You turn on the television and they are there – beautiful people, with perfect makeup and clothes, saying clever things at just the right time – celebrities.

Movie stars and even our national newscasters seem so out of reach, so otherworldly sometimes. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to say hello, to see them in person, maybe even shake their hand?

Well, it’s possible, my friend – and sometimes it’s easier than you think. Here are a few tips that have helped me satisfy my need for a brush with fame.

Getting started

• Focus: start with a targeted group of celebrities. When they gather, you’ll have a better chance at hitting one of them. For instance, NASCAR drivers or ballet dancers.
• Patience is a virtue: Especially if you have a major celebrity in mind, you may have to wait a long time for the right opportunity, and a long line may be in your future. Accept this fact and wait for the right moment.
• Manners make the man: Realize that if a celebrity has opened that door to a wall of fans dying to meet them, they are being very brave and patient, and they are hoping that each fan is not a psycho. Don’t be that psycho.
• Know your celebrity: What is your idol up to? Are they on a speaking tour for their favorite charity, selling an autobiography or helping a politician they like get elected? Keep informed.
• Out of their element, in with you: When rock stars are writing children’s books, or comedians are giving ’serious’ presentations, they are out of their element. This means the crowd around them is not as large, only true fans or business partners have come to see them, and they are much more grateful for the attention they are getting. This is a golden opportunity to get your photo or an autograph.
• Accept your mission: Autographs? Photos with you and the band? In most cases you will have a split second with the celeb, and no re-takes, so decide ahead of time. Actually, decide now. The band may walk into the restaurant any minute now. However: when they say NO, it’s usually best to accept that. In more cases photos are OK and autographs are not, because celebs know the value of their scribbles.
• How much is your celebrity worth? Yes, you might have to spend some money. Some stars charge for an autograph, whether it’s on a piece of paper or on an 8″ x 10″ glossy photo they are selling you. Or you may have to buy a ticket to a book signing, and even buy their book (again!) Why? Signing 200 photos at $20 each might be this week’s income. Hey, it’s a living.

Places stars hang out

• Charity auctions/benefits
• Book signings
• Film screenings/premieres
• eBay
• Product launches – for their signature perfume, clothing line, sneakers etc.
• Fan conventions – comic book conventions, horror conventions, Star Trek conventions, etcetera. Don’t be surprised if the stars in the autograph tent extend beyond the main theme of the convention, and be prepared at these events to pay for an autograph and/or a glossy photo of your favorite star.
• University campuses. If you graduated from somewhere, put that alumni card to use! If not, poke your nose into the local campus and get on their mailing list.
• Fan newsletters, sports team websites etc. If you are the fan you say you are, suck up every piece of info you can. Buy tickets to any special-access event the day they become available, and get your butt out there and be first in line!
• THEIR WEBSITE – many celebrities are only stars to a small group of people. Try writing an e-mail or the treasured hand-written note. You would be surprised how many people will return the favor.
• Twitter – there are as many real celebs on Twitter as there are fake ones. And there are dozens of lists of “Celebrities on Twitter” to help you decipher the difference. Use those tools before you find yourself following an impostor.

Good luck meeting your idol. And remember, be polite!

(I previously published part of this article on Squidoo.)

I’m looking forward to embarking on a new adventure as a corporate tweeter. As such, I’ve taken a good deal of time accumulating best practices for corporate accounts. Many of these are the same as I would recommend for anyone operating a business Twitter account for themselves:

1. Have a mission/message in mind before you post your first tweet.
2. Your message should also consider your target audience.
3. Twitter directories are a good way to gain some followers initially, but there is no get followers quick solution.
4. Be selective in following. There is no need to follow everyone who follows you.
5. Be careful of your language. This is even more important for corporations than for individuals.
6. Your posts are 100% public. Remember that bad news travels faster than good news and anything your shareholders wouldn’t like will travel out of the Twitterverse and onto TV screens and into newspapers.
7. Corporations need to select a voice. It’s best if one person, or a couple of people, man the account, for consistency, and to be sure there’s no redundancy. Most corporations invoke the royal ‘we.’  Other more customer-service oriented Twitter accounts have used an individual speaking from the first person.
8. A regular stream of content is important to any Twitter feed to maintain followers. Appropriate corporate topics include:

• • respond to follower/customer inquiries
  • retweet satisfied customer tweets
  • link to updated/interesting information on corporate websites/blogs
  • retweet updates from affiliated Twitter accounts
  • Twitter contests
  • advance notice of corporate news
  • Twitter discount codes
  • stimulate Twitter discussions with product-related questions
  • product-related trivia
  • run online surveys
  • photos of corporate events

Have some other ideas? Please share in the comments!

