I put some link love in my Guidespot post today. Thanks for being an exceptional group of bloggers.

I’m extending my contest because I can. Read the rules HERE and enter HERE.

While you’re at it, check out a couple of my other guides:
Create A More Colorful Workspace
Playing Tourist In Chicago
If You Could Be Any Video Game Character… (Contribute to this one!)

Also check out Chelsea’s When I Grow Up community guide!

You can contribute to the Community Guides (the green ones!) Thanks to everyone who has signed up and is active in the Guidespot community. I appreciate the support and all of the other writers enjoy your comments. Now we’re waiting for your community guides to go up so we can return the favor! If you have any questions about how, let me know

Daddy Dan and his collection of bloggers are at it again. This week’s topic is ghost stories. Check out our responses here.

Must Love Geek is getting ready for some pretty exciting stuff. I have a phone review to post, a guest blog from Marian Merritt about Internet safety and a couple giveaways, all of which I’m pretty excited about.

If you haven’t clicked out of your reader in a while, then you don’t know about my new design. So Chic Design has also spiced up Jamie’s Oh How Lovely’s Shops blog. Go check it out and then go get yourself a quote!

The 20SB meet-up is getting underway. I’ve been receiving proposals from many hotels. There will be an update coming this week so be sure to keep an eye on the 20SB Meet-up blog for new information! (Planning committee, I sent an email out today, so please watch for it!)

Chicago Bloggers - I apologize about the delay in meet-up plans! According to all of the emails I’ve received we will be meeting at 7:30 on November 21 at the Mambo Grill for dinner & drinks. Apparently there’s a great deal on mojitos that night. If you did not get the email, please email me at freeandflawed[at]gmail[dot]com. I will need to make reservations so I need a head count.

Kayleigh can really use some support and good vibes from the blogging community. Take a second out of your day to send her some, kay? Thanks!

My grandpa has come back to the blogging world. Check out his blog and make a gramps happy. And while you’re at it, go give my mom a little blog love.

If I had a book about “My Firsts,” today I would fill out the page about my first blogger interview. That’s right. Someone thought it would be a good idea to interview me! ME! Insane.

That’s just a snippet of the awesomeness. To read the full interview, check out Daddy Dans blog here. And don’t forget to check out past blogger interviews. You’ll thank me!

Thanks Dan!!

Daddy Dan’s “Ask The Bloggers” series. Each week he asks a group of bloggers a question in hopes to get their best or creative answer. Be sure to check back as I’ll be interviewed by Daddy Dan himself!

My first two guides have gone public at Guidespot. It would mean the world to me if you checked them out:

- Relaxing On A Budget
- Is Apple Bringing Sexy Back? (thanks muchly to Phil for the inspiration.

Shameless plugs should come in threes. Make sure you add A geek in anything but pink to your readers. I have a lot of of great stuff waiting to get posted!

Are any of you Chicago gals attending the Gals’ Guide Apple Store event on November 6? If so, Jamie and I will be there!

Something cute: Anatomy Of A Lego Minifig

A great post you should be reading

Contests:
Dan Mega’s Fact or False contest.
All Things Phil’s Jana Pochop CD contest.
Jamie’s Love September Etsy giveaway.

Any others going on? Leave your link in the comment section.

Blogs you should be checking out:

Confessions of A Chicago Girl
d-blogged
The Maiden Metallurgist
DomestiGals
Nicopolitan
Drew’s Locus
Kyla Bea
So Chic Design
White-Collar Redneck
Girl Jordyn
Parlez-vous moo?

As always, don’t forget about my blog roll. There’s a bunch of great blogs you should be checking out on there.

Earlier today I was telling man friend how I thought September was a pretty bad month for me. Between school, dad drama, gramps drama and being a woman drama (that shit follows you everywhere!) I decided that I’d chalk it up to a bad month. Thankfully it is almost over and October will hopefully be less crazy. (Especially if this roomie thing works out because I was promised some baked goods :P)

This week I helped out a friend with some blog questions. Sadly she had to move her blog twice because of a stalkerish ex. How uncool is that? So for her privacy and sanity I won’t be linking to her. Just know that she’s a pretty kick ass lady because today I found this waiting for me when I got home:

Oh yes. It’s a 3D anatomic model puzzle of a muscle man. It comes with a skeletal layer, a nervous layer and, of course, muscles. There’s 46 pieces all together. It’s ridiculously fun to put together and take apart. I’m already thinking about buying the human torso and the eyeball. My mom and grandparents can vouch for how excited I was when I opened the box. This definitely made my week end on a high note!

