Looking Back on 2007 and Forward to 2008

This email was sent out to all BLOG VILLAGERS. Some of you did not receive it, however, because you have your settings marked not to receive anything but individual emails from the TopList.

This has been a busy year for me, and from the looks of your blogs, it has been for you, too. I've made some changes here that I hope you have found helpful, such as adding the forum and chat, and expanding the Gateway page.

I have also tried to encourage more Villager interaction by requiring at least one HIT IN each month. All you need to do is click the voting link on your blog one time each month to remain an Active member of our community. And you can vote for any Villager's blog you like during the month, so they can stay on the TopList, too.

In an effort to make the list more useful, I have added a Search function to the TopList pages, and I have deleted several hundred bloggers who were not participating.

We have gone Carnival Crazy this year, thanks to several Villagers who are really into this great way of getting to know different bloggers. I'm looking for a Villager now who would like to host the Jan. 28 Carnival on MONEY, who has not hosted one of our BLOG VILLAGE Carnivals before. If you are interested, please let me know as soon as possible. And by all means, send in your post for this carnival. You will find the link to our BLOG VILLAGE sponsored Carnivals in the Blog Carnival widget on the Community News and the Gateway Page.

We haven't had any new Villager Interviews for quite awhile, as our folks have been so busy with other tasks, but if you would like to be interviewed, or like to be the interviewer, please let me know.

I look forward to 2008 and getting to spend time with each of you on your blogs. Now that I don't need to spend as much time being the voting link police, I expect to enjoy reading and commenting a lot more this year, and I encourage each of you to find some Villagers that you can get to know better, too.

May you all have a safe and enjoyable New Year's celebration,

Rosemary


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team. And now we have another Villager who has volunteered to join our Interview Team: Marsha!

Freud Plays a Hand

Well, for the second month in a row, I have not deleted the blogs that I had warned I would. Last month, I was really too sick to be dealing with this, and this month, I just let the time get by and the month ended before I thought about it. Nobody's fault but mine. I did think about deleting all of them a couple of days before the end of the month, but I wanted to give everyone as much time as possible to click on their voting links. It really pains me to think of losing close to 200 blogs in one fell swoop. Maybe the whole episode has been a Freudian slip. I don't know.

Anyway, I still have my list of who was warned to vote for themselves or lose membership, so I will be deleting these blogs during this month, without warning, IF they do not have at least one HIT IN.

And, why, do you ask, am I so determined to get rid of these blogs that do not vote for themselves? There are two main reasons. One - it means they are probably not ever looking at the TopList, which means they will not be reading any other Villager's blogs. Two - it means I would have to keep checking on all these blogs each month to see if they still have the BLOG VILLAGE voting link on the site. And that's just too hard to manage with so many people to check on. I'd rather be spending my time READING and COMMENTING on fellow Villager's blogs - not being the "banner police"!!

So, again I remind you that you are required to vote for yourself ONE TIME Each MONTH to keep your membership in our Community. Vote for yourself FROM YOUR BLOG, and then go vote for those Villagers you would hate to see deleted. Seems easy enough to me.

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

GONZO "Thank You" Carnival Dec. 10th

I don't know how they have time to have so many Carnivals, but For Your Success has a GONZO Carnival scheduled for Dec. 10th. It should be noted that this is not a "Blog Village Carnival". This is a Gonzo Carnival staged to recognize and express appreciation to Blog Villagers who have supported their series.

I'm doing good to find time to have one once a quarter, and I really don't have to do too much when another Villager hosts it!

But anyway, I know a lot of our Villagers have participated in quite of few of the GONZO Carnivals, so mosey on over to For Your Success, check out the rules, and send in an entry.

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

New BLOG VILLAGE Chat Room

At Jackie's suggestion, I've added a simple chat room to the Gateway page. You will need to register there, and the Login is there, as well. Maybe we should try to set a certain day for folks to come by and say "Hi!" What do you think?

A forum would probably be more useful, but this will have to do for now, as I don't think I know enough to set one up, nor have the time to moderate it. If anyone has these skills, and would like to help me set up a forum, I'd love to talk to you.

Added 9/26
I DID it! I found an easy to set up forum for us, so now you can come visit at the Village Fountain any time you please. You'll find the link on the Gateway page, too.


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

VOTE FOR YOURSELF This Week

If you want to remain part of the BLOG VILLAGE community, then you must show your involvement by voting for your blog FROM THE VOTING LINK ON YOUR OWN BLOG in the first week of each month. So, it's time to click on your banner on your blog. Don't have the banner on your blog? Then add it from the code in the left hand column of your control panel. Can't find the code? Email me, and I'll send it to you.

Many Villagers have received an email warning that their blog would be deleted, if they did not make a new post or add the voting link to their blog. Those blogs are shown on the TopList with as asterisk at the beginning of their title. I have no desire to delete anyone, but I also have no desire to carry blogs who are not participating in our community. So, I have set a deadline of Sept. 15 before I delete any who have not complied.

