Well I find it hard to believe that I’ve been almost 12 or so days without a posting – Sorry Karen! Kind of explains while my visitors to the site have dropped right back. So what to write about tonight…hmmm! I’ve had so many ideas and kind of put them in the back of my mind knowing I would get back here but now I come to sit at the laptop my mind goes blank! How can that be??? Tonight’s posting then might be a bit of a ’stream of consciousness’ and if I warm up then the posting may become quite exciting….

Okay… while you’re waiting for me to get to a point take a look at my new theme for my blog. WordPress.com has added new themes to their site. We found these at our last class – the views seem much clearer and crisper and easier on the eyes late at night! Thats important to me as a messy site tends to put me off – if I can’t see what is important straight away I tend to move on. So hope you like my new look! The picture at the top is new as well – its a photo taken at our friends place in Wanaka. Paul and Berny are building a new lodge just outside of the township called Maple Lodge Their view is fantastic and so is their lodge!

When I gaze at the view – it makes me think about this project (although the photo doesn’t quite do it justice). Down on the flat.. you can have a vision about getting to the top.. you can see there are little foothills, that lead to bigger hills that lead to the top of the mountain. When I first started this project (and I can’t believe we only have four weeks to go)… I was on the flat looking up to the mountain – my vision! I wasn’t entirely sure how I was going to get there, and which would be the best route to take, but its been one step at a time and suddenly I feel that we’re off the flat and climbing!!! Yahoo..

Why am I so excited? Well I’ve started to understand the power of the Web 2.0 tools. Last year sometime Jackie and I started to play with del.icio.us and started searching for blogs. We were slow to work out that metaot was in fact Will Wade who also had del.icio.us bookmarks. Then this year I really got focused and started creating this blog as well as del.icio.us, bloglines, citeulike etc etc as the Web 2.0 project that I was co-ordinating I got underway. I also stopped reading other’s blogs and started posting and a few postings later Will and I got to the point of sharing gmail addresses, and from there started talking using gtalk.

Our last discussion on Friday night for me (Friday morning for Will) was a hoot as we ranged over topics such as his ongoing research, as well as Web 2.0 and what is fast becoming a shared vision! As Will shared some of the early findings from some of the research he has been involved in (hey Will – how about a posting on metaot???) we talked about why the children responded in the way we did – so I had the chance to check out my understandings of an area that Will knows so much more about. Then I remembered that a good friend of mine, who would be fascinated in Will’s work, is heading to the UK. I have been able to copy the segments of our conversations (because its stored in gmail) and pass it on to Carolyn (sorry no blog for Carolyn but she really really needs to start one!!! – hint! hint!). Will talked about using an assessment tool and I’m fortunate enough to know the developer of it and was able to pass on her email to Will so he can contact for more information.

Then we talked about the cellphone article (subject of another posting here). Will had been approached to “put some thoughts together on a project being trialled in the UK on the use of smartphones for placement”. I was able to send the link to the ejournal that the article is published in and offered to share what we had learnt with the UK people. Will offered to pass along the article and my contact details – who knows what will transpire?

Will left having had an idea……. which then had me on tenterhooks and checking his blog morning and night!!! And today – Will announces the possibility of organising a blogmeet or words to that effect in the UK.. and even has a working name for the group! He has set up a yahoo group as a place to start planning! I’m working on a version of “beam me up Scottie” .. How could I miss such an event!

Towards the end of the conversation I thought that even 3 years ago I would have probably not had this discussion. I would have been very lucky to find Will – perhaps our paths may have crossed at an occupational therapy conference, but as we’re in opposite hemispheres and almost opposite sides of the globe that would have been very unlikely. I wouldn’t have learnt about his research interests and been able to share resources/links I have nor would he have known anything about the cellphone article we had written. My vision would have been just that – my vision localised to my area… and instead I feel like the vision I had, and the vision Will had is similar enough to come together and perhaps become a combined vision for many of us! His network has been opened up to me and vice versa. I really like this quote by Karen Stephenson

Experience has long been considered the best teacher of knowledge. Since we cannot experience everything, other people’s experiences, and hence other people, become the surrogate for knowledge. ‘I store my knowledge in my friends’ is an axiom for collecting knowledge through collecting people (¶2).

I’m starting to see how Web 2.0 tools might enable this….

So the momentum grows, we connect up with James, Karen, Patti, Josie and the occupational therapists in the Web 2.0 project (listed down the side here)… and instead of circling by ourselves… we are starting to move into the same orbit…! I’m really interested to see where this will take us..

And a couple of other exciting things this week….

Karen leaves me a posting asking me to post.. she’s hanging out for a new posting – I am amazed and thrilled… so hope this posting stimulates you Karen – imagine using Web 2.o tools not only to connect students within the same programme, but to connect with other therapists who are experts in their fields etc…

The New Zealand Association of Occupational Therapists accepts our proposal for the upcoming Clinical Workshops which is a three hour workshop to assist therapists develop their first blog posting, start up del.icio.us and see what the world has to offer us – what fun and a chance to spread those ripples just a little further.

And I’ve finally finished my article from the Frances Rutherford Lecture Award that I received last year. It will be published in the NZ Journal of Occupational Therapy and my goal is to convince the editor that the article should also be linked to my website, not hidden away for members only! It encompasses much of my vision….which can’t be hidden behind a cloud!

So… a stream of consciousness that has led me to what… I have seen others use Web 2.0 tools….I could see the potential for our profession, I wanted for our profession to be at the cutting edge, not following everyone along very apologetically… and I think I can now see that the vision is achievable through the combined efforts of us all!!!! Please – if you feel this posting has stimulated a thought or raised a question – take two secs and leave me a comment – I promise to come back and reply!