I have had but one respondent to my last bout of Otherwhirledly Pandering for blogging assistance. Not that only one is a bad thing (and it’s decidedly not, considering who the one is), but yes, I was hoping for more. We can’t let Jonestown have the corner on group-driven acerbity, after all. But, as usual, I digress. It’s a gift.

Anywho, I’d like to give a big, Otherwhirledly welcome to FranIAm, who despite her religious proclivities has volunteered to guest-blog here in the otherwhirled from time to time. FranIAm is in that extremely finite category of Believers whom I respect and admire, and I am confident that her contributions here will contribute to our collective enlightenment. You should already have her blog blogrolled, linked, massaged, and otherwise fondled in your RSS feeds.

Please be sure to say “hello” in a friendly, receptive way on her first post, which we have not coordinated amongst ourselves yet (largely because there’s no need to, because she’s got “the keys” and is welcome to post whenever she wants to).

Thanks for joining me over here on the otherwhirled, FranIAm! I’m looking forward to your input here, and to eventually pronouncing your last name!

In semi-related news, I have not been posting much, because I have recently taken a full-time job as the Quality Manager for a new up-and-coming software company. Naturally, the job, and a big product release, coincided with our recent move. In fact, we’re not really done moving yet. I still have a bunch of stuff to clean out of my former office space in the old house, and some other random items will probably require another 2-3 mini-van (shut up, i nurse the shit out of the gas mileage) loads and yet another weekend of fun-filled cleaning.

And while it was nice to see that Dr. Monkey von Monkerstein (one of my original guest-bloggers here whose fame has limited his time/desire to post randomly over here) reached his first blogiversary, I would like to point out the veritable tact, aplomb, and outright distraction with which I ignored the otherwhirled’s own first blogiversary back on April 4. So, let’s consider FranIAm’s participation here a blogiversary present to ourselves, and I’ll continue to be torn between voting for Dr. Monkey or Dr. Zaius for president.

Peace.

i haven’t been able to keep with the schedule too well lately, but it is once again Sunday, and i have a moment here to update the blogroll. so, without further ado, i offer you introductions into some newly-discovered fellow heathens:

1. Tangled Up In Blue Guy has an interesting blog which he uses to discuss many topics. very much an enjoyable read! (in heathens)
2. i’ve had An Apostate’s Chapel in my feeds for about a week now, and i feel smarter already. a very well-written blog on various subjects. (in heathens)
3. the Diary of a Teenage Atheist is quite a refreshing read, and reminds me of my own thoughts and the struggles i had as i began stepping away from the Church in my youth. i’d even go so far as to label this blog as a “Must Read”, despite the fact that i respect and appreciate the exercise of your own free will. (in heathens)
4. visit Heathen Dan’s Expletive Deleted, an unapologetic free-thinker who communicates his opinions and thoughts without the dirty words that i use. dare i say he’s a classy atheist? sure, why not! (in heathens)
5. don’t tell him i said so, but i think the Radical Atheist is a lot nicer than he sounds. concise, well-written opinions on the world we live in by a fellow former military intelligence analyst. (in heathens)
6. vJack, over at Atheist Revolution has been coming around here quite often, and i’ve enjoyed subscribing to his feed for the past few weeks. i should have added him last week or so.
7. and lastly, i’m providing a direct link to Richard Dawkins so that my religious visitors can assume that he brainwashed me, which he didn’t happen to do at all. as a point of fact, my search for reason and eventual disavowal of religiousness was all done without external input from the atheist community at all. he does go in inspirations, though, because he certainly is one now!

i also added an “old friend” with whom I used to converse frequently on the now defunct Clean Cut Kid, and whom i somehow managed to neglect, i think when i moved the site over from wordpress hosting. at any rate, even if you’re not in South Dakota, you will probably enjoy Corey Vilhauer’s insight and writings at black marks on wood pulp. although we just live across town from each other, i have not yet had the pleasure of meeting him, but through his blog, i feel like i know Corey quite well. and if my business didn’t rely so heavily on word-of-mouth, i know i’d certainly look to him for writing my ads.

But Wait!!! There’s More!!!

i keep saying i like to do this on sundays, and it keeps never working out that way. so fine, i hereby unschedule the scheduly-ness of it. which is probably a good thing, otherwise, Sir Knight over there would be kicking me in the crotch for being such a slave to scheduling!

new places for you to go and visit. so, go and visit them.

