The Wonders of the Blog-O-Sphere

Like many other folks out there, I follow quite a few blogs.
Some of the owners write daily, or near daily.
Some once a month, or less.
Most are like me, writing only when they have something to say or share, which may be daily or only once a week.
Of course, there are a few that are written by people that I do know on a close personal level and had been friends with long before that first photograph and intro words were written and posted onto this blog. The majority, though, are the writings of strangers.

They all have a unique story to tell. Each post gives me a tiny insight into the writer, and consequently, a peek into their lives. The happiness or the challenges they face. Anger and sadness that must be vented before acceptance or forgiveness can ease their minds. I follow along, a voyeur of sorts I suppose, crying or cheering them on. I laugh when they share something funny. I add a comment or two if inspired. I've noticed I only follow the blogs of the people who I think I would have befriended had I the chance to meet them face to face. Regular people, but with something to share. People who type words onto a computer screen not knowing who will come across them and find something useful. Real people sharing real stories. I don't follow any that are blatantly political, pushy on the religion, or trying to sell me something. Yes, a couple have an agenda, but they also have a heart and a soul. I like to think of these fellow writers as friends, or at least acquaintances, that I check in with periodically. Many also have added me to their reading lists, and we often comment back and forth giving advice, encouragement, or a laugh when needed.

Let me tell you a little about them. (I am not going to put links here. You know you can find them on my profile page, or by clicking on their photo in the right hand sidebar.) I will start with the two young men I have just stumbled upon. Chris and Todd. Two good looking young men (well, they ARE younger than me!) who decided to travel around the U.S. by hitch hiking, leaving all their possessions behind except what they could carry on their backs. They both had their reasons, and their ideologies were similar, so they decided to travel together this summer. As of the latest postings, there has been a bit of a fallout and each has gone their own way for now. I can't wait to read more of the past postings and look at more of their photos. I have just started following them, so I don't have the whole story, BUT they both write intelligent thought provoking posts. I have figured out they both love nature and people watching. Ahhh... I think I will enjoy these two bloggers immensely! I feel I have picked up a new novel and can't wait to dive into their travel stories.

Keeping with the Adventurous types-- Roz Savage is a woman who is rowing solo across the Pacific. She posts daily as long as she has a signal on her satellite phone. Sure, she does have an environmental platform, but most of her writings are about her voyage. Very interesting, and I get a daily glimpse of the ocean, which I haven't seen in much too long!

Suleo is a bit on the outside of my "comfort level". He is a college graduate who chose to live without money, and has done so for a number of years. He lives in a cave, getting all his possessions from charity or dumpster diving. Yeah, food too. He will not accept money. This is a religious thing for him. His writing is brainy and insightful, even if it does have quite a bit of religious fervor thrown in. I read for his experiences; and the people in his life are colorful. He gives his readers a chance to see life from the homeless persons point of view. His last post pretty much summed things up by saying most of Americans are rude, selfish, S.O.B's (although he took five paragraphs to say it!).

Jenna is a young (mid-20's) gal who decided the homestead life is her calling. She works for corporate America during the day; while raising chickens, sheep, a goat, angora rabbits, two pack / sled dogs, and bees the rest of the time. She also has successful gardens and taught herself to bake, knit, sew, and play the fiddle. I "found" her after reading her first (so far, only) book Made From Scratch where she posted her blog address near the end. She is vivacious and loves everything life can give her. I have never heard anyone talk of chicken shit and sheep manure with such humor! She is single, but she seems to have picked up a number of suitable male followers. Hopefully one will eventually come along that sweeps her off her feet.

Pepe' is a fellow Montanan who's passion is climbing mountains. Another blog I live vicariously through! When he isn't climbing, he posts about sports and anti-smoking legislation. Occasionally he will throw in a movie review, too. Some day I hope he and I will meet, if just to say we did. Hell, he is only a few hours away and I do go to Missoula fairly often. I'll be sure to let you know if we do!

Sandra is a stay at home mom of two, a wife to an Air Force man, awesome cook, and story teller. She came to the U.S. from South Africa, after growing up in Portugal. Her writing is fresh and from the heart. I wish she were my neighbor!

Rock Chef is just a joy to read! He lives in Cantebury, Kent; UK. He and his wife are very much in love, and he shares their banter from time to time. He also plays guitar (has posted a few vid's) and has a bit of a whacked out sense of humor. Not many postings go by where I am not laughing out loud. Really! I look forward to his posts more than all the others. The comments section of his posts are a Do Not Miss item, too. He is truly One in a Million.

Only Half Nuts, or OHN as her readers have dubbed her, is the mother of three sons- two of whom are out of the nest and on their own. Her and I have shared many of the same "what should I do about ____" quandaries. She is the wife of a police man who last year had a cancer scare. That is when I first started to read. All is good now, but I enjoyed her writing style so much I just kept following. She is straight forward and pulls no punches. We'd get along great, I think. I wish she were my OTHER neighbor!

Joe and Albert are talked about often in my own writing, but Joe's photos are much better than mine! Albert was a lucky find at a writers conference and I am blessed to have become his friend. His blog is about his daily life living off the grid. He is living my dream!

