Blogroll Amnesty Day This Is NOT a Dress Rehearsal, People!

Blogroll Amnesty Day (B.A.D.), brought to you by Skippy the Bush Kangaroo and Jon Swift, promoted through the wonders of technology by Blue Gal. The idea behind B.A.D. is that we give each other a hand by highlighting blogs smaller than we are. It's a very democratic idea, one that I can definitely celebrate because it is through the kindness of strangers back in the day, that my original blog PoliTits gained any readers in the first place.

I still marvel at the idea that people read the things I put out here in the blogosphere. Thank you for your first visit and thank you for returning, if you do. I know where some of you came from - links from other blogs or coming here after seeing one of my silly comments somewhere and I'm grateful for the fact that you read and comment and engage with each other. Blogging has become such an integral part of my life, really of my family's life, that it's hard to imagine what life would be like without it.

Recently, I noticed that when MathMan and I talk about what our friends are up to, it's as likely we're talking about people we've come to know online as it someone we know in the meat world. Having been a latecomer to the online world - I never participated in chat rooms or bulletin boards before I started blogging in 2006, this surprises me. I can remember thinking that all that online stuff was kind of sad and lonely.

Well, hello there, mirror, mirror.

Really though? This isn't sad. I'm less lonely than I've ever been. I'm more engaged with more people from more places from more walks of life than I've ever been in my life. My default position is loner, so the time I spend writing is the easy part. The time I spend out visiting and commenting and emailing and chatting is the harder part. But it's good for me. When I read something that speaks to me or stokes my imagination or makes me laugh or cry or grind my teeth, I want to leave a thought, a comment, something to say "I'm here, I'm reading you and this is my reaction...."

So where am I going with this? Well, the purpose of Blogroll Amnesty Day is to promote smaller blogs. I so want to be a purist about the purpose this year, but it's hard to choose which blogs to highlight. Lately, I've added new blogs to my reading list. Their content is varied and they are written by people all over the world. One is even written by a dog, and has a larger readership than this blog, but I said I wanted to be a purist, not that I was going to be. You're shocked, I know.

So here's my attempt to introduce you to some of my favorite bloggers with the emphasis on those how might have smaller a readership than me. Give them time. They'll be kicking my ass.....

I've actually met Sue J at Nailing Jello to the Wall. I know I let her down when I closed PoliTits because it's just not as much fun to have your neighbor shout "I love That's Why" across the street. Sorry, Sue J!

You know how you see the same people commenting at the blogs where you hang and you think, I should follow them home and then you finally do and you wonder what took you so long? Yeah, me, too. That's how I felt when I read Missy. And Gifted Typist. And linda at Vulture Peak Muse.

And then there are those blogs where you see the name on a blogroll and you think "I've got to see what that's all about......." Hairshirt, for example. And Mrs. Slocombe Regrets. And The Earthbound Misfit. And Color Sweet Tooth.

There are the good friend blogs. susan. Liberality. CDP's (Parenthetical). This Journey. Pagan Sphinx. Mauigirl. MathMan at When Will I Use This, of course!

And new friends Travelingman Rick. Bee at Bee Drunken. Summer at Phoenix Berries. Kay at Perhaps we learned something.

You see what just happened here, right? I have no self control.

Go. Visit them all. There's so much to choose from, you're bound to fall ass over teakettle for at least one. Likely two. Okay, six. You're going to be cursing my name as you furtively surf blogs when you're supposed to be working.

It's a risk I'm willing to take.

And don't forget the blogrolls over there >>>>>>
(because it's killing me to not link everyone, that's why)