The Tudor Show
July 30, 2005
Next Saturday is Blogathon day — that’s when I’ll be writing something funny, something sad every half hour for 24 hours. Hopefully. You see, so far I received exactly $0 in pledges, which makes it hard for me to participate (the people organizing the even have this silly “no pledges, no blogging” rule).
Thus, to entice you to pledge to my campaign, I put together the following fictional dialogue:
You: What is this madness?
Me: Blogathon 2005 raises money for different charities. Bloggers gather pledges, and on August 6th they write one entry every 30 minutes for 24 hours. Last year’s blogathon raised over $100,000 for various charities.
You: When will it happen?
Me: The Blogathon starts at 9am on Saturday, August 6th and ends Sunday morning. Friday is the last day to enter a pledge — but you don’t have to wait until then. The sooner you pledge a donation the more inspired I’ll be to go through with this.
You: Where can I see this thing of beauty unfold?
Me: On August 6th, you should come back here to see me do things I haven’t done before. I will (hopefully) also be a guest blogger on Dave’s site. Oh, and there will be a blogathon ring you can surf and see all the participating sites. Pretty cool, eh?
You: Who are you doing this for?
Me: I’m blogging for literacy. One in four Canadian adults don’t have the necessary reading and writing skills to properly function in today’s society. Laubach Literacy Ontario, the charity I’m supporting, has been providing one-on-one help to those who need it through its network of volunteer tutors. Your donation will be going directly towards students who need it. [more info]
You: How do I pledge my support?
Me: First, you have to register on Blogathon.org. After you register, log in and go to my campaign to pledge your donation.
You: Once the Blogathon is over, how do I make a donation?
Me: You won’t be making your donations to me — instead you’ll have to send your donations directly to Laubach Literacy Ontario either by dropping a cheque in an envelope or through CanadaHelps.org.
You: How much should I give?
Me: As much or as little as you want. Donations can be as small as $1. Everything you give will have an impact both on literacy and on my ability to fully participate in this blogathon.
You: Is my donation tax deductible?
Me: It certainly is.
You: There something else I want to know?
Me: Just ask. Use your fingers to leave a comment below.
So, this is pretty exciting. And I’m currently looking for suggestions, questions, themes I can write about during the Blogathon. If there’s something you’d like to read about, drop me a line. Yay interactivity!
Posted by Tudor at 09:36 PM in Writing & the Media | TrackBackCongrats on doing this! I don’t think I could possibly stay up for 24 hours straight, so I might as well help you get started.
Posted by: spindriftdancer on July 30, 2005 at 09:32 PMmaybe we’d me more willing to hop on the literacy bandwagon if we were sure you’d use you’re twice-hourly blogging for something other than gratuitous crotch photography.
Posted by: regan on July 30, 2005 at 11:57 PMThis is a very bizarre way to raise funds for a cause that DEFINATELY is not a major issue in modern times. Literacy rates are at an all-time high thanks to public education and other government initiatives. Why don’t you donate some of your time and money to a charity? And don’t come online and brag about it.
Posted by: Red Emma on July 31, 2005 at 01:24 AMliteracy is DEFINATELY not a big problem nowadays.
and jesus, tudor, why does your blog always have to be about you?
Posted by: regan on July 31, 2005 at 01:29 AMSee, when you capitalize things I can understand you’re being sarcastic. Isn’t that so much easier?
Also, my $5 is to go toward you not posting pictures of your crotch. Literacy too, I guess. No crotch foremost though.
Posted by: corwin on July 31, 2005 at 02:04 AMHey Tudor: I will support your blog-a-thon. I thought we were supposed to donate after it was over.
I think it will be challenging, not necessarily because you have to stay up for 24-hours but because you have to come up with something new to write about every half hour! That sounds difficult!
Erica
Posted by: Erica on July 31, 2005 at 05:50 AMok, ok. No crotch shots then. I hope you’re happy now. And thank you for your pledges so far :). As a small thank you I can include a link to your webpage/propaganda centre if you’d let me know what it is :).
And yes Erica, donations are only made after the event — however, pledges (which cost nothing to make) should be made now :). (thank you)
As for literacy not being a problem anymore, it’s easy to assume everybody can read and write. However, there are a lot of people who fall through the cracks in the education system. And those who have problems reading rarely admit to them — that’s what makes the problem so hard to address. Unfortunately, the facts are against you Red Emma. About 42% of Canadian adults function on the lowest two levels of literacy according to Stats Canada — this means that they don’t have the necessary skills to fully function in society. Please check your facts and get back with comments that are less bizzare.
Posted by: Tudor on July 31, 2005 at 11:45 AMNot to bag on Red Emma, (too much) but she is a prime example that there is a literacy problem. “DEFINATELY”?
Can one make a pledge if one’s residence is on the U.S.?
I don’t mind the cock-shots, as they give me a little “wake-me-up” in the morning, I just hope your tool is wearing sunscreen. Hee-hee….
Posted by: jules on July 31, 2005 at 01:28 PMYes, and included in literacy is the ability to absorb and abstract from what you are reading… Just because you can tell a box of Cheerios from a box of Shreddies doesn’t mean you can READ.
Posted by: spindriftdancer on July 31, 2005 at 01:48 PM“Not to bag on Red Emma, (too much) but she is a prime example that there is a literacy problem. “DEFINATELY”?
Can one make a pledge if one’s residence is on the U.S.?
I don’t mind the cock-shots, as they give me a little “wake-me-up” in the morning, I just hope your tool is wearing sunscreen. Hee-hee….”
Jules, you know I read this blog. You whore.
No more Hebrew National for you. Enjoy your blood sausage.
And for you Mr. Cockmaster, I hope you’re happy with yourself. Home wrecker.
BTW CM, would you mind please showing teh boobie shots of Laura? Thanks!
Posted by: Mayhem King on July 31, 2005 at 02:41 PMhahaha! that’s really funny. unfortunately, the request for Laura’s boobs is denied.
Posted by: Tudor on July 31, 2005 at 11:25 PMHe (of the Twister PJ’s and avocado mask) said since you saw his boobies, he figured he could see Laura’s.
BTW, the dork made me delete the pics of him from Flickr. He’s paranoid some kooks will recognize him, even incognito. I told him not to join the Crips and the Bloods at the same time, but what do I know? Sheesh….
Posted by: jules on August 01, 2005 at 02:24 AMTudor, can I donate with my VISA card? I know we are supposed to donate after the thing is over but I couldn’t find anything about how to donate using VISA. Also, is it possible to increase my donation?
Thanks.
Hi Erica! Donations can be made through CanadaHelps.org — they can process all credit cards, cheques, etc. and you’ll know that the money is going straight to the organization. This can also ensure your donations are anonymous, if that’s what you want.
And since donations are only made after the blogathon, it’s up to you how much you want to donate at that point. Thanks again for your pledge — your support means a lot to me :).
Posted by: Tudor on August 02, 2005 at 02:14 PMHey Tudor: No problem! Good luck :)
Posted by: Erica on August 02, 2005 at 02:42 PM