@tamcdonald E X P A N D E D http://tamcdonald.com welcome to the world of Tim McDonald (aka @tamcdonald) Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:52:03 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Lake County Tweetup #lctu being talked about in the Keys http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-lctu-being-talked-about-in-the-keys/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-lctu-being-talked-about-in-the-keys/#comments Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:52:03 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=525 I wanted to personally interview Claudia Anderson after January’s Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Lincolnshire. Claudia ( @ParkRidgeDDS ) was the winner of a tweet contest we had for the person who tweeted the most using the #lctu hashtag and the link to the registration page. She won free admission to the remaining . . . → Read More: Lake County Tweetup #lctu being talked about in the Keys]]> I wanted to personally interview Claudia Anderson after January’s Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Lincolnshire. Claudia ( @ParkRidgeDDS ) was the winner of a tweet contest we had for the person who tweeted the most using the #lctu hashtag and the link to the registration page. She won free admission to the remaining Lake County Tweetups for 2010. Of course, she left for the Florida Keys right after the event, so I asked her if I sent some questions, would she talk about the experience of her first Lake County Tweetup. I’m sure you’ll all appreciate the back drop for the shoot. Looking at it makes me wonder why I didn’t go to interview her on site!

Our next #lctu is tonight, February 16, at Nirvana Wine and Grillerie @findmynirvana in Vernon Hills. There is still time to sign up, or just stop by and pay at the door! Hope to see you tonight, or at our next #lctu scheduled for March 15 at Gino’s East in Deerfield @GinosEastDfld

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-lctu-being-talked-about-in-the-keys/feed/ 13 Lake County Tweetup 2/16 in Vernon Hills http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-216-in-vernon-hills/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-216-in-vernon-hills/#comments Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:45:01 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=505

Who’s invited? Anyone is welcome. . . . → Read More: Lake County Tweetup 2/16 in Vernon Hills]]> Come join us for February’s Lake County Tweetup on February 16, 2010. We are expecting another great crowd this month! There will be plenty of opportunities to connect with other Lake County residents and businesses. Our host this month is Nirvana Wine & Grillerie in Vernon Hills, IL.

Who’s invited?
Anyone is welcome. Don’t let the word “Tweetup” frighten you. It’s a gathering of Twitter users, or “Tweeps”, that get together. You don’t have to be on Twitter, or even know what Twitter is, but you will get to meet local Lake County people, have a good time and most likely want to sign up for a Twitter account by the time you leave!

Where’s it at?
Nirvana Wine and Grillerie (@findmynirvana ) is located at 701 N. Milwaukee Ave. Suite 280, Vernon Hills, IL 60061.

How much does it cost?
$10 in advance and $15 at the door. Price includes a glass of wine, cheese and appetizers.

Sponsors

We want to thank Save the Cups for being a sponsor. Have you ever thought about how much coffee or tea you get and the amount of paper cups that end up getting thrown away? Save the Cups is  a movement to help promote reusable mugs and eliminating the unnecessary loss of helpless paper cups!

Northeast Cooling a Lake County based commercial refrigeration company has stepped up to sponsor a tweet contest. $50 for the one who mentions #lctu and @refrigeration in the most tweets between now and Monday, February 15! Follow them on Twitter @refrigeration

Still asking yourself, “what is a tweetup? ” Lake County Tweetup is focused on bringing together Lake County area networkers whether they live, work or play in Lake County, IL. The common link is social media, regardless of knowledge level. Membership is free and open to all. Members of all levels share, learn and support each other. Check out photos from past Lake County Tweetups on Flickr

Sign up early and get introduced to the world, or at least readers of my blog.

Here’s who’s signed up so far:

@tamcdonald

@EverybodySafe

@chrisjpowers

@refrigeration

@dbsalk

@farrah77

@heatheracton78

@hlesztriblocal

@bkincaid49

@iwoodknot

@mbonesz

@GetYourYGGI

@topnotchpromo

@childrenparties

@skip7547

Be keep up to date on the lastest news and sign up for my blog feed

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-216-in-vernon-hills/feed/ 41 Looks who's attending Lake County Tweetup on 1/25 http://tamcdonald.com/blog/looks-whos-attending-lake-county-tweetup-on-125/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/looks-whos-attending-lake-county-tweetup-on-125/#comments Sun, 24 Jan 2010 02:31:31 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=489 This Monday is the Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Restaurant in Lincolnshire, IL. The tweetup is from 5-7pm. Lake County Tweetup #lctu registration and details. Still asking yourself, “what is a tweetup?” Lake County Tweetup is focused on bringing together Lake County area networkers whether they live, work or play in Lake County, . . . → Read More: Looks who's attending Lake County Tweetup on 1/25]]> This Monday is the Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Restaurant in Lincolnshire, IL. The tweetup is from 5-7pm. Lake County Tweetup #lctu registration and details.