If blogs you enjoy are in danger of being dropped from BLOG VILLAGE, please encourage your blog friends to fix the problem, vote for themselves this week, and once at the beginning of each month, and become an Active participant. And, of course, YOU can vote for any blog you like from the banner on their blog, too. It only takes ONE HIT IN to keep a blog showing on the Village.

Right now, all the blogs are showing to give these blogs in danger of being dropped extra time to fix their situation, but after Sept. 15, only those with a HIT IN will show.

I know some of you are getting dizzy with all the changes I seem to be making lately, but they are all done to accomplish one thing. And that is to get our Village down to a list of blogs who are genuinely interested in belonging and being involved. Those are the bloggers who will take the time to read and comment on what you have posted. Without participation, the others just don't belong here.

I do appreciate those expressions of thanks many of you have sent me, as this does take a good bit of my time. But I truly believe our Village is worth the effort, and I hope you agree.

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

Something NEW! - BLOG VILLAGE Equine Webring

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In an attempt to connect with bloggers who have the same interests and give blog readers a way to connect to all of the Villagers on their favorite subject, an internal webring sounded like just the ticket! Thanks to our BLOG VILLAGE Host, Rosemary, aka Dirty Butter, the BV Webring Banners will be centralized on the BLOG VILLAGE News page.

Since horses are a huge part of my life, I decided to start with an Equine Webring. I was tickled to find out that we have so many blogs in the VILLAGE that share their knowledge, stories, pictures and interest in horses. So far, with the help of the new search system and Rosemary, I have compiled the following list of “Equine” related blogs:

Brave New World

petArtistWithPeaches

MiKael's Mania - Arabian Horses

On the Shores of Carpenter Creek

Every Rider.com

Pony Tail Club

ClickonCowboy

Equine Spirit

A Laughing Gypsy

Simply Marvelous

S. Nicholas Originals

EQUUS

There Is A Season

Mustang Diaries

Mustang ‘n’ Cowboys


I would appreciate you letting me know if you have an equine related blog or know of a blog that I have inadvertently left off of this list. It goes without saying that these blogs need to be a part of BLOG VILLAGE. As the owner of one of these blogs, please contact me to let me know that you want to be a part of the BLOG VILLAGE Equine Webring.

Janey Loree

Let's Get Creative!!

I will add the banner to the right sidebar, as soon as the Equine Webring is active.

Create a banner, using the BLOG VILLAGE logo, as Janey did, write your invitation post, and email it to me, and I'll do what I can to help any Villager run their own Webring.

Looking forward to seeing what you come up with!!

Dirty Butter

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

How to Be an ACTIVE Member of BLOG VILLAGE

I really do appreciate those of you who took the time to vote on the two polls I listed, and particularly those who commented about them. I'm not seeing an overwhelming consensus, so, as administrator, I have decided how I will proceed with our Village.

Just so you will understand where I'm coming from, that word Village was chosen as part of our name for a very important reason. I did NOT want our TopList to become just another blog directory, but rather, a community of bloggers with similar ideas about what is appropriate for a Family Friendly blog, regardless of the topics discussed.

I am NOT going to put a limit of 500 members, but I AM going to set some criteria for continued membership.

I'm going to manually reset the list at the FIRST of AUGUST, so that it will reset at the beginning of each month. For the first week after the reset each month, all the blogs will show. I will give everyone ONE WEEK before I change the settings each month, and then only those blogs with at least 1 vote IN will show on the TopList.(This didn't turn out to be such a good idea, and I now leave all blogs showing, but delete any blogs that have not received at least 1 HIT IN by the end of the month.) If you really want to be part of our community, asking you to vote for your own blog once a month is reasonable. If that's too much trouble for you, then it's time for you to let me know, so I can delete your blog. Any member who does not have at least one HIT IN by the end of the month will be deleted.

I will, however, continue to RANK the list by HITS OUT, as it encourages interaction with the TopList itself. Ranking doesn't really seem to be that important to most of you, but the importance of community is a value that many of you share with me. Please continue to vote for blogs you appreciate and comment on the TopList about the blog, itself, as this is one of the ways you can encourage your fellow Villagers.

With a large membership, it will take me about 3 months to comfortably take a look at each blog. I will warn any member who has not posted in the last 3 months or who does not have the BLOG VILLAGE Banner or link prominently displayed. If the problem is not corrected within two weeks, I will delete that blog.

As always, if you see a post on any Villager's blog that you find objectionable, please email me as soon as possible, so I can deal with the situation as I see fit.

With your active participation, I am confident that we can maintain the community ethic no matter what size our VILLAGE is!

Looking forward to visiting each of you over the next few months.




Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

BLOG VILLAGE'S First Annual RECREATION Carnival

Whether your idea of recreation is to sweat or meditate, travel or read, this carnival is bound to be one you have already posted about at some point, or one you could easily write just to enter our newest carnival.

