I missed Blogroll Amnesty day, as I always manage to miss every blog “holiday” of note, so I wanted to give everyone and option to promote some up and coming blogs, some blogs that are worth checking out but get little attention, etc. Consider this your thread.
One of the things I have noticed is that I just don’t seem to link as many “small” blogs as I once used to, and that is in large part due to two things. First, people don’t email me links to their blogs as often as they used to, and I can’t figure out why. I get dozens of links to news stories or major blogs every day, but little in the way of links to smaller blogs. Seriously, it is worth your time to email me if you have something to share, and I do read my email and the comments (apparently not closely or frequently enough- check the update) when I have time.
Second, the most valuable source of links for me is the comments. I honestly don’t know how other bloggers without comments do it, or why.
So here it is. Blogroll Amnesty day. Add your links, and in a day or so I will add a Blogroll Amnesty link on the sidebar and add five or so links.
Also, let me take this time to note that chief Tunch hater, Laura W., who seems to have dedicated her life to lowering Tunch’s self-esteem by collecting a series of spiteful comments about his weight, seems to have a mini-scandal regarding her own cat’s porcine appearance:
Want to know why there is nothing in the picture but Walter? He ate everything else. All those little things in the picture? That isn’t gravel. Those are moons drawn to Walter’s gravitational force. Wonder what he is looking at in that picture? A hamburger off in the distance.
I think a round of Walter jokes is in order. Also, from now on, every picture of Tunch will be accompanied by a picture of Walter, so as to make Tunch look slim by comparison.
*** Update ***
Somehow, in my eagerness to mock Walter, I missed the fact that he is no longer with us. This post fails. As such, a loving remembrance of Walter:
Inadvertently mocking a valued commenter’s deceased pet has to be the new low for this website.
Comrade Darkness
That’s a long-hair cat. Wet, it’d resemble a starved rat.
But your returning salvo was amusing, nonetheless.
Laura W
DIAF.
Libby
Good morning lovely Juicers. I already celebrated BAD with this sappy post but I would also nominate my sucky blog here for a temporary day on the blog roll.
And let me add that Laura’s cat is obviously not really fat. He just has big fur.
Dave
Maybe it’s his fur that’s fat.
Stuck
The extra fur just makes Walt look fat. Nice try Cole, but no dicearoo.
John Cole
@Laura W: Tunch mumbled something about a goose and a gander, and I can’t tell if it was a witty retort or his lunch plans.
Michael D.
OMG, It’s Jabba the Cat
Libby
And please do forgive the pathetic double blogwhore, and my failure to read through the 5000 comments I missed since yesterday morning, but in case this didn’t get posted here somehow, the Manhattan Madam scandal, is pissing me off.
It’s not they paid hundreds of thousands for the call girls. I’m okay with that. It’s that they fraudulently billed them to their corporate credit cards and then came to the taxpayers for a bailout later.
Carrie
Nasty, John….stop acting like a republican.
headpan
Dammit, LauraW, I tried to send you a major hugs comment on the last thread and my connection was lost. But rather than repeat my own story of loss again to say "I know just how you feel", suffice to say, Walter was beautiful! I can tell from the pics he was a sweetheart. Rest in peace, precious little kitty-boo. (I haz 3 myself, and getting on in years)
John, I think you and some other folks here may have missed the part about Walter being no longer with us.
kommrade reproductive vigor
Laura W’s big fat cat seems to be about the same dimensions as my big fat cat. He also has medium length hair and LOVES to roll around in the dirt. I think he’s part pig.
And yes, John Cole wins the big fat cat smack down, but I’m making popcorn for the second round.
Libby
Cripes. You guys are fast, but it is interesting to see we have a consensus in the first ten posts.
Dave
I have to get a picture of my cat on here. She’s almost the size of a beagle.
neddie jingo
I just don’t seem to link as many “small” blogs as I once used to
Hence the occasion for Blogroll Amnesty Day! Thanks for participating, John. If a mite tardy.
Libby
Oh noes. Walter is in kitty heaven? Rest in peace fuzzy guy.
John Cole
@headpan: uh oh.
This post is pretty fail with that in mind.
John Cole
Sorry Laura, I missed that. I was just teasing anyway.
neddie jingo
You want a cute cat pic? I got your cute cat pic right here. And this cat manages to weigh in at somewhat less than a cubic ton. (She’s also about three months old, so there’s time, there’s time…)
demkat620
@John Cole:
Yeah. Big Fail. Especially since Laura was saying last night how much she misses Walter.
bago
Let this post become bloated with comments!
D-Chance.
Sully gets by quite nicely.
But, as for a small blog, why should I go through all the hassle of getting a website domain, designing and formatting the damn thing, paying for bandwidth, having to maintain it, etc, etc, etc, when I can just
leech offuse others’ comments sections to spout off at will? Especially when a site owner and commenters of a larger blog will read comments, where they would never visit another tiny corner of the intertubes? Small blogs, those who aren’t actively envisioning themselves to be the next Instawhatever or Bluething, are nothing more than personal vanity exercises, anyway.Laura W
@John Cole: If you’d read my reply to you in last night’s final thread you would know that, John.
