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I know it ain't an Oscar, an Emmy, or even better, a Bloggie, but I'll take an accolade any time.

JollyBlogger had some >really nice things to say about my unfinished four-part series on "Why I'm Not a Republican", and has given me the Jolly Award for the week (don't you just love it when people make up awards to stroke the ego?) Anyway, I'm still appreciative, so pay JollyBlogger a visit and tell him I sent you.

I guess this means I've got to get off my tush and finish this 4-part joint.

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I think La Shawn Barber hipped me to this, but in case you didn't know, I thought I'd just let all you news buffs who can't stand giving your personal information over to the blood sucking theives on the internet who have "registration required" news services know that there is a service called BugMeNot.com which supplies dummy logins for every newspaper you can imagine. Check it out.

(I link sites every now and then that require registration, in which case, I'll supply the dummy login...cuz I'm baaaad like that)

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My site was shut down most of the day on Saturday to my EXTREME and UTTER chagrin. This has happened before, and I promised myself it would never happen again but dag nabit it did. Considering my control-freak tendancies, this bugs me to no end. I suppose it's a good thing when your site gets a lot of hits, but trust me, no one will ever convince me of that. Anyway, apologies for the downtime. I've been traveling and thus approximately three to four days behind on responding to emails and comments so apologies to those who've emailed or dropped some serious science in the comments section, I shall be with you shortly ;-)

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Once again, I must say I'm a little disappointed that I haven't yet received any calls to come to the Republican National Convention to do fashion critiques. For what it's worth, I think conservatives tend to be better dressed than their nemesis. Then again, I live in hippie-town Seattle where the "theme" store is Eddie Bauer so I could be just a tad biased.

So my iBook and I are on the road again, or rather "in the air again" as a reader was so kind to correct me last time around. A mixture of business and pleasure, I'll be hitting six eastcoast states like the ravenous beast of a traveler that I am. Right now, I'm on my way to New Jersey of all places. Perhaps I shall try to snag an interview with our latest fallen politician--or not.

A major highlight of the trip will be in Washington D.C. when I get the pleasure of meeting two other bloggers and Conservative Brotherhood members La Shawn Barber and Avery Tooley. A grand time will be had by all.

Lastly, the column dilemma. I've received some really good feedback via email and a couple of additional suggestions for column titles. I 'll be updating the list shortly. Any feedback is more than appreciated.

Random Revelatory Thought of the day: One of the most humble places you can ever be, is on your knees, in prayer...or cleaning the toilet.

Posted in Blogging, Life | Permanent Link

 

How typical of my history of unpreparedness with this site. The day Instapundit links me I'm in the midst of a messy re-design, transferring to Movable Type and all my archives pages looked temporarily low-budget. Low-budget as in uglier than my swollen cheek a few weeks ago. Situations like this are bad news to a procrastinator-perfectionist such as myself.

So of course I will live out the rest of my days in grief over the fact that the first 250 people who visited this site prior to my correcting the error saw a temporarily messy house. C'est la vie.

Welcome new readers! Site re-design coming tomorrow August 23rd Tuesday, August 24th Wednesday, August 25th, barring I haven't yet gouged out my eyes.

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I'm headed to church, but this morning decided I'm sick of the "Urban Outfitters" feel of the site. I'm in the process of changing my publishing platform to MovableType which is more stream-lined, effective, and organized. For this reason, I'm currently in re-configuration HADES. That's okay though because chaos is a comfortable place for me. So I'll be adding categories, expanded commenting capabilities, and all that jazz.

While I'm at it, I figured I oughta consider once again re-designing this little alcove on the web and thought I'd seek out any advice on changes, or additions you'd like to see this next go 'round. This should be the last re-design for awhile.

Please be gentle on me, I designed this one myself.

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So imagine my surprise when today I logged on and noticed my web statistics had taken an early morning leap. I check my inbox to find an email from the lovely Miss La Shawn Barber informing me that the National Review picked up an article on none other than The Conservative Brotherhood. And here's the even better part, along with other bloggers, they mention me!:

"From the veteran's perspective of Baldilocks to the playful philosophizing of Ambra Nykola, the Internet is suddenly full of great black writers whose views aren't monolithic - you'll find almost-daily disagreements about affirmative action, President Bush or the morality of gangsta rap - but instead offer a vibrant, hip-hop generation alternative to the broken record of the civil-rights establishment.