Our own BLOG VILLAGER, Texas RV Travel Blog, is going to host this one on Monday, July 30th, so how about taking a little time to find that suitable post for this event. You must submit your entry to BlogCarnival by Midnight, Friday, July 27.

Help us promote the Carnival by using the banner on your own blog, if you like.


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

Meet LYNDA - Our Newest FEATURED VILLAGER

It’s about time I introduced you to another BLOG VILLAGER.

Her name is Lynda, and she teaches Pilates & Reiki as an American Ex-pat in the Turks & Caicos Islands. In her July 10, 2007 post on her blog, Pilates in Paradise, you will see that she enjoys blogging and is setting up several more blogs! She has a pet peeve concerning people that are unduly licensed to teach Pilates & Reiki and has made a couple of You Tube Videos available on her blog that explain Pilates & Reiki. To start off the interview I asked her to tell us who Lynda is and to share something about herself that she hasn't posted in her blog!

Lynda replied: “As a child & teen I was very interested in mysticism and spirituality. I studied Tarot, meditation, Ouija boards, astral travel, energy healing, etc. Then I went to college and got into western philosophy and went straight into a PhD program.

In traditional western philosophy the soul and anything mystical is completely frowned upon. Nobody believes in god, religion is silly and in a different department, and something like Reiki energy healing would be laughable. So I taught Pilates part time and just closed off my spiritual side.

When I left academia to open my first Pilates studio in 1995, I was suddenly inundated with alternative people, practices, ideas. And within a few years I was back to practicing Judaism, meditating, and exploring energy healing.

Now I've realized that contradiction is OK. As Schopenhauer explained many moons ago, faith is a leap we take knowing full well that we cannot logically explain everything. Sometimes when I teach Reiki I am struck by how silly some of it still sounds to me; yet it works and I cannot fault what works!”

To my question “What prompted you to start blogging in the first place?”, Lynda exclaimed, “I love to write and wanted to share some of my stories and knowledge with the entire world. Once I realized how easy it is to blog, it became a habit. Now I have readers from all over and my blog produces some income from advertising. I have considered splitting my blog into Pilates specific, Reiki specific, and expat specific sites, but people have told me that they like the variety in my posts so for now I am going to leave it as is.”

The next question should have been “When do you find time to blog?”, however I asked, “When do you find time to read other blogs?"

Lynda stated, “Not often enough! That's why I love places like Blog Village or Blog Her where there is a group of blogs that I like to read. I read other blogs throughout my day/week. Some don't update regularly so it's a quick pass through.

I find that Google alerts help. I receive blog alerts daily for Pilates, Reiki, Turks & Caicos and that connects me with blogs I never would see otherwise.”

When asked, “Where or through whom did you hear about BLOG VILLAGE?”, Lynda’s answer was, “One of the blogs I visited through a Google alert was Rosemary's (Day By Day with PD & PN), and I clicked through to join."

To continue the interview I wanted to know, “Why do you blog? Is your blog personal, business, therapeutic, or just plain fun?”

“All of the above! I have received writing & teaching offers from my blog. Advertisers like my blog. My clients read the blog, and I have gained clients from having a blog. Plus, I get to write and have fun, not knowing who will be reading!” was Lynda’s enthusiastic reply.

I was glad to hear that Lynda sometimes explores BLOG VILLAGE when I asked, “How many BLOG VILLAGE blogs do you read?”, because she said, “There are about 8 that I cycle through regularly. But sometimes I go in and just click different ones to see what's out there.”

The last question helps me with the answer to “Who do I pick for the next interview?” Lynda would like to recommend Eric of Erixgraphy, so he will be added to my list of BLOG VILLAGERS to get to know a little bit more!

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

HITS OUT for Ranking - Like It of Not???

Since the HITS OUT score indicates how many times, since the last reset, someone has gone to read your blog FROM our TopList, and almost every Villager has at least one Hit Out, I thought it might be interesting to use that number for ranking our members.

I'll leave it this way for awhile, but I'd really appreciate your feedback about this way of ranking. Do you like it or not??

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

JANIE at Colloquium - Our FEATURED VILLAGER

This next Featured Villager is not only a lawyer, she has accomplished my life long dream to play in Carnegie Hall. That’s right! Janie Hickok Siess is pictured with her flute as the Delta Winds performed in Carnegie Hall on March 28, 2007! Along with the wonderful soundtrack of their debut, Janie is an avid fan of “The Soprano’s” and pens a weekly installment to recap the show.

Janie keeps busy on her blog with memes for almost every day of the week: Sunday Scribblings, Monday Candle Moment, Wordless Wednesday, Thursday Thirteen, Friday’s Feast, and Photo Hunt (on Saturday’s). Her day of rest must be on Tuesday’s!!! Don’t forget to check out her other blogs, “Here’s looking at…me!” and “The Stockton Concert Band”. So without any further ado…I introduce you to Janie @ Colloquium…

Janey Loree ~ Who is Janie? Tell us something about Janie that you haven’t posted in your blog Colloquium!

