Welcome to a special “late” edition of my link fest, brought to you by a smooth glass of VQA following my guest speaking opportunity at SFU.

Thanks to the talented indie media master Lisa Mansfield of The Tyee, I spoke for her students about blogging, corporate communications and new media writing in the business world. I covered why companies should have blogs, the business of blogging, bloggers for hire, how to build an audience etc. I’ve only done a handful of speaker engagements but as I’m pretty confident in my ability to evangelize about blogging I figured I would be okay. Some people might not know my corporate history but I’ve been producing online content in the business world as a career for almost ten years, and corporate blogging is currently one of my number one tasks at my day job. I’m glad I can share my knowledge even though I get incredibly nervous and talk really fast as a result.

Photo credit: Carol Browne on Flickr in the Miss604.com Pool

Now, on to the super geeky link fest:

And for something completely different - have you seen this giant (inflatable) gorilla?

It’s been almost two months now and I’ve been able to learn more each day about my trusty iPhone. Wrapped in its sleek pink silicone cover, we’re still getting to know each other but I think we’re still pretty much in a honeymoon phase.

Original Photo Removed

I am not using a Rogers plan for the internet, so I simply have to rely on WIFI, when it’s available - here’s what I’ve experienced downtown so far:

A few more options that I kinda sorta wish the iPhone had:

Bonus: Thanks to some super great people, ie. John Biehler, I was able to get a converter for headphones - as iPhones will usually only work with standard-issue white Apple ear buds.

Also, when I went down to Bellingham on Saturday I didn’t get the standard, “Welcome to the USA” text message I normally receive but the Rogers icon on my phone did turn to an AT&T/Apple logo. I’m hoping something switched over somewhere otherwise I do dread my next statement. However, I’m not even certain that’s my actual phone’s doing.

Regardless, I’m still super happy, despite the tiny annoyances, I ain’t ready to trade it in for quite a while.

Welcome to the second installment of “A Vancouver Girl’s Guide to the iPhone“. The other morning I set out on a trusty #19 bus from downtown to Metrotown on a quest to find a case for my iPhone. Why didn’t I take the Skytrain? I had some time to kill and the direct bus 40 minutes straight up Kingsway is actually a very nice alternate route.

Upon arriving at the Crystal Mall [Google Map] I immediately felt like a hamster in some sort of maze experiment. The Crystal is one funky place.

Signs in multiple languages and smells of fresh cut flowers mixed with dried herbs and filleted salmon filled the air as I meandered through the circular passages to find a directory.

Crystal Mall Directory

“Electronics” in the yellow zone - bingo! I headed over to that spoke in the wheel to find only one shop open. I peeked in and asked if they sold iPhone cases, which they didn’t but i was instructed to head over to J&K, which just happened to be closed that day. I wandered around the “Electronics” zone a little while longer and doubled back to where I started only to find Sim Star. For $10 I got a clear protector for my screen and a white silicone case.

NOTE: When purchasing a case make sure it’s specifically for the iPhone - not for the iPod Touch - otherwise it won’t have a hole on the back for the camera.

Unfortunately I didn’t have many more options as the other shops were closed for the day and I simply couldn’t wait to come back after the holidays. Otherwise I would have preferred a pink or blue silicone cover, but white will do for now. At least with the screen and body covered I won’t handle it as gingerly as before, and will actually put it up to my ear when I’m on the phone. However, I’m still a bit cautious and haven’t tried wearing diamond earrings cause those might scratch the glass. You know, if I had a pair of diamond earrings.

I realize that most of the tips and tricks I include in this new series (categorized under: iPhone) will be useful to both men AND women but they’ll certainly have my own spin.

Here’s a current list of apps I’ve installed using Installer that have made life easier (remember, I’ve only had the thing for four days).

(There’s some more info, including how to start from scratch, on LifeHacker).

Also, to make Wordpress blog post publishing quick and simple, there’s a plugin - for Wordpress, not the phone - called WPhone.

Big thanks to John Biehler for all the resources. More updates and adventures to follow.

For the record, my husband is great at keeping secrets and that doesn’t worry me. He surprised me with some of the most original gifts, all while ensuring they would be items I could enjoy everyday. Regardless, I’m just happy to be sitting here with him and my family as the snow begins to fall in Surrey.

PS I think my thumbs are too stubby for this iPhone and I need to find out how to scroll through my Wordpress categories when composing a post with this thing.

UPDATE: Photos from John’s new camera. I decided the one he has from 2003 just wasn’t cutting it anymore…

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

PPS I think the kids had a great day and I had fun kickin’ butt at Trivial Pursuit 80s Edition with my brother. Tomorrow John and I will be heading out to enjoy something else I was lucky enough to receive today. As he puts it, he has two years to make up for - referring to the two years we were waiting for his immigration to come through and we lived solely off my income. I really don’t need him to play catch-ups with gifts. I’m just glad that he’s happy, he’s working, and we’re still able to do the inexpensive yet priceless activities that we love. More to come tomorrow.