A Case of Mistaken Idealism

One of my best blogger friends, Vic Grace -from way up north in British Columbia - just informed me that she has given me an award. It's called the "Blogging Mentor" award and here's what it represents from the person giving it to the person receiving it:
This award is “to recognize and thank those who help us on our path to blogging, be it encouraging and helping us to start blogging or helping us to be the best we can, once we have started.”

Vic claims I have been instrumental to her and her blog by being a cheerleader, of sorts, for her.

Now, I won't deny that I have on many occasions tossed out a few comments her way that were intended to tell her good things about her blog. But they weren't put out there just to cheer her own, to make her feel good about herself and her blog. They were put there because they were the truth. Plain and simple. Because Vic writes a really terrific blog as well as showcasing her home, the countryside around her home -flora and fauna both -with some really outstanding photographs too from time to time.

She also posts on topics that she doesn't just have a feeling for but things that she has gone to great lengths to provide documentation, studied data and condensed this into a very interesting, readable format then for readers, such as myself -probably many others who otherwise wouldn't know the story behind the story, you might say.

So, although it is a great honor indeed to have Vic bestow this award on me, it is really Vic who is the one who has been, more often than not, MY mentor and not the reverse there.

Now to spread this Mentor Award further within the blogosphere, here are my choices of bloggers I believe -along with Vic -live up to the ideal of being classified as a mentor.

Linda the 911 Operator Here's a blogger who never fails to entertain but she, like Vic, frequently puts a lot of research into her posts with historical details, photos and the like. She also started a very admirable addition to her blog with a memorial she is keeping to pay tribute to fallen law enforcement officers, firemen, emergency personnel who have given the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. She does this because of her own commitment to working in that field, knowing the difficulties these people must endure in their day-to-day duties and because of that, it's her belief they deserve at least that little bit of a means to give just a little extra meaning to what a valuable service all the people in this line of work give to all of us. If anyone has a question about blogging, and especially those who venture into the paid blogging sphere, Linda's a great "go to" person who, if she can't answer the question directly, usually has a good bead on someone who can.

David McMahon - Next on my list is this very prolific blogger -who also just happens to be a writer/journalist/photographer as his base occupation. David writes a fantastic blog -on which he frequently posts many photographs he's taken in his travels around the world, as well as from his current home in Australia. Reading his blog, viewing the photographs he has taken and posted, he often also adds in many, many pointers as to how others can work with the written word or images to create works the blogger can surely be proud of in the finished product. Got a problem, a question -one needn't hesitate to ask David for assistance as he's there in a flash with a response and great, quality instructions to help others any way he can. Those who are regular readers of David's I'm sure will also agree with me that he is also probably a master of the art of puns, bar none! Don't believe me -just go see for yourself and then come back and tell me he isn't superb at that fine art.

Barb - alias "Skittles" - Now here's a lady who is just that - a true LADY! Knowledgable about blogging, willing to help resolve little nitty-gritty annoyances that pop up from time to time with these pets of ours -our blogs, of course -Barb will try to assist any way she can. She also puts up a really terrific blog -sometimes with very deep, thoughtful posts, other times, with little "quickie" questions and whenever, wherever possible, she generally manages to interject little bits of humor to her readers as she goes about her quiet, unassuming way. Often, her open, frank, up-front postings of her own trials and tribulations from her past, as well as her present circumstances give the readers much insight about daily living and trying to overcome obstacles that often get placed in our paths.

Those three bloggers -along with the others on my "favorites" list -have all contributed greatly to my trying to keep things going with my own blog. I couldn't do this without contributions and input across the board there from all of you my readers, my favorites, ya know!

There is one other blogger I would like to give this award to but to do that, it will be an award to the memory of a gentleman who in the short year I came to know him through his blog, through our many communications over that time via e-mails, was truly MY Mentor and that would be the late Bob Johnson, a man of many talents who lived in Alberta, Canada. I first stumbled across his old blog -"Letters I Wish I'd Sent" -which consisted usually of a letter he would compose that would address many and various topics -mostly things people did that really aggravated and irritated him. Occasionally, these "letters" were serious presentations but most of the time, they were classic sarcasm, outlining the foolhardy actions of people. In the short time I "knew" Bob -using that term loosely as I never met him, never spoke to him on the phone, but felt like I knew him and he knew and understood me -he also put out several other blogs such as "Bob's Odder Blog", or "Rotten Robert" and a few more too. He was just a great guy who, before I became acquainted with the likes of Linda, David, Barb and Vic, answered many a question I put to him. Bob died quite suddenly this past November, just before Thanksgiving, and although there are none of his classic posts remaining on his old blogs, I still have him listed on my "favorites" roll simply because that's my way of remembering what a great guy, a wonderful friend, he was to me during that time.

So there you have it folks - five people who I credit greatly with helping me to work through questions, problems, writer's blocks - you name it - virtually anything having to do with my blog!

Each one, and as I said above, all the other bloggers I have listed as a "favorite" has contributed to my desire to keep blogging, to try to learn, hopefully improve and also from time to time entertain a little, maybe even pass along some information of my own to some along the way.

You're actually then, in that respect, my "blogging mentors" you see.