Maybe I just needed a new prescription for glasses or maybe it was dim light or maybe I needed some sleep but I could not squint my eyes to read the tiny font and eventually gave up. Probably it took me 4 seconds before I hit the back button of the browser and moved on to the next result in my Google search.

That got me thinking. Are people clicking back button on my post? Are my fonts too frustrating? Are my paragraphs too paralyzing? In a sea of blogs good formatting will increase your chances to stand out. I don’t promise your readers will love what you wrote but at least they will read it and hopefully to the end. Thats what you want, right?

(reprinted from mommyniri)

Ever wonder how my kids (ages 2 & 4) know Chicago, Asheville, New York and Atlanta? Well, to tell the truth … mommy has been to all these places (for blogging conferences). Every night when I put them to bed I tell them to dream about toys that mommy will bring from the conference. And now the kids understand that blogging means more  toys, so they kind of understand that the wait is worth it. As much as I (bravely) sugar coat the whole experience its not easy for anyone – mommy, daddy and the kids. I hope that it is not just our story but every blogging family goes through the same experience. So, this time the Friday 5 comes from daddy, owner of The Papa Post, who realized that there are other dads who need support.

Start Acting Like Mommy, The Sooner The Better

It helps to be mentally prepared that no one is going to come for help. Get up early, clean the sink, sort the clothes, run through the schedule for the day as to what needs to be cooked and what birthday parties to attend.

Dock The Laptop In Kitchen

Trust me you won’t get time to do any work on computer. If you are lucky you can check emails while cleaning the sink or feeding the baby

Be Nice To Kids; It Goes A Long Way

If you handle them with respect and not ignore them, they would appreciate. That means less chances of meltdowns. Let them know about the plan for rest of the day – they love to hear that.

Stuff Goodies All Over The House

This is not the time to teach the child anything – leave that for mommy. Bribe them every time they throw a tantrum. It will keep you sane and thats the most important thing. You don’t want to be go berserk with no help (read mommy) nearby.

Don’t Become A Child

If you feel the urge to start playing with kids (not unusual, I do a lot) just keep a close eye on time. It doesn’t take long for a hungry or a sleepy child to become cranky and then its too late. Now, not only you need to manage the tantrums but also prepare a meal. (Make sure that you are some what familiar with the kitchen otherwise no one can save you. Going to McDonalds or Burger King is ruled out since it is too much to buckle up the unwieldy child).

I had quite a few ideas but in the spirit of Friday 5 series, I kept it to only 5. It would be great to know what others have to share.

(reprinted from mommyniri)

Planning for a perfect holiday trip or checking at the last minute to see what is happening in the neighborhood, GOBY (GO-be) is the place to go. If you have a vague idea as to what you want to do, where, and when, just type in and Goby will come back with results, ratings, photos, and an interactive map with multiple ways to further sort the results. The beta release for Goby has been launched weeks ago, so don’t expect it to be perfect.

Having worked in the technology sphere forever we here at Mommy Niri can spot a good thing and always love to share with you whenever we do. I (Ramesh better known as The Papa Post) decided to get the inside scoop on Goby and who better than Mark Watkins, CEO of Goby, to get a closer look. Here are the excerpts  from the interview.

Don’t we already have Google? What particular “gap” are you filling in the market?

Unlike general purpose search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing, Goby is dedicated to a single task: helping people make the most of their scarce free time, from planning  a unique vacation to just creating a weekend adventure with your kids.  Rather than hopping from site to site, trying to make sense of it all, you simply tell Goby what, where and when, and we surface the best results the Web has to offer, organized in a way that’s easy to understand and use. For example, if you do a search for Beaches in Eastham with Google, you’ll get a long list of web sites you have to look through to find information. With Goby, a search for Beaches in Eastham immediately gives you back a list of beaches, complete with photos, descriptions, maps and other information, so you can make a quick decision.

Goby has a deep understanding of concepts and categories (over 200), locations, and dates – providing a discovery experience that neither traditional search engines or travel sites can support, and gets you to the answer quickly – so you spend less time “searching” and  more time “doing” the things you want to do.

Goby seems like a vertical search engine for travel. How do you plan to incorporate TripAdvisor ratings and user comments?

Our mission is to help people find things to do in their free time, both when they are traveling, and when they are at home. So we certainly cover traditional travel content like hotels, bed and breakfasts, tours and historic sites – but we also give you quick, comprehensive access to local adventures like hiking and biking trails, concerts, museum events and local festivals . As part of our mission we have an ongoing plan to continually incorporate high quality new content and websites (like TripAdvisor), as well as to provide more context for existing listings, in the form of reviews, ratings, photos, and video.

How do you plan to increase the usage of Goby (given that there are tons of other options)?

