Random follow #247 - @n8tvaffairs

Every week on @maoritv there is one show that totally sets twitter in New Zealand alight.  Its like perfect clockwork.  @n8tvaffairs starts and twitter goes wild.  This show is how New Zealand keeps it real when it comes to current events and discussing the topics of the day that affect real people in real communities right across the country.

The stunningly gorgeous lady who sits behind the @n8tvaffairs account is Annabelle.  Its her skill, wisdom, tenacity and ability to work across both political and societal spectrums that has allowed the show to both become a success and to stay one as well.  Annabelle is the producer for the show which often means she does a lot of the thinking and co-ordinating of the show without always being seen in the spotlight or on camera.

Want to know why and how Annabelle tweets?  Fearlessly would be one description.  She is certainly not afraid to out her opinion out into the public domain.  And if that means having a good robust discussion with a few people then bring it on.  Don't think she is all about the arguing.  At heart Annabelle is all about whanau and family.  Protecting their rights and ensuring their quality of life is the best it possibly can be.

The @n8tvaffairs twitter account is a really busy one.  In a good way of course.  There's a really nice mix of the personal and the professional that keeps it fresh, active and keeps you coming back for more.

So as far as personal tweets here's what you'll get - 

"Hi Friday you little spunk! Now where are my PJs at? :)"

And the professional - 

"From behind the bars to the big league.. On #NativeAffairs the remarkable story of Suaia Matagi #KeepTheFaith #Warriors #LetsGoneWarriors"

The poignant - 

"makes me feel ashamed. What a joke. Marriage equality is meaningless
if this is how we treat our takatapui community."

If you look through the @n8tvaffairs timeline you will actually find a whole bunch of Random Kiwi Tweeters who have been profiled this year too.  Take a look and see how many you recognise.  There are many good folk on the list who Annabelle interacts with week after week.

In years past to be an advocate for the people meant banners, signs, sit ins and other forms of protest.  In a modern world where media rules then it is through that medium that change can be both forced and coerced.  @n8tvaffairs is that advocate for fairness and change.  Long may it continue to grace out television screens week after week creating and encouraging the debate this country so badly needs.

If there was one whakatauki that could sum up what @n8tvaffairs is about, it's this -

Random follow #192 - @sneakybaker

There is a young lady from Wellington

Who does all her work in communication

Be careful to spell and do never tell

That you used incorrect punctuation

@sneakybaker has a career in one area that gives her the skills to be able to use social media really well.  You will find tweets and messages that have certain aspects about them that many others of us would fail to see or recognise (without training) - 

• Correct punctuation
• Proper grammar
• Capitals inserted in the right places

Communications is all about talking to people.  Its about figuring out how best to convey and communicate your message to others.  So when Ihapera tweets there is very little confusion as to what she really means.

Don't worry though she knows how to have lots of fun with her tweets - 

"It's 8.43 and I've already sent a disgruntled email to HR. How's your morning going?"

Not everyone is strictly defined by what they do for a job though.  Ihapera has chosen a twitter name that describes her interests outside if work too.  So when her twitter name is @sneakybaker you know when you see a tweet like this one that something good is going to be made soon -  

"Filling my (already full) carry on the only way I know how: buying secondhand enamel baking trays in Motueka"

Another aspect of @sneakybaker is that she is a dog lover.  So many, many tweets and photos are of the other four legged house creatures that many of us have.  But I stand in solidarity with Ihapera and claim that mans best friend is indeed well worth tweeting about.  Have a look and see - 

"Nelson so far: coffee, found a hound, osso bucco pie and caramel beignet from a Spaniard named Rodrigo, beach, nap. Life is perfect."

And whats always, always good is when someone can both think for themselves (as evidenced above) and she also has a very confident sense of self that enables her to express herself through the way that she dresses as well - 

"black metallic zebra stripe sweater, blue jeans, gold boots, 'try it, I dare you' red lipstick, smug last-day-eve face #kishi"

In conclusion @sneakybaker is a sharp, sensitive and intelligent addition to twitter.  