1. The Radula ~ i stumbled upon Dorid’s blog a few days ago, and greatly enjoyed the time i spent there. and not just because i lived in Albuquerque for a while several years ago. i like her style and the things she does. welcome to the ‘roll, Dorid! (heathens)
2. midnight/noise ~ i met Kimono-momo during the last Salon, and we chatted so long, we were the last two to leave. she’s definitely one of the good folks. you can blame her and Dr. Z for my use of the photo on the left. (provocateurs)
3. Thought Theater ~ stopped by for a visit, which i noticed through the myBlogLog widget. i went and read for a short while over there, and appreciate what he’s doing. (heathens)
4. Rants from the Rookery ~ ellroon has been a part of that eclectic community largely represented by the links on the right for longer than i’ve been, and i enjoy reading her writings. after many mentions of her during the last Salon, i realized i had stupidly left her out of the blogroll.
5. Majikthise ~ Lindsey is a freelance journalist, and i’ve visited her site on numerous occasions. she’s got the resources to dig into stories, and i very much appreciate the stories she chooses to look into. not to mention the fact that i like her writing style. (provocateurs)

go. click. read. learn. share. enjoy!

i have another busy weekend ahead of me, and next Monday is going to be a bit stanky with the worky-poop as well, so today becomes the best day to add some folks to the ever-growing roll of blogs over there on the right. once again, only the good stuff. a mixture of some new visitors and people who may or may not know i exist. worthy reads, all.

1. …And That’s How You Live With A Curse ~ reminds me a bit of romius t, but appears to be slightly more sane. (heathens)
2. Black Sun Journal ~ aa great design and excellently written opinions. (heathens)
3. By The Book Comics ~ displaying why fundamentalists are so very wrong in a simple format that even they can understand. (heathens)
4. Daily Atheist ~ a considerable resource for critical thinkers. (heathens)
5. The View from Here ~ a free-thinker from North of Forty and an excellent semi-daily read. (provocateurs)
6. drl2Blog ~ humor and insight with an occasional biting edge. well, i said occasional, but sarcasm liberally abounds…. (provocateurs)
7. Friendly Atheist ~ observations on life in general from folks who prove the theory that one doesn’t have to subscribe to religious dogma in order to be “good”. (heathens)
8. On Fire for Reason ~ personal insights from a reasonable thinker. (heathens)

i just pulled the OPML version of my google reader of all my blogrollups into perpetual dawnne, and of course, that worked like crap. didn’t realize OPML didn’t recognize categories of links and link descriptions, something i’m rather fastidious about. go figure. luckily, that presents me the opportunity to revisit everyone’s sites so as to reconstruct those descriptions, which is probably a good think because i don’t make it out and about as much as i’d like to….even in blogging terms. anyway, right now, unless you were already in the perpetual dawnne blogroll, you’re all just a mish-mash under the category of BlogHeads (which incidentally is the first category of links over there). i’ll get that sorted out in conjunction with some other reorganization efforts over there within the next couple of weeks or so. at least you’re all blogrolled from both sites in the meantime.

THERE WAS SOMEONE I ACCIDENTALLY FORGOT! a found a link from Swerve Left in my referrals on perpetual dawnne, went and visited there this morning, and spent about an hour reading. i found the site to be most excellent, so i added it to my Google Reader. however, i forgot to include Swerve Left both here and on perpetual dawnne. luckily, the cursorily satisfactory OPML import added Swerve Left for me over there, but when i originally posted this, i was stupid and left it out of here. which is ironic, because it was visiting Swerve Left this morning that reminded me i needed to do this blogroll addage thingy today because of my schedule this weekend. So, in case you had somehow missed it yet, HERE’S A LINK TO THE MOST-EXCELLENT SWERVE LEFT, which is included in provocateurs.

welcome, Christy from Positively Everything to the provocateurs section of the blogroll. Christy has been commenting from time to time here, more frequently lately, and quite frankly, if her blogger profile image is really her, she’s a hotty! but i also enjoy her writings, and she’s another one of those bloggers that’s been in my feeds for a while without my having managed to get her in my blogroll. sorry about that, Christy!

i’m happily married, by the way, and i know you are too, but feel free to allow me to test my commitment any time you’re in Sioux Falls, Christy. eesh.