Oh! And in other good news, my gramps came home today. He had some sores of some sort on his duodenum (my favorite word ever!), but he should be fine. Fingers crossed that’s what was actually causing the problem and he’ll be back to his normal self in no time.

Thank you for commenting on my previous post. I’m having a blast learning secrets about you all - especially you Nico and Annette!

I hope you all have fantastic weekends.

If a tree falls in the forest and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound? If Jenn coughs in her office, but muffles them with crumpling papers, is she sick?

I’m feeling a tad (or three tads) under the weather today. Fingers are crossed that it’s only a passing feeling. Hopefully it’s from being tired and not from walking around in the last three or four storms in flip flops and a T-shirt. (Mom, don’t start the “I told you so” song and dance. Let me suffer quietly :P)

Last night many of the Chicago bloggers got together to meet Lacey, an NY blogger and one of my favorites. It was pretty fun. We had a great turn out and I’m happy so many of you could make it. It was especially nice to see Erin who I haven’t seen since the very first meet-up back in February! Those of you who couldn’t make it, you were missed. We welcome two new Chicago bloggers as well! The Maiden Metallurgist and Andy put up with our craziness for an evening and I’m so glad they came. Looking forward to seeing you both at future meet-ups! (The rest of the Chicago blogger’s links can be found on my blogroll under Bloggers I Know.)

Back to our regularly scheduled “Currently Thinking” post:

- Why do people refer to underwear as a pair? You’re only putting on one. How is it a pair?

- Does anyone else experience a loss of clothes as a new season rolls in? It seems that every year summer eats my fall/winter clothes and I have to go buy more. Where do the sweaters go? What happened to the long-sleeved shirts? Did I make believe that I owned these? Was it all a dream? Come summer I can’t seem to find any of the cute tank tops I swore I had the year before. Perhaps the dryer gnomes have found their way into my dresser.

- I wrote probably one of the worst papers of my life over the weekend and turned it in yesterday. It was bad. The worst part? It was optional. Meaning I didn’t have to do it! That would have been AWESOME to know on Friday. So now I turned in a shitty paper that will replace a future paper that potentially could have been 10 times better. Eff.

- I think I’ll end my skeleton naming contest tomorrow. I have a pretty good idea of who won, but I’m easily swayed. (I’ll choose you if you take my chemistry test for me!)

- Is it necessary for ears to hurt when your throat does? I realize they’re all connected, but is it really necessary? No. It’s not.

- It’s official. I’ve unleashed a bit of the crazy. I printed out a photo of the man friend and me from a work party and put it on my bulletin board. Shh…don’t tell him. We’re eff’in adorable though. Eat your heart out Ryan & Rachel.

- Searching for someone with the last name O’Brien at Notre Dame is futile.

- Can someone please tell me that it’s 5 p.m. and I can go home and get in bed? What? I can’t get in bed because I have crazy amounts of homework to do? Well I’ll be damned.

Happy Blog Day fellow bloggers! I know that we don’t really need a day in order to recognize some of our favorites, but it’s fun to see many people participate on the same day. Blog Day is an efficient way to share content and increase readership. It’s also a great way to share the spotlight and let someone, who might not know that you’re reading, know and give them the chance to be recognized by the rest of the Blogosphere. How does it work? Well, it’s simple.

