Thanks, Laeli!

My friend Laeli over at another blog (now defunct) nominated me for a Very Inspiring Blogger Award, which was really kind of her. I love Laeli because she's just so... Laeli. She's very honest, and her posts at her old blog, Soular Sister, often made me laugh... or think about things in a new way. I'd like to nominate her right back, but I'm kinda clueless as to how to do that.

This whole experience has made me realize that I'm probably not your average blogger. For example, I don't follow many blogs. I have a few that I read out of curiosity or sheer appreciation, but I'm not a big commenter, and don't subscribe to the idea that I need to get me a ton of readers by following and commenting on tons of blogs. I'm writing for the love of writing, and the fact that I've made friends with Laeli (whom I have yet to meet) is an unexpected bonus.

Just for the record, I also enjoy reading/viewing these peoples' thoughts and images:

Iglesia Descalza -- which translates to Barefoot Church, and is often translated commentary from those on the margins of the Catholic Church.

A Gena-a-day Artist's Blog -- an amazing water colour artist I've moodled about before.
Things We Forget -- "Sticky notes left to their fate in public places."
The Queen of Green -- all about ways to live more sustainably, which is right up my alley...

and the blog my eldest daughter keeps. Unfortunately, it -- like some of the others I have enjoyed reading -- seems to be abandoned at the moment. But maybe she'll start it up again when she leaves for Russia, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway (and maybe some other countries, who knows?) next week. She'll be gone for two months+, and a blog would be a great way for her to keep us all informed of her adventures. 

The blogosphere is a funny place -- I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Over the past month or so, I've seen a huge uptick in views (200+ a day, a lot for me!) because of a Mother's Day story I posted few years back, just because it's the first thing to come up on a particular Google search... but now that Mother's Day has passed, everything is back to normal. If blogging is a normal pastime. Which, I guess it is for some of us who may or may not be a bit behind the times with Twitter and all those other social media websites, but are still friends via our blogs. Like Laeli and me.