and of course, i say that, because i’m certain that an 1800-mile trip to Sioux Falls is incredibly high on anyone’s her list of things to do, lol….

~~~

also, belatedly, and as an apology for the oversight and the apparently-genetic misogyny, please allow me to recommend Positively Everything for the award below. you’re an excellent blogger, Christy. i’m not kidding at all when i say that having you in my feeds mostly-daily is a joy and a privilege.

hee-hee. actually, i am bogged by the weather today. it started at at 34° with a light rain (atop the 1ft+ snow) with no wind, and has dropped already to 25° with a 20-mph wind driving a mix of freezing rain, sleet (yes, they’re different. click the links if you’re interested) and snow against the northwest side of the house.

tangible, incontrovertible proof that if there is a “God”, he is an unapologetic son-of-a-bitch who has absolutely no regard for the fact that a household of agnostic atheists in South Dakota are trying to sell their damn house.

that having been said, i’ll continue on with stuff i meant to do yesterday, which means, add shit to my blogroll. well, not shit per se, except in the context of “these bloggers are da shit, yo!” and of course they are, because i said so. lest you forget, i am the an Uber-Dorky Nerd God, so, uh….fear me!

and i swear, i did not rig my answers to that quiz. uh-uh. really!

anyway, before i wax completely pointless, there is a new category in the blogroll called heathens. these are strictly atheist/agnostic links that didn’t fit the provocateurs or snarkatorium categories. it’s a general container for fellow bloggers who don’t have a specific agenda, and who happen to be atheist or agnostic. most of today’s additions to the blogroll are in this category. don’t take offense at the appellation, friends. i’m just a smartass. because that’s where “god” put my brains.

as before, in no particular order. i’ve just not had great success tweaking the CSS in this theme so i can have normal-looking unordered lists.

1. Drinking Liberally in New Milford ~ the blog author liked this post of mine so much that he reposted it and blogrolled me while we had a discussion over there, so i’m returning the favor. if i’m ever in New Milford, i fully expect a beer. actually, the guy’s a progressive liberal activist, and i appreciate what he’s doing. i wish we had more like him, especially out here.
2. My Saturday Evening Post ~ a friend through FranIam made a nice comment on this post this morning so i went and spent some time on his blog and liked it. a real-world guy who appears to be totally respectable. welcome!
3. Sans God ~ the author probably doesn’t know it yet, but reading his blog for a few short days, was part of what prompted me to write this. apparently, people who feel what i feel about religions and such are real people, too. whodathunkit.
4. Deep Thoughts ~ the author of this blog runs the Atheist Blogroll, and has a wonderful, well-written form. i’ve greatly enjoyed perusing his past posts and look forward to learning more from him.

and sadly, that’s it for now. i have a couple of large print orders to run today, so i’m off to be responsible!

….Ecstatically Linkified.

over the weekend, two of my blogging buddies—friends, i dare say—awarded/inflicted upon me the following award:

great, no pressure, guys!

but serious thank-yous go out to the two who bestowed this honor upon me: Tengrain at Mock, Paper, Scissors, and PissedInNY (aka gmb) at I Can’t Believe It’s Not A Democracy. along with the thank-yous, please accept my heart-felt condolences for a. not having anything better to do on a Sunday, and b. being within my sphere of influence. i hope i am not contagious….in a bad way. it is also worthy of note that it’s Tengrain’s fault that i pulled this blog together from three previous incarnations, separated it from what is now perpetual dawnne, and continue to avoid other responsibilities by posting here.

ah, well, as little as i believe i deserve such an award, it is now my duty to pass it along….presumably to ten individuals whom i feel are “worthy”. quite frankly, i think my taste in bloggers is exceedingly better than my taste in former girlfriends. the problem with this, and why i didn’t post this until this morning, was finding bloggers that hadn’t already been tagged with this! which by no means the following list is “second rate”. it means that it would appear that a lot of us who enjoy each other’s company really enjoy each other’s company! but hopefully some of the blogs below that i enjoy will be found to be just as enjoyable by you!

in no particular order, but in an ordered list, because the style for unordered lists in this theme is a little goofy inside posts:

1. Stringer ~ down-under snarkery and observations excellently flavored with a unique wit.
2. One Pissed Off Veteran ~ partly because I’m one, too; mostly because he does it better than i do, and absolutely because he’s worth it. hopefully he’ll see this when he returns from his cruise, the lucky bastard.
3. Media Needle ~ i may well not be the first to tag the influential former resident of Sestakestan with this, but not only did i not see his blog on any other lists, but i really, really appreciate his sense of humor and insight.
4. Bathos for the Misanthropic ~ completely politically incorrect (which is a euphemism for “honest”), remarkably funny, candid, and bitingly sarcastic…and those are just the good qualities. i absolutely love reading this blog. he’s gotten me out of a bad mood on several occasions.
5. The Great Endarkenment ~ insightful and acerbic commentary on the world we live in and life in general. prescient, i think is the word.
6. The Zen Cabin ~ very well-formed writings that provide a clear, considered perspective on politics and society, tempered with a sense of humor that belies a rather charming inner angst.
7. Bay of Fundie ~ a newer acquaintance, but long-time blogger, who does a wonderful job of keeping the radical right at bay. i’ve very much enjoyed adding him to my daily read.
8. Current Jam ~ another recent find with an eclectic wit, or at least an eclectically expressed sense of humor. something like that. CJ is much more than just a small-town girl living in a lonely world, and certainly much more than just jelly.
9. Hysterical Raisins ~ there are some folks in our crowd whose photoshop skills are phenomenal. i don’t think nonnie9999 is as recognized as could be. you are hereby required to blogroll this blog, put it in your feeds, and laugh your ass off in delight at the humor, and cry your eyes out at the technical expertise.
10. last but not least, i present to you, Blind Orange Julius. this former South Dakotan somehow slipped through my blogroll after i moved to this domain and i’m sad to say i missed it (largely because he’s in my feeds). and speaking of photoshop skills, the man’s a whizz. he’s in the middle of a (physical) move right now, but i know you’ll enjoy reading and viewing his past posts while he’s getting situated. it is highly recommended that you do not read his blog while drinking a beverage that you don’t want on your monitor and keyboard.

wow, i guess coming up with ten wasn’t so hard. that’s also probably because i don’t link to crappy places that i wouldn’t read myself!

now….link, feed, enjoy!