Still asking yourself, “what is a tweetup?” Lake County Tweetup is focused on bringing together Lake County area networkers whether they live, work or play in Lake County, IL. The common link is social media, regardless of knowledge level. Membership is free and open to all. Members of all levels share, learn and support each other. It’s a fun time too! We’re excited to welcome Edith Reese who isn’t on Twitter yet, but wants to learn more about it!

It’s not to late to win a prize in our Twitter contest!

The rules are simple:

  1. person with the most tweets from now until 11:59pm on January 24, containing #lctu and http://budurl.com/98gy wins! (Since this one started almost 2 weeks ago, if you haven’t started, you’ll want to focus on Twitter Contest #2)

Prize:

  1. Free admission to the monthly Lake County Tweetups for the rest of 2010!

PLUS-Twitter contest #2 thanks to Wildfire Restaurants and @wildfirerest

Rules are equally as simple:

  1. Every tweet that includes @WildfireRest #lctu and http://budurl.com/98gy through 11:59pm on January 24, will be drawn from hat at the tweetup.
  2. Winner must be present to win.

Prize:

  1. $75 gift certificate to Wildfire Restaurant

Both contests encourage you to tweet often about the event, but we do not want you to spam your friends. So be generous with your tweets, just not obnoxious!

Here’s the updated list of registered attendees so far. If you’re not following them yet, click on their name, check out their Twitter profile and follow them (all without leaving the page!)

Share your thoughts on this upcoming Lake County Tweetup below and continue spreading the word on Twitter!  See you on the Monday!

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/looks-whos-attending-lake-county-tweetup-on-125/feed/ 6 Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Lincolnshire, IL #lctu http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-at-wildfire-lincolnshire-il-lctu/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-at-wildfire-lincolnshire-il-lctu/#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 17:27:03 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=467 One week away from the Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Restaurant in Lincolnshire, IL. The tweetup is on Monday, January 25, 2010, from 5-7pm. Lake County Tweetup #lctu registration and details. Asking yourself, “what is a tweetup?” Lake County Tweetup is focused on bringing together Lake County area networkers whether they live, work . . . → Read More: Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Lincolnshire, IL #lctu]]> One week away from the Lake County Tweetup at Wildfire Restaurant in Lincolnshire, IL. The tweetup is on Monday, January 25, 2010, from 5-7pm. Lake County Tweetup #lctu registration and details. Asking yourself, “what is a tweetup?” Lake County Tweetup is focused on bringing together Lake County area networkers whether they live, work or play in Lake County, IL. The common link is social media, regardless of knowledge level. Membership is free and open to all. Members of all levels share, learn and support each other. It’s a fun time too!

We are expecting to more than double, possibly triple, the attendance from the first Lake County Tweetup in November. To help spread the word, we are having a #lctu Twitter contest!

The rules are simple:

  1. person with the most tweets from now until 11:59pm on January 24, containing #lctu and http://budurl.com/98gy wins!

Prize:

  1. Free admission to the monthly Lake County Tweetups for the rest of 2010!

PLUS-Twitter contest #2 thanks to Wildfire Restaurants and @wildfirerest

Rules are equally as simple:

  1. Every tweet that includes @WildfireRest #lctu and http://budurl.com/98gy through 11:59pm on January 24, will be drawn from hat at the tweetup.
  2. Winner must be present to win.

Prize:

  1. $75 gift certificate to Wildfire Restaurant

Both contests encourage you to tweet often about the event, but we do not want you to spam your friends. So be generous with your tweets, just not obnoxious!

Want to know who’s already registered so you can start following them before the tweetup?

You’ll be added to the list once you signed up. The earlier you sign up, the more people will have a chance to know a little more about you!

