Best o' blogs

This was the first year I really ventured out into the blogosphere, past the safety of the Mod Squad and checked out the Wide World of Blogging. A lot of people have a lot of things to say, and among those were a few who managed to make me laugh and cry at the same time. So, in a nutshell, here's what I read this year and why I think you should read them too (in no particular order).

• Chez Miscarriage written by getupgrrl was my introduction to the world of infertility blogs. I got sucked in and soon, I was making the infertility blog rounds regularly, including stops at A Little Pregnant. It's amazing to me how these two women combine sorrow and grief with humor and how very real they seem.
  
  
• I discovered dooce in a 'best of blogs' book, the title of which now escapes me, but it had something to do with not lunging across a desk and throwing something at your co-worker, no matter how disgruntled you might be. Anyway, so I read about dooce in the book and I laughed. So I started reading and got sucked in both by the humor and also the honesty. Dooce is a daily stop and I'm especially fond of the Picture of the Day, especially the Leta pictures.
  
  
• Martini Republic is a blog for my liberal lovin' heart. Just when it seemed as if the blogosphere had been taken over by shrill Ann Coulter and Sean Hannity fans, I stumbled across Martini Republic and thought, "Here are some people who think just like I do." I enjoy the intelligence and snark of the discourse, and the 'MSTing' current events in a way that makes me alternately furious and hysterical with laughter. Now if it was just called Margarita Republic...
  
  
• And finally, last but certainly not least, Baghdad Burning, an Iraqi girl's view on what's going on in her country -- honest, straight-foward and unfettered. We think only of the American bodycount, but as the author of this blog so eloquently reminds us, there are people of other nationalities dying and suffering as well. It's always good to understand what the other side is going through.