Write about something you love: Betty Londergan

I am a writer, author and mother (not necessarily in that order). My career has been as a Creative Director in advertising, working on accounts like AT&T, Tylenol and Vanguard. I have published two books on motherhood: I’m Too Sexy for My Volvo: A mom’s guide to staying fabulous (Adams Media, 2006); and The Agony & The Agony: Raising your teenager without losing your mind (Perseus Books, 2008) and helped raise four children: my own daughter Lulu (18) and three stepchildren Jaime(27), Lindsay (22) and Tyler (18).

I am 56 and sometimes feel like 106, and sometimes feel like 16. My husband, Larry Schall, and I live in Atlanta where he is the President of Oglethorpe University. I started my blog: http://whatgives365.wordpress.com on January 1, 2010 with the intention of giving away $100 a day for 365 days to people, causes and organizations that I believe are making this world a better place. When I’m not blogging, (and right now, I’m always blogging) I like to play tennis, garden, read, drink good wine and travel.

Interview

Q: Welcome to Speakbindas. Tell us since when blogging has been a part of your life? Was there any motive or inspiration as a backbone of it?

• Ans.: I was a terribly inept blogger until I decided to do this project. I blame the movie Julie & Julia for causing me to create this blog. I went to the movie, came home and thought, “If I were to blog every day for a year, what would I write about?” And then it came to me: “Hey, I think I’ll give away a boatload of money!”

Q: What is your blog all about? Which topics you cover there? Is that you alone running/maintaining the blog, or have a team?

• Ans.: My intention is, by giving away $100/day for 365 days, to shine a light on people, causes and organizations that are making the world a better place. It’s also to hopefully inspire other people to give, by exposing them to really fascinating, amazing people who deserve to be supported and encouraged. I am covering a wide gamut of philanthropic organizations- in areas that range from cultural to justice to environmental to political to religious to animal to social entrepreneurs to women to children to veterans to seniors to health to education to poverty - as well as giving money to cool people who are just doing an admirable job that I’d like to honor. I have a wonderful designer who helps me with a few things: Liz Meitus, but I do all the writing (except when I have a guest columnist) and posting and maintenance on the blog, god forbid.

Q.: How important is it for the blogger to interact with their readers? Do you respond to all the comments that you receive?

• Ans.: I always try to respond to comments, except right now I can’t get my g-mail to open for some unknown reason. But I’m pretty fanatic about it. Since the entire raison d’etre of a blog is communication, interaction is essential.

Q: What are the present statistics for your blog, i.e. number of daily visitors, visitors geographical status etc.?

• Ans.: I have about 380 views/day. I have no idea where the geographical status figures are hidden on the blog statistics (I’m not very sophisticated at this.)

Q: Is blogging for you just a passion or a medium for earning too? Does it help you to earn enough cash to quit a 9 to 5 day job?

• Ans.: Don’t make me laugh! I am actually spending $100 a day doing this - and because it’s a total obsession, I can’t really do anything else. So - no … I don’t think I could support myself with this blog venture. Which is totally fine, btw.

Q: Who are your favorite bloggers, whom you read frequently?

• Ans.: I don’t have a lot of time to read other bloggers, although I’m always lured in by the flash page on wordpress … and often pop in to other sites. But since I could easily, and happily, read other people’s blogs all day, I have to discipline myself to do my own work first. And since everybody seems to be so much more sophisticated, fascinating and advanced than I am, I have to be careful not to compare myself to others …

Q: From the secret bucket of your blogging experiences, what tips you would like to share with the fellow bloggers?

• Ans.: Write about something you love.

Q: Do you believe that blogging completes you? If yes, tell us how?

• Ans.: Blogging exhausts me beyond belief. But it also is exhilarating - because I love this project and believe that it’s what I meant to do for the next year. I am also a writer, so writing is good for me. But as for “completing” me? No, I’m still very incomplete.

Q: What was the happiest and gloomiest moment of your life?

• Ans.: Happiest moment: when my daughter Lulu was born. Gloomiest moment: I don’t think I’ve had it yet.

Q: Say, you are sponsored to travel to 3 world destinations, where you need not to worry about costs for food, hotel or anything. Which destinations would you pick up, and why? Would you like to take someone along with you? If yes, whom?

• Ans.: Right now, I’m dying to go to Bolivia (because I love going to South American countries with high indigenous populations and I’m eager to see the salt flats & La Paz), the northern woods of Sweden (in the summer, duhhhhh, because it just sounds so beautiful and I want to see the northern lights) and to Tibet (because I love traveling in Buddhist countries, I want to see the Himalayas, and I’m nervous the Chinese are going to overrun it and wipe out the lovely native culture). I would love to take my husband with me because he is super fun to travel with and will carry my bags. I would also like to take my daughter but she doesn’t want to go anywhere with me right now (she’s 18, so that’s pretty natural.)

Q: Are you into watching movies? If yes, which fills your list of favorite ones?

• Ans.: I love watching movies and constantly go to see films…. mostly independent and foreign ones, but I’m also a sucker for big blockbusters. My favorites in the past few years were The Diving Bell & the Butterfly; In the Valley of Elah, anything by Almodovar, Amores Perres, Crash, The Blind Spot, Thirteen, the Devil Wears Prada, Doubt, Nixon… and oh, a whole bunch of documentaries.

Q: How has blogging helped you other than money?

• Ans.: Too soon to tell, (and let’s not talk about money, please) but it’s a great daily practice which is always good for the soul.

Q: What would be the one thing you’d change about yourself?

• Ans.: My temper.

Q: What will you do without internet?

• Ans.: Read. Think. Write. Talk. Make love. Pray. Cook. Play music. Nap. Daydream.

Q: What is your deepest fear?

• Ans.: That something will happen to one of our kids.

Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?

• Ans.: Abraham Lincoln

Q: Which is your favorite television show? Favorite songs?

• Ans.: The Office. Favorite song: WAY too many to choose from! Van Morrison, Lucinda Williams, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Nelly, Eric Clapton, David Gray, etc. etc. etc.

Q: How much money do you have in your purse/wallet right now (including change)?

• Ans.: $10.00 no change.

Q: What is your favorite food? Any particular dislikes?

• Ans.: Graham crackers. I dislike anything slimy.

Q: What’s your take on the technological advancement these days? Does it make people’s life simple or complicated?

• Ans.: It makes people’s lives fast…. which is both good and bad. We’re racing through our lives.

Q: What do you think of “blogging is the next BIG thing”?

• Ans.: It’s not the next … it’s the current big thing…. among many others.

Q: Any special message you would like to share with your blog readers as well with everyone else?

• Ans.: Thank you for reading - tune in tomorrow, it’s going to be awesome!

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