This year my search marketing firm, ComCorp, launched social media services. As a result, I resolved to finally start digging around on the Internet, exploring different blog types and personalities.

For years I’ve been completely avoiding entrance into the blogosphere. Why the hesitation?

I honestly expected it to be a community of whiny stay-at-home mommies that had fuck all to do with their time. Tell you the truth, though, was I completely mistaken. Not only did I find tons of interesting and cool peeps who blogged, but they in turn inspired me to start blogging on my own, just for kicks and giggles.

I know, I know – 180 degree turn in perspective… and I’m still recovering from whiplash. With that said, here are my top 7 blog finds of 2009:

1. The Bloggess

The lady who puts the f-bomb into it’s best use. Insanely funny and witty.

The Bloggess

2. Zen Habits

Getting back to the basics.  Simplify, simplify, simplify.  Just breathe. Just believe. (Like the Telepopmusik song – Breathe)

Zen Habits

3. Mashable!

The Ultimate Social Media Guide.  Stop, look no further.  They really do have it all here in terms of social media.

Mashable

4. Gwen Bell

Damn, this girl has style and some kick-ass mojo. A personal blog that touches on the many things in life.

Gwen Bell

5. Lifehacker

Efficiency at it’s finest. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line — lifehacker is the map.

Lifehacker

6. Whiskey in My Sippy Cup

Raw. Honest. And Real. Gotta Love it!

Whiskey in my Sippy Cup

7. Huffington Post

Finally, a news outlet in the USA that’s worth your time. (Travel abroad and you’ll see how censored our news is in the US).

Huffington Post

What is your best blog find of 2009? What deserving blogs did I leave off the list? Feel free to add yours in the comments section below.

Enjoy!

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Please note:  The Best of 2009 Blog Challenge is created and inspired by Gwen Bell. This post is a syndication of the blog challenge and rules. (Thanks Gwen!)

What is the challenge?

A look back on your year. A time for reflection. A chance to make new friends.

How to participate in 5 simple steps:

1. Write on one or all thirty-one of the prompts for the month of December

2. A post can be a sentence, photo or 3,000 word essay

3. Link up your blog or Twitter account if you’re going to tweet your bests, on the list below (add your name to the bottom where it says: You are next…CLICK HERE to enter your link)

4. Tag your posts and photos #best09. (These are the posts I’ve read so far, saved on Delicious daily.)

5. Share your best moments of 2009 over the course of December. Don’t get hung up on details or length – if there’s an aspect of the question that doesn’t resonate, change it to meet your needs.

(Read the Q&A for more.)

The Best of 2009 Blog Challenge

The #best09 Prompts

December 1 Trip. What was your best trip in 2009?(+ giveaway)

December 2 Restaurant moment. Share the best restaurant experience you had this year. Who was there? What made it amazing? What taste stands out in your mind?

December 3 Article. What’s an article that you read that blew you away? That you shared with all your friends. That you Delicious’d and reference throughout the year.

December 4 Book. What book – fiction or non – touched you? Where were you when you read it? Have you bought and given away multiple copies? (+ giveaway)

December 5 Night out. Did you have a night out with friends or a loved one that rocked your world? Who was there? What was the highlight of the night?

December 6 Workshop or conference. Was there a conference or workshop you attended that was especially beneficial? Where was it? What did you learn?

December 7 Blog find of the year. That gem of a blog you can’t believe you didn’t know about until this year.

December 8 Moment of peace. An hour or a day or a week of solitude. What was the quality of your breath? The state of your mind? How did you get there?

December 9 Challenge. Something that really made you grow this year. That made you go to your edge and then some. What made it the best challenge of the year for you?

December 10 Album of the year. What’s rocking your world?

December 11 The best place. A coffee shop? A pub? A retreat center? A cubicle? A nook?

December 12 New food. You’re now in love with Lebanese food and you didn’t even know what it was in January of this year.

December 13 What’s the best change you made to the place you live?

December 14 Rush. When did you get your best rush of the year?

December 15 Best packaging. Did your headphones come in a sweet case? See a bottle of tea in another country that stood off the shelves?

December 16 Tea of the year. I can taste my favorite tea right now. What’s yours?

December 17 Word or phrase. A word that encapsulates your year. “2009 was _____.”

December 18 Shop. Online or offline, where did you spend most of your mad money this year?

December 19 Car ride. What did you see? How did it smell? Did you eat anything as you drove there? Who were you with?

December 20 New person. She came into your life and turned it upside down. He went out of his way to provide incredible customer service. Who is your unsung hero of 2009?

December 21 Project. What did you start this year that you’re proud of?

December 22 Startup. What’s a business that you found this year that you love? Who thought it up? What makes it special?

December 23 Web tool. It came into your work flow this year and now you couldn’t live without it. It has simplified or improved your online experience.

December 24 Learning experience. What was a lesson you learned this year that changed you?

December 25 Gift. What’s a gift you gave yourself this year that has kept on giving?

December 26 Insight or aha! moment. What was your epiphany of the year?

December 27 Social web moment. Did you meet someone you used to only know from her blog? Did you discover Twitter?

December 28 Stationery. When you touch the paper, your heart melts. The ink flows from the pen. What was your stationery find of the year?

December 29 Laugh. What was your biggest belly laugh of the year?

December 30 Ad. What advertisement made you think this year?

December 31 Resolution you wish you’d stuck with. (You know, there’s always next year…)

I rang in 2009 salsa dancing to live music by Quemando at the St. Julien in Boulder. This year has felt like a long, fierce, exhausting – and really a beautiful, if at times breathless, dance. It’s time to pause and reflect, isn’t it?

Remember to tag your posts and photos #best09 if you want to be discovered.

If you want to get automatic daily updates in December for this blog, subscribe now.

Share your Twitter name and/or blog below and find new friends with shared interests. When you post on one of the above topics, tag it #best09 on Twitter, Flickr, FB.

{A list for you to join, a pledge}

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