What if No One's Watching?

Today, a tribute to some of the blogs that I love, and read nearly every day, and why:

There are a number of blogs I read that are written by women I have never met and likely never will. I read these blogs because they give me joy, they give me something to think about, and they give me insight into lives that are very different from mine. Most of these are the blogs of parents, though they are not always "parenting blogs." My favorites are: The Adventures of Leelo and his Potty-Mouthed Mom, which is a brilliant recounting of the life of squid and her family, including her three kids, Iz, Leelo, and Mali; Chookooloonks, the Trinidadian tales of Karen, her husband, Marcus, and their beautiful daughter, Alex, which is definitely the most visually stunning blog on my list and gives me a feeling of great joy every time I go there; and Peter's Cross Station, the writings of Shannon about her life with her partner, Cole, and their daughter, Nat, whichI credit with not only entertaining me, but with teaching me a great deal about adoption, lesbian parenting, and being an at-home mom with a Ph.D..

I also read and enjoy the blogs of parents and parents-to-be that I do know, at least as far as having communicated with them personally in the cyber-world. The best examples of this are: The Edit Barn, where I follow with awe the life of the brilliant and dedicated Krupskaya, her husband Matt, and their kids, John and Maia, who I periodically wish were my kids; Yeah, but Houdini didn't have these hips, where I keep up with Sarahlynn, who I miss from other aspects of my online life, and the amazingly adorable Ellie; and (Carl in) Casimirland, which keeps me up with Ms. Polkadot, another woman I miss from other venues, and her fantastic boys, Casimir and Carl.

Another category of blogs I read daily or near-daily are the blogs of my friends, both those I know "IRL" and those I know only from the online world. I read these blogs both to enjoy the writing of my friend and to keep up with their lives. The most prolific of these friends (as well as the farthest away) is the fantastic Sofiya, who writes At the Bay, a blog that makes me laugh and adds tons of titles to my book list, as well as making me miss Sofiya like crazy. The least prolific is my darling best friend Scand, who hasn't updated Sweat Equity since early August, damn her, but I keep checking nearly daily. A nearly-as-bad offender is my dear Melinda, who hasn't updated Drinking Coffee, Playing with Scissors in nearly as long, and who I miss desperately and wish was coming to visit for Thanksgiving. I also keep a near-constant eye on the Flooded Lizard Kingdom, which isn't updated often enough for me, and is written by the profoundly fabulous Princess, who I don't see often enough.

The category that is closest to my heart (and the one that has the most overlap with the others) are the blogs of women I admire. Reading these blogs often leaves me laughing, or crying, but it nearly always leaves me inspired to be a better person. Some of these are women I have met and some are not, but they are all women who give me hope. These blogs include some of the ones mentioned above, as well as the brilliant rantings of Bitch, Ph.D.; the insight and emotion of the Frogblog; the strength and grace of Girl in Black Carhartts; the amazing wisdom and righteous anger of I Blame the Patriarchy; and, of course, the humor and general fabulousness of nearly everyone's favorite blog, One Good Thing.

I am also deeply indebted to the blogs of women who dare to talk about their problems with depression, their health issues, their grief, and their general malaise. I wish I could let you know how much your words have meant to me, especially the painfully, bravely honest Dooce, who I think deserves a fucking Nobel prize. I also love to read Nyarlathotep's Miscellany, for insight into both the big stuff and the small stuff than never fails to amaze me, and have been profoundly impacted by the treatment of grief and loss, as well as the profound respect for life, found in Emilin's blog, Postcards of Grief.

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank the women who write these blogs, and the others that I failed to mention here, for letting me share in their lives. I cannot adequately measure what I have learned from them over the past couple of years, nor can I measure the joy, laughter, and inspiration they have given me. I believe 100% in the blogsphere, not for the political or organizational reasons put forward by most people, but because it has provided me with this connection with the lives and experiences of other women. This is as close to conciousness-raising as I am afraid I'm every going to get, and I want to make sure that anyone who reads What If No One's Watching knows that I am here, I am reading, and I am learning. Thanks for writing.