Blogroll Amnesty Day

Okay, okay, so I nicked the image from Don Durito over at Notes From Underground. At the time it seemed pretty fair because he'd nicked it from Skippy, who probably nicked it from . . . oh, who cares? The points are that it's a fitting tribute to a blogging legend that departed the blogosphere way too soon and that it's Blogroll Amnesty Day Week Month, once again.

Like Jon Swift (the blog), a.k.a. Al Weisel (the blogger), Frieddogleg (the blog) and Phil Hanson (the blogger) maintain a liberal linking policy; we (blog and blogger) will link to any* blog that links to us. All you have to do is ask. You have one month (more time if you need it). The clock is ticking.

*Porn sites, strictly commercial blogs, and Sarah Palin not so much.

[Update: If you're serious about gettin' some k linky love, leave a comment.]

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A Message Worth Repeating

Many thanks to mahakal, at Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, for posting this video. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t duplicate someone else’s efforts, but these are trying circumstances and perilous times, and the message contained therein is one that’s worth repeating, again and again, until the small-minded weasels who purport to be our leaders get a clue and actually lead instead of dictate.

See how simple life can be?

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The Sound of Music

It’s been an interesting couple of weeks in my sector of the blogiverse, with music and fiction taking up about equal amounts of my time. Because there’s sufficient material to warrant two blog posts, I’ll deal with the music aspect in this one, and begin work on the fiction part of it tomorrow.

When Just an Earth-bound Misfit posted a link to Susan Boyle’s video last Monday (see the heading And Now For Something Completely Different), I never dreamed I’d be devoting this blog post to music. But Susan’s singing is superb (her video was viewed more than 30 million times in less than a week). And inspirational. And I couldn’t let it go without expressing my admiration for her talent.

On 4/07, Tarleisio, blogging as MoltenmetalMama, posted The Rock’n’roll Redemption Infinite Playlist, Part One. On the 10^th, she posted Part Two. In her inimitable writing style, she reflects on enough heavy metal to start an industrial machine shop. If you’re a “metal” fan, you’ll find treasure trove enough to keep your blades rotating for a week. You’ll have to google each group to find the YouTube videos, but it’s a small price to pay for total eardrum destruction.

Badtux the Snarky Penguin has proof that music is a ghost that haunts the instrument and that only the adept can properly communicate with it. Sungha Jung, a young Korean boy and guitar virtuoso extraordinaire, does a lot of pickin’ and virtually no grinnin’ to prove he’s a serious musician who’s on familiar terms with the ghost. Scroll down the page (if you wait too long, you may have to backpedal a page or more) to find the two videos.

And I would be remiss not to mention Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, who posts a music video daily. His most recent offerings include “The Boss,” Sound Tribe Sector 9, and The Beatles. Gee, with this much music on tap, I sort of feel like singing.

If only I could.

B.A.D.! B.A.D.! B.A.M.!

It all started Sunday afternoon when I landed on Chuck for . . . to play a little catch-up. When I finished reading Chuck’s latest post, I could barely see the top of a graphic posted right below the heading Blogroll Amnesty Day, but it grabbed me, so I scrolled a little further down the page to see what it was all about. And before I realized that I was about to open a can of worms, I opened the can of worms.

Not long after, I arrived at Jon Swift, where I learned even more about Blogroll Amnesty Day and how bloggers use it to promote other blogs while promoting their own blogs in the process. From there I made my way to Skippy the bush kangaroo, where I let the ‘roo apply some polish to my newfound knowledge until I was convinced that that blog, too, should become a full-fledged member of my blogroll. And from there . . . well, that’s where the aforementioned can of worms comes in. But more about the worms in a minute.

As it turns out, promoting one’s blog the Blogroll Amnesty Day way is nothing more complicated than adopting a liberal blogroll policy; simply blogroll lots of B- and C-list blogs, and get them to blogroll yours in return. In other words, it’s all about exchanging links, much like knowledgeable Webmasters have done to promote their Web sites since the second Web site went online.

Although I think that Blogroll Amnesty Day (B.A.D) is a bit of a misnomer and that it should be renamed Blog Appreciation Day (also B.A.D.) to better describe what the event is about, I understand that it’s an event steeped in years (2) of tradition and that the founders may not be willing to let go of that.

From my standpoint, however, a simple name change may not be enough. Because I do everything slower these days (often, a single blink turns into a two-hour nap), an extended duration for the event would be most welcome, too. Perhaps we could call it Blog Appreciation Month (B.A.M.), instead. More time in which to get things done will give me more time in which to get things done. Or more time to procrastinate; I’ll be happy either way.

In the spirit of Blogroll Amnesty Day, I’m resigned to dedicating the entire month of Feb-roo-air-ee (as Hart Williams admonishes) to adding more blogs to Frieddogleg’s blogroll. I’ll be looking for and adding blogs and contacting those bloggers as time permits. And that brings me back to the subject of worms.

Oh, yes, about the worms. They’ve insinuated themselves into my daily routine, subverted most of my plans for the year, wormed their way into my heart, and generally become the most delightful nuisances I could ever imagine (but can’t imagine doing without). I’ve already introduced you to a few of those worms; I’ll introduce you to many more in the days to come.

And if you’re a blogger who has added this worm to your blogroll, let me know so I can return the favor. E-mail me at peteyATperfecttextDOTcom (mention “blogroll” in the subject line), or post the necessary information in a comment to the latest entry at Frieddogleg.

Don’t let your blog get left behind. Today is B.A.D., and a better day to begin an aggressive blog promotion campaign may or may not loom on the horizon. Don’t miss this opportunity for self-aggrandizement; get started now. You know you want to.