JHS ~ I don’t come from a privileged background (my father was a car mechanic and my mother was homemaker) and couldn’t care less about money, wealth or the social status those things bring. I just want to have enough to live comfortably. After obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting, I realized I could not spend the rest of my life looking at balance sheets, ledgers, tax returns, etc. because I just couldn’t make myself care about any of it. I needed to earn my daily bread doing something that required a more meaningful investment of my entire self. So I continued on to law school. There, once I took my first civil rights course, that was it. I knew I had found my niche.

Janey Loree ~ What prompted you to start blogging in the first place?

JHS ~ I was moved to start blogging during the final days of Terri Schindler-Schiavo’s life because I was so distraught about the fact that her parents’ legal appeals all proved futile.

For six years, I litigated Conservatorship of Wendland all the way to a victory before the California Supreme Court. I am among a select group of attorneys who understand the stress of handling a high-profile, high-stakes case over a protracted period of time.

The cost for all involved was enormous. In my case, it impacted my physical health, but also changed me in many other ways. I wanted to share my experiences by telling the cautionary tale in order to encourage everyone to make end-of-life decisions while they are capable of doing so and communicate their wishes to their friends and family orally and in writing. A battle about how to proceed in the face of incapacitating illness or injury is devastating to family, friends, caregivers, attorneys, guardians, judges, justices. As noted, I, along with everyone else involved in the Wendland case, am living proof that no one comes out of the battle unscathed.

A lot of people told me I should write a book. I prefer to blog about it . . . which I am doing gradually. It’s too overwhelming to try to write about all of it at once and more than five years later, I’m still processing my thoughts and feelings about that momentous battle.

From there, the blog evolved into a discussion of all sorts of topics, some very serious and some more light-hearted.

In January, I also became a featured weekly writer for Write Stuff. Between the two endeavors, I’m having a great time and learning a lot about writing and myself.

Janey Loree ~ When do you find time to read other blogs?

JHS ~ Late at night and on weekends. I can lose a lot of hours following links . . . I’m sure your readers can all relate!

Janey Loree ~ Where did you hear about BLOG VILLAGE?

JHS ~ I clicked on the link that I found on another blog . . . don’t remember which one, though.

Janey Loree ~ Why did you name your blog “Colloquium”? Is your blog personal, business, therapeutic, or just plain fun?

JHS ~ The word has several meanings, but this one is the reason I picked the name: “An informal meeting for the exchange of views.” That’s what I hope this blog is: A place where people feel comfortable dropping by, reading my ramblings, and sharing a thought, feeling, opinion or viewpoint.

Janey Loree ~ How many BLOG VILLAGE blogs are you linked to?

JHS ~ Oh, gosh . . . I don’t know! Where do I find this information?

Janey Loree ~ If you join sites like “Technorati” or “Referer.org” and add the appropriate HTML coding, you can keep an eye on who links to your blogs. I am sure that other VILLAGERS can give you pointers on this as well…such as Jim over at “Tips For New Bloggers”.

Janey Loree ~ Bonus Question: Of those BV blogs that you are linked to, which BLOG VILLAGER would you recommend for the next interview?

JHS ~ I enjoy Scribbit.

But there are so many wonderful blogs listed . . .



Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

Hits IN ---- Hits OUT

If I find this confusing, I'm sure there are others who do, too. So I decided to do a search on the gotop100 forum for administrators, and I found this very simple explanation:

Incoming hits are how many visitors a site has sent to your top list using their link code. Outgoing hits are how many visitors your top list has sent to the site.

I've been rather discouraged that I haven't been able to interest our Villagers in voting for each other, but I must admit that finally understanding HITS OUT makes me feel a little bit better about BLOG VILLAGE and my goals for our Village. I checked to see just what our statistics are at the moment, and I'm feeling better.

Out of the 364 members who are currently showing on the blog, only 98 have a vote, since the reset on May 9. That's very discouraging, as I thought for sure that putting all the blogs back on with the new SEARCH box would encourage more participation.

But then I got to wondering about how many blogs were being clicked on from our toplist, whether they got votes or not, and that made me feel a WHOLE lot better! Out of those same 364 members, there are 320 that have been viewed by someone who found them on BLOG VILLAGE!!! That's what the Hits Out number means, and that's impressive. People may not be taking the time to vote, but they are taking the time to read, and that's what really counts, isn't it??

May 23 will be our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY. In that time, we have had a total of 512 Villagers, many of whom I have deleted for not keeping the BLOG VILLAGE voting banner on their blogs. Only a handful have been asked to take the banner off, because of their unwillingness to edit posts or pictures that were not appropriate for our community.

We have actually grown to be one of the larger toplists on gotop100, which speaks well of all of you, as other bloggers are constantly asking to join. In fact, I have 6 blogs waiting for me to look at them right now. So, I guess I'd better quit rambling and get busy checking them out, right??

