Author: Bonnie

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When It’s Wrong to Be Right

I’m not really sure how they are designated, but everyday seems to be a “national day of something”. There’s even a website that will tell you what you should be celebrating each day. It always seemed a bit silly to me, but it seems to be frequently used in social media particularly to support a particular cause.

 

June 15 my social media started featuring the hashtag #NationalLobsterDay. For someone who works in the fishing industry, it’s always nice to see some recognition. Since I follow many seafood folks, it was a fun to see how it seemed to take off and to play along with the fun.

 

 

Friday morning I woke up to discover that not everyone enjoyed the day. It seems that National Lobster Day was is actually in September and Maine Lobster was not happy about all this celebrating in June:

 

And while there seems to be legitimacy to their claim:

This could have been a double opportunity to promote lobster as a seafood choice and gently, with humour point to the new date:

 

“Lobster: too good to have just one day; join us September 25 for more”

 

They seemed instead more like the angry villian in a Scooby Doo cartoon who was foiled by those blasted kids than a promotion agency for lobster. There’s a lesson in how to respond (or not) to what could be a good news story. Sometimes it’s better to go with the flow and take advantage of opportunities instead of clinging to the “rightness” of your claim.

 

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Twitter: When It’s Wrong to Be Right: http://bit.ly/2rFO9ht

Facebook: When It’s Wrong to Be Right: learning to go with the flow on social media. http://bit.ly/2rFO9ht

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A Tale of Two Critiques

Donald Trump has obviously become a very polarizing public figure. Every public comment or tweet is subject to disection and dirision. Deserved or not will depend on your politics, but last week I was struck by two critiques: both their similarities and how divergent they were.

 

The first was the photo of Kathy Griffin holding a bloody head that resembled Donald Trump. The photo quickly went viral, then a whirlwind of backlash ensued. (Then there was backlash to the backlash, as seems to frequently be the case on social media.) There were opinions that she’d gone too far; a line had been crossed; and she was inciting violence. It reached a crescendo when Donald himself weighed in:

 

Meanwhile, over on Facebook just after the United States removed itself from the Paris Climate Accord, Ben and Jerry’s Canada posted a link to a post entitled: “6 Reasons Pulling Out of the Paris Climate Agreement Was Totally, Definitely the Right Move“. Ben and Jerry’s has always been a little quirky, but their six point take on climate change was sarcasm at its finest. Not surprising (maybe a bit) it didn’t reach the viral level of the Kathy Griffin photo.

 

Both were a criticism of President Trump. Both were an attempt at humour. I would guess that the only one you heard about last week involved Kathy Griffin. To be heard above the constant noise of social media, do you have to be shocking? Is the fall out worth it? Ms. Griffin basically said it wasn’t for her with loss of employment and friends. How do we move beyond the lowest common denominator to a place where ideas not people can be debated?

 

Until then, I think I’m only going to follow ice cream companies…and maybe their trucks.

 

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Facebook: “A Tale of Two Critiques”: when humour is funny and when it isn’t. http://bit.ly/2sRZO9P

Twitter: “A Tale of Two Critiques”: when humour is funny and when it isn’t. http://bit.ly/2sRZO9P

 

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I Knit Where I Want

A few weeks ago during the hockey playoffs Twitter was a twitter when this photo started making the rounds:

Not being a hockey fan, I stumbled across it inadvertently when someone I follow (an avid Pittsburg fan) tweeted about her.

I’ve written before about the challenges of knitting in public, particularly at work. She fell into a hole I’ve carefully tried to avoid: people thinking that you were not engaged while holding needles and yarn. Clearly it’s easier to make that connection in person as opposed to a nationally televised sporting event.

 

While there have been many traditional media articles written since the initial tweet, what has struck me is how she has responded on Twitter.  It is a lesson in how social media allows people to voice their response immediately in conjunction with more in depth coverage from traditional media. While both have their roles in telling the story, I believe that without her quick and informed responses, the initial reaction of the twitter post might have also been the tone of the traditional media stories. Instead she has articulately made her case that because you are knitting doesn’t mean you are not paying attention.

 

At a time when news stories are questioned on a daily basis, it is an interesting lesson on how you can control your own narrative.

 

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Twitter: #IKnitWhereIWant http://bit.ly/2qGnE6I

Facebook: I Knit Where I Want (Why the Penguins Knitting Lady is my hero) http://bit.ly/2qGnE6I

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What Melania Trump Taught Me About Instagram

A month or so ago I read a post analyzing Melania Trump’s personality based on her Twitter photos. It’s a bit of a scary concept, people judging your motives and psyche based on the photos you post. It made me wonder what conclusions someone could draw from my Instagram photos. Like most people using Instagram, I curate what I post (blurry photos or those with 6 chins need not be shared) but what do the photos that I do post say? I’ve mostly just treated it as a visual online diary of what I’ve seen on any given day. After looking back through my photos I realized a couple of the Melania theories hit close to home and in the unlikely event that my posts are used to analyze MY personality, I’d like to offer a few comments and explanations:

 

The view from my window

There’s about 40 photos I’ve taken looking out 2 of my windows. While the angle changes slightly, they are mostly the same view of the same things:

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#windy #nbwinter #grandmanan #storm

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: I never leave the house.

My explanation: While I can sometimes border on being a hermit, mostly it’s because it’s early or stormy and I don’t want to go outside in my pyjamas.

The view from above

I’ve posted over two dozen photos from the air of a variety of places:

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#Daytona

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

 

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: I see myself as above others

My explanation: I love the fact that I get to travel by air and the different perspective on the world it provides. I’m trying to share that excitement.

 

Through the glass

A Caesar is my favourite drink as you could tell from the dozen or so photos.

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#Casear with a #Sausage

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View this post on Instagram

Cucumber #Caesar

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

 

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: I have a drinking problem.

My explanation: I love to try different variations on the drink. (I was slightly shocked by how many were taken at home and am going to have to rethink this one.)

On the plate

I’m guilty of taking photos of my food before eating. I could not even count the number of food photos.

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#dessert

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

 

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: I’m a follower.

My explanation: I’m a follower.

Selfies

My photos of myself are mostly of my feet.

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Today's decision: rain boots or sandals?

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

View this post on Instagram

Pedicure=flip flops+snow=wrong

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

 

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: I have an obsession with feet.

My explanation: My selfies turn out like this:

 

It’s quite a yarn

At least 25% of my photos involve yarn or knitting, mostly of the sock variety.

 

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: See the foot obsession concern above.

My explanation: I knit and take photos when I’m bored/have free time. Naturally they coincide.

Gone to the dogs

There are dozens and dozens of photos of my dog.

View this post on Instagram

#Charlie #DogsofInstagrams #LabradorRetriever

A post shared by Bonnie Morse (@bhmorse) on

 

What I’m worried it could be interpreted as: I’m a crazy dog lady.

My explanation: He’s really cute … and I’m a crazy dog lady.

 

I’m wondering what your online photos say about you?

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Twitter: What Melania Trump Taught Me About Instagram and the 7 Things I Want You to Know #Social Media

Facebook: What Melania Trump Taught Me About Instagram and the Seven Things I Want You To Know: Interpreting what social media posts.