1) Find 5 new Blogs that you find interesting
2) Notify the 5 bloggers that you are recommending them as part of BlogDay 2008
3) Write a short description of the Blogs and place a link to the recommended Blogs
4) Post the BlogDay Post (today, August 31st)
5) Add the BlogDay tag using this link and add the link to the Blog Day website

Without further adieu, here are my five Blog Day recommendations:

* The Missus from On Common Ground. She has a keen eye for fashion and always shares her opinion on the latest trends, good or bad. Living in the South End of Boston she will often share restaurant reviews as well as cute shops to check out and events taking place nearby. She punches cakes, bravely attempts (and completes!) 30 day Bikram Yoga challenges and actively searches for more ways to learn about who she is.

* Rebekah from She’s Got Baggage. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting this blogger and I have to say she’s just as awesome in person (if not more) as on her blog. She’s witty, honest and very open about the thoughts that go through her head while making out. I check her blog regularly whether I need a laugh or just to be reminded that I’m not the only one who feels a little crazy some times. I’m still new to her blog, but I definitely think it’s worth checking out.

(I’m kind of cheating on this next one, but I had such a hard time choosing only one of these kick ass male bloggers so I had to include a bunch. Many of you already know of them, but for those who don’t, you won’t be disappointed:)

* Chris from Surviving Myself, Starting Over at 24, Matt from A View From 5280Ft, d from d-blogged, Ben from No Ordinary Rollercoaster and last but not least, Narm from White-Collar Redneck.

* Laura from Quirkology. That blog is filled with way too many goodies. She shares a lot of link love with other bloggers, Etsy shop owners and websites. I find myself spending way too much time going through the archives and putting together my next birthday or Christmas list. It’s a fun, quick read and a great place to find gift ideas.

* Katie from Dr. Katie goes to Med School. She’s a twenty-something blogger who balances real life and medical school. It’s no surprise to many of you, but I’m a huge fan of this sort of stuff so I really enjoy reading about her journey through med school. I don’t know anyone personally who is sharing the experience, so I learn a lot about it through her. Her blog isn’t all medical terminology and factual mumbo-jumbo though, don’t worry!

That concludes my Blog Day list. But don’t forget that there are a ton more amazing bloggers in my Blog Roll. Be sure to check it out because I know many of them will be sharing their recommendations for Blog Day. I have a feeling you’re going to stumble on many new blogs today

If you’re participating, leave a comment with your link so others can check out your post!!

I love the Blogosphere. The community we’ve created for ourselves is something I am proud of. I respect all of my fellow bloggers. It takes a lot of courage to write about some of the topics that are put out there. And even if you’re an anonymous blogger, a foodie or someone who just likes to write about neutral posts and not ruffle any feathers, you all deserve respect.

There’s a handful of bloggers who aren’t receiving the respect they deserve and it’s really upsetting. These people are being honest, open and sometimes extremely raw with their feelings. They figure they have this safe place where they can open up and find support, encouragement or relief and instead they’re bombarded with hate mail and anonymous comments.

I know, I know…when you get an anonymous/mean comment you know you’ve made it as a blogger. You run the risk of getting an ignorant comment or two every time you post something. I get that. But when it becomes an every day occurrence and crosses that line between stupid and personal, then it’s too much.

For example, no matter what a certain blogger writes about, he/she receives hateful comments. Even after closing comments, they’ll move to his/her email. They’re not just hateful, but some of them are hurtful and unnecessary. After removing their email address from the blog, they continue to attack the comments. I just don’t get the point.

Another example is people doing the exact same thing that they’re bashing. It’s perfectly fine to disagree with somebody. I invite people to disagree with me, but I hope that they do so in a mature and respectful way. I’m never intentionally disrespectful* and if they’re going to be, then I won’t waste my time on them.

Anyway, so there’s a group of people who disagree with a certain blogger about how he/she handled a situation involving another blogger. Instead of maturely discussing their side, they attack her and tear down her blog. How does that make them better? They’re doing exactly what he/she did in the post except this blogger did it in a much more respectful and honest way. If I were the person that group was defending, I’d be embarrassed by their immaturity and ignorance.

I hate that it reaches the point where some bloggers feel that they have to shut down their blogs and change everything. Do they ever come back or do they stay away forever because their once safe community is no more?

I know there’s really nothing I can do to stop this. I just had to vent my frustrations. I hate hearing about some of the emails/comments you all receive and I wish there was more I could do.

