Srsly?

No really... srsly.

Okay, it's Monday and I've been gone from the office for nearly a whole week. I had a mailbox full of papers to sign, initial or otherwise photocopy and file. I have projects that languished while I was out, delirious with antibiotics from hell. And let me just tell you, I have no motivation. The shit didn't blow up while I wasn't here. Clearly, it's not going to blow up today either.

Maybe I'm just waiting for something to blow up. Like it's just not that interesting around here unless something's REALLY wonky. Or, perchance, maybe I'm just procrastinating again, relentlessly like I sometimes do.

So today I've filled my day with a lot of re-direction of other people, a significant amount of Facebooking, and reading my friends' blogs. To that end, I'd like to promote the cool people I know, and all the cool shit they write.

First, my dyke-buddy Vikki posts at Up Popped a Fox. She's long-term partnered with two kids that actually came through her womb, which I find amazing, in general. A social worker on a mission, Vikki will treat you to the bizarre views of her life, with an occassional recipe for a smashing cocktail.

Another fave is the Cleaner Plate Club by Ali, another college buddy, same as the Vikster. Ali has an amazing way of knitting words together to make a nice snug sweater vest for you, which you can then parade around in, showing everyone else what you've learned. This includes recipes -- for food -- travel details, knitting shit, burying beloved fish, and generally being gentle on the planet and to others. Ali's blog makes me look shit up and check my spelling before I post a comment. And, uh, check my verb tenses. Her writing kinda makes me feel like Keith Haring next to Michelangelo. But hey, Haring was still cool.

(para on Dykes deleted... not his blog! crikey! meanwhile I totally thought Chris was knitting his knuckles off. (shrug) .ed)

Kelly Wickham, at Mochamomma, came recommended from a good friend. I've been following her on Twitter for months. She was the first to get sent directly to my phone. She cracks my shit up all the time and then she writes some shit that blows me away. What could be better than that? Maybe if she was smoking hot... aw damn. The killer trifecta: humor, brains and beauty. Sign me up.

Last, but not least, is the soul-searching poet Jenn Mattern. Breed 'Em and Weep is a comfy combination of self-reflection and universal wondering. Her two girls provide plenty of fodder for funny stories, but it's her brutal honesty, unique lens and lyrical sentence structure that constantly seduce me. Yes, yes, that's what I said. What can I say? I'm at the mercy of beauty and there it is.

Several times over, honestly. Each one of these writers gives me new things to think about, ideas that roll around in my head for days, and with regularity a soul-shock that makes my eyes water and leaves me gasping for breath. It's good stuff. Check 'em out, and don't forget to leave a tip in the tip jar, to give the artist a thumbs up and keep 'em going.

Bless the ones who give part of themselves, YY, whether or not they know we need it. You know we do.