Share your thoughts on this upcoming Lake County Tweetup below and start spreading the word on Twitter!  See you on the 25th!

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/lake-county-tweetup-at-wildfire-lincolnshire-il-lctu/feed/ 45 Foursquare Everywhere Release http://tamcdonald.com/blog/foursquare-everywhere-release/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/foursquare-everywhere-release/#comments Sun, 10 Jan 2010 03:04:36 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=459

This past week Foursquare released a new version called Everywhere. You can read a more detailed review of Foursquare Everywhere release on Mashable. Here’s some of the features I am glad to see and why.

Use In Any City-Yes, everywhere means you are not restricted to the cities that used to be . . . → Read More: Foursquare Everywhere Release]]>

This past week Foursquare released a new version called Everywhere. You can read a more detailed review of Foursquare Everywhere release on Mashable. Here’s some of the features I am glad to see and why.

  • Use In Any City-Yes, everywhere means you are not restricted to the cities that used to be on Foursquare. This is fantastic for those who were waiting for Foursquare to come to town and has opened up the use of Foursquare to a whole new group of people. I am already seeing an increase in the number of friend requests I’m receiving.
  • Optional  Address-One of the biggest hassles with Foursquare was the limited database of locations. This meant if you were the first one to check in, you’d have to enter the details including the address. In the everywhere release you are no longer required to enter the address as Foursquare will find your GPS location.  Check in is now much easier for new locations!
  • Leaderboard More Local-You used to be ranked based on the city you were in. Now you’re ranked against everyone within 25 miles of your current location. This makes it much more “local”.
  • Other Highlights
    • Foursquare has 10 new badges with more on the way
    • Foursquare version 1.5 for iPhone avaialable in next few weeks with major redesign in coming months. more accurate location
    • Foursquare Blackberry app in beta and should be released in next week
    • Foursquare Palm Pre app already available

One thing that I am really hoping Foursquare implements in the near future is the ability to add photos when you check in. You can read more about why I like love Foursquare

What do you think of Foursquare? Do you like the changes? And what changes would you still like to see? Comments below help my ego (in a very healthy way!)

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/foursquare-everywhere-release/feed/ 2 What is a Tweetup? http://tamcdonald.com/blog/what-is-a-tweetup/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/what-is-a-tweetup/#comments Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:11:28 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=449 What in the world is a Tweetup? Have you heard of a meetup? Mixer? Networking event? Coffee, lunch or drinks with others? Well, a Tweetup can be any one of these or all of them. Tweetup is really just a way of saying let’s all get together by using Twitter as the main . . . → Read More: What is a Tweetup?]]> What in the world is a Tweetup? Have you heard of a meetup? Mixer? Networking event? Coffee, lunch or drinks with others? Well, a Tweetup can be any one of these or all of them. Tweetup is really just a way of saying let’s all get together by using Twitter as the main form of communication. OK, OK… you don’t use Twitter, so why should you care? Do you watch TV? Do you see mainstream media programs telling you to “follow us on Twitter”? Yes! Need more convincing? Watch this

Now that your convinced that social media is not a fad, and regardless of whether you “get” Twitter or not, you should attend a Tweetup for the same reason you go to any other networking event-to network! When I first started using social media over 2 years ago, I had the impression that I could network with so many people online and never have to actually meet them to have meaningful relationships. Boy, was I wrong! Traditionally, you’d attend a chamber of commerce event, work the room and try to get names of several people. With a Tweetup, you already have met the person via social media, so when you go to a Tweetup, you are ready to take the conversation beyond just getting their name.
What should you expect when going to a Tweetup? Here’s a great post with 10 simple rules for Tweeting up. Basically be yourself, don’t worry about the dress code (but keep location in mind), and have fun! If you are new to social media, I’ve found that the people that attend Tweetups are some of the friendliest people I’ve met. Read about Social Media Club Chicago’s Holiday party event and get a feel for how friendly and open the people that attend social media events are.
Now that you’re prepared to attend your first Tweetup, come join us at the Lake County Tweetup  on January 25, 2010, at Wildfire in Lincolnshire, IL. Registration and details. (<-yes, click there!)
Have questions about Tweetups or social media in general? Have other suggestions or thoughts on Tweetups? All comments are personally read and responded to. You take the time and I’ll thank you!
]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/what-is-a-tweetup/feed/ 20 Weight Loss Goal Day 1 http://tamcdonald.com/blog/weight-loss-goal-day-1/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/weight-loss-goal-day-1/#comments Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:55:12 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=437 Official start of my 2010 New Year goal to loss 20 lbs by Memorial Day began yesterday. The weigh in saw me tip the scale at 225lbs. I figured the best way to stay on track is to share my daily progress with respect to exercise, food and drink. The weight updates will . . . → Read More: Weight Loss Goal Day 1]]> Official start of my 2010 New Year goal to loss 20 lbs by Memorial Day began yesterday. The weigh in saw me tip the scale at 225lbs. I figured the best way to stay on track is to share my daily progress with respect to exercise, food and drink. The weight updates will only come once a week with a summary of the weekly diet/exercise regime.

