HAPPY

"REVEAL YOUR BLOGCRUSH"

DAY!

Since discovering the blogosphere, I have stumbled upon some pretty amazing writers. My initial expectations of bloggers were pretty low; I thought a blog was just an excuse to post a profile of yourself and collect pics of friends and swap inside jokes and, basically, treat the internet like a worldwide studyhall where everyone is passing notes and being as stupid as possible. You know: myspace.

Much to my surprise, I found many "out there" were using the opportunity to really flex their creative muscle, exercise their writing skills, and try to connect with the chaotic world around them. Whether trying to explain themselves and reveal their own, personal story, or feeling the need to comment on current events and editorialize on society at large, I was stunned to find a community of thoughtful, earnest souls who seemed hell-bent on finding their voice on the web. What I found made me want to participate as well. Within six months of wandering and reading around, I fired up my own blog and immediately felt overwhelmed with the job at hand.

Having tried my hand at it, I now appreciate even MORE the bloggers who can write daily and maintain a freshness and wit and keep me engaged and interested enough to come back day after day. So, in keeping with BlogCrush Day, I will now reveal mine.

(by the way, you can click on their pics to go right to their blogs to check them out for yourselves. You're welcome!)

Here we go:

FemaleCrush

Dear Melissa,

Yours was the blog that I read that made me decide that I wanted to try my hand at writing as well. The way you talked about your mother (Johnny Cash) and sister (Martha Stewart) made me laugh and sucked me into your world immediately. Your sense of humor shines through without you ever trying to be funny. When you are sad or down, you break my big, gay heart. I seriously suspect that if we lived close to each other, I would be pestering you constantly to hang out, do things, and force you to call me your best friend. I swear to God, I'll make you love me. I just know it.

By the way, your "Smut Of The Month" always impresses me. Let's call each other and read romance novels to each other over the phone. You read the straight stuff to me, I'll read the gay stuff to you, and then we can have a question and answer session afterwards.


MaleCrush

Dear Bigg,

Maybe it's because I didn't come out until later in life and I can relate to what you are going through that your blog completely captivates me. On nearly a daily basis, your postings knock the wind out of me. Reading you is like getting hit in the solar plexus. The bravery that you display by writing so honestly is truly a gift to those of us who follow you. You so perfectly describe the angst, frustration, confusion, yet tenacity, of a man determined to deal with his issues of sexual orientation (and the ramifications therein) that I am rooting for you more and more strongly with each new post.

You are "Everyman", you are a symbol of a whole generation of middle-aged men who simply demand their Life back, and are finding a way out of their closet to find the Happiness that they deserve. That I find your attitude, demeanor, and physicality attractive is not the focus of my admiration of you. It's your Integrity, your Courage, and your Compassion and care of all those around you that makes me swoon. Thank you for sharing your struggles on this journey with us.

DirectorCrush (this blogcrush is about my love of a blog's concept and execution and is, therefore, gender neutral)

Dear Jessica,

I know nothing about you personally, but I must tell everyone I can about your blog. It is nothing short of genius, in my humble opinion. That you have this skill to take politics, economics, religion, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and pop culture and distill everything down into simple charts, graphs, and mathematical equations jotted down onto index cards BLOWS MY MIND! If you held an IPO on your brain, I would invest in you with every cent in my bank account. Somehow, I think you have the power (and the equation) to change/save the world. I have never seen a blog that compares to yours in purity of concept and perfection of vision. I am in awe.



Runners up:

FemaleCrush: The Dresden Dolls Diary

MaleCrush: Too Disgusting to Contemplate, Too Compelling To Ignore

DirectorCrush: Post Secret