Playful eh? I suppose I'll take it. I can perhaps overlook the fact that my name was spelled wrong, it's "Ambra Nykol", (grrr) for the sake of a little recognition up in this place. But let's get beyond the "me", the article highlights other great writers and focuses on the growing trend of black conservative thought on the internet:

"Of course, a discussion of black conservative bloggers and the changes they're capable of effecting must include the following caveat, to keep commentators on the Left from getting their knickers any more twisted than usual: Blogging, while growing rapidly, still represents only a small part of the Internet experience. The number of blogs maintained by black Americans is, based on population figures, in all probability a small percentage of the overall total, and of that small percentage, it seems likely that the majority lean leftward. Most black conservative blogs number their visits per day in the hundreds, a far cry from the six-digit traffic generated by the best-known blogs, like Instapundit."

Check out the article in its entirety. Definitely good stuff.

Update: Can we say, Insta-launch??? Holla!

Update II: My name was fixed thanks to the insistance of the article's author, Dan Leroy who apologized profusely.

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HA! Like I'm really qualified to talk about building web traffic, but La Shawn Barber as well as a host of other far more talented bloggers have started some good discussion on this blogging phenomenon and I figured the subject matter offers me a good time to gravel profusely for forgiveness:

Never in a million years would I haved guessed that people would tune into my thoughts on a daily basis. I didn't start this shebang with the goal of amassing large amounts of hits and I won't end that way either (although the thought of ending seems so sad right now).

For the record, I am generally horrible at playing by the rules. Due to my preoccupation with the moment, I unintentionally cheat at everything; Scrabble, Spades, Charades, my taxes (just kidding on that last one by the way). My inability to consistently play by the rules of life can often be a good characteristic as it allows me to be free from the expectations of the unwritten yet forcefully imposed rules of society. Contrarily, it also causes me to end up being an unintentional idiot (e.g. the time during a conference in Zimbabwe when I walked into a room full of 6,000 Zimbabwean traditionalists, as a female presenter wearing a pantsuit when in certain parts of Africa, women only wear skirts...duh). So given my mishaps in life, the natural progression was that I'd be bad at this whole "blogging code of conduct" thing. I think I threw out the rulebook when I presumptuously dissed Glenn Reynolds AKA Instapundit (who I actually like), also known as the "Godfather" of all weblogs from my measly, little, pathetic, nothing weblog (and I'd do it again by the way).

Continue reading "How to Build an Audience the Right Way: Don't be an Uncouth">>>

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Funny. I think I was one of two nominated for this award by Seattle journalist and blogger Matt Rosenberg of Rosenblog. Was there really any competition? I mean seriously...was there? If somebody knows another black conservative Seattle blogger, let me know. Chances are, even if there was, they're somewhere in obscurity.

Rosenberg listed off his picks in response to our local Seattle magazine's annually published (and somewhat authoritative) "best of" list which included "Best Liberal" (they voted our U.S. Rep. Jim "one nation under G**" McDermott) but managed to leave out a "Best Conservative" category. I guess there's nothing good about conservatives right? Nope, not in Sea-town. But as Rosenberg said, what do we expect from the,

[...]"20- to 50-something readership of hemp-wearing, bicycle-riding, tofu-snorting, childless, 113-pound Trustafarians, and unreconstructed Deaniacs."

Word.

UPDATE: How very un-classy of me not to include a link to the other famed Best Seattle Black Blogger: Reason and Mechanism by Kevin Leo. He's a cool cat too! (Apologies Kevin)

UPDATE II: I'm an idiot. There is another Black Conservative blogger I left out, Robert at The Mulatto Advocate holds it down consistently for the Pacific Northwest.

Posted in Blogging, Politics | Permanent Link

 

Quick word of apology. [nerdtalk] The last few days I've been in the process of changing web hosts to accommodate my exodus from Blogger to Movable Type (I'm so close I can taste it) [/nerdtalk] In any case, today for some reason, nothing I posted actually posted. Many of you were left looking at Kimora Lee Simmons' pathetic mug for far longer than I would have hoped. I have no idea why I'm apologizing for this (as if you really cared), but strangely, this here blog has taken on a life of its own. I actually feel guilty when i neglect it from time to time.

Now that's sick. Pray for me.

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