I've met a lot of interesting people, become good blog friends with some of you, and enjoyed reading about a lot of places and lives that I would never have know about otherwise. All in all, I think it's been a good year, and the number of Hits Out makes me feel like my efforts have born some good fruit. I hope you feel the same way.


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

Meet MARION - Our Featured BLOG VILLAGER

After sending Marion the same questions I ask of all my BLOG VILLAGE interviewees, she answered them in a way that does not need to be broken up! Please read on to find out about your fellow BLOG VILLAGER, Marion, over at The Herbal Connection:

I am a soon-to-be 56 year old woman who has had many life experiences, and who wants to share what I’ve learned as a result of these life-changing events.

I am twice-divorced; now living with my life-partner, Graham. Two dogs, Lucky and Nate, own us. I have lost a daughter; I am a recovering Alcoholic, still dry for many years. I am a mother and a grandmother, soon to welcome my second grandchild into the world.

As I learn, once more, to adapt to a different way of life, I use the Shamanistic and Reiki skills I have learned on a constant basis. I will always be amazed at how much easier life becomes, how well I can figure myself out, using these tools.

Graham is a Karuna Reiki Master Teacher and I hold Level 2 certification. I absorb the energies that fly around me so intensely, both negative and positive, that I had to learn how to protect myself. That is when I met Shaman Maggie Wahls, who opened the doors to an intensely spiritual time.

My awareness of ordinary, everyday occurrences became so acute; I wanted to write specifically about it. My life has become an amazing journey of miracles. It seemed right to share it.

And I wanted to be a storyteller. I have written all my life, primarily for myself…writing words that described the events of my life, horrible, sad words. It was the right time, suddenly, to turn those despairing words around to a more positive tone, to dissect and learn.

I wanted to reach people, to share hope in the everyday. Although I have sent some essays, etc. to various magazines, I have not seriously pursued this avenue. I treasure the rejection letters; seems they all, in handwritten words, love my writing…but what could they do with it? It doesn’t seem to fit in well, for magazine formats. LOL

Blogging seemed the natural choice for me. I am very at home on the Internet, having taken various different courses and having a natural bent towards research. I also wanted to learn to write consistently, with discipline. And I wanted to explore the world of photography.

My blog reading is done mainly in the morning, with some afternoon surfing. I try and find new blogs (to me) with the same interests I have, and try and extend my audience that way, as well as contacting and getting to know some wonderful people! And, no matter how busy life gets, I try and keep up with the great friends I have already made, just by blogging. I have huge gratitude for their support.

When I first started blogging, I knew nothing about it. Nothing. It took awhile to even understand how to publish, how to load photos, how to…the list goes on. I didn’t know about comments, etc., I didn’t know there were groups you could join. And then, one day, I heard Blog Village mentioned... I think it may even have been the Google help group, lol, a group I have had many occasions to visit!

My blog is a personal one. After all those rejections from editors, after all their suggestions to change my writing to more acceptable topics, I decided I was going to write what the muse wanted to. And so I did.

I only maintain one blog. I have others; they are still in the starting phases, where they will probably remain. I admire the people who have more than one blog; I just do not have time.

I usually try to post two or three times a week; it is a release and an outlet for my creativity. My writing is not for everyone; I wouldn’t expect it to be. But I try and project peace and serenity, I try and work out the happenings around me. I try and share any wisdom I may have learned, or am learning.

The sites on Blog Village are always entertaining. In my opinion, it is a great collection of different viewpoints; my site feels at home here. I enjoy it every day.

Now I get to pick another Blog Villager ... ta daaaa! I would love to hear about Tea, from Tea and Margaritas in my Garden!

All you need to do is read one of Marion posts to see her passion for life, to see how deeply she feels about the world around her. She has a unique way of writing and expressing life as she sees it. Read her Valentine’s Day post “Fury” to see what I mean and stop by to wish her a Happy Birthday. Her birthday is in February sometime! ~ Janey Loree


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE? Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

Are You Missing a Past Villager???

You may have noticed that the number of Villagers has been fluctuating quite a bit lately. That's because I have put a number of blogs on InActive Status, because those blogs had not been updated in several months. Also, some of our past Villagers have not added the voting link back to their blogs after template changes, even though I've given them ample time to fix it. On the positive side, we had a large number of new blogs joining during our Carnival.

At one time or another, since we started back last May, we've had a total of 350 blogs on BLOG VILLAGE!!!! That's hard to believe, isn't it?

So, if you miss seeing a blog that used to be here, how about letting them know that you want them back Active on BLOG VILLAGE!

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE?

Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

BLOG VILLAGE was established on May 23, 2006, currently with a membership of 255 Active Villager blogs.

Our First BLOG VILLAGE Family Blog Carnival is HERE!

Thanks to all of you who entered our first Blog Carnival, and a HUGE THANK YOU to KILROY for suggesting it, and doing all the hard work on this one. PLEASE take time to visit Kilroy's The Gonzo Papers and let him know how much you appreciate all the time and effort he's put into this to make it such a great Carnival!!

For Your Success presents


It's all about Family!

