Bookmarked
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A couple of years ago, I had a few days off from work and was mindlessly scrolling through Facebook while it snowed outside my window. As much as I love social media, it tends to drain me if I'm on for too long. Raise your hand if you understand (I see that hand!)
But Facebook can be fun because of the magical discoveries that occur while clicking around random links you find on other people's profiles. On this day that happened magic happened and I discovered blogs. Unlike social media, I found that reading these blogs didn't drain me. If anything, I logged off feeling more inspired, which is something we foten look for online, but rarely end up finding.
Social media is cool, but I think blogs are what keep the Web social. Specifically, blogs that are written by one person (with a cohesive vision) are what keep things truly friendly and sociable online. While social media allows us to comment on events in people's lives, I don't think they create the dynamic that blogs create through their interaction. Consistently updated sites create a rapport between reader and writer and it's that connection that will keep blogs popular for many years to come.
The Web is only going to get bigger and more crowded and we need people - faces with personality and heart - to remind us that this digital world is full of real people who live lives offline and have trouble with their Wifi connections just like the rest of us.
If you've looked around the site a little bit, you'll notice on the right is a list of blogs that I enjoy reading. I don't read tons , but I'm very loyal to a select few. Here's what a few of them are about (p.s. you can visit each site by clicking on their names.)
1. Pleasant St. is one of my favorites blogs at the moment. It's written by a local gal here in Des Moines and is a really chill read. I usually read it on my break at work and I always log off feeling proud to live in Des Moines and wishing I could travel more (she travels a lot.)
2. Estorie is run by a local photographer (Liz - who does the majority of the photography for this site) who has a real passion for mixing photography with stories. It's very literary! I always enjoy reading her thoughts on creativity and dreaming. Her Instagram accounts is one of my favorites, too.
3. Stay Classic is a menswear blog that I've followed on-and-off the last year. The dude has killer style and often sells some of his stuff via his site. He also shops at J.Crew Factory a lot which I enjoy because they have decent sales.
5. Designlovefest isn't on my sites blogroll, but I do check in every week. The site is really colorful (almost too much sometimes) and I think her brand is very defined. She also partners with a lot of brands (like Target!) and it's cool seeing someone reach that level of success because of a site. It gives me hope!
6. Love Taza is probably the happiest site on the entire Internet. Honestly, this family seems beyond perfect - their travels, their apartment, their teeth - it's all so perfect looking. I admire it, though, because there are posts about difficult times and posts about the highs and the lows. So even though I know things aren't perfect (and they never claim to be) it's nice following them around because it feels real. They're the Internet's First Family.