Andrea (who I have met once, but is a good Facebook friend) writes about geocaching and life in Great Falls.

AND, all the others. A mixture of my other interests. Garden advice, living on a budget, recipes, movie or restaurant reviews, and writing. Some have personal anecdotes and family life intertwined. I read about life in Alaska and many of the lower states, as well as three Providences of Canada.

I thank everyone who has shared a bit of themselves, whether they know I was there or not.
I also thank everyone who has happened by my little piece of the Blog-O-Sphere. Over 2000 visits so far! I hope those visitors had a pleasant experience.
I especially thank all my regular visitors who stop by often, and my cyber friends who comment. You are the ones that let me know at least SOME of my posts are being read!

Now that you made it through all of THAT, my next post will be a lighthearted update on the garden and confessions of my murderous behavior.

In the words of a fellow Blogger

I have spent the better part of this evening perusing some other blogs. Jenna at Cold Antler Farm (one of the blogs I follow daily- and have for many months) put out a request for her followers to speak up and say "Hello". The last time I looked, she had something like 134 comments! Woo Hoo! Way to go, Jenna!
Most of the posters wrote a little about themselves, and I decided to check out a few that sounded interesting. I saw photos of farm animals, gardens, flowers, pets, people, handicrafts, and landscapes. Most posts were of daily life and observations.
One post actually gave me pause.
I stopped.
Re-read it, slower this time. WOW! Talk about hitting home. I decided I needed to share some of it here.

The following is the words of FruGal, from her blog Living Well and Living Cheaply:
... a list of life experiences people had that made them realize how poor they were. There are some things I can directly relate to, and some things I could add to the list like the time I was 5 days away from a paycheck with 5 dollars to feed myself and deciding how to make one package of raman stretch for a full day, then receiving a letter with a couple of $20 bills in it from a friend with the simple command, “Please buy some food to eat,” and spending an hour crying before I could pull myself together enough to go get real food for the first time in a couple weeks. I have obsessively recounted a handful of change for fear that I miscalculated what the tax would be on an item worth less than a dollar knowing if I was short a penny I’d have to suffer the embarrassment of putting the item back. Real poverty isn’t just about how much money you don’t have, it’s about a lack of dignity. It’s not just stressful, it’s humiliating, degrading, and poison to the soul. When you’re in a situation where you’re trying to decide between paying the cable bill and paying the cell phone bill, you’re not as poor as someone trying to decide between basic needs like food or shelter.
I’ve brushed up against poverty a couple of times in my life, but never stayed there for long. When people criticize my frugal lifestyle now and say I shouldn’t deprive myself of things like take-out teriyaki or clothes that weren’t worn by anyone else but me, I just have to shake my head. What I’m doing is a choice and as long as I’m not making that choice between one basic need or another I’m not really poor. ....... Living in a first-world country as a middle class citizen, people think they’re poor when they can’t afford luxuries. In the same country there are people who die of curable diseases because they can’t afford treatment. When someone says to me they’re really upset that they had to cancel remodeling their kitchen due to the economy and I’m wondering how long it’ll be before the pain gets so bad I can’t work and whether I’ll be able to the afford the surgery I need by then, it makes me think that this country is sadly lacking in clarity. ...... I pay more in a day for the handful of pills I take than for the food I eat. One doctor’s visit is a months worth of groceries and for it I get 10 minutes of face time with a doctor who asks me to schedule a follow-up appointment right after I told them I don’t have health insurance. I really hope someone out there with a loud enough voice has the guts to stand up and point out how ridiculous it is for doctors, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies to continue to pad their pockets with over priced goods and services while people are dying of things we cured 50 years ago.

She put into words so many of the things I have been thinking about lately, but unable to put into a tangible sentence. I did remove some political and some personal sentences, but for the most part, this was her post.
It is very personal to me, after being to the same point of "being poor" she relates to, AND the situation with doctors and medications. I never had a friend send me cash, but I have had a local church send a couple to my home when my kids were very small bearing Christmas gifts for our family. I remember getting kitchen and bath towels, my ex received a robe and a small tool set, but the girls? They received many, many packages of handmade doll furniture, store bought dolls, stuffed toys, bedding, and craft sets. A large food basket with everything needed for a Christmas brunch and dinner was left as well. I never had asked for this. I don't know who told them that our holiday was limited to one gift for each of the girls, nothing for the two of us adults. These folks weren't even of my religious choice! I cried that night, and again on Christmas when the packages were opened and we saw what was so freely given to us strangers. Someday I will be able to repay that gift to another young, needy family.
Before I can do that, though, I have to struggle through the broken U.S. healthcare system and try to get my body back into a semblance of working order... without health insurance.
Wish me luck!
Having seen and experienced "poor", I learned how to live in a very simple way. Sure I buy most of my clothing second hand, and watch the grocery ads. I don't think going out to the movies is worth the money, but do like the experience once in a while. I save and budget for anything "extra". I don't make a ton of money, but I am not in need of any of the basics either. I have learned to live frugally out of neccessity long before it was the "in thing". I have removed most of the stress out of my life, and I am able to say I am happy and content with the way my life has become.