Christ. Keep up!
(It’s fine. I’m a laffin’ and laffin’. Besides, look how quickly you’ve mobilized the BJ community onto Walter’s side.)
demkat620
@neddie jingo:
I love her markings!
headpan
Y’all, I know it’s not the standard here (this is sort of a "tough guys" blog, not touchy-feely like FDL) but maybe pls send LauraW some hugs, k? I know you didn’t mean any harm, but I think she is genuinely hurt. If I’m mistaken, LauraW, I apologize for making assumptions about how you feel and jumping into something that’s none of my business.
Libby
@D-Chance.: Hey! I’m just a sucky B-list blogger, but it’s not just about vanity. It’s about maintaining some mental health by ranting and sappy as it sounds, I’m really trying to change the world.
smiley
There used to be a house near where I lived in Seattle where the whole yard was nothing but that gray gravel. Ugliest thing ever — but low maintenance, which I’m sure was the point.
Sorry to hear the bad news, Laura.
neddie jingo
@demkat620: She’s a nice bit of all right, ain’t she? Her brother, who we got at the shelter at the same time, is orange and white. And just as entertaining.
D-Chance: Blogger. No trouble at all. Sign up, pick a template, and start yakkin’. It’s an amazingly challenging and rewarding pastime, trust me.
Armadillo Joe
hello, John
Hugefan,longtimereader,firstimecommenter,etc…
I participate in a group blog called Broadway Carl’s Blog-O-Mania. Three posters for now (always looking for quality talent, though — hint, hint) and about 30 or so regular readers, if the traffic reports are accurate.
Mostly politics, plus some music, sports and pop culture — the usual mix — in the same vein as Shakesville or Bob Cesca or, um, Balloon Juice.
I hope you can come over and check us out.
http://www.broadwaycarl.blogspot.com/
headpan
John, perhaps it’s not a total fail as it provides all of us license to thwack you for the remainder of this blog post. You may be in needs of some "amnesty" yourself.
:^)
demkat620
Laura W, may your Walter rest in peace and may time ease your pain. He was beautiful. {{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}
Libby
Aw. That second photo is too precious. He was a cute little guy.
Blue Neponset
The Forvm and Swords Crossed (no, it’s not a gay pr0n site) would be worthy additions to the blog roll. Both sites are made up of Tacitus refugees, and they are two of the only blogs where you can actually discuss issues with the morans on the other side of the political spectrum.
Stuck
Glad I’m not the only who often starts the day with slice of Humble Pie. I think we should now have a moment of silence for the dear departed Walter, followed by a little prayer for all dearly missed pets. And we should create a new Internet Tradition and designate February 7 Walter Day , in honor of all departed pet pals.
Michael D.
Laura: Not a cat person here, but a pet person in general. I’ve NEVER had anyone close to me die, so I don’t know what it’s like to truly grieve.
BUT, I know when my Lab, Charlotte, dies, it’s going to be one fuck of a shitty month or so. As much happiness as she brings to my house, I almost wish I never got a pet. Knowing your best buddy is going to die before you is something I don’t think people consider till long after they get a pet.
In any case, I love my girl.
And my condolences to you.
John Cole
I said I was sorry, but there is no reason to rewrite history. It is a good thing heaven is such a big place.
After this comment, I doubt I will ever see it, though.
Krista
Awww….sorry to hear about Walter, LauraW. He was a gorgeous kitty.
And don’t worry John…I’m sure this website has plenty of new lows to reach.
Libby
@Stuck: I pray that Walter is in kitty heaven romping with my dear departed orange tabby Moonshine. A little cat with a big purr. When he got going, you would swear there was a 737 getting ready to land in the room.
TCG
I started reading Tom Rick’s blog it is new but probably won’t be small for long because it is a part of a series of foreign policy blogs. He wrote Fiasco.
This history blog is not bad every so often.
David Horsey’s blog is good to check out. He is One of the best editorial cartoonists on the net.
And my own blog are some ones that are recommended.
headpan
So true, same for me. Still, I closed mine down after a while for certain reasons. But it really was pretty therapeutic while it lasted. I know it’s not evident on here, but I’m not the worst writer in the world (my best subject in college) and that was really my main goal, to improve my writing – more incentive to be a better writer if you think somebody, even one other soul, might read it.
Stuck
@Libby:
No doubt in my mind this is true.:)
Desargues
I’d like to recommend Hammer of the Blogs. It’s very well written, funny, and really well argued.
Libby
@John Cole: Size is in the eye of the beholder….
The Other Steve
My cats have decided to hold a vigil in Walter’s honor. For the rest of the day they have committed to doing nothing but sleeping and eating.
