22 - Play Their Games - Look for a community project that interests you, and bring something to the party. Your contribution can be as small as posting a response to a question. Point readers to your contribution, perhaps you'll inspire them to make something worthwhile as well.

- Margaret Mason's, No One Cares What You Had For Lunch - 100 Ideas for Your Blog.

Community project? Where I chip in my two cents for a common cause/goal? Sounds like something I've done before. The project was quickly aborted as the four of us realized we were much too committed to other things (re: our own blogs) to pull double duty for a second blog. Plus, we were young and less developed and less committed to things in general. We disbanded with no hard feelings.

Two of the co-creators decided to start up a suspiciously similar project just this past February. Unbeknown to me and obviously without my consent or blessing. I'm sure there is some partnership agreement that either prohibits the use of partnership insignia outside of the partnership, or entitles me to a royalty cheque because of this outside use.

How suspiciously similar? Allow me to further examine.

1. The use of pseudonyms.
Granted, many people, myself included, use an alias on the Internets. The thing is, these co-creators tend to use their real names on their personal blogs. The third writer will not be identified, I have no problems with her, she was not part of the project I was involved in.

2. The background image.
It may be deceiving at first, but the images are the SAME. The newer version just has some color splashed on it and divided into three little sections. If they really wanted to trick me, they should've inverted it, or flipped it upside down. They have so much to learn when it comes to stealing intellectual property. Sigh.

3. The subtitle.
I'm just your modern day Sherlock, here to investigate and serve. And when I dig, I dig deep. Click on the RSS feed for the new project, and notice how it's subtitled "two guys and a girl and everything inbetween". Compare that with the original project's title of "3 Guys, a Girl and Everything in Between". If this were a murder crime, and the titles were the DNA samples, and I was on CSI Miami with that wicked awesome punchline/song intro combo, David Caruso would be exclaiming, "It's...a match".

Now what's the point of all this? Am I really hating on the boys for going behind my back?

Perhaps.

They have since corrected their mistake and invited me to join them as they attempt to win over readership. This post probably will help them. They even told me the password, which is the acronym that is the fellowship we attend up in Kingston. The Chinese Christian one. Because they're super creative like that. I may have said too much.

In all honesty, go give them a read. They're pretty wacky and different people, and it should evoke a very special, if not odd, sensation. Too bad they don't update as regularly as me. I'm still the king of the Internets. This last paragraph was put in not only because I genuinely feel this way, but I'm currently living in their apartment and typing this up on one of their laptops. I'm eternally grateful.

But more importantly, with information being so freely available on the Internets today, it's kinda cool to sit back once in a while and notice the overt redundancy that are the hot topics of the day, the breaking news stories of the hour, and the general sentiments shared by most in our society. Nothing is new under the sun, as another overly used phrase goes.

Go ahead my wonderful readership and BE DIFFERENT. Even if different is just an amalgamation of things you've encountered over the course of your life. That's what makes you you! Don't settle for the status quo, find things that make you come alive. Say the things you want to say, even if it's a "I like Valentines Day, I don't care if it's blatant consumerism!" Bev, you chose number 22 a long time ago, so I'm picking on you.