I have recently read a lot of posts and have heard a lot of things via twitter and Facebook regarding all of the Blogher bruhaahaa, I am totally dumbfounded by it all! I didn’t view blogher like this at all ??? Maybe I was in my own little world while there ? Or maybe it was because I wasn’t feeling my 100%, or maybe Carson Kressley, Paula Deen, and Tim Gunn had me in stardom mode ? I don’t know. I mean, I heard a rumor about issues,  but just let it go as that, a rumor.

I realize now that some of them are true. I mean I just cannot even fathom about “the Croc guy” getting treated the way he did. He seems to me to be one of the sweetest guys I have ever met. For someone to talk to him like that is totally beyond me. And fighting over swag, is also over my head. I mean, I did get a lot of swag, but even the “covenant video camera” wasn’t worth fighting over. I say shame on anyone who would do this. I must admit, I did get some doubles on some smaller items, like Gerber teddy bears, but that was because I have 2 daughters that (now love them dearly). but if it would have meant me fighting or arguing for them, I would’ve let it go.

The only flaw I ran into was a mis-communication (I believe) where I was wanting to help out, and it fell through. Yes, I was upset, but after talking it through and thinking about it, I just chalked it up to just that…mis-communication, and let it go.

I know the RM. 704 party was off the hook, and yes, there was a huge hubbub over it, but if people were willing to push to get some cleaning products (which are awesome by the way) and some “adult toys”, I would’ve gladly given up my little brown bag (I don’t need it THAT badly). As a matter of fact I was gladly giving up my “toy” to someone (forgot who) but she never did come back or it. I just thought of it as a funny thing to show the hubby when I got home.

I guess I just don’t understand the whole pushing, fighting thing. Are these items really worth it ? I mean, I was going to blogher to re-meet my friends, network, learn, and make new friends, not for swag. yes, I enjoy swag… but that was the icing on the ‘blogher cake”. If I didn’t get even 1 piece of swag, I would’ve been happy.

My main sponsor… Collective Bias… who paid for me to go to the conference, I am sure, wasn’t sending me so I could see how much swag I could get. They sent me to learn. And to help out with the Bowlher project.  Which, I have heard nothing but good things coming from it. I didn’t take over $130 for airfare and more  $$ (for spending and cabs, and other things) out of my families “pocket” to go fight at a conference. I didn’t wear a dazzling dress (sponsored by La Grande Dame) to go fight in it, I wore it to promote the company, as I did while handing out the awesome bags from the company. And i didn’t stay with friends in hotels that they got sponsored, so I could come back to the room and talk about who I punched out to get some swag!

Fighting like this and speaking to people inappropriately in my book is totally inexcusable!  These people should be totally ashamed and the fact that these people represent woman bloggers totally perturbs me. What are companies going to be thinking with this kind of representation ? We are all sitting here thinking some companies and PR people don’t get it (the whole social media thing) but maybe there are (obviously) some bloggers who aren’t getting it either. If I owned a company and paid for you to go represent me at a conference, and heard you acted like this, I would make u pay me every cent back. And going forward I would make sure I had recipients of any money sign something (kind of like they have at my kids school for field trips) stating that by accepting money you would be bound to represent the company in a professional manner. For my children, it states something like they are still bound by the school rules and that they are representing the school and need to act worthy of it). I don’t know how this would be, but we are adults and should not need these types of “policies” but perhaps some companies may now consider something of the sort. with all of the publicity the whole “mommy blogging” things has been getting and the FDC coming into the picture, this sure wasn’t great timing. I mean, I can imagine the headlines now… “Big companies schmooze woman bloggers at conference, but even that isn’t enough, they still fight for more!”  We don’t need more bad publicity that doesn’t represent the majority of us, but this is exactly what news media look for, the stand out shock news.

I am glad I didn’t personally view any of these “issues” and I am even more glad I wasn’t part of it.I am glad I spent my time at blogher for a much bigger purpose than getting some swag.

Like connecting with wonderful people like Maria Bailey, MJ Tam, Aparna Vashisht – Rota, Renee Bloggett, Victoria Taylor, Paul Jordan, Denise McCarthy, Pamela Punt, Carol Cain, Tracey Wynne, Jamie Wilson, Leigh Caldwell, Mariana Perez, Linsey Knerl, Katherine Morin, Jennifer Leal, Gillian Kushner, Janice Croze, Chloe Pfeiffer, Krista Parry, John Havens, Fiona Chan, Steven Sanders, Beth Rosen, Rob Rivenburgh, Molly Schonthal, Rustin Banks, Candice Broom, Kay Stewart, Monica Fuentes, Ted Rubin, Katie Farrer, Annalisa Esposito Bluhm, George Smith , Audrey McClelland, Amy Lupold Bair, Shannon Powell, Rick Calvert, Melissa Garcia,  Monica Brady, Allison Blass, Holly Hamann, Jenn (SuperJennBlogs), Kim Orlando, Gwen Bell, Amanda (HighImpactMom), Jennifer Gniadecki, Toni Lynne (from Toni_GPB), Mrs. Flinger, ShortPumpPreppy, Wendy Piersall, chaotic Barb, Adriennevh, Kelby Carr, Ethan Goodman, Amy Callahan, Elizabeth Norton, Lizzydear and many others.

I was also excited to see my friends who I have already met (again), like.. Sugar Jones, Vdog, Barbara Jones, Katja Presnal, Colleen Padilla , Amy Allen Clark , Lucretia Pruitt, John Andrews, Jen Fowler, Lynnae McCoy , Jessica Smith, Tara Kuczykowski, Jyl Johnson Pattee, Christine Young, Wanda Young, Denise Sawyer, Alyssa Francis, Megan Jordan, Allison Worthington, Liz Strauss, Erika Lehmann, BizzieMommie, Anissa Mayhew, Sandy Jenney, Renee Ross, Arianne Segerman, and many many others.

And of course seeing stars like Paula Deen, Carson Kressley, Suai, Tim Gunn, Anya Marina, Chris Mann , and Brooke White.

And I also spent my time promoting and working for the wonderful sponsors that gave me the chance to go to Blogher in the first place, and meeting fabulous people from many many new companies.

I just hope that companies will not look at this as woman bloggers as a whole. We don’t all act like a bunch of stark ravaged scavengers at a conference. Some of us truly want to be there to connect, and work with companies on a professional level. And we will work hard for our sponsorships, no matter how large or small. We want to learn how to work together and support one another. We want companies to know we are serious about blogging and what we write. We want to network with other woman bloggers and support them too. We are not out just for a free trip or free stuff. We are out to have our voices be heard on products, issues, and concerns that we care about and that our readers want to know about as well.

The Plus Size Mommy

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