Krista
No, you’re right. And it’s good that we don’t think of that, because some of us would choose to miss out on all the joy for the sake of avoiding the grief. And that would be a huge loss. I think that the fact that our beloved pets die before we do strengthens our hearts and helps us learn to enjoy what we have while we have it, because you just don’t know what tomorrow will bring. We only had Dreyf for two years, as he was already geriatric when we adopted him. Saying goodbye was heart-wrenching, but knowing that those two years were happy and comfortable ones for him was incredibly rewarding. I would adopt another senior dog in a heartbeat. You don’t have them as long, and the vet bills tend to be pretty onerous right from the get-go, but it pales in comparison to knowing that you helped give an old friend a very happy, spoiled and comfortable sunset to his or her life, as opposed to ending their life in a shelter where everybody passes them by in favour of the pups and younger dogs.
Athenae
Because we feel like needy attention whores? Lookit me lookit me lookit meeeeee!!!11! That shit only works for Pajamas Media.
First Draft is a good time, though. We have Galactica, updates on how the Internet is killing journalism, cock jokes, and pet ferrets. And occasionally I get pissed off at Harry Reid. Usually all in one post.
LOOOKIT MEEEEE!
(Also, Laura, condolences on the fwuffy kitty’s loss. He’s so lovely.)
A.
jnfr
Virtual skritches to Walter. My cats will join in the memorial eating and sleeping day. Mostly sleeping, though Katy will also spend some time trying to chew on my hair.
Kat Kid
By far the best college football v-log in the universe. Quality not quantity.
Libby
@headpan: Even if you only change one mind, I think it’s worth it. Besides, you never know who’s going to stumble by and read you.
Libby
@Stuck: I believe that too. My favorite Moonshine story:
We had maybe ten people over, sitting around drinking beer and talking — really loud. All of sudden Moonshine started purring and everybody is looking around saying what’s that noise?
Moonshine had climbed into one of my shit-kicking boots and stuck his little orange head out of the top. Nobody noticed him so he started purring to get our attention. He loved being fussed over and called cute. Never meowed. Always purred.
smiley
@Kat Kid: Where?
This one’s interesting. Sometimes.
Glocksman
Only if he turns into a Limbaugh dittohead.
I’m not going to pile on John because it was inadvertent, but having lost several pets myself over the years, I understand how upset Laura must be.
When my dog Mandy died, I broke down at work and cried like a baby.
I was 27 at the time.
When my dog Macey had to be put down after a stroke, I missed 2 days work before I could go back.
I was 36 at the time.
Shit, I still hate my mother’s next door neighbor for forcing us to get rid my childhood dog, and that was over 30 years ago.
They’d call at 3am to bitch about the barking and wake all of us from a sound sleep to do so.
They eventually threatened to sue and since Mom had no money to fight a suit, she ‘gave the dog to friends in the country’.
They then went to work on the people who lived behind us, and met with more resistance.
The old bitch threatened to sue Charlene over their dog’s barking and Charlene reportedly said ‘Bring it on’, or something along those lines.
It turned out that her brother was a lawyer.
They kept their dog.
I guess my point is that people who own pets become really attached to them.
While I’ve joined in the needling over Tunch’s weight, it’s not because I hate cats but because it’s a good natured way to poke fun at our host.
I’m sure that’s what John intended with his post about Walter.
neddie jingo
You wanna know the Power of the Juice? Back at #18, I posted one tiny link, "cute kitty here," and my traffic on a sleepy Saturday morning has tripled.
That is the Power of the Juice. Use it wisely, John.
headpan
Libby, I had a friend who did read my blog but would get very concerned during my down times, which were cyclical – my ‘dark’ observations disturbed him and he just doesn’t understand anything about depression (although how anybody isn’t terminally depressed in these times, I don’t understand) – I started to become self-conscious about it. I hope to one day start up "new & improved" version one day. ;)
headpan
Libby, I had a friend who did read my blog but would get very concerned during my down times, which were cyclical – my ‘dark’ observations disturbed him and he just doesn’t understand anything about depression (although how anybody isn’t terminally depressed in these times, I don’t understand) – I started to become self-conscious about it. I hope to start up "new & improved" version one day. ;)
btw, Bj’ers I am obviously not aware of all intertrons traditions, what does DIAF stand for? Die In A Fire?
Laura W
I seriously doubt that.
Thanks for the wonderful tribute.
Brien Jackson
I have a small group blog with a few friends. Lots of politics, some baseball, one of them is a Steelers fan. We like it. We can haz message board too.
http://www.below-the-fold.com
headpan
well, double-fuck for the quasi-double post – sorry
this website hates my guts, also, i don’t know why i keep coming back, everytime i comment, i get kicked off – it’s bad for my self-esteem
Dan
Since you opened the door allow me to plug my site, which is advocates restraint on the part of the executive branch. That meant largely anti-Bush until recently, when things have started to get a little more contentious, e.g. my latest.
I do one "main" post per week (usually Thursday) and a weekend news capsule on Sunday. I try to put my best foot forward twice a week instead of trying to stay on top of everything.
Just Some Fuckhead
I thought it was funny as hell which is where most cats belong. Cold-blooded murderers who maim and kill for sport and then "give back" by allowing you to fuss over them.