Family photograph courtesy of The Family, McCune {Machione}
November, 1928

Welcome Guests!

Dirty Butter - YESTERDAY'S MEMORIES of a Bygone Time - Determine Not To Have An Only Child

Kilroy_60 - Fear And Loathing - The Gonzo Papers - A Father's Day Thought

Eric - Eric Has Issues - Mondays True Story IV

Janey Loree - Heartfelt Notes - Up With The Top Or I'm Not Going...

Barb - Skittles Place - Why I Have Gray Hair

Heather - Beautiful British Columbia - Does Your Family Smore?

Chara - Zero To Gourmet - here's to staying blue-jean ready

Red Dirt Girl - Red Dirt Girl - My Childhood Family

Sparksfley - Sparks And Butterflies - Mom

Ruth - Me, My Life, My Garden - FAMILY - A Blogvillage Goes Gonzo Post

Chelle & Chel - She Says It's Pretty Dumb - Mother-Daughter Communication

John Holland - altjiranga mitjina - Thursday Thirteen #8: Christmas Pictures

Random Encounters - Random Encounters of We - On Broadway in New York City

SweetSwede - In His Steps - Family of God

LJP - Save Save Save - AVIS Messes With Family Catch Up

Kim Banks - Blog Fabulous - Is Cooking The Secret of a Good Marriage?

CyberCelt - Texas RV Travel Blog - Do It For The Family

sarala - blogaway - Did you like your kid today?

Oh, The Joys - Oh, The Joys - Little Brother

Anthony - The Lives and Times... of Anthony McCune - Welcome Blog Villagers...to Post Number 99

Emma Noelle - Wiping Up Snot - Grandparents' Rights To The Family

jillbeth - The Broken Cup: Christian Poetry - A Child's Plea

Sue and Matthew - One Big Green Bus - The Whole Story {By Request!}

Joseph Potocny - Living With Alzheimers - What A Past 24 Hours

Eli - Almost Here - Jewels

Zorak163 - Grasshopper Ramblings - Create A Family

KBaggott - Babylune - Parenthood Can Be Danerous

Thomas Karkalas - MODUS VIDENDI - we are of the opinion that...

Crystal - Two Moms In A Blog - 13 Things I Have Learned As A Parent/Wife

Gtargirl - If Mom Had A Blog In 1942 - War Comes Home


JHSEsq. - Colloquium - Thirteen Reasons Why I Wish You Could Have Known My Father


Naomi - Diary from England - BRITISH FAMILY LIFE IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Michelle - Scribbit - Shark or Squid?

Linda - Are We There Yet? - "Every man is a quotation from all his ancestors" - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tonya - There Is A Season - Selflessness

Carla - Self Esteem Awareness Blog - Emotional Abuse and low self-esteem

Edith OSB - Monastic Musings - The Media-A Third Parent?

Maggie - Ramblings of Maggie - Dear Aunt Irma

JBruno - The Voltage Gate - The Mystery of the Red Panda, Ailurus fulgens

Jan - The Poodle And Dog Blog - Police Dog Mothers Tiger Cubs

Kerry - West Coast Women - Second Guessing Ourselves

Marsha - Family Adentures - Baby Elephant

Old Lady - Eclectic Tales - Grandmama's Muumuus

James - Points of Light - Convergence

Sheila - Alabama Kitchen Sink - Today Is A New Day

JAM - Least Significant Bits - Starting School

Dr. Richard P. Mungo - Teeth Care, Healthy Food and Dental Tourism - Saving Childhood Oral Health



Thank You to all who participated.

Registration is open now for our next event.

A Strategic Alliance invites you to join our new link exchange program; it's all about mutual benefit. We're posting and adding new links tomorrow.

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE?

Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

BLOG VILLAGE was established on May 23, 2006, currently with a membership of 259 Villager blogs.

THURSDAY is DEADLINE for BLOG VILLAGE Family Blog Carnival Entries!!

Just a quick reminder that time is almost up to enter our BLOG VILLAGE Family Blog Carnival!


Carnival entries may be submitted NOW.

DEADLINE for entries

THIS THURSDAY, Jan. 25th, at 11:59PM EST.

For complete details


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE?

Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

BLOG VILLAGE was established on May 23, 2006, currently with a membership of 258 Villager blogs.

Carver (Just a Redneck Hanging Out With Jesus) - Our Featured Villager

Interview with Matthew Carver, author of Just a Redneck Hanging Out With Jesus.

The Gatekeeper: Well, my friend, what is it we can call you--Pastor Matt, Mr. Redneck or should we stick to JARHOWJ?

I don’t really care, just not Rev. There is nothing reverend about me. Just call me Carver.

The Gatekeeper: I like your definition of a “Redneck.” Care to share? And where do you hang with your family (where do you live?), and what do you do?


Carver: Carver’s definition for Redneck: someone that won’t mold into something man says he or she should be. Someone that is who they are and proud of where they come from and doesn’t care what others think about them. I have heard Rednecks are only in the south, but I’ve seen Rednecks everywhere I’ve ever been.

