A Word About Awards

I don't know about other bloggers but I'm always a tad conflicted when a colleague out there gives me an award.  I'm pleased to have been recognized for my work but I'm wary of the work involved in accepting the award.

Usually these awards come with conditions and this involves some serious thought or research.  And often you have to pass these awards on to a number of bloggers of your choice which means going to their blogs to obtain their URL and then linking to them from your blog.

That's work!  And for me - basically a somewhat lazy kind of guy - I'm pooped by the time I've finished my post of acceptance.

I checked my awards page and in the last 14 months I've received 32 awards.  Isn't that nuts?  12 of those were for winning a caption contest and the majority of the rest were related to my writing.

I'm beginning to think there are fewer humour bloggers out there than there are awards. I know I often run out of people to pass an award on to for fear of duplicating someone else's choice.

But in the end I have to say the awards folks have shared with me appeal to my vanity.  Another fault of mine.  Not only am I lazy but shallow, too.

So, that off my chest, guess what?  I've won another damn erm, ah, delightful award!  And not just one, but two, two, two awards in one.

Tom Goette over at Sophisticated Lunacy - a frequent commenter on my blog and a very funny guy in his own right - last Sunday presented me with the Versatile Blogger Award.  Tom's from California.

And on Monday so did RA over at Sagittiferously Yours.  No, I don't know what it means either.  Maybe she's a sagittarius.  I like her blog.  Her interests are quite eclectic.  RA's from Finland.  Hell, that's colder than Canada.  RA, you have my sympathies.

Thanks, Tom and RA!  Tom says - and I quote - "This award is said to recognize bloggers who...are amazingly talented writers...who raise the bar where blogging is concerned.  Or something like that.  There may even be a parade."

See, how could I say no to that!  Now the rules of the award include listing seven things about yourself that people don't already know.  (Why do all these awards focus on seven things?)  Okay, I can manage that.  And just because I got 2 awards doesn't mean I'm going to go through this twice.  It's difficult enough, once.

1. I am ambivalent when it comes to awards (like you didn't get the hint yet?)

2. I have almost bankrupted myself keeping my music collection up to date.

3.  I think about buying seven (ha, ha I said seven) lottery tickets a week (but I don't)...so I can afford to keep my music collection up to date.

4. I'm at number 4 and already I'm running out of things to share.

5. When they ask "is it real or is it memorex" I always think "Hey, that's a trick question".

6.  Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens are not a few of my favourite things.

7.  There's just something I have against the number seven.

There, that wasn't so hard (he lied).

Now the other rule associated with this award is you have to pass it on to 15 other bloggers.  Hell, I don't even know 15 other bloggers...well at least 15 who are versatile...or who I haven't recently passed an award onto and is still speaking to me.  So, I'm going to steal an idea I first saw over at Chris's place Knuckleheadhumor.com. (Hey, that's what the internet's all about!)

When I passed along the "Bald Faced Liar Creative Writer Award" recently, he referred folks to some obscure sites rather than fellow bloggers.  And, like Chris, I'm only going for 5 not 15 referrals.

1. British Petroleum - where they actually talk about their oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

2. Arizona Government Official Website - where nowhere can be found any reference to their controversial immigration law.

3. Dumb Sarah Palin Quotes - hey, isn't that redundant?

4. People of Wal Mart - This one's for Don at Beyond Left Field who spends so much time where America shops I think he took most of the pictures!

5. dufusdownbeat - sound familiar?  It should.  It's my neglected but now resurrected music blog.  Hey, I'll promote who I want!

Thanks again for the award Tom and RA and for giving me something to do for the last two and-a-half hours!

Seriously, though, I do appreciate the nod.  And I'm glad you enjoy what you find here enough to fete me with this award.