Indulge me in a little linky celebrating. This is the 200th post on Sacraparental, and I’m sitting in Bristol feeling pretty good about that.
Thank you, all. A gaggle of guest writers, a civility of commenters and a quietness of readers (like my collective nouns?) combine to make a welcoming lounge conversation. If you’re a non-talking-reader, do feel free to pipe up and metamorphose into a commenter at any time, though!
As well as an updated top ten, listing the posts that have had the most page-views, I thought I’d also invite you to supply some top five or tens of your own.
You can do whatever you want, but as a starting suggestion, how about you give us your top five blog posts, either from here or all over the interweb? Or top five YouTube clips. Or top five things you’ve learnt about parenting/yourself/God/lacrosse/Bolivia…
Or just one or two would be fine. What are your favourite things that we should know about?
So to start with, here’s a Top Ten snapshot – some of my current, regular favourites from around the internet that you might like:
1. The Guardian Books podcast, available free on iTunes or from the Guardian books site. Well produced, thoughtful content, great guests – remembering that when it comes to journalism and speed-dating, ‘books’ is really code for ‘interesting ideas and people.’
2. The Big Picture, a photojournalism blog that collects astonishing photography from the world’s newspapers a few times a week, on a theme. Often very moving.
An Afghan refugee family gets into a truck at a UNHCR camp in Kabul (Shah Marai/AFP/Getty Images). See more images marking World Refugee Day at The Big Picture.
3. Lulastic and the Hippy Shake: if you haven’t checked out Lucy’s collection of activism, gentle parenting, craft, thrift and hilarity, do so now.
4. Public Address is my go-to New Zealand (and international) news commentary site, a community of blogs shepherded by Russell Brown, who writes on politics, media, education, music and more in a tone that is a mix of expert, measured and hipster.
Keith Ng broke the Work and Income public kiosk fiasco in his PA blog, and Jolisa Gracewood covered her exposure of Witi Ihimaera’s foray into plagiarism on hers, and also has brilliant and personal analysis of the harm of national standards testing and league tables.
5. I get my United Kingdom news from a combination of the Guardian and the Friday Night Comedy Podcast from BBC Radio 4. Don’t do one without the other.
6. My favourite unschooling blogging is by ‘Jane’ at both Nothing By The Book (where you will literally laugh out loud) and Undogmatic Unschoolers (where you can see unschooling in action, with links and resources).
7. My favourite hippie food blogger is Heidi at 101 Cookbooks, home of the famous Nikki’s Cookies, among other things.
A Nikki’s cookie, photographed by Heidi herself at 101 Cookbooks. They and she are amazing.
8. Scot McKnight is that rare combination of world expert and accessible generalist. He’s a leading scholar in New Testament studies, and a prolific, accessible, thoughtful and wide-ranging blogger.
Thanks to Kent’s tip all those years ago, I read blogs through Google Reader (until it is scheduled to stop running next month, dammit) and frequently unsubscribe from blogs that don’t keep my interest. JesusCreed is the blog I have subscribed to for the longest – about eight years, I think. One key to its longevity and popularity is Scot’s focus and insistence on civility in debate – something that is also sadly rare in the American Christian blog scene.
9. blue milk is an Australian writer who blogs mostly about feminist motherhood and related ideas. Incisive, blunt, supersmart, funny and honest. Start with the list of most popular posts on the right-hand sidebar.
10. I took up Pinterest this time last year and it has changed my life. Really. I find it a really useful way to organise my thoughts and arrange ideas.
My own Pinterest boards are here if you’re interested. The domestic genius board in particular has helped me simplify and organise our home hugely, with the pleasing result that I have to tidy less frequently!
And the easy toddler fun board (criteria: maximum organisation time five minutes, supplies from the supermarket or a two-block radius from the house) has been fabulous for inspiring our regular Monday Fundays with Angela, Reuben and Esther. Well, really, me and Reuben while the toddlers pootle around and Angela cleans 🙂
Our first Monday Funday, introducing all three kids to the joys of pipe cleaners, thanks to Pinspiration. Making letters was Reuben’s idea, I think. Brilliant!
Now back to me :). Here are the Top Ten Most Read Posts on Sacraparental since the beginning (and yes, I think All Those Capitals are necessary, don’t you?):
1. How It Is #1, the start of my story of postnatal depression.
2. How It Is #2
3. I Am Brilliant and Amazing (and so are you, probably – please add your statement of fabulousness in the comments.)
4. The Mysterious Marcus Mumford (because lots of people google him. Not sure if that makes him more or less mysterious.)
5. Four Things I Don’t Have Time For
6. Would You Buy a Suit from this Man?
7. Single #1
8. Education and Schooling #6: This is Unschooling
9: Making Parenting Easier: This Tip Will Change Your Life (please add your life-changing tips.)
10. New Year’s Guide to Sneaky English
Again, I’ll be keen to hear if you have a different fave, and I’m always keen to hear of other things we could chat about here.
Thanks again for reading and writing here. I do love it.