A lover of dogs, 

a baker of cakes

this is one tweeter

who has what it takes.

Random follow #166 - @radiomum

Media people aren't all that much different than you and I.  They have lives, often work six or seven days a week and have to pay the bills as well.  Today's tweeter is not just a media person but a mum raising 3 kids at the same time.  Sure being involved in the media has its perks such as movie premieres, gala events and the like.  But the other side of the equation are the days of getting up at 4am or working lat into the night when everyone else has gone home already.

@radiomum is a radio host, tv person and the voice of a number of adverts as well.  And she is also the sexy voice behind your morning traffic report.  Because lets be honest - there isn't much more sexier than hearing that traffic heading into the city is backed up to Market Road.  Right?

Anyway.  This mum has her hands full with a wide spread of ages of her kids.  From an older teenager through to a little toddler its all go all the time.  But it is these challenges that makes Lorna what she is.  A bright, bubbly and beautiful mum who has the ability to capture the gazes of a room when she enters.

Whats to like about @radiomum?  The real question is - what isn't there to like?  Lorna will tweet pretty much anyone.  She is open to a good conversation, is quick to have a laugh and hardly ever has a bad thing to say about anything or anyone.  Her chirpy tweeting style is really nice and refreshing to read.  

Here are a selection of random tweets to give you a wee taste of whats to come if you choose to follow this very lovely lady - 

"Dog sitting today for a week. Joining Fizzy the Wonderdog, Gigantocat and Pretty Itty Bitty Kitty: Milly the Energiser Toy Poodle #fml"  If those are the pets what are the kids called?

"Miss 4: "After I go to bed, can you and Daddy make a baby? Maybe two babies: a boy and a girl!". Looked confused when I laughed hysterically"  There's no harm in practicing is there?

"Almost eight hours into Dry July and I haven't fallen off the wagon yet. Go me!"  Working in the media is tough.  Almost as tough as education....

So this effervescent, engaging and energetic tweeter is totally worth following.  @radiomum is a really good sort.  What you see is what you get and she'll always give you an honest answer.  I give @radiomum two thumbs up!

Note - one of the rules of the blog is no one famous.  Well to be honest (and this is absolutely no disrespect to Lorna) I don't consider her to be famous as such.  Especially not on twitter.  With just over 900 followers she isn't breaking the record books in the respect.  And this is my blog - so there :-p

Random follow #160 - @MrOfford

Just quietly, I think tonight’s Random Kiwi tweeter has the coolest job ever. Working for a Record Company has got to be a fun job doesn't it? I mean, lots of perks, meeting all those musicians, listening to music AND getting paid for it. Well, that is what I imagine the coolest job ever to be. Whether @MrOfford would agree with me is another story but I’m just going to pretend he does because I don’t want my vision of the coolest job ever ruined.

Working for a Record Company, it’s no surprise that Matt watches and tweets about #XfactorNZ but his TL isn't filled with endless tweets about the show. Quite the opposite actually. But when he does tweet about X Factor those tweets look like this:

"I think Benny's Eyebrows are something special... #xfactornz" and 

"Tom is a great singer. Not right for a show like this though. Too good"

So what else does Matt tweet about, well take a look at these tweets:

Tweets about Celebrity Cooks

"Oh @Paula_Deen . Even though you've been fired. I will always think of you with great love as I eat my butter-covered deep fried cupcakes".

Matt has an appreciation for cupcakey buttery goodness.

Staying in

"Last night I stayed in, was in bed by 11 and woke up this morning feeling like a million bucks. Never going out on Sat night again".

Matt knows how to take care of himself even if only for one night.

Movies

"On a scale of 1-10, how creepy is it for a 29yr old man to attend a screening of Despicable Me 2 by himself on a Sunday afternoon?"

Matt has a sense of humour.

\Insomia

"insomnia does a bad tweet make"

Followed 20 minutes later by this tweet, which may or may not be related to the previous tweet but it did make me laugh - 

"I don't know if sarcasm comes across on twitter".