We are promoting Goby by reaching out to journalists and bloggers (such as MommyNiri!) who have audiences we think would be interested in a new and better way to find ideas and information about things to do. We’ve included the ability for people to share things they find in Goby with their friends by posting to their Facebook Wall (with Twitter integration coming soon), and we hope that will increase awareness. We plan for Goby pages to be included in the major search engines so that searchers will find Goby pages about particular topics and locations. We are also creating partnerships with others in the travel and media space to offer Goby to their audiences as well.

Seems like Goby is all about aggregating information; how are you creating value?

Let’s say you are planning a trip down to Cape Cod for the weekend. You might want to find a nice Bed & Breakfast to stay at, spend some time at the beach, and find something fun to do with your family like play miniature golf or go to a museum. With Goby, you can plan an adventure like that in a few short minutes. Without Goby, you’ll spend hours and hours trying to figure all that out. So the first way we create value is simply by saving you time. And if you try to find a Bed and Breakfast near someplace like Eastham, MA, most sites are only going to give you a few to choose from. With Goby you’ll be presented with dozens of easily filterable choices, so you can find the place that gives you the most value, saving you time AND money.

Where do you think Goby will be in 1 to 3 yrs?

We want Goby to be the first site you think of when you ask yourself, “What should I do?”. We believe most people have had the experience of sitting around the dinner table on Friday night, asking the question, “What do you want to do this weekend?”.  Or dreading planning that next vacation because you know you’ll spend days in front of the computer trying to figure it all out. We’re dedicated to making that process faster, easier, and more fun!

How can moms use Goby?

Goby is a perfect tool for Moms. We’ve heard directly from moms that they are always looking for new things to do with their kids, whether it is educational activities, outdoor fun or just spending quality time with them outside the house. Goby can help you find great museum exhibits at a children’s museum or science museum, find a playground near someone you are visiting (so the kids can blow off some steam), or learn about a local festival this weekend. And, mommies need time to themselves as well, so you can find day spas or a great restaurant when you do have that precious free time!

(reprinted from mommyniri)

You have been blogging for a while and your readers love your blog. They like the punchlines and stories until some one said that you were missing on keywords. OMG! Does that mean you are missing on Google traffic? Any SEO expert (these days there are dime a dozen, including me) would tell that you MUST have a certain number of keywords (which ones?) in your story otherwise Google would not rank you high. Hmmm…

Recently Google has refined its algorithms to find quality content (stories, pictures and videos etc. that human beings like) with or without keywords. Keyword stuffing alone, does not guarantee higher SEO ranking any more. When your readers comment, tweet, bookmark or digg your story, Google takes note of that. Thats an indication of quality content and may put your story higher on Google search.

(reprinted from mommyniri)

First it comes as a request for a product review with (innocent) hints of link here or there. Next it becomes a request for specific (suggested) keywords within links. Thats not too much to ask for. Is it? Could it hurt or Would it hurt? Should I just do it because they are giving a sample product?

Don’t think that marketers are doing a favor by giving you a sample product to review. Of course, they are getting your review but more importantly your vote in the form of a link telling Google that you vote for their site. Do you really want to vote for that site? or you just wanted to review the product?

In the Google economy, links carry a lot of weight. Among other factors, Google considers incoming links to determine how high a page gets listed on the search results. The marketers are truly getting a bargain when they get links (and your review and advertising space) by just giving away a free sample. And if you are already an established blogger your links count for much more. So, think again when some one asks for a link.

(reprinted from mommyniri)

I was patting myself on the back for being the perfect father, taking care of the kids all by myself while mommy was at BlogHer Conference, until a certain balloon incident. As my confidence grew in handling the kids by myself, I (bravely) decided to accept a 5pm party. At the party my two little angels were anguished seeing another kid lose his helium balloon that got stuck in a tall tree. After that they held on to their balloons pretty tight.

I hung on to the party not knowing how much a small balloon can impact the kids. On the way back the kids kept assuring themselves that their beloved Papa can somehow bring the balloon from the tree. As I heard the kids talk about that balloon, I decided not to take chances as it was already late and the kids were tired. I took the balloon from my older one  just to be safe, however the younger one was too scared to give it to me. As my younger one engaged me in a tussle as to who was more qualified to carry the balloons home, I lost the first balloon. Forget the kids, I was ready to cry. Not that I just ruined the perfect fatherly stay home opportunity but that the kids would be further more traumatized and I will have to manage two crying babies all night long by myself with 12 more hours for mommy to come.

I immediately let the kids know about the situation and let them cry their lungs out.  In all that mayhem, I knew that we had some balloons kept in the closet. I pulled all those balloons to quieten the kids and succeeded to some extent. However, I did not have the same green color balloon that flew out of my hands. My little one held her balloon on my right side while the older one was on the left. I held them tight and consoled as they woke up several times crying for balloons. As I locked the house one last time, while not making the faintest of the sounds, I saw two perfectly colored helium balloons (pink & green) tied on the door knob. What a perfect gift from god? a friend just sent a birthday invitation with balloons. After seeing the right colored balloons I slept in peace.

