Blogs and bloggers.

I noticed today that one of the blogs that I read regularly, TigerHawk, had referenced Dum Spiro Spero as the source of one post. It surprised me, and it made me happy that someone had actually noticed what I was writing.

I have a daily routine when it comes to reading blogs. While I don’t read many, I do have my constant favorites. Some of them are so full of information I just love to peruse them because I learn so much. Such is the case with Instapundit, which I discovered a long time ago, in a Readers’ Digest article, of all places!

Others provide information not only about the US, but the world at large. Such is the case with Gateway Pundit, which I discovered while researching information about a conference on Democracy and Security in Prague last year. I was going to write a lengthy piece on the exciting conference, but then I realized Gateway Pundit had done all the work!

Other blogs I read for their content depth, either because I’m looking to find out if someone is thinking the same way I do, or because I want to find a better or more elegant articulation of arguments. I would put Power Line, the Belmont Club, The Anchoress and Althouse in that category.

Then there are the blogs that have told the story of Iraq, which opened a window and cleared many misconceptions (Michael Yon, Michael Totten and Bill Roggio).

As it happens, I sometimes feel I know all the authors of these blogs. After all, they have made me laugh and they have made we ponder. They have introduced me to new bloggers, authors, books, health matters, artists, soldiers, politicians, and legal issues, to name a few.

Maybe because I was taught early on that one does not talk to strangers, I have always been reluctant to leave comments in any of the blogs. Yet, there have been a couple of occasions where I felt so strongly that a message needed to be spread far and wide, that I ventured emailing 3 of these blogs to ask them if they could help out. To my delight, they did! (Proof: here, here and here.)

The last 6 years I have been living abroad, these bloggers have been my virtual link to what’s been going on back home and abroad. I have learnt a lot, and have enjoyed a lot. I cannot imagine a day without reading their input, whether I happen to agree with a particular sentiment or not.