I was born in Maggie Valley, N.C. I followed a little blond to Canton, N.C. and stayed. I have two children, both girls. The oldest is learning to drive. I told her she couldn’t get her license until she learned to drive a straight — she’s learning in the Jeep.

I am in the ministry full time, employed part time, but that’s God business. I help my father in the restaurant businesses in the summer time. My heart is in ministry. The restaurant is in my blood.


The Gatekeeper: When did you start blogging and why? What is it you blog about, how many blogs do you author, and do you read other blogs? And, by the way, how often do you usually post? Sorry, that’s a long string of questions!


Carver: I started March of last year (I think.) It is a God thing; I don’t type fast or think fast so it’s led by God. I led a spiritual gifts class last year. and one of God’s students found one of their spiritual gifts was computers. She has built us a web page (she has never had a computer class in her life), and suggested we have blog pages to let people know who we were and what we were about.

The other two pastors have blogs and have named them also. It just seemed natural to name mine Redneck. Then I remembered wanting to name a group of young men (in another church I went too) Rednecks for Jesus. It didn’t go well there, but some people are paralyzed by the fear of man. I thought if this was going to be my blog, I could name it whatever God would give me a peace with. Here we are Just a Redneck hangin’ out with Jesus.

I post what ever God lays on my heart. I want people to know they can be who they are and be effective in spreading God's word. They don’t have to fit man’s mold - they have to fit God's plan. I want everyone to understand God changes and molds man (people). Man doesn’t mold man. Conviction comes from God, and forgiveness comes from God.

Sometimes I read other blogs. It all depends on the time I have.
I have no other blogs, I have a hard enough time with one, and I don’t multitask. I don’t think it’s in a man’s DNA.

Posting is sporadic, time and leading of the Holy Spirit sets what people read (Mostly). I do blog from my human side, sometimes.


The Gatekeeper: Why did you decide to join Blog Village and how did you stumble across us?

Carver: I was invited by someone that had read my blog; I can’t remember who. I’ve slept since then.


The Gatekeeper: One more question: Who from Blog Village would you like to see interviewed next? Brave enough to tell us why?


Carver: Another Christian blog that is out of the box, that goes against religion, and spreads the word that Jesus loves people and salvation has nothing to do with mans’ works. Brave or stupid; I don’t care what people call me! I’ll have to stand before God one day and give an account on whether I led people into the presence of Jesus or ran them away. Religion doesn’t lead people anywhere but in circles. I ain’t got time to lead people in circles. (Unless it’s on a track and I’m behind the wheel. Ha, Ha)


The Gatekeeper: Carver is a pastor who loves NASCAR and drives a Jeep. You’ve got to love that. He’s for real, I dare say, and his blog is not only fun to read, but is also very inspiring. He’s never short on wisdom either. Go ahead and ask him anything about spiritual matters - he won’t pull any punches. You’ll get the truth! So go ahead and leave a comment at JARHOWJ. You’ll be welcomed.


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE?

Start HERE.

If you are interested in being the Featured Villager on our BLOG VILLAGE News blog, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

BLOG VILLAGE was established on May 23, 2006, currently with a membership of 252 Villager blogs.

Don't Panic! It's Time to Reset the Votes to Zero!!

If you're new to BLOG VILLAGE, or to TopLists in general, you may be surprised when you take a look at our TopList tonight. Except for the Villagers who have votes since 5:01PM, all of the Villagers are back to zero. This happens each month. If you want to know when it will happen for next month, take a look at the very bottom of one of the BV pages. (You'll see the date and time of the next re-set is on Feb. 14th at 5:01PM PST.)

You will also find a link to this News blog at the bottom, and there's always a link to the newest Featured Villager after the #10 blog.


If you are interested in being Featured, please contact Janey Loree, Kilroy, or the Gatekeeper, the members of our Village Interview Team.

Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE?

Start HERE.

BLOG VILLAGE was established on May 23, 2006, currently with a membership of 252 Villager blogs.

Derek Jones - Our Featured BLOG VILLAGER

Janey Loree: "Who is Derek Jones? Tell us more about Art by Derek Jones!"

DEREK JONES: "I am a professional artist living in the Scottish Borders - though I am English and have only been here for about 22 years so I am still an incomer(!) My main interest is figure drawing and painting using local amateur models. I show my figure work as far apart as Edinburgh and London and in the past in Amsterdam. I live near a working harbour and if not working with models I enjoy doing paintings of boats etc .... the colour and mess of a working harbour appeals to me - probably reminds me of my studio.

I am fascinated by techniques and at the moment am exploring the use of combining a pastel underpainting with acrylic to finish off. I am a traditional printmaker using etching, aquatint and mezzotint whereas with my figure work I am more experimental combining a mix of pastel, charcoal, collage, type, acrylic etc etc."

Janey Loree: "What prompted you to start blogging in the first place?"

