Does this mean I have to start putting MORE thought into my posts??

Imagine my surprise yesterday morning when I tuned in to Badger's web site and saw that she's awarded me a Thinking Blog Award! I was beyond flattered! And also? I had no idea there even WAS a Thinking Blog Award.

But look! It comes with its own little graphic button-thingie.

And what good is receiving an award, if they don't give you the little envelope and card with your winning name on it:

Kalisah, who has taken charge of her life in ways that few people have the courage to do. She works in PR and every time I read about her job, I have flashbacks to when I worked in public information and communications. Only her job is way cooler than mine was and she likes it a lot more than I ever liked any of my jobs. Like Angie, she is my age and reading her blog forces me to evaluate my own life and how I became the person I am. And also she is just a lot of fun and I totally wish she lived next door to me. (That link up there goes to her new blog, but she has been writing elsewhere in the blogosphere for quite some time.)

To which I say to Badger: RIGHT BACK AT'CHA, BABE.

[Editor's Note: For those of you who are brand new here, who maybe clicked on Badger's link to find out who the hell I am, my old blog, where I lived for about three years, is here]

Now I guess I'm supposed to pay it forward and name five bloggers who make me think. And here is my list:

1. Carmen, because every time I read her blog, I think, "How the hell does she do it??" This woman has six children (which makes me think I totally am not hauling my mommy-weight), one of whom has a disability, and she works part-time out of the house, and she lost like 600 pounds recently, and she has really high morals and standards to which she consistently holds her children and the world.
2. Kristine, because she's doing the teen-age child thing ahead of me, and, even though she's got a girl and I've got a boy, I learn a lot from her. Like for instance, she had a recent post about how her kid never calls her when she's out, even though Kristine's told her ten bajillion times to do that. Which is EXACTLY WHAT MY KID DOES. I thought it was just him. Not only that, but her kid's excuse is always "I forgot" which is EXACTLY WHAT MY KID ALWAYS SAYS TO ME. Reading Kristine's blog makes me think that My Kid's not so bad, it's just his age.
3. Chris, because he's so real and every Friday he makes me think, "I wonder how you pronounce 'schadenfreude'?" Some blogs you read to escape the real world. Chris makes me think about the real world, but in a hopeful way. Like, if there's people like Chris out there, maybe there's hope for us all yet.
4. Greg, because he makes me think I should always strive to be a better writer.
5. Certain bloggers (whom shall remain nameless, b/c really? do they need any more free publicity?) who are MAKING A LIVING at writing. Writing their blogs, writing magazine articles, writing books. That's totally inspiring to me. Makes me think about my future.

So that's it. If I didn't mention you, don't take it personally. I probably read you for the simple reason that 1) I like your writing; 2) I like your topics; or 3) I like your life. Besides, thinking can be overrated at the end of a long work day.