Bondo
I present my humble blog, Voting While Intoxicated, which is one part wonkery, one part going off on tangents that most wouldn’t touch (do we need a suicide pill ala Children of Men’s Quietus), and one part sarcastic bile about the stupidity of politics. Oh, and Presidential History.
Libby
@headpan: You’re not alone headpan. A lot of people suffered through depressive episodes in the last 8 years. I find ranting helps a lot, even if nobody reads it, but it is the interaction with a commenting community that helps the most usually.
Libby
I would recommend both Athenae at #45 and Dan at #57. Both are great bloggers I read regularly.
AC
I write for Unlikelywords.com and we’re not super political, but I did put together an Election reference with over 400 links in it. My favorite chapter is the 20+ videos of celebrations all across the country. It took a month to do, but was worth it.
Also, I did send it to Balloon Juice by email after I posted it, but it didn’t make the cut. I was hesitant to post it here because I figured John would find out I had 2 cats (Charlie and James), wait for them to die, and then mock them mercilessly.
Sorry for your loss, Laura!
Brien Jackson
While we’re plugging out blogs, here’s mine, it’s a group blog with a few friends. Mostly politics/foreign policy/economics, a little baseball, one of them is a Steelers fan. We kind of like it. And we can haz message board.
Jerry
Hey, wasn’t this thread about promoting lesser-read blogs? Cats are wonderful distractions, though. Best of the Blogs has been going a long time but has just gotten a makeover and is now an online community for progressive bloggers. Sign up and blog directly on the site or add your RSS feed to the content flow and get more readers. We can’t all be Kos, but there is strength in numbers.
Nicole
A special thank-you to John and Laura W for making me laugh so hard I cried this morning. I needed that.
My blog only has one post on it so far so I need to wait until next year when there’s actually more stuff on it.
headpan
Just Some Fuckhead: that’s called "nature" — human beings torture maim and kill even though they know better and yet we place ourselves above all other creatures, kitties don’t — neither do the dogs marauding my parent’s neighborhood killing cats and other small animals (they killed my parent’s cat and my sister’s rabbit in her fenced yard)–and yes, I love doggies, too – i love all animals — they are very often better company and more interesting than people — but i do believein enforcing leash laws.
p.a.
He may look immobile in the pics, but that cat was totally ready to pounce. Just look in its eyes.
headpan
I just so happen to believe in enforcing leash laws, that’s all.
Dan
@Libby: Thanks for the plug!
J.
First, let me say that no one who LOVES cats as much as Laura W. clearly does could ever be a Tunch hater. Never. Second, Walter was not fat. That is FUR, people. If anything, he was fat on love.
And speaking of cats and small blogs that deserve your attention, I invite (OK, BEG) you to check out my humble site, J-TWO-O, which combines politics with animals and humor.
Thank you.
b-psycho
Since you’re explicitly asking: take a look at mine if you want.
Couple others I’d recommend as well: RadGeek, IOZ.
cleek
i am cleek. hear me whine.
JenJen
Very nice, John. I cringed when I read that post last night. :-(
There’s nothing more uncomfortable than saying something you wish you could take back, but can’t.
Rest in peace, Walter.
JenJen
Blogroll Amnesty Day! Hooray!
For your consideration, my humble, four-year-old blog:
Tavern Wench – Proving "Coughlin’s Law" Invalid Since February ’05!
Since getting hit by the Awesome Corporate Downsizing Unemployment Machine, I don’t write as much as I used to, as my shtick is writing a Job Blog. Hopefully I’ll be back to it soon, but in the meantime, on the right-hand side is a link called "Tavern Wench’s Greatest Hits" which is a good place to start. :-)
J. Michael Neal
That’s Okay, I Don’t Like You, Either
I don’t post as often as I should.
As for making fun of a deceased pet, it’s a timing thing. Don’t do it shortly after death. As time goes by, though, I like laughing about them as much as I did when they were alive.
Frank
I’ll happily plug my blog here.
I celebrated B. A. Day here.
Creature
"First, people don’t email me links to their blogs as often as they used to, and I can’t figure out why."
As an old blog whore I can say I just got tired of whoring. I’m not as young as I used to be and whoring takes effort. I’m not one of those lay back and go through the motions type of blogger.
garyb50
I don’t blog. I take pictures.
SGEW
re: Pet loss
One of the strongest influences on my long-standing tradition of not owning a cat was the deep fear of its death. My childhood cat died young, and it was a memorably nasty experience – the grief seemed to overwhelm any possible benefits that might have accrued. So I resolved to eschew cat "owning,"* and made do with internets cuteness.
And then, of course, the most beautiful kitteh evah crawled into my window** to get dry and then decided to adopt me (read: take over my apartment). Now I wonder how I could have lived without a cat for so long: I still dread the thought of losing her, of course, but the joy of her company (despite/including the toe biting ow ow ow ow) certainly outweighs my old fear of loss.***
(pauses to pet kitteh and make her purr)
Also, John Cole hates all cats because he still won’t post the kitteh pic I emailed him all those months ago. Grumble grumble.
re: Blog Self-Promotion
I haven’t foisted my blog on y’all yet, and I ain’t about to start now. However, I am happy to give my blogwhoring privileges to cleek, above, whose blog I forgot about sometimes (sorry) but is always a real treat, actually. With some very good photography, no less! So there you go.
