SOMETIMES WHEN I’M HOMEBOUND with cabin fever, I find my friends in unlikely places…or at least I find their words and their wisdom, even if they can’t actually sit down for a cuppa. Now that I’m buried under nearly two feet of snow, I have to find places to go for my does of sisterhood when, truthfully, I really can’t go anywhere. My rural existence would be a whole lot lonelier without the internet.
We all know the time suck that is Facebook. More hours than I care to own up to have been lost in the maze of connections available there. Did you know you can use it to keep track of what’s happening here on the Sister Project there? Get to it!
I was on Facebook long before I joined Twitter, but Twitter is where I’ve found more new friends. Take amazing writer Susan Orlean, for example. Without corresponding with Susan (in 140 characters or less, natch) I would never have found my group of fellow chicken-raisers. Yep. There’s an online kink for everyone, even small-scale chicken farmers, and this group gives me more resources and info that I knew I wanted.
Farming isn’t the only interest I can indulge online. Sister Marion’s written before about SheWrites, an incredible community of women writers. I love digging through the posts there, finding new bylines to read, and people facing the same terror of the blank page.
The blank page confronts artists, too, and since I started my foray into mixed media, I’ve gotten hooked on art house, an online community where artists share their work and participate in group projects. If you need a little inspirational shove–it’s the perfect place.
When I need a break from all that art-making and storytelling, I need a snack. That’s where Food 52 comes in. Started by famed foodies Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, it’s a great place to find fellow foodies, and contribute your recipes to their weekly contests (winners will be in the Food52 cookbook!). This week, the finalists for the recipe contest are even sisters! Check it out.
Usually, especially on a snow day, my internet sojourn is interrupted, countless times, by my sweet, attention-grabbing offspring. If they commandeer the computer, our first stop is usually Poisson Rouge, my absolute favorite play site for little kids. The design’s beautiful, and I love their sweet multimedia games. And when I start to go nuts from having my body and my mind overtaken by my sweethearts, I know I can find solace at Babble, my favorite online parenting site. It’s got just the right mix of sound advice, irreverence, and a dash of stupid celebrity gossip to ease my weary mom brain. It takes a village, right? It’s just that some days, my village is virtual.
How about you? Do you have digital destinations you want to share with the sisters? Let us know!
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes, Yes! I almost can’t remember how it was to be snowbound before internet (I think there was a lot of sisterhood phoning involved, but I’m not positive…). Thanks for this, Paige – I’m going to go visit some of these links because you can never have too many places to hang out!
Paige — thanks for the mention and glad to learn about SheWrites!
Karen– I always say there’s no way I could live where I do (super rural, super cold) without the internet. Thanks for reading,and yes, check them out.
Amanda–Thanks for stopping by. I know SheWrites will be excited to have you visiting, too. Now I have to go figure out what to cook next from Food52!