Bird art by Triax Mills.

It’s been nearly a week of snow, snow and more snow. The Washington, D.C. area set records for snowfall and for consecutive days of the Federal government and the D.C. government being closed. My husband and I set records for consecutive days of talking to no one else except each other. How did we survive? Well, the Internet helped a lot. And my husband’s unbelievably huge DVD collection. And the fact that we only lost power for two and a half hours. But there were some other key things that I was really very glad we had with us, and I’d like to make a note to keep this stuff on hand, just in case disaster strikes.

• iPhone – I did not have to worry about whether we had power or not to check Twitter, e-mail and news websites thanks to my iPhone. Oh, and I could post photos of our deep snow to Facebook easily, too. It charges fast and keeps its charge. I’ve got a solar charger, too.
• Battery-operated radio - The radio offers updated information and music. In a power outage, sometimes you just need some tunes to keep you sane. Be sure to keep batteries on hand.
• Dry goods and canned foods - Fresh veggies are the best when you can get them, but when you can’t get out, it is a huge relief to have a good stash of things that are easy to make by just adding water, or by just heating them up. Stuff like ramen noodles, instant soup, canned soup and vegetables, as well as pasta and rice all keep well without refrigeration for long periods.
• LED nightlights that convert to flashlights when the power goes out or a circuit breaker trips. These are very low-energy and we keep one in every room, so when the power went out, these went on. They’re not super powerful, but they are enough to help you find what you need, like the other members of your family.
• Heavy-duty flashlight or camping lantern – It’s useful to have something like this to light up an entire room that isn’t a candle. Because candles are, well, flammable, and dangerous, especially around pets and children.
• Long-burning fireplace logs – If you have a fireplace — which I definitely recommend if you are going to experience a power outage in the cold — stashing a six-pack of these long-burning logs in your basement won’t keep your house toasty, but it will give you some light and comfort with much less work and ash than a wood fire.
• Water filter – Rather than a case of bottled water, which has an expiration date and creates plastic waste, we have chosen a large filter for our refrigerator. This works just fine for two or three people. Larger family groups may want to consider an extra filter or storing one or two large bottles of water for emergencies.
• Candles – Rather than candlesticks, if you have pillar candles or tall votives, these will be much easier to move around your house and safer to leave burning for a length of time. Be sure that you don’t leave any candle burning near drapes or on a tablecloth: use heat-resistant plates to catch any drippings. And never leave a flame unattended.
• Gas stove – This is a long-term decision, along with having a fireplace. Those of us with gas stovetops were able to warm up soup or make pancakes for breakfast even when the electricity went out.
• Matches – Most of our gas stoves have electric lighters now. So without matches or a lighter on hand, our gas stoves, fireplaces and candles would all be useless. Matches are much less popular these days as smoking is being phased out, so be sure you have a handy box of kitchen matches on hand, as well as a long barbeque lighter for those hard-to-get-at places.

P.S. Here’s a great recipe that is a tasty way to use your canned beans. Black & White Bean Primavera Salad

Got some other ideas? Please comment to share the wealth!

On Saturday, March 27, 2010, I will be participating in the National Walk for Epilepsy on the National Mall in Washington, DC.

Why? Because I was diagnosed with epileptic seizures at the age of 16. I’m lucky enough to be able to control my seizures (which generally occur at night) with daily medication, but not all people with epilepsy are so fortunate.

I have a friend suffering seizures caused as a result of a brain tumor, who is still working to find the right medication for her. I have another friend who has seizures that were triggered by her second pregnancy. Taking medication at all during pregnancy is scary, but not as dangerous as a seizure could be.

Epilepsy — which refers to a number of different seizure disorders — affects lots of people in different ways, and seizure management is a tricky business.

For me, epilepsy means daily medication which I’ve taken since I was first diagnosed (over 20 years ago). The worst thing I have suffered from a seizure is biting my tongue in my sleep. (Although that can be a pretty severe bite.) Learning I would have to take medicine to be ‘normal’ for the rest of my life was a tough thing for a teenager to get used to. But it’s not so bad.