*You don’t actually "own" cats, of course. Rather, they deign to let you share their space in exchange for feeding them.
**Fifth floor walkup, yo. She’s one determined kitty.
***Losing a few human companions over the years in addition to feline ones gave me some perspective too, naturally.
Creature
But, while I’m here and giving it away for free, come on over and say hi. I’m not the prettiest blog on the block but I do have a certain charm.
J. Michael Neal
He’s bigoted against the handicapped, as the dearth of Eddie pictures demonstrates.
mightygodking
I personally think that I am pretty awesome.
Chris Johnson
I’m not exactly a blogger, but I am certainly a Balloon Juice reader, and the daily comic I do has a number of Balloon Juice-esque features :)
Namely, cats, whores, small business, snark, and above all else, fiddling merrily while Rome burns because what can you do beyond ‘all you can’?
Okay, so admittedly the first four entries kinda congealed into a comic featuring a sci-fi whorehouse for exiled cat ladies, but it’s free and I’m paying for the domain myself, using money I typically earned running another small business where I make audio plugins for Macs :)
More importantly, I’m a huge Balloon Juice fan even back from when John was a republican.
So if you are a Wall St exec, haven’t been strung up by your intestines yet, and would like to see licentious cat whores without having to pull out your corporate credit card and spend your government bailout-
http://www.tallyroad.com
Soon to be permitting more revealing angles and things, once a certain webcomic-listing site has kicked me over to their adult section- because I keep my promises and don’t violate the standards of sites I’m listed on. (which is just good business and/or being a good citizen really, and that doesn’t go out of fashion- honest)
And I ask you- where else CAN you combine your interests of cats, whores and snark into a single comic strip? :D
Ecks
Seeing as it’s blog whore amnesty day, I’ll chip in mine, which is mildly sporadic, but aspires from somewhere in the Q section to be a C list blog.
Laura W
Christ. The least I can do for my cats after the morning they have had is pimp their blog.
JenJen
@SGEW:
Don’t you love when that happens?
When I was in college, a friend and I rented a house, and the first night we were there, we started a fire (it was snowy and freezing; Ohio can be like that) and began moving the rest of our stuff in.
While carrying boxes, we looked down and noticed the strangest thing: a mommy kitteh scurrying in, heading straight for the fireplace. Our jaws dropped when we saw she was carrying something: a tiny, close-to-newborn kitten. She placed the little guy lovingly on the warm floor in front of the fire, scurried back out, and one by one, brought the rest of her litter in.
We looked at each other, and said, "Well, I guess they all live here now!" It was really a thing of beauty to witness. We found homes for all of the kittens a few months later, and Mamasita (the name we gave her) lived with us until graduation, and then with me for three more years until she passed away peacefully.
Sigh. What a good mommy and wonderful kitteh she was. It’s so awesome when our pets choose us, isn’t it?
Edited to add: I’m glad John doesn’t have a photo of her. He might say something wildly inappropriate about her weight, like, "Wow, when’s the litter due?" you know, long after she gave birth. ;-)
Chris Johnson
Of my kitties, two were shelter rescues, one was from a litter a friend’s cat had, and the remaining two were street cats who decided with no prompting that they lived here. I’m pretty sure there’s another neighborhood stray who is considering living with me, but he is gonna have to make his case with no encouragement at all- there’s just too many of them.
The great thing is, when they are strays and overcome their wariness of humans enough to adopt you, they are as clingy as puppies, and can be both pretty hardy, and well behaved.
…now I’m going to try once more on my blogroll thingy, which the site has been eating up.
mark
Right now I’m doing most of the heavy lifting, but you can
check out http://blog.bloodstar.org if you feel so inclined. It tends to wander around a bit subject wise, pretty libertarian in bent. but I hope it’s at least mildly informative and interesting/entertaining
Stuck
Teh Funhouse. Last updated, ___I forgets
Chris Johnson
Boy, I just cannot make that post take. I guess I went on too long.
Cats, whores and snark- three of the four Balloon Juice food groups (the fourth is RAAAGE)- all in ONE comic strip by a devoted Balloon Juice reader.
Yes- snarky cat whores! Also includes a wolf puppy teaching Proudhon’s tenets of anarchism by way of mischevious parable. (no, I’m not making that up. frightening, no?)
http://www.tallyroad.com updates DAILY.
AhabTRuler
The sadness of losing our pets (or rather our pets departing their humans) is intense, especially, as with Walter, when we lose them suddenly.
My Martin, who I mentioned a couple of days ago, was a pound kitten when I got her, after several years of pining for kitteh. At the pther end of her life, when we had to put her down because of the cancer, it was very hard. But I was also happy, because we had given her 14 full years, and we had also been able to make the end as comfortable as possible, until it was no longer possible.
Now TK (short for Turbo Kitty, to Martin’s nickname of UltraCat) was hit by a car young, and that was difficult, as she was precious and sweet and innocent, and she never really had the chance to grow up.