So, with just over 3000 tweets under his belt and just short of 1000 followers, Matt is someone who knows how to use twitter and uses it well. Maybe this blog will push him over the 1000 followers mark, who knows, let’s hope it does! But as usual, whether you choose to follow @MrOfford is up to you, but take it from me if you do, it will be a follow you will not regret. Matt is after all an all-round nice guy who, did I mention, has the best job ever!!

Today's post was kindly written by @pammygirl for #RKT.  Thanks Pam!

Random follow #129 - @misshollando

Meeting lovely people is certainly the highlight of social media and twitter for me.  When you get to make a connection with said lovely people then when you read someone else's tweets they take on a whole new magic of their own.

@misshollando is a lovely lady who lives in a lovely place - Rotorua.  According to her bio she has been lots of places all around the world but for a while has decided to call this lovely city home.  

Often times the way someone conducts themselves and the tweets they share online are a direct representation of who they are as a person.  And when you read Katie's tweets you'll soon discover that she is a little ray of light/  And her tweets are just the thing to bring some sunshine to your timeline almost every day -

"Taking a packed lunch on my shopping expedition to justify buying a really expensive dress #logic"

"Little Miss Sunshine"

Katie is one of the fabulous team who put together @TheDailyPost most days of the week.  In fact there are a number of reporters and persons from the paper who (sort of) engage with people on twitter.  And there are the funny, quirky tweets too - 

"Running out to the car in the dark in your socks.. what are the odds of a hedgehog on the bottom step?! #imeanreally?!"

"Thank you for my warning nice policeman on the motorway and I promise to never speed again. #phew #donttellmum"

Katie is someone who tweets her friends regularly.  She keeps in contact with those that she values and lets them know about the fun stuff she is up to.  I really like that a lot of her tweets are about the times and places when she is interacting with people.  Be it at pub quizzes, sports events or hanging out with the team from the 

@TheDailyPost Katie lets the people who she is with know that they are special to her.

In summary Katie online is a true representation of Katie in real life.  Someone who is thoughtful, happy and a friend of all those people that she takes into her circle of friends.  

And just for the record if there are any single farmers out there who are looking for a lovely lass to sweep off her feet - 

"Watching #countrycalendar and wondering how I could meet me a nice farmer #ragingsaturdaynight"

Then don't be shy - @misshollando is waiting for your call!

Random follow #78 - @southernscoop

The Otago Daily Times is an institution and way of life for people who live in the south of the South Island..  It is a newspaper that has been in existence longer than both I and today's random tweeter have been on the face of this plant.  A lot longer!  So working for the ODT does have some level of prestige that goes with it.

@southernscoop is one of the many who have been employed and yet is also one of the few.  In years gone past before the advent of the internet newspapers were big bustling communities of people committed to getting the news out to the public.  While the purpose of a newspaper hasn't changed the scale of those in ts employ has been downsized and the both the speed of news and its flavor are radically different than what they used to be.  And the internet and modern technology has meant over time that the numbers of people required to work in the press is now less.

The Allied Press Building, Dunedin.

@southernscoop doesn't give much away about his real life.  And that s fine because that is not the purpose of this blog.  What he does tweet though are short, sharp and snappy tidbits that either are often sideline stories to what is being told in the media.  For example - "Last night tgr English cricket team got some gear nicked; golf gear".  As a stand alone news story that one won't make the 6'o'closk news.  But it is still a story worthy of being talked about.

What I like about him is that he isn't afraid to tell you his opinion but he's not a soap box kind of person.  He will quite clearly state in 20 words or less his position.  And it is that snappiness I find really refreshing. 

And being a reporter he has a wide number of interest areas.   Such as sports "It is impossible for highlanders, warriors and black caps to win on same weekend #science".  Politics "Winston peters sounds more like Tom waits each year".  And fashion "To mark Dunedin fashion week I am sporting newspaper ink on my elbows".

