Another Thursday has rolled around and it’s Pimp Your Post Thursday. If you don’t know what PYPT is, just click over and have a look. Then come and join us in the Steemit Ramble Discord.

Spring definitely seems to have emerged in my part of the world. Today is bright and sunny and it’s not even 8am yet. I rather expect that we’ll see another shot of snow before winter relinquishes it’s hold. It is Canada after all.

I’ve got a range of posts for you today. Hope you enjoy and that I’ll see you at PYPT at some point today.

Onward to today’s rambling

Happy and Healthy with snekky! ( Read at your own risk!)

@poeticsnake is such a creative person. This post had me laughing and sharing it with others to give them a laugh. I’m reading it thinking, “I have no sense of smell, I’m not really going to benefit from this post.” I was glad I read on, what she does with those ‘scents’ is hilarious.

Why I can't get into the United States. Spoiler* I smoke pot

Been a while since I had seen our friend @goldenarms. Last I heard he was tied up in a kitchen with knives and other cooking utensils instead of his computer sharing life with us. Here he’s talking about a problem a lot of Canadians experience. Wanting to cross into the US but subject to being denied entry for having smoked pot.

He correctly points out that if all you have done is smoke and not ever been charged with pot-related offenses, then some selective dementia is in order at the border. I guess if you smoke pot you could be subject to unexpected urges to commit terrorism when in the US.

It’s okay @goldenarms we’ll let you into Ontario.

Steem Phishing: What You Need To Know To Stay Secure

Phishing, which is when a site is setup to look like something you are familiar with, like Steemit but it’s a site designed to steal from you. @jrswab writes a very detailed post on how to protect yourself online from this practice. It takes some time but so does trying to stop a hack once it happens.

The Nose....Knows (A Saga of Totally Non-Epic Proportions based on an Actual Neighbor!)

@battleaxe shares with us the nosey neighbour who just thinks it’s her role in life to ‘help’ her neighbour by being a PITA (pain in the ass). These examples are epic. Props to @battleaxe for not ridding the earth of the space offender.

Is That a Blue Heron?

I love this shot from @artemisnorth of a Blue Heron caught at just the moment when you don’t really know if it is flying or stationary. Nice shot.

Steemit Writing Contests: Issue #55 March 21, 2018

A lot of people on the platform love doing contests. I’ve seen this post series around for a while and rarely see it get much notice or upvote love. @moneyinfant takes the time to hunt down the writing contests on Steemit and compile them into one easy to read post.

Steemit Meetup - South Florida 2018 :: Part 1 :: (Spoiler: Nobody Dies....Yet)

This past weekend there was a meetup of Steemians in Florida. Several travelled a great distance to this meetup. @negativer has chronicled the event in this two part post. He brings his own humour to the task with great effect. Don’t forget to check out part two as well.

Phishing site reported - www.steemitfollowup(dot)cf

@arcange details how dealing with these malicious scammers is like playing whack-a-mole. As quick as one is unmasked, another appears. You really have to be vigilant about the links you click on.

Glass Houses

@battleaxe shares another of poems with a bite — a real life message.

❓Answering Common Questions: What are Steemit's Smart Media Tokens (SMT)? How could they be used❓

This post was nominated by @crazybgadventure who said: “This article is incredible and gives a great understanding of how SMT's will work for those that are clueless like me.”

SMTs are a hot topic of discussion around which a lot of confusion reigns. In her usual cut to the chase and let’s keep it simple approach @sykochica has addressed what is known about SMTs in clear language.

Ladies of Steemit, Volume 9 | Strength in Community

This post was nominated by @bluefinstudios who said: “A little Shout Out to the Ladies of Steemit, for their work curating select women and LGBTQ posts on Steemit this week!”

I have to agree with @bluefinstudios, @ladiesofsteemit does a great job of focusing attention on the female centric project on the platform.

Writing Original Non-Fiction

This post was nominated by @bex-dk who said: “I don't know whether the Ramble has a max dollar limit or not. But this post is something anyone aspiring to success on Steem ought to read. Instead of a big lecture on plagiarism and copy-paste, it tells you how to go about making your article original while respecting your sources. I hope a lot of people read it and learn from it.”

I don’t agree with everything that @nobyeni has written here but I’m not an academic and she is. What I particularly disagree with is the statements about including a bibliography listing all my sources at the end of the post. Unless I have quoted directly from a source, that is not happening.

But then, I don’t paraphrase articles and call it original either and that is the root of what she’s talking about here. If you do nothing else with this article, carefully examine the plagiarism infographic she has created. You do NOT want to do the first two items, you DO want to do the last three.

Plagiarism is a major issue on the platform. @nobyeni’s post is an effort to enlighten every Steemian on the problem.

Join the Curation Trail

If you’d like to be part of supporting the posts that I curate, you can join my curation trail. What that means is if you are part of the trail, when I vote on a quality post, your votes will automatically follow me. The trail name is PathtoSuccess which is another of my accounts and the one where I read most of the posts shared here.

You’ll need to sign up at SteemAutoand I’d recommend you use SteemConnect when asked to give voting rights. That makes sure your keys are safe.

Once registered, the link to the curation trail is right here. You can set the percentage of vote you wish to use in the settings once you join the trail.

Nominate Your Favourite Post

With all the chaff that I end up trying to sift through each time I sit down to do the Steemit Ramble, I think it is time to give you dear reader an opportunity to nominate your favourite reads.

Just visit the Steemit Ramble Discord and post the link in the Nominate-A-Post Channel.

As much as you may love your own post, I am really looking for someone else to say, “Hey, I like this post, have a look”. When I post a Steemit Ramble, that is what I’m telling my readers.

Earn A Share of the Post Payout

As you explore around the platform, you come across posts you really like and think others should see. Come to the Steemit Ramble Discord and share the link in the *nominate-someones-post channel. There are some rules:

The post must be introduced by you.
The post must be in English or have an English version.
The post must not have been presented during PYPT.

I’ll review the post and if I use it in a Steemit Ramble, a portion of the SBD the post earns will be sent to you on payout.

Pimp Your Post Thursday

Don’t forget, Pimp Your Post Thursday takes place every Thursday at 11am and 7:00pm EDT. Come and join the fun.

March 22nd -- Steemit Ramble #150 -- Curating Great Posts for You