 'gee I wish I could put the ideas together like that'.

But really that isn't who I am and if I did an analysis of my site using typelizer I think it would reflect the kind of connector and accumulator I am. I connect- ideas , people whatever. Not on a grand scale, but a colleague says she is always so amazed how I see the Big Picture on things and I guess I have to honest that I am happiest skipping from new idea to new idea and thinking how I could apply it or passing it on to someone at school or nowadays to my PLN using delicious or diigo. It is those connections that have me glued to my computer in a way that nothing else has absorbed me and made me feel like I am growing more than I have for a long time.

Why am I writing this? Two social gatherings and one flashmeeting have made me realise how vital and exciting these links are when you actually meet the people to whom you have connected for some time. A Blogger's feast at Southbank last week gave me the chance to meet some people I have only known online and it was soo exciting. As I tried to explain in the OZ/NZ flashmeeting tonight, you don't have to go through the usual social niceties- you are already friends and the time f2f is so precious that you value every moment. At the same table we had people from four different states of Australia-all behaving as friends who just hadn't caught up for awhile. Magic!!

On Saturday I had a blogger's Lunch at my house for edubloggers- a bit nerve wracking as it wasn't very clear from all the yes/no/maybe tweets that came in for a week beforehand how many I would be catering for. But the sun shone, the garden looked beautiful and the folks arrived. The previous post has a slideshow of the photo session and we had skype and a ustream going for awhile, but the fun was in the people. The range of experience and interest in the group was huge- I haven't done links as there are too many, but we were all laughing about the things we do that we wouldn't necessarily tell other non-bloggers. Maybe it was AA for bloggers, but the conversations were great - even from teachers who had just finished the gruelling report writing marathon.

Yes the PLN gives me ideas, gives me support, gives me the drive to keep trying and keep learning. The nomination is lovely, but the people are the centre of this - not computers or software, - people trying to make sense of the world and to try to be better helpers for young people whose future world starts now.