* I am not above calling your face stupid. And I’ll gladly race you for pinks on TypeRacer.

Go Grease Lightning. Go.

I wonder how often I reuse blog titles. Some times I recognize it and remember that it’s already been used in a previous post. Other times…meh.

Chicago bloggers: I hope you’re available Sept. 15 because Lacey from Perks of Being a JAP will be in Chicago and she’s treating joining us for dinner/drinks. Details are still being ironed out. More than likely it will be downtown. Right now the BIG Bar at the Hyatt on Wacker is our tentative location. (Unless there is a BIG objection to this place, consider it our final choice.) Plan on getting there between 7-8 p.m. I realize it is a week night so if you can join us, please let me know so I know how many to expect. If not, you will be missed! I’d appreciate it if you guys could advertise this on your own blogs so all of the Chicago bloggers can see it.

Twenty (and thirty!) something bloggers: Please keep in mind that a final city has NOT yet been chosen for our Big Blogger Meet-up. Anyone in Boston, Chicago and New York is welcome to submit reasons why the meet-up should be held in that city. Please keep in mind that you have until Sept. 5th to get your information back to us. Either comment here or on the forum post at 20SB. Once I have all of the information, I will post it along with another poll so we can make an educated decision on which city should host the meet-up. Do what Arielle did and share your thoughts on your blog. Spread the word so we can get everyone’s opinion.

Think you know music? Check out Mr. Mega’s blog post today and share your favorites.

Jamie wants to know why or how you chose your blog name. Click here to let her know and to check out the other blogger’s answers.

I know there’s a significant amount of Blackberry users who read this. In addition to taking out your battery for phone maintenance, be sure you clean your cache. This will help improve your phone’s memory.

Will you be participating in Blog Day on August 31st? I will (if I remember!!) The (short version) of the rules are as follows: Find and share five new blogs that you find interesting and include a description of that blog. Notify those five bloggers that you recommended them as part of Blog Day. This is a great way to build traffic, share content and say thank you to some of your readers.

I’ve recommended Captain Blasto in the past and I know some of you are enjoying the web series (yay!) The Captain Blasto team needs your help to get noticed by the Apple iTunes team. All you have to do is watch and write a review! It’s simple

Recommended Reading:
One Wandering
I’d Blog That
Blog Nosh Magazine
Insert My Blog Name Here
Honest to Blog?

Don’t forget about the other excellent blogs on my Blog Roll

- Renee from A Beautiful Day in the Reneeborhood has just opened her very own Etsy shop. She has some really cute frames, so be sure to check out Rhapsody in Glue.

- By now you should all be aware of the 20SB meet-up. I want to remind you that this isn’t closed to our 30-something friends. Stay tuned for updates here if you’re not a part of the 20SB ning group. Right now, people are researching the top three cities (Chicago, NY and Boston).

- The wind beneath my wings, aka Jessica has bestowed me with an award. My only task was to pass it on to seven other awesome bloggers.

Rebekah
Sizzle Says
Random Reflective Ramblings
Half Deserted Streets
…and hijinks ensued
Ex-Everything
Anonymous Amy

- The kick ass Rachel gave me the “kick ass blogger” award. And I pass it on to:

A View from 5280ft
Starting Over at 24
It’s 3 o’clock in the morning!
Like Spinning Plates
Each of the Two

- Cleveland’s a Plum and her friend Kerri put together a funny video in honor of the Olympics: A balance beam routine…sans beam. Enjoy

- New Blog Launches: Who’s Your Dachshund and Oh! How Lovely Shops.

- Vacations: Jennifer is currently in Amsterdam and will be in Madrid (for a whole year!) before the month is over. Follow along with her travel blog. Brandy has returned from Mexico and Dan Mega talks a bit about his trip to Vegas.

- Lots of bloggers are moving…I’m sorry I can’t keep track. We do have two NEW additions to the Chicago bloggers though! Renee and in a couple of weeks The Maiden Metallurgist will be here.

I think that wraps up this week’s smorgasbord of blogs. If you’re moving, have a new blog or want to share your vacation recap, feel free to leave links in the comments.