So, what did I do on day one to begin losing weight?

  • Exercise
    • Nothing (except walk dogs around block twice)
  • Food
    • Breakfast-Apple cinnamon danish (not so good, but I only had one)
    • Lunch-Chicken noodle soup and some pretzels (good)
    • Dinner-Grilled chicken and onion sandwich w/baked potato chips (not bad)
    • No desert or drinks other than water and 1 cup of 25 cal. hot chocolate (coffee is a given-everyday!)

What do you think of my start so far? Have anything you doing that you want to share? Want to give me some words of encouragement? Do be shy, leave a comment.

Look forward to Day 2 update tomorrow!

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/weight-loss-goal-day-1/feed/ 13 My 2010 New Year's Resolutions http://tamcdonald.com/blog/my-2010-new-years-resolutions/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/my-2010-new-years-resolutions/#comments Thu, 31 Dec 2009 18:30:07 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=432 I’m not really a big one on resolutions, but there are several things that made me decide to publicly declare mine this year. Instead of list my New Year’s resolutions you can hear about them.

Visit Save the Cups Please share your resolutions or goals for 201o by commenting below. And be sure . . . → Read More: My 2010 New Year's Resolutions]]> I’m not really a big one on resolutions, but there are several things that made me decide to publicly declare mine this year. Instead of list my New Year’s resolutions you can hear about them.

Please share your resolutions or goals for 201o by commenting below. And be sure to sign up for updates on my weight loss progress.
]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/my-2010-new-years-resolutions/feed/ 23 Mortgage Rescue Can Still Damage Your Credit Score http://tamcdonald.com/blog/mortgage-rescue-can-still-damage-your-credit-score/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/mortgage-rescue-can-still-damage-your-credit-score/#comments Mon, 28 Dec 2009 15:57:15 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=426 As a Realtor, one of the most frequently asked questions I get is regarding refinancing or trying to sell a home that’s upside down (value vs. remaining mortgage). This article won’t help with either of those situations, but it does address how loan modifications may impact your credit score. If you are applying . . . → Read More: Mortgage Rescue Can Still Damage Your Credit Score]]> As a Realtor, one of the most frequently asked questions I get is regarding refinancing or trying to sell a home that’s upside down (value vs. remaining mortgage). This article won’t help with either of those situations, but it does address how loan modifications may impact your credit score. If you are applying for a loan modification on your home loan, be sure to find out the facts, in writing, from your loan servicer.  Also be sure the trial period is as short as possible so you can have it become permanent and not effect your credit score as much.

Read the full article from CNNMoney.com here.

Have you had any experience getting your loan modified? Please share it by commenting below. Others want to hear from you!

]]> http://tamcdonald.com/blog/mortgage-rescue-can-still-damage-your-credit-score/feed/ 2 Energy Saving Tips for Your Home http://tamcdonald.com/blog/energy-saving-tips-for-your-home/ http://tamcdonald.com/blog/energy-saving-tips-for-your-home/#comments Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:56:42 +0000 http://tamcdonald.com/?p=405 8 Easy Ways to Seal Air Leaks Around the House

For what the typical family wastes every . . . → Read More: Energy Saving Tips for Your Home]]> You may have read my post on HouseLogic from the National Association of Realtors recently. Here are some great tips and resources for energy saving ideas for your home. You can find more by visiting HouseLogic.com

Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.

© Copyright 2009 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Don’t be shy, leave a comment. It will bring you good luck (or at least I’d like to think so.)

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