I’ve been lax on handing out the linky love lately. These past few weeks, instead of charming you with my wit and undying humour *cough*bullshit!*cough* I’ve been working on getting out a few designs (that have been waiting Patiently! in the wings. I’ve managed to complete one so far.) before I go on vacation on Friday. Yup. End of summer vacation. Finally.

Carter, my dad, step-mom and I are driving (did you get that? d r i v i n g) to Myrtle Beach for two weeks. Mike is not coming. Mike has to work. Mike cannot afford to take vacation anymore this year because Mike has been off work for two MONTHS already this year and we’re really feeling it.

So much so I felt the need to buy a new-to-me iPod on Ebay. *ahem* It’s to help me survive the drive; you understand, right?

Over that last month of so I’ve been given a few bloggy awards! (Check them out under Blog Love in the sidebar. No, the other sidebar. Yup. That one.) Go! Me! and I’ve yet to hand out the love to my fellow bloggers: that brings me to today.

How much better could I possibly get? I mean, a give you Quicktabs and Top! Commentators, and a chance to win a DELL with me (you know you can guess more then once, right?).. and now, Linky Love? (If I’m not on your blog roll I should be.)

I’m going on vacation! *w00t!*

So I have a Nice Blogger Award x 2 and a I Love Your Blog Award x 3 = a lot of damn links (29 I think).

[If you click on said awards in the sidebar you'll notice that they link back to the person who awarded them (the newer ones anyway. I thought that was a nice way to give back.]

[Oh! and that's no way a hint that I think you should do the same for me.]

[But it would be nice! :D]

Am I Going Mad or Am I Just a Mommy?, Chicky Chicky Baby, cool beans, kellementology, Lawyer Mama, Here In Idaho, Tramps Like Us, Toddler Planet, Thoughts-N-Wonders, The Kids Are Alright, talking2myself, Plain Jane Mom Blog, NINJA POODLES!, Mom O Matic, Misadventures of (Mommy) Laural, It’s A Schmitty Life, Emma Sometimes, Cheaper Than Therapy, Binkytown, A Misplaced Life, Suburban Oblivion, sweatpantsmom, Spin Me I Pulsate, Simplified Sweetness, Playgroups are No Place For Children, Poot and Cubby, Where am I going…and why am I in this handbasket?, Velveteen Mind, Attack of the Redneck Mommy and Blog Chocolate

I love all 255 of you that I try and read regularly. You’ve all got a special place in my Google Reader.

But! For the purpose of this post, I must select the few that have really stuck with me and I skip over everything in my reader (like you, Sorry!) to read .

She is one of the funniest ladies out there. No matter the topic of her post, she can usually make me crack a smile. Absolutely Bananas is just that. Completely Bananas and I love her (blog).

She’s a given. I don’t think there’s a single person that doesn’t love Amalah; she’s a stinkin’ hoot - even when she drops her beloved iPhone in the Toilet.

Haley-O is thee Cutest Blogger Evah! Her posts are always so pleasant and cheery. They always help me get out of my IHateTheWorld Attitude first thing in the a.m.

Moosh In Indy’s Casey is someone that I could (and will) sit and talk with for hours (at BlogHer 2008). She’s so funny, and thinks I’m smart because I brought mooshinindy back from the gates of Error500 Hell.

Because we both laugh at mullets and fart, I need not say more. Mrs. Flinger is my hero. Period.

One of the first bloggers that I ever started reading, I feel in love with all over again when she posted a video of her at BlogHer talking about a bird pooping on her before a session (Hey Zoot, yeah that was me spending all that time rooting through your archives for the video. I’m not stalkerish that much?). Miss Zoot is adorable! *wringing hands* Oh, I hope she leaves a comment!

Minivan Mafia’s Jenn has a hot design: I found her during her hiatus and she’s dang funny! Check her out!

She’s my doppleganger.

She’s everyone’s favourite, and when I have bloggy trouble she’s there to help - whether she likes it or not.

I found Sassy just recently and I heart her so bad. The story about getting change back from the cashier was pee-my-pants worthy. Or The Doll? Hahahaha! She’s a stinkin’ hoot too!

I can’t get enough of her.

Heart her like no other.

*phew*

I think that about covers it. I know I forgot som, but I just don’t have it in me to link anymore. Sorry, next time, M’kay?

Now get reading!

