Thursday, April 12, 2007

Thinking blogger awards


A pink bee tagged me as one of her thinking blogger awards and now I have to pass on 5 recommendations for blogs which make me think.

Normally I try to avoid any of these tagging things - they are a bit chain lettery and I won't pass them on even though I am very aware that it makes me sound very pompous. This is slightly different as it is a chance to mention blogs that make me think and change my life in some way.

Fairly recently someone told me that they saw their blogging as a way of finding friends. To be frank my (internal) reaction was that she needed to get out more and find some friends where she could see the whites of their eyes. However, thinking today about who to chose for a mention here has been a bit like the way I chose my friends so there you go.

I am notoriously picky about chosing friends and I have ended up with an eclectic mix, but the thing that binds them together is that they all have opinions (often completely opposite to mine) and an ability to articulate them well. So that is how I have selected these blogs.

First the two blogs that I check out every day for a bit of what I would call the domestic political - intelligent women with distinctive voices and few hostages - Heather at Eie Flud and Lynn at Gigi Bird.

Next El who is doing the same in rural America with her brilliantly titled Fast Grow the Weeds. I read a lot of American blogs to try to counteract the anti-Americanism of our media that equates all Americans with George Bush. El writes like all the cultured, caring, aware Americans that I have been fortunate enough to meet and work with over the years. Not a Hummer or a Big Mac in sight.

Then there is a blog I came across by accident a few days ago while googling for fair trade cut flowers Crap at the Environment - I don't know how much they post - the strapline is "Saving the environment despite not being very good at it" and there were a number of postings that were both very funny and made me think.

Finally the posts at Garden Rant are all very opinionated and bump you out of complacency- I particularly enjoy Michelle's posts - she also posts at Sign of the Shovel but that is a bit erratic at the mo.

There are lots of others but these are my top 5.

The season is about to start - van open from next Friday, bouquets from now. The photo is of a bouquet that went out yesterday evening.

4 comments:

Gigibird said...

Jane - see me after class!
I am very flattered that I was one of your 5.And as it's to do with thinking I may well join in or not, I will think about it;-)

OUR BEAUTIFUL HOUSE&GARDEN said...

Hallo,
Ich wünsche Ihnen viel spaß mit Ihre Garten.
Grüße aus Stuttgart/Germany
Sonja

El said...

What a dear you are!

My own humble opinion is that your country's anti-Americanism is somewhat deserved. We love to jet across this big country of ours and also to go through our drive-thrus in our SUVs and minivans. I'm certain it will take 100 Al Gores to actually change current opinion here towards the environment and consumption. And don't even get me started on this dumb war. Or our idiot in chief.

(OH that's right: you said you liked the five of us because we have opinions!)

I quite agree with you that the redemption of this chain-mail tag is that it is good to share what has made you think. Thank you for making US think, too!
xxoo

Jane said...

El - as I have mentioned on your comments board before, I have led a sheltered life and all the Americans I have met are quite left of democrat in their thinking and very Woody Allenish in voicing their concern for the planet (if you see what I mean.
Must be all those years working in a University, or perhaps only the lefties make it as far as Scotland.
J
x