In short @southernscoop is a tweeter that doesn't make big waves or cause much of a stir.  And that is mainly because I think the role of being a reporter is to tell the news.  Not make it.  What do you think? 

random follow #47 - @sonyacole

There must be something secret in the water that people from Taranaki drink.  They have beautiful skin, fine personalities and all round really lovely people.  Today's random kiwi tweeter absolutely ticks all three of those boxes.

@SonyaCole is a very lovely lady.  One particular characteristic you will pick up straight away is that she is a lady of style.  Her current twitter profile photo I believe captures her essence nicely.  The red hair piece nicely offsets the darker tomes of her dress.  So here you find a lady of both substance and style.  Panache and positivity.

Sonya is a mum, a social media fan, a blogger, an iphone owner (no further comment needed - LOL),  and she owns her own business.  And she is married too.  To whom I have no idea but he is a very lucky chap indeed.  And I am not too sure when Sonya actually manages to find the time to fit in all these different takes in a day but fit them in she does.  Especially the tweeting.  Then again mums to tend to have exceptional time management skills and I'm betting Sonya is no different in this respect.

(Yes - I have 'borrowed' this picture - without permission. 

But only because it is such a lovely photo)

You aren't going to discover or unearth any of the secrets of the universe by reading Sonya's tweets.  What you will find are short and sweet tweets that won't waste your time.  She doesn't waste her words that is for sure.  And to be honest I have looked high and low and I have struggled to find a tweet that used up the 140 character limit.  But she does enjoy engaging with others and keeping in touch with what is happening in the global conversation that is twitter.

One really nice thing that reinforces my view of @SonyaCole being lovely is that she isn't a twitter snob.  She will tweet anyone and everyone in a nice and positive way.  And even her tweets that are about not so fun stuff like insomnia are still a joy to read because you the reader can relate to what she is trying to say.  For example - "That sinking feeling when you wake up during hell TV hour!"

And it appears that the insomnia is not just confined to one day a week but it may actually be a repetitive issue.  And again tv is not helping!  "Kill me now! Watching Proactive ads to avoid evangelists on the other channels! FML"

To conclude I can hand on heart say @SonyaCole is a lovely (attractive and single) woman and mum who is also a social media butterfly. She is kind and thoughtful and like everyone - a little bit of praise and encouragement goes a long way.

To finish I have three recommendations today - 

#1 - follow @SonyaCole on twitter
#2 - check out her beautiful website http://sonyacole.com/
#3 - give credit and praise to someone completely random when you finish reading this.  It will make someone's day.

Randon follow #44 - @TophHooperton

Over the last few weeks while working on this project I have been genuinely surprised to find out how many tweeters in New Zealand are either -

a) English living in New Zealand or
b) Kiwi's living in England
c) Kiwi's who have lived in England and have returned home

I really enjoy English people and the wittiness that they bring with them.  If you were to bottle all that wit and turn it into tweets then you would come up with an end result of @TophHooperton.

"Social Media is so difficult you won't understand it until you see a PowerPoint explanation."

There are many tweeters who work for the media in one way or another and @TophHooperton is one of those people.  But the difference with this chap is that he doesn't tweet as a 'company man'.  In fact he is able to not take it all too seriously and he is able to have a joke about some of the viewing TVNZ has on.

"You know how fancy foodies do that smear of sauce on plates that looks like the inside of a nappy? Why? #MasterChefNZ (+1)"

And he will also share his thoughts about other tv with you as well (don't we all tweet about tv programs?) -

"Just when you think #Girls is as good as it gets, it gets even better. Holy crap. My squishy heart."

And I also managed to pick up on the fact that he is single.  Some times this fact can really irk parents.  And in @TophHooperton's case this is true also -

"My mum's fulsome list of reasons why I'm single is still amusing me. It ends with 'I don't think you'll meet someone til quite late in life'"


In summary - Christopher (only his mum use's his whole name probably) is a very likable chap who creates amusing tweets and uses his English wit to humor the world.  One tweet at a time.