Isn’t culture something to be proud about and pass on to the next generation? There seems to be some confusion as I often noticed culture and tradition being used interchangeably. In general, culture is associated with positive and progressive social behavior based on reasoning and knowledge. While tradition is similar, it could be negative, at times backward, and may be based upon repetitive behavior that does not have any sound reasoning or knowledge.

Now from the dictionary …

Culture

5 a: the integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations b: the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group ; also : the characteristic features of everyday existence (as diversions or a way of life} shared by people in a place or time<popular culture> <southern culture> c: the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization <a corporate culture focused on the bottom line> d: the set of values, conventions, or social practices associated with a particular field, activity, or societal characteristic <studying the effect of computers on print culture> <changing the culture of materialism will take time – Peggy O’Mara>

Tradition

1 a: an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action, or behavior (as a religious practice or a social custom) b:a belief or story or a body of beliefs or stories relating to the past that are commonly accepted as historical though not verifiable2: the handing down of information, beliefs, and customs by word of mouth or by example from one generation to another without written instruction3: cultural continuity in social attitudes, customs, and institutions4: characteristic manner, method, or style <in the best liberal tradition>

Its February 14th AGAIN and I finally get the courage (after 10 years) to say that Valentine’s Day is all about gift wrapping with little substance. CNN’s Roland Martin says that it is just another holiday between Christmas and Easter, designed by retailers, to make people spend more money.

Many men (and women) understand the commercialism surrounding the occasion and rightly do not go overboard buying flowers and dining at fancy restaurants. Love and affection can be showered on your loved one through out the year not just Valentine’s Day. Flowers and candies on this day may not help your relationship if you did not care for rest of the year. Successful relationships are more about depth and less about gift wrapping.

Today, I took my valentines (all of them) to “Bob the Builder – Skyscrapers”. Sitting around soda stains and popcorn crumbs, we had the best Valentine’s Day for less than $20. It was a pleasure watching the girls slurp soda and munch popcorn.

The best things in life are free.

We all know that life is not fair (esp. for women). You may not agree but this is how I see it.

1) Hire More Mommies
Someone said that businesses need to hire more mommies to cut down office politics and get more work done as mommies do not hang out in the office unless there is work. It is a well documented fact that women are better at multi-tasking, handling stress, socializing, to name just a few, but still get paid less.

2) Famous Chefs Are (Macho) Men!
While women do all the cooking, men get all the awards. Why are all the famous chefs men? When I see any cooking show (not by choice), I notice big guys with lots of energy, jumping and shouting. Why do I think that cooking is an art?

Not sure, why it has to be Iron Chef? Why not Best Chef? By the way, one of the guys in the show comes swinging a big sword.

3) Men Dating Women Half Their Age
Centuries have gone by and we (high school dropouts, college educated – both community college and ivy league schools included and PhDs) still look at men and women differently. It is perfectly all right to see men dating women half their age but not the other way round. Some how we have an explanation – he is a successful businessman and that is why he can date women half his age! However, women dating younger men are labeled as loose characters and all sorts of name calling goes with it. No matter what the specific circumstances are men come out as winners, always (across all cultures – east or west).

1) Coming Late

It has become synonymous with Indian parties. People proudly come late. I have personally seen people coming two hours late and not apologize for it. Some people even gloat about it. I am not sure why coming late is so common. Anyone? Please chime in. There must be historical or scientific reasons behind this. Do people know that showing up late is being simply disrespectful?

2) Entertainment For Kids

While mommy and daddy are busy chatting with friends, the little ones are running all over the place. Some get hurt; some act up for lack of sleep and others come rolling down the stairs. How do they expect kids to keep themselves entertained? Kids have different needs. Wouldn’t it be great to set a play area with toys and designate two adults to look after the kids?

3) Late Serving of Food

Well … if the food is ready why not enjoy it. What is the point of waiting for some of your close friends who come late? Its one thing that the food is not ready but another when the food is ready but not being served. Who are we trying to please? At least, do not punish those who came on time.

4) Leaving Late

As if coming late was not enough, people just don’t want to leave. They must think that my home is their home – come any time and go anytime as if I have nothing else in life but to amuse them all day long. One suggestion … always have a start time and an end time. If people still don’t get it, just let them know that you have another engagement right after the party. Towards the end, start packing up.

5) Kids Party at Night

Kid’s birthday party at 7pm in a fancy restaurant! If the party starts at 7pm when does it finish? And when does the child sleep? Not sure, if these parties are for kids or for adults. I bet it’s a way for mommy and daddy to have fun, socialize and do some latka-jhatka (dance moves). Do people really think that kids will run around, get tired and sleep by themselves?

Did I miss anything?