VERY Inspiring Blogger Award #2

So, Starr Bryson from The Insomniac's Dream nominated me for another (this is my second; I guess I'm kind of a big deal) Very Inspiring Blogger Award. (What a bitch! Before you think I'm an awful person for calling her that, let me assure you that she will appreciate it. After all, The ABC's of Swearing was her idea after all.)

You can read about my first nomination here. Now for my second one.

Rules: 1. Display the award logo. 2. Link it back to the person that gave it to you. 3. State seven things about yourself. 4. Nominate 15 bloggers and include their links in your blog.

I've decided to use a different logo than the typical one that is used, because, well, I like this one better.

7 Me-Things (I wonder if I can think of 7 inspiring things...)
1. I decided to register to do my Creative Writing Thesis at university (post-graduation) so that I would be forced to write about my life-changing trip to Botswana, Africa.
2. I talk to my Mom almost every day because she is the most important person in my life.
3. I take Venlafaxine (and have since 2006) for my anxiety and depression and I think mental health is a serious issue that should be talked about way more than it is.
4. The "Volunteer Experience" portion of my grad school CV was the longest section.
5. I am leaving my job of nine years to pursue my Master's of Arts in English Literature for no other reason than because I want to.
6. I am a very sex-positive person and do what I can to reclaim the word 'slut'.
7. This: 29 RAKs for my 29th on January 29th.

And the nominees are:
1. Lisa from Diary of a Square Toothed Girl because she writes posts like "I've Had Enough of Not Being Enough" that cause tears to well up in my eyes in one instant and a smile to grace my face in the next. Her A to Z posts were equally inspiring.

2. DL from Cruising Altitude 2.0 because he has incredible contests and challenges and ideas in general. Someday I hope to have as many followers as he does so I can do some of the stellar stuff he does with his blog, with mine!

3. Suburbia Interrupted because she is a woman who blogs about sex (and raising a family). Hu-rah!

4. Allie from Hyperbole and a Half because of this: Depression Part Two. I have no words to describe how absolutely perfectly bang on this post is. Mental health is not an easy thing to discuss and it is even less easy to understand if you are not dealing with it personally. Allie is my hero. Her words sting my heart and her cartoons perk up my smile. I only hope she publishes a graphic novel someday; imagine a graphic novel all about depression?! Brilliant!

5. Barbara from all my lives now...ChChChChanges simply because her blog head says: "How many lives have you lived? I feel like I have lived many. Different branches reach out to touch each other, yet never meet. I am still me always evolving and growing. This is all my life now." I mean, wow and I completely agree! (She also may have said that I was amazing this one time that she commented on my blog. Aw, shucks).

6. Julie from Julie you Jest because she blogs about the good, the bad, and the ugly with an open heart and an open mind. O, and she is also absolutely hilarious and has frogs on her blogs (that rhymes and she's awesome).

7. Ellen from Bad Word Mama! because her posts are so fucking hilarious and full of swear bad words! The fact that she blogs about her boyfriend too gives me justification for blogging about Farmer Joe.

8. Gaijin Cracker because her blog button is epic and she is no-holds-bar when it comes to what she says in her blog!

9. Suzanne from Times Squared because the name of her blog reminds me of my incredible visit to NYC a few years ago, but really it's because she is absolutely hilarious most of the time and then she goes and writes posts like: Cystic Fibrosis: What Would You Do?

10. Suzy Turner because she has written and published five novel/novellas and she is giving away her most recent one for FREE! Inspired to be just like her? I think, yes!

11. Laeli from Words To Live By because she is "a bit of a nut and has a wicked bright soul," that and this post: Celebration! O, and her other blog: The Super Shiny Amazing Real Life Adventures Of A Fat Runner speaks to my very core, for you see, I am a fat runner too. One more thing, she blogs about travelling too; I think we're soul mates!

Ok, I am cheating now...I just mentioned three of Laeli's blogs (because they all deserve mentioning NOT because I wanted to skimp out on nominations) so I am making up my own rule for this Very Inspiring Blogger Award business and counting #11 as three nominations. Of course, Laeli is not required to nominate forty-five bloggers to accept this award because that would just be cruel and unusual punishment. Moving on...

14. M.J. Joachim from Effectively Human because it was her blog that turned me on to the Celebrate the Small Things Blog Hop.

15. Scribblings of an Aspiring Author because Celebrate the Small Things is her brain child. When my world is going crazy insane and insane crazy, I take a moment and jot down the things I am most thankful for. Now I am going to make a point of doing it weekly!

I hope you'll check all of them out, but if you don't check them all out, at least check out a few!