So if you’ve ever glanced a bit to the right of one of my posts, you may have noticed that one of my link categories includes “blogs I like”. What you don’t get is much of an explanation of why it is that I like these particular blogs. In order to rectify that a bit, I thought I’d take a moment and discuss each one just briefly. Hopefully that will provide a little insight into the world through my eyes, and perhaps even offer a little thank you to those who run these blogs. Don’t forget to read the whole post after the break! You can either click the link below the post or click the title to get the full scoop!
FreeSpace: This is the website of my friend Tim Sandefur, someone whom I’ve known for well over half my life and who is always at the ready with advice, constructive thoughts and a helluva lot of perspective on a lot of issues.
His blog primarily focuses on the political and philosophical meaning of events in America and the world, and his perspective is always extremely learned and well articulated. We don’t always agree (mostly because I simply haven’t the background to often understand the “big picture” of some kinds of events in the way a trained person such as Tim does), but I always find a new understanding and a richer perspective by reading his work.
Beyond that, I should also mention that in the many years that Tim and I have been friends I have also been well acquainted and at many times close to his parents Mark and Julie, and his cousin Danny. They are each of them exemplary people who have made an epic difference in my life and have served as examples to me of what a person can reach for and achieve with hard work, hope and optimism. I haven’t invested nearly enough effort in staying in closer contact with them in recent years, a fact that I need to change. Thanks, Tim-both for your friendship and for that of your awesome family.
Kelley Bo-Belley: This is where my girlfriend Kelley posts periodically on her various goings on. I’ve a link to her portfolio in the “artsy fartsy” section as well. She is an accomplished artist with a bright future ahead of her, and I’m very proud to be helping her out with writing on her first book (revision hell, let me tell you, but I’m loving every keypress). She’s as warm and caring as anyone you could ever hope to meet, and she always tries to make me feel better when I’m down. Thanks, Kelley 🙂
My Xbox 360’s blog: OK, this is utterly meaningless and automated, but somehow it just makes me laugh my ass off. How can you go wrong with a laugh? Machines that blog are just too strange, and I sure as hell hope that this network of games machines doesn’t freaking turn into SkyNet.
Post Secret: This site was actually introduced to me last year by someone I blissfully don’t know any longer, but it’s nevertheless quite fascinating. The premise is simply this: week after week, people from around the world write their secrets onto a postcard (or postcard-like object in some cases) and mail them to the PostSecret organizer’s home. He then scans these secrets and posts them anonymously on the site for the world to see.
This site is quite amazing on several levels and for several reasons. I’ve read (and could see how) it is liberating for some people because they are able to get something heavy off their chests in a fashion. For those who read but don’t participate, it’s a reminder that, as Frank, the site’s owner says, “we all have a secret that would break your heart if you knew what it was.”
What I love about the site is that it provides me with what are best described as “emotional catalysts”; some of the posts are absurd (or just absurdly worded) and make me laugh out loud. Some of them make me imagine what their scenario might be like. Others are simply heart breaking. Some are unimagineable, others hit dangerously close to home and when I see those, sometimes it’s all I can do to keep myself from falling apart then and there. Whatever else you can say about Post Secret, it’s always an experience worth having, and I delight in the rollercoaster of feelings it can evoke. If you haven’t been to this site, you owe it to yourself to spend a little time there.
Ugly Baby Studios: Suffice to say, I love this site, for many reasons. First, it’s the first place I did any public-facing writing (outside of the wasted effort of visiting forums and participating with the bloodless, lifeless hordes therein). Second, it’s where I’ve been able to help other folks publish some of their own work and have managed to polish to some extent my editing skills, which have in turn been employed on my own work both here and there. UBS is home to a lot of talented people who’ve made a big difference in my outlook, hopes and dreams, and I’m glad to have had a hand in working with all of them. I’m particularly excited about some of our unannounced projects…
And that’s that. I’ll be sure to follow up in the future as the list fills out! Thanks for taking the time to read my ramblings!