I have been lucky to have pretty great health care, constant coverage via my parents or corporate plans, and access to top-of-the-line research hospitals to be sure I’m getting the right medicine for me. Not everyone is so fortunate. But I like to pay it forward. I contribute to websites that give me free services. And I want to help the research that has helped me. So…

The money I’m helping to raise through the Walk will go towards research for better treatments, to raise awareness and maybe even to find a cure for epilepsy. My hope is that this walk will help bring other families closer to seizure-free daily lives.

Please donate whatever you are able. I know there are many worthy causes asking for donations now, but this one affects someone you know — and maybe some other folks that haven’t had the guts to tell you yet.

Here’s my fundraising page:
Heather’s National Walk for Epilepsy Page

Thank you so much for your support and friendship.

In the days since Haiti’s earthquake, Americans have donated millions of dollars towards relief organizations. I’m always amazed by our generosity as a people. I’m also amazed by the new technology that emerged this time — the text-to-donate operations have been incredibly successful and easy to use. These would have been so helpful in past disasters! If you can spare a few dollars on your next phone bill:

• Text HAITI to 90999 to donate $10 to The Red Cross
• Text YELE to 501501 to donate $5 to Wyclef Jean’s Yele Haiti Fund
• Text HAITI to 20222 to donate $10 to the Clinton Foundation’s Haiti Relief Fund

If you want to donate a more substantial amount, there are a number of organizations already in operation in Haiti. This is, in my mind, the most tragic part of the disaster there. Haiti has needed our help for years. This earthquake kicked them while they were down, in a way.

• The Media Consortium explains how to help: Haiti After the Quake + How to Help
• NPR put together a great list of recommended non-profits here: How to Help.
• Huffington Post’s recommendations are here: How You Can Help

I’ve heard a number of personal recommendations for Partners in Health, so that’s where my extra pennies are going, and there is also the newly-founded Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, led by former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.

Meanwhile, please hope, pray or and think positive thoughts about all those who are missing and out of touch with their loved ones.

It’s the beginning of 2010, and I’ve gotta set my goals! Last year I gave up buying plastic water bottles, and it worked! I recommend it to everyone. We saved lots of money, and got attached to our water bottles and filtering system. It works just fine, and now we’ve got more room in the refrigerator for BEER! ☺

So here are the resolutions:

• More writing: journal every day, on paper. Some stuff didn’t get recorded last year because I didn’t want to share it with the world. So I need to organize my thoughts on paper first.
• More exercise: get in that gym, at least twice a week.
• More travel: including within DC. There are some great exhibits and museums that I need to see. Concerts and shows, too!
• Home improvement: continue to green my lifestyle, purge the junk and organize the good stuff.
• Taco night on Mondays: to simplify menu planning and because we like tacos. ☺

Wish me luck, and I wish you luck with your resolutions… if you’ve made them? If you haven’t yet, I hereby give you til the end of January to come up with some. We’ve got 11 months to go, folks. That’s a lot of time to pick something to improve on or have fun with.

Most importantly,

★  ♪ ♫   Happy New Year! ♪ ♫ ♪ ★

We lost some big names in entertainment this year, I just wanted the chance to say one last goodbye to some of my favorites.

• Actor Patrick Swayze, 57 – I really enjoyed Dirty Dancing and many more of his movies.
• Director John Hughes, 59 – His films were some of the first that I rented from video stores and watched over and over again.
• Actress Farrah Fawcett, 62 – What a courageous documentary she made at the end of her life.
• Actor Dom DeLuise, 75 – Always made me laugh.
• Actor Ricardo Montalban, 88 – I still want to visit Fantasy Island.
• George Michael, sports broadcaster, 70 – I watched his ‘Sports Machine’ show for years in DC.
• Vic Chesnutt, singer/songwriter, 45 – Just an amazing talent.
• Actress Brittany Murphy, 32 – I loved her voice work for King of the Hill.
• Ed McMahon, 86 – I’ll remember him from Star Search, way before American Idol.
• Pitchman Billy Mays, 50 – He could sell me the shoes on my feet, what a guy.
• Walter Cronkite, 92 – Sad to see him go, but that’s the way it is.

There were many more notable deaths, as The New York Times notes in their annual review.