Online buddy, Martin Thompson, who blogs at Missiome and was one of my early points of reference when starting on my own blogging journey is going through a rich vein of form at the moment with a quick succession of really good honest and exploratory posts about faith.
Martin’s thoughts have a lot of resonance for me, so I thought I’d share the posts in order just to give others who may not be familiar with Missiome to discover what he has to say.
HT to Martin for the image, and for articulating stuff that I’ve thought about, but never really put down in any readable fashion and adding so much more to the process
I’m not sure I’ve even worked out quite what this ad is saying to me, but I’ve found it in equal parts funny, intriguing and slightly moving.
It’s making me consider what it’s like to step out of your comfort zone, whether I would rise to the challenge of taking a seat, and also how – thankfully – I tend personally not to be freaked by what people look like.
Near neighbours in Limpsfield Village Shopping have grasped the nettle in using Social Media to promote their small but perfectly formed high st, and established favourites like Footprint going from strength to strength, while Big Yellow Bag is gearing up nicely.
So, what’s happening where you are? What are you doing to contribute to your local digital community, and how serious are you being about taking the online…offline?
Feel free to let me know if you’re part of the Oxted Digerati, and I’ll give you a shout out too!
My Church community – The Salvation Army in Croydon – has been holding a Christmas Concert in the Fairfield Halls in the town for close to fifty years.
It’s a great way to start the Christmas Season with Carols, music from our Bands and Choirs and a traditional Nativity Presentation.
This year is no different, so if you are close to Croydon and would enjoy this traditional family event check out the details on Facebook, email christmasfairfield@croydoncitadel.org or hook up with the Fairfield box office.
Even with a few short weeks to go it’s almost unimaginable that I could drag my carcass around London – only periodically stopping to blow some Christmas Carols through my no-doubt gasping lungs as part of Chapel St’s Carolthon.
Chapel St is an amazing organisation working to improve health and wellbeing in the UK’s most deprived neighbourhoods, and that’s enough of a motivation for be to try and take part in this crazy caper.
If there are other ways you’d like to be involved – in on-the-day support, by running or playing yourself that’d be cool.
Finally, a super cheeky request help me to put some Social Media kick behind this by Tweeting, RTing, blogging, throwing out a shout-out on Facebook, Liking etc etc…you know the score!
I have some amazing friends – people who really push the boundaries to do something special to help others.
One such is Justin Reeves, one of a tight group of buddies who are as close to me as brothers.
We’ve shared so many life experiences, and although this crew don’t all live as close to each other as we did when we were navigating a bunch of South London flats, hang-outs and bolt holes in a mashed up lifestyle that meant that it was hard to know quite who lived where, who was crashing on the floor, who was just around for the evening or pulling an all-nighter.
Shared happy memories make strong bonds, so I feel really proud of the fact that Jus has safely made it back from the challenge of a lifetime, having trekked to Everest Base Camp.
Some people of the tribes that I run with have taken to regularly quipping that “no-one has just one job these days”, and it’s increasingly true and something that I have resonance with.
Back in the day, I had a job – one job – and that was that.
These days, although I’m very fortunate to have a core and principal job, I also find myself working with a myriad of different initiatives and agencies, so the “What I do” expands even beyond the particular gigs I list on the page.
The shape tools, environment, culture of work for many of us has changed, and continues to do at a dizzying pace.
So, with this in mind, I’ve corralled a few pieces that have grabbed my attention:
Then a little vid I came across on the Wall Street Journal that explores the shifting demands of the collective work space.
Working hub spaces are popping up globally to meet the snowballing demand for third spaces that meet the needs of today’s nomadic webworkers. Finally, the quite excellent resource site for Freelancers, Freelance Switch which is rammed with a whole bunch of useful practical resource stuff for the increasing number of folks who work with a portfolio of projects. On top of that it’s just an entertaining read. Highly recommended…..I particularly like the Freelance Freedom cartoon/comic strip.
If this is not the shape of your working environment now, it may be in the future.
Somehow I’ve got myself in a strategically difficult charity running double whammy, which presents you – my dear reader – with a giving dilemma!
I’m planning to take part in two decent length running events between now & Christmas – each with causes that I think deserve your support.
Andy’s Angels
First off, the Royal Parks in London on Oct 9th in aid of Andy’s Angels and in memory of my much loved and desperately missed friend Andy Greig who we lost to bone cancer November 2009.
Every time I run, I think of Andy.
I’ve been working with an amazing team of inspirational people at Chapel St since the turn of the year, and we are upping the ante by not only running a marathon around London on December 15th, but interspersing the run with a series of Christmas Carol spots along the way – so running, brass playing and other general shenanigans!
Please support if you can – a donation is fabulous, but I’d be equally excited about getting a few champions on board who can blog the story, tweet the heck out of it, RT, tell your friends, “share” & “like” on Facebook…just spread the love and the Social Media fairy dust far and wide!