But if we are to have the rewards of companionship, we must, as in any emotional relationship, risk big. It is the same with our pets, our families, and our friends. The only other choice is to risk nothing of ourselves, but gain nothing of others.
I should also mention that our new kitteh is arriving Sunday night, so I am beginning it all over again myself. Pix to follow.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
Laura, I’m so sorry to hear about Walter. I’ve lost three cats over the past 15 years, and I know how hard it was each time. He was a gorgeous cat, although I can also see how he may have, from time to time, exerted slightly more gravitational force than a typical housecat.
(Like John, I kid because I love from inside the world’s biggest glass house from which to toss pebbles. I mean, this is the slimmest photo of Fergus out there, and that’s entirely due to the way he’s been cunningly draped with fabric.)
JL
Hello, The Trader Joe’s that I went to this morning is located next to a Pet’s Mart. The rescue folks were out in full force with many cats and dogs. I was surprised by the number of adult dogs. One of the workers explained that because of the economy they were the first to be abandoned. Moxie came close to have a play mate. Damn, there was a cute longhair daschund.
SGEW
Yet more evidence that the Republican party hates puppies.
(Sorry for Salon site pass at link.)
JL
@Laura W: I love Sadie’s hat. All cats deserve respect.
CatStaff
@Krista: You’re so right about that, Krista. My husband and I have adopted a number of geezer kitties over the years. So many shelters will just euthanize elderly cats right away, and so many people want kittens or youngsters. The elderlies are such lovebugs, and it doesn’t matter how long we have them (so far ranging from six weeks for a sweet girl who came to us at 14 with cancer to our beloved Shyann, who’s 18 this year and been with us since 2001), they’re a joy. My evil vet has managed to get us to adopt a few babies over the years by dangling their kitten cute in front of us at our weak moments (she feels so bad for us whenever one of our geezers goes to Rainbow Bridge), but the old guys always have first call on our hearts.
JL
@SGEW: There should be a registry for bad pet owners so rescue places can check them out.
Randy Paul
John,
I’ve been blogging largely about Latin America since December 2002. My blog is called Beautiful Horizons. There are some other excellent Latin America focused blogs: Two Weeks Notice by Greg Weeks, a professor of Latin American Studies at UNC Charlotte; Bloggings by Boz, an excellent news-oriented blog about the region and if you are interested at all about Plan Colombia, a program where a lot of our tax dollars go, Plan Colombia and Beyond is indispensable.
Ned R.
Hi there. (As they say!) No amnesty request per se as John’s kindly linked my blog for a while but just a note that I will be trying to figure out the best way to get back into the swing of regular commentary on This World And All soon. In some respects I’ve taken a particular decision to step away from obsessive tracking for a bit just for relative peace of mind, and to focus on work a bit more.
SGEW
Mr. Johnson, I believe that you have done yourself a disservice today.
Chris Johnson
Catstaff- so true. Two of my cats- both strays- are geezer cats, very very old. They’re the best :)
…can’t stop laughing at my own faceplant. YIKES
John Cole
Chris- Deep breaths. You tripped the spam filter with multiple links, then you stayed in there because your ip/handle was flagged.
You should be fixed now.
woody
Our furry companions give us joy, mostly…
Their last gift to us is the tears their passing–ALWAYS ‘untimely’–permits us unashamedly to shed…
I lost two of my dearest companions in the last year. Condolences.
Chris Johnson
Thank you so much, John. Though I have to admit, the carnage when ALL the spamfiltered attempts went up simultaneously was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen :D
eeeee hhhh eeee hhhh eee hhh
And maybe the experience WON’T haunt me and cause me to wake up screaming every night for the next 4 years :)
Well, I have to have some excuse for that now that Bush is no longer president!
Ash Can
Found while looking up other stuff:
Big Fat Cat Hat
Now that’s a porky kitty. :)
anticontrarian
i don’t know how often you’ll find yourself linking to it, but a friend of mine recently turned me on to fuck you, penguin, which makes me laugh and laugh and laugh and laugh. it’s like cute overload, but with curse words.
you could read my blog, too, but fuck you, penguin is way funnier.
Chuck Butcher
When I’ve blogwhored one of my posts here, it picks up 20-50 reads, some of my comments bring in 20 or so. Oddly readership stays…small. Very small.
BlogNetNews ranks blogs nationally by states, Chuck for… is regularly in the OR top 20 of "Most Influential," a truly laughable inclusion. BlogBurst provides content to publications, like Reuters, SunTimes, and etc, my stuff gets on those several times per month picking up a handful of readers per post. The blog focuses on national politics with some firearm reviews and car stuff, the archived gun stuff regularly out readerships the fresh posts. A Technorati high of 50 has dropped to 25.
These factors make it pretty difficult to gin up the energy to post daily. My blogroll consists almost entirely of selected blogs from Amnesty Day or Blogger’s Best (Swift) for the simple reason that MSM style blogging from the A listers isn’t why I bother with reading blogs. Swift & Skippy notify me and I "celebrate." I found BJ through one of those non-A list blogs, that I later also wrote for, now dead with its founder on Newshoggers.
