I have no idea what that title means either. Leave me alone.

And I have no idea why I put that video there, except maybe because, as the instructor said: “Feel that and accept it as the truth.” And now turn your head and cough.

I’ve been stumbing over a number of posts and articles today, some of which I’ve already mentioned on these pages, but I’m starting to discern one of those unintentional (or at least unconscious) collecting of related items that creates that unnerving effect of a muse tugging at your sleeve and whispering: “Let’s go this way.”

It’s nothing profound, just something I noticed. This odd new era we find ourselves in consists of erratic and disruptive technologies, content and consequences. Everyone is trying to figure out where this multi-forked path is leading us, trying to gaze into their own crystal balls to second guess the trends and be in the right place at the right time … and for the right price. Members of the “professional classes” (like myself) and the “creative classes” (like myself) are struggling to find their way through this evolving maze; attempting to attract and develop an audience or community; balancing cost of production against anticipated revenues; balancing personal aesthetics against audience/user expectations (or lack thereof); competing with other user generated content; and just generally spinning our (my) head(s) around like a frog in a blender.

The consistent threads I am following include: “Community is content.”, “We are the media.”, “The medium is the audience.” and “It’s a conversation, stupid.”.

We can’t all be producers of Mentos/Coke viral videos. Some of us must resort to cheap sideshow geek theatrics. And then there are the gems.

I have wrestled with a large number of ideas for this site and I’m still intent on following them through. The proof is, of course, in the pudding but I will refrain from stacking up any more metaphors and simply say this: a sense of place, a sense of belonging, a shared voice and a shared window into the world; I think that lies at the heart of what the elusive “audience” or “user base” is seeking. We all seek that stuff in real life so it makes sense we’d look for the same online, especially now that the technology is drawing us ever further into a media-rich environment that simulates and expands upon our current physical world.

Here’s a whack of links that form part of what I’ve been inserting into my head these days.

Human-to-Human
Micro Persuasion: Community
Ernie Mosteller
Earthtimes.org
The Long Tail
Pixar Article
Neuros!
WeThink
Class War: MySpace vs. FaceBook

Where do you think all this is going? What road signs, if any do you see up ahead? What would you like to see happen? Enquiring minds want to know.

But will they watch a puppet show?

Hmmm.

In the coming days I’ll be outlining some of my plans for this site and setting up separate pages for those projects.

Cheers.

P.S. If you’re interested in blogging, vlogging or podcasting about anything (and you should do something, text, audio, video, I don’t care, get out there and use it before it gets taken away) you’ll want to visit Michael Geist’s blog and get the Creative Commons Canada legal guide to podcasting in Canada.