A Thank You for Bonzai

I owe a heartfelt thank you to my blog hero Bonzai Aphrodite. http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/  What can I say, I worship this girl!   Yesterday Bonzai made me aware of a blog infraction.  I had copied content from her blog and reblogged on my site. Granted, I included the source link but still… What I learned is, it is a blog no-no to copy entire content from someone else’s blog. The reason is, [in Bonzai’s words] “Duplicate content can mess with search engine functioning, with user’s ability to find original work, as well as with my [her] site’s SEO.”  She went on to say, “…it is ok to excerpt the post, or lead with the introductory paragraph or whatever, as long as you provide a link back to the original post (which I see you did – thank you!).” 

I have always been a believer of ignorance is no excuse for a defense; however, in my case, it is my defense.  What can I say, I’m a blog Noob. In fact, in the past, I have commiserated with Book Peeps about my blog ignorance because she can empathize.   I used to have a manager who used to tell me to learn from my mistakes and move on. Well, in this case, I have definitely learned something. It is all any of us can do, right?

To that end, I am grateful to Bonzai for being so gracious about my lack of blog protocol.  She was very sweet and friendly about my infraction and she didn’t have to. This whole thing could have gone the other direction. Thankfully, it didn’t.  This also says something about her character. That is to say, she is clearly good people.

Sadly, I discovered Bonazai’s blog after she retired it (Full Disclosure: I owe Alicia Silverstone’s The Kind Life credit for introducing me to Bonzai’s blog).  Yesterday, I Googled Bonzai trying to find a way to get in contact without using her now retired blog and discovered she is on Twitter, Tumblr, Circle of Moms. Unfortunately, due to my employer’s firewall, I am unable to access these mediums. I do have a computer at home (as well as an iPhone) but when I leave the office I officially disconnect from everything.  My job requires me to be on-line 10 hours a day, so disconnecting is crucial to my overall well-being. Trust me, you wouldn’t like me if I didn’t disconnect. This includes disconnecting on the weekends. Oh sure I may send a text or make a phone call but computers and the like are off-limits. [My hope is Bonzai will check back to see if I have removed the content and  this message.]

In closing, I aspire to have a blog as informative, fun, witty, and interesting as Bonzai’s.  I don’t know if I’ll ever get there, but dammit, I’m going to try.

Bonzai, thank you for your kindness.  Also, before I sign off, just to let you know, when I Googled you I found the following question being asked about you: “What happened to Bonzai Aphrodite?” at http://getoffmyinternets.net/gomi-forum/healthy-living-bloggers/what-happened-to-bonzai-aphrodite/ and from what I could glean, you are embarking on a new journey and to that, I wish you boat loads of happiness and success with your new adventure.

All the best,

G.E.

🙂