The blog built a nice reliable readership from the ".gov or .mil crowd," like houseinfosys, sensgtarms, and some "odd" Arlington addresses with those extensions (the type with an ISP that you are not going into at all); funny stuff for a NE OR nailbender.
Now there’s some blogwhoring with a capital B. I bothered because the trade off of kudos from ratings and national publication and disappointing a handful of readers versus the time commitment is getting real.
srv
Blogroll amnesty:
Great writing, 1/3 family hilarity (top that with dog pictures), 1/3 another detailed example of why we’ve forgotten history and are doomed to repeat it, and 1/3 political satire. Posts with appropriate funny graphics and pics.
Former best commenter on the defunct intel-dump, which you should dump, because it’s dead. He links to you occasionally, and says good things about you.
T. Love
I would like to recommend the Womanist Musings blog found here: http://www.womanist-musings.com. I first found out about Womanist Musings when Renee, the writer gave some very valuable insight regarding a controversial discussion about clothing. A few days later a Feminist conference named her as one of the top 30 feminist blogs even though she’s been around only about a year or so. The honor was well deserved.
I’d also like to recommend the Peace Communities Public Group Blog that I help write. In the interest of working for equality, this public group blog has an emphasis on feminism, women’s empowerment, financially disadvantaged children and marginalized people’s voices and direct action worldwide. That is why the website address is savethepoorbrownchildren.org
We also offer Peace Points to article writers and commenters redeemable for Gift Certificates to AK Press, Microcosm Publishing and more.
I think both blogs offer some insight with people of color and marginalized communities that is worth taking a look at. :)
Thanks for starting this thread.
Keep up the great work…and funny jokes, ;)
Love for the people,
-T
p.s.
I often give people compliments on their website, but I’d like to give you a compliment on your’s webiste’s comment system. It is by farrrrrrr the most awesome I’ve never seen. I have never seen it where you can preview your comment in real times… even as you type it and also have an html tool bar above every comment. Wow. very, very nice…[and I later found out when you make an error it doesn’t erase your comment! *happy laughter*] We use disqus community comment system now. Does anybody know of any html widgets for blogspot that has that feature? :)
srv
I forgot the site: Graphic Firing Table
I mean, really, this is the funniest thing I’ve seen since that Iraqi PE training video.
Jacob
Okay, John…here’s a link:
Contextual Criticism –
http://mythandhope.blogspot.com/
Best wishes.
Ron Chusid
It’s a shame you missed the big holiday, but for those who want to see all the blogs who did participate in Blogroll Amnesty Day here is a list which I compiled at Liberal Values:
http://liberalvaluesblog.com/?p=6902
MMM
from someone who has witnessed it first hand, John Cole is just as smooth with the ladies…
Laura W
@Ash Can: TZ is younger than I imagined.
headpan
That’s a *wonderful* thing to do, bless ya!
South of I-10
@anticontrarian: I love Fuck You, Penguin. So funny!
Chuck Butcher
BTW, JC, Google Balloon Juice and find my link @ #4 page one. I couldn’t begin to tell you why but Google luvs me some. 15% -30% of daily traffic is Googled archives.
Chuck Butcher
Political Cat is a fire in the belly blogger pal of mine. Bonus for cat lovers, lots of kitty pictures.
Library Grape
Hi John,
I’m hadn’t heard of this Blogroll Amnesty concept but I like the idea. I think one of the reasons I haven’t sent you any posts from my blogs is that I’m always nervous about coming off as some kind of shameless self-promoter.
Anyway, with that proviso in mind, I have been a huge fan of the Juice for a while now. I too was a former Bush supporter that saw light too late in life and have spent my time over the last few years trying to atone. I dig your blog for its perfect balance of cynicism and dark wit. Your quote about the date that suggests a meal of tire rims and anthrax has kept me amused for a while now.
If you’d ever be interested in checking out my blog, it’s called Library Grape at http://www.librarygrape.com . I mostly cover politics, gay rights policy, religion and atheism (with a smattering of science and technology thrown in from time to time).
One particular post of note you might find interesting is a recent post on Ken Starr’s misguided struggle to strip away the marriage licenses from existing gay spouses at http://www.librarygrape.com/2009/02/please-dont-let-ken-starr-divorce-these.html
Keep up the great work.
Monitor
Phoebe
Walter is adorable.
Jill
Leave it to you, John, to ruin a perfectly good blogwhoring invitation by invoking dead cats. :)
Perhaps people don’t e-mail you about linking up because so many bloggers (*cough* Atrios *cough* Aravosis *cough*) have made very clear that they do not wish to be contacted about linkitude.
But since you opened the door, I invite everyone to come visit our own little stable of bloggers at Brilliant at Breakfast, and our newest endeavor, dedicated to all those people who couldn’t live without Hansen’s tangerine lime soda, Dixie Peach juice, and those dark chocolate-coated almonds that are also dipped in salt — the Disciples of [Trader] Joe[s].