Hey, do my a favour? If you have any interesting! or fun! podcasts to send me way can you please do so. I’d like to add them to my new-to-me iPod when it comes this week. (Dammit, it better come this week!)

Vacay in 6 days! *w00t!*

Fire me an email if you’re having trouble commenting on this site please!

temptingmama AT gmail DOT com

Or! If you know how to optimize this site to make it a little less slower then a 100 year old tortoise, I’d be forever grateful if you’d help me out!

I’d really fond of the remaining fist full of hair I have.

I am Sam, and I am a recovered message board junkie.

In 2003, I stumbled upon a pets message board (the time that I actually felt as though I loved my pets as children) looking for some information about pit bulls and dog parks. Then I was hooked. That board became like crack to an addict. I was constantly there, reading, commenting, involving myself in ongoing drama. After two years and many fights, trolls and un-needed or unwarranted stress, I left. I found a new community, one I thought to be more of a community.

Mike and I had started talking about a family, so I found a mom’s board. Once I was able to infiltrate the main clique it was fun, entertaining and I was laughing again.

I found that the stresses I had caused in my own life, the anger I left towards the people on the pet board, the unknowing people with sick animals, the trolls, etc. was carried with me off the boards and embedded itself into my personal life, but those feelings slowly diminished as I warmed up to my new community.

But the honeymoon was over just as quick as it started once the onslaught of character assassinations, lying and unjust claims of fraud and thievery began. I was truly shocked and completely disheartened seeing grown women attack and destroy each other as callously as they did.

And, once again, the stress was back. I was carrying around this weight of burden. Burden from the heartache that was caused to people I considered friends. To people that I would have befriended, helped and did help in real life. It got to the point where there was so much lying and backstabbing I was unable to separate the anger I felt towards the boards and my real life. I was just angry all the time; and as much as I LOVE gossip and drama, the pain and stress caused it just not as much fun.

The bickering and arguing over mundane issues, the close mindedness, the childish antic, the racism and prejudiced behaviour opened my eyes to a world I was not wanting to associate myself with. Reading what some people had to say made me disgusted and appalled to be human. To consider myself equal to some of these people. I began to question who I could trust resulting in slowly weaning myself from the boards all together.

But! Only in the past couple days have I completely realized the boards themselves don’t bring out this behaviour, but the people at the other end harbour this resentment and hatred. Many only able to release it since there is no face or body attached to the character they are assassinating; there is no human hurt by their behaviour because it’s only a computer. I guarantee, if one were to meet said attacker face to face, they wouldn’t have the balls to say half the hateful things they can type.

When are people going to own up to the fact that their actions speak louder then words? Be it in real life, or on the computer. Your words express far more about you then meeting in real life ever could. You’re conveying your character by means of words and actions instead of your materialistic being. Nothing says more about the person you are then those words you so callously and thoughtlessly type. Nothing.

Sure there’s drama in the blogosphere. There are hurt feelings, cliques, liars, hatred, prejudice and racism… but there is even more creativity, inspiration, love, and baring of true feelings.

My stress has gone, and my blogging has brought back my love for reading and writing; it’s brought back my creativity (or helped me express my lack there of) and love for people.

I can happily say I’ve been message-board-drama-free for a year now and I can’t believe how freeing and refreshing it’s been.

Your turn to share!

Were you ever (or are you still) a message board junkie? Tell me all the stories!!

There’s been a lot of entires lately about blog etiquette when it comes to comments and it got me curious.

[Didn't curiosity kill that damn cat?]

We all know in order to get your blog out there it’s your duty to comment on other blogs, right?

Well, how do you feel about the author returning (or not returning) comments?

Because myself? I actually like to see that an author responds to a comment, be it in the comments themselves or via email. And that’s what I try to do. But since I tend to comment back to the commenter via email, I began to wonder if other readers thought that I was a snooty none-comment-returner because they weren’t there here in the comments, visible to all readers.  But! Then I also wondered if the original commenter would even come back to see that it was here in my comments, or I was snotty because they didn’t get an email response.

[Shawna is shaking her head right now wondering WHY I even worry about this stuff.]

So put my mind at ease and tell me. Do you like when an author responds to a comment, and do you like it better when it’s via email or in the comments on the site?

I’d like to get some sleep tonight and not worry about whether or not you’re happy about the route I’ve taken to respond to your comments.

Drink anyone?