DEREK JONES: "I started blogging because I am a bit of a hermit and it seemed a good way to communicate (though I don't use many words in mine!) and blogs seemed more dynamic than traditional websites."

Janey Loree: "When do you do your blog reading?"

DEREK JONES: "I have no set routine - I usually dip into various lists of blogs to see what turns up - but my interest is usually in blogs by visual artists of one kind or another."

Janey Loree: "Where did you hear about BLOG VILLAGE?"

DEREK JONES: "I noticed the Blog Village link on several blogs I had looked at and took it from there."

Janey Loree: "Why do you blog? Is your blog personal, business, etc?"

DEREK JONES: "I use the blog to keep folks in touch with my current work - if a gallery or individual shows some interest I ask them to have a look at the blog - I belong to some online gallery websites (such as this one which DOES INCLUDE NUDES so if that might offend don't look!)

http://www.untitled-gallery.co.uk/index.php?cPath=24_254 but the blog shows what is going on now."

Janey Loree: "How often do you post and how many blogs do you maintain?"

DEREK JONES: "I have only one blog - http://derekjonesart.blogspot.com/. There are lots of blogs of artists showing a new painting everyday and that interested me but I do try to show a new image as they are finished - sometimes daily sometimes every few days."



Janey Loree: Derek Jones may be well known as a figure painter, however his commissioned "Boat" pieces are my favorites. With the six pieces that he shares with us, starting with "small it is !" and working through to his latest "high and dry", Derek has captured the ambience of these little boats located in the local harbours in the Scottish Borders of Great Britain! I invite you to watch Derek's blog for the next painting in a "series of faces" that he will be showing in 2007.

As fellow BLOG VILLAGER red dirt girl has already stated, "…..your work is beautiful! hazy, evocative..like re-living a dream......"

Art by Derek Jones is well worth the visit!


Interested in joining BLOG VILLAGE?

Start HERE.

BLOG VILLAGE was established on May 23, 2006, currently with a membership of 249 Villager blogs.

Meet Our Featured Villager - BILL of NEW ENGLAND PHOTOS

Janey Loree, who has several blogs on BLOG VILLAGE, including Paper Doll Cut Outs and Mustang 'n' Cowboys, volunteered to interview her fellow Villagers for me, and I jumped at the chance to have her do it. So here's her first interview.

Good Morning Bill and Wendy,

In an effort to let the VILLAGE Community know more about you and why you blog, please answer the following questions:

1. Who is New England Photos? Tell us more about you!

2. What prompted you to start blogging in the first place?

3. When do you do your blog reading?

4. Where did you hear about BLOG VILLAGE?

5. Why do you blog? Is your blog personal, business, etc?

6. How often do you post and how many blogs do you maintain? (add a plug for your website here!)

7. Bonus Question: Which BLOG VILLAGER would you recommend for the next interview?

Thank you for taking some of your precious time to let the BLOG VILLAGE Community know more about NEW ENGLAND PHOTOS!!!

Bill wrote:

“Who am I? I am a fifty year old New Englander from Granville, MA. My hobby before photography was restoring 18th century homes. Over the last 20 years or so we restored six homes, mostly in Litchfield County Connecticut.

A few years ago I had an internet provider that offered a free website; I thought “Why not start a blog”, so I put down some of my thoughts on the site. I decided that really was not me, so I decided to join Blogger and create a photo blog. I decided to show photos of New England, some historical, some scenic, some bizarre, some just real life, hopefully all interesting. The area is beautiful and I like to show it off.

I always have my camera at the ready; it travels with me everywhere I go. The few times I have been without it, I have been sorry due to missing some great photos; like that time a moose was just standing twenty feet from the road. I snap photos everywhere I go and then research most of them. I amaze myself with the amount of history that is all around New England, things that I have never even heard of.

I really like to hear from people that have moved away from New England and come to my blog to visit back home again. One woman who is in the Peace Corp. in Bulgaria wrote me that she liked visiting my site for just that reason. What I really would like is to hear from someone who used my photos and description in a class assignment or a teacher sending their students to the blog to see what the first Law School in America looked like, or something like that.

http://newenglandphotos.blogspot.com is my only blog and it keeps me busy. I post every day; in fact, I have over 1000 photos posted on my blog right now. Keeping this blog also keeps me visiting places all over New England and is making me more observant; I notice a lot more of my surroundings.

I get up early in the morning and surf through blogs while eating breakfast, I do my posting in the early evening so I don’t miss a day. I often think about putting my blog in a different format since I notice that people search for things on my blog and don’t seem to stay long enough to even find what they are looking for. I will have to work on that.

One day I got an e-mail from Rosemary inviting me to join Blog Village and here I am.

So stop in and stay awhile and see what my New England is like.

Bill Owens

New England Photos



Janey Loree adds:

Just as the name implies, New England Photos, is a photo blog filled with pictures and researched facts that give an excellent insight into New England History. Joining BLOG VILLAGE in early September of this year, New England Photos is currently in the Top 20.

With comments such as “I love your phot