Steve Balboni
Thanks John. I stumbled on this place about 9 months ago and it’s one of my favorite reads now. It’s one of the rare blogs that I actually visit daily (instead of just RSS) so I can keep up with the comments.
Anyway a plug for my humble blog,
steampoweredopinions.blogspot.com
named for the late great John Hartford, "like Mark Twain with a banjo"
I’m in Denver, a non-practicing lawyer who has recently moved from working inside government to being more activist and campaign oriented. George W. Bush convinced me of the need to take action, I guess I can thank the man for at least giving me that out of the last 8 years. I focus a lot on labor issues and general commentary on the national and Colorado/Denver scene.
JL
@Ash Can: Make sure that you send that to John. lol
BethanyAnne
It’s not a political / sports / science blog, but I loves me some Cake Wrecks. Always makes me laugh.
JenJen
@Jill: I’ve loved "Brilliant at Breakfast" for a long time now! Wonderful that you’ve thrown in, and at risk of de-pimping my own blog would suggest to John that y’all should be #1 on the list.
*cough* Atrios *cough* — Well put!! ;-) Besides, Haloscan blows and that’s not exactly a community he’s cultivating over there at PHILLY-IS-AWESOME-BLOG.ORG. Which is no big deal, because it’s probably not what he’s after, and I read him every damned day regardless because Econ Bloggers are much-needed now, more than ever. /Atrios kvetching
But the give-and-take John provides here kicks much ass, does it not? User-friendly comments section with editing capabilities!! It is so teh groovy. :-)
Just Some Fuckhead
@Laura W: That’s prolly one of his kids. Apples don’t fall too far from the tree.
Laura W
@Just Some Fuckhead: Of course!
"Sicko" is on Showtime.
Michael Moore is Tunch fat, Fuckhead.
Just Some Fuckhead
@Laura W: Cancelled Showtime about six months ago in a fit of cost cutting. Never watched it. Cancelled Cinemax and TMC too. I miss Cinemax. TMC just sucks big fat sloppy cocks.
I’m watching the Budweiser Shootout on Fox HD. It could only be better if it was an actual drunken gunfight like the name implies.
srv
Oh, and that Art of the Possible blog is dead too, after ripping Mona and some other folks off.
JenJen
@Just Some Fuckhead: Tip: Teh Starz is Teh Shitz. Worth every penny.
HBO + Starz = Win.
Just Some Fuckhead
@JenJen: I kept those.
JenJen
@Just Some Fuckhead: You complete me.
Laura W
@JenJen: Direct TV gave me Starz for our last anniversary. They love me long time. (I’ve never watched it. Guess I’ll start paying more attention.)
Man, this Sicko is sick shit.
I’ve had a Life & Disability license three times in my illustrious life for purposes of selling health insurance, mostly.
I so suck.
Just Some Fuckhead
@JenJen: I know.
Laura W
@Just Some Fuckhead: C’mon. Toss the poor girl a video, for cripe’s sake.
Stuck
@Just Some Fuckhead:
Oh, Teh Fuckhead, you complete me as well :>)
JenJen
@Just Some Fuckhead: Cool. Can I come over? Unemployment has me without teh Starz and teh HBO.
I’ll bring beer. I can afford Nati Light. Maybe…
Just Some Fuckhead
Here ya go, JenJen. *glares at Laura*
JenJen
@Laura W: Sicko was great. The French government-supplied nanny part was the bomb! Too bad they suck and so do their fries and their language and I should go pour their wine down a sink and everything because they are inferior cheese-eating wimps compared to American awesomeness.
Oh, wait… sorry. Wicked 2002 hallucination.
WereBear
I’m so sorry to hear about Walter.
We can’t dwell on the loss when they bring us so much joy.
Since I’ve been hanging around for a while, I invite all Cat Appreciators to visit The Way of Cats.
I am sporadic and off the wall as a political blogger.
But on my cat blog, I am at least not sporadic.
joe from Lowell
Smooth, John.
No, wait: smoove. That was smoove.
actor212
I almost feel reluctant to use this thread as intended, but…Simply Left Behind, my blog, is a pretty good news analysis blog.
And I own a cat, too. Or rather, he allows me to feed him and clean up after him, and as a show of appreciation, I may pet him.
Paul
Honestly, I have no idea why, when I get almost no comments, I do it either. It’s an illness, I guess
Jaquandor
Hi John,
I just blogrolled you about an hour ago as of this writing, but I’ve been reading you and your co-bloggers via Google Reader for seven or eight months now. My own blog, Byzantium’s Shores, is mainly a place for me to wax poetic about geek stuff that I like or dislike, with the occasional political rant. It’s not a very good news analysis blog, but I like to think I make for it in other areas.
Keep up the good work!
Alexander Woods
I guess I’m a little late on this post, but I figure I’ll give it a shot anyway.
My (very) new blog can be found at http://www.thedailydestiny.com. It’s not much of a news blog, and it’s not exclusively political – more of a forum for social commentary (aimless rants). I try to update at least once per day.
Thanks for the opportunity!