Chagrin, Gratitude, and Admiration

Subtitle: Sometimes It Pays to Procrastinate

I started this post two three weeks ago, honest I did. In that span of time, three six more people have tagged me for the Thinking Blogger meme. Meredith, Dawn, Kathryn, KC, Jane, and Alice C.: thank you for the compliment. Wow. Gosh.

I’m pretty sure the people I named Thinking Bloggers have already been recognized by someone else. I know Theresa* beat me to it with #5…I must commend her excellent taste! I’m sticking with my original picks anyway. These are the people who most often make make me think until the smoke starts coming out of my ears.

*And also KC! I swear, I’m even prouder of Scott’s talents being recognized than of my own.

I’m a little embarrassed to write this. I have been quadruply honored. In the past couple of weeks, four people have given me a Thinking Blogger award. Jenny, Monica, Loni, and Chocolachillie: thank you very much!

Here’s how this award works:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.
2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.
3. Optional: Proudly display the €˜Thinking Blogger Award€™ with a link to the post that you wrote (here is an alternative silver version if gold doesn’€™t fit your blog).

So it’s my turn to name some bloggers who make me think. It’s so hard to pick only five. But here goes:

1. Becky at Farm School. Becky writes smart, period. Her posts about children’s literature dig deep. I like how she invariably looks beyond the surface to get at the meaty questions.

**Edited to fix broken link! Thanks, Jeanne.**

2. Seems like every day, Willa gives me something new to ponder. Take this post, one example of many.

3. What Willa does for education, Gail Gauthier does for children’s literature. Original Content makes my daily short list.

4. Moreena probably makes me cry more than any other blogger, but she makes me think, too. She writes with brisk honesty about some pretty raw issues, and the thing that impresses me so much about her work is that while her posts about her daughter’s illness are by definition emotionally charged, they are also smart and sane and insightful. I learn something from her every single day.

5. And last, but most certainly not least, is the
person who constantly, daily, on blog and off, challenges to me to
really think an issue through before weighing in on it. Readers of my
husband’s blog will not be surprised to hear me name Scott
as a Thinking Blogger extraordinaire. Even if you don’t agree with him
on every issue, you can’t deny that the
guy makes you think. And having a window behind the scenes as I do, I can attest to how hard he works, doing his homework. He reads a staggering number of blogs, books, and periodicals. (In our old hometown, the librarians used to take turns passing around all the books on Scott’s hold list, because they knew they could count on him for a good read.) He is a ponderer, is my husband, and even having the tremendous home court advantage of living with him, I STILL always come away from his blog with new ideas to chew on. I am still congratulating myself on having given the blog to him for a Valentine’s Day present two years ago. Well done, me. Hee.

Okay!! I am posting this now! Finally! And thanks again to everyone who tagged me. It really does make my day to know you’ve gotten something out of this site.