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Hiatus
2007-12-11 21:29:00
As you've likely surmised, Rate My Blog is on indefinite hiatus. Though I've had a great time discovering new blogs and sharing my thoughts on them, I simply do not have the time to pursue this venture right now. I'm not going to say that I'm ready to completely pull the plug just yet, however, because I do feel that I was on to something with my reviews and that this blog has merit.For the time being, please understand that any submissions sent to me will not be reviewed (or if they are, it will be in the distant future). Thanks for your support of Rate My Blog, and perhaps I'll see you soon.
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Altjiranga Mitjina
2007-07-23 18:34:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT ALTJIRANGA MITJINA!THE GIST: Altjiranga Mitjina is a personal blog written by JohnH985. The topics are so varied that it is hard to surmise an exact Gist, but some recurring themes are books, music, and comics. In the author's words, this blog can be described as: "My so called writing career. Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Buffy the Wonder Dog. Music. Pictures. Shannon McNally. Family Life. Television Shows. Quizzes. Books. Comic Books. Will Hoge. Concerts. All this and more in a blog with a name that will have you wondering what it means or at least how to pronounce it. My life and welcome to it."THE GOODS: Nice custom page header. Well-chosen color scheme. Updated often (perhaps too often?)THE BADS: Content is all over the place. Sidebar is very distracting and large. Extensive use of graphics leads to jerky navigation and slow load times.ME THINKS: If Altjiranga Mitjina has succeeded in doing one thing well, it has succeeded in thoroughly and utterly confusing...

Free Stuff Finder
2007-07-18 18:49:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT FREE STUFF FINDER!THE GIST: Free Stuff Finder is a guide to receiving free things on the internet. It offers links to sites giving away freebies, as well as coupons for discounts on products.THE GOODS: Items are categorized so you can find what you're looking for. Explains in detail how to get each freebie if additional information is required. Nice video introduction to the blog.THE BADS: Quite a few ads (though they're not intrusive.)ME THINKS: Free Stuff Finder, in my opinion, is a great idea for a blog. In the past, I've tried to take advantage of many online freebie offers only to find my computer has been loaded with toolbars I didn't authorize and I never receive the product. This blog attempts to bring to light some of the best freebies, coupons and deals on the internet right now so that you don't have to go searching for them yourself.The first thing you should check out is the video introduction to this blog. The author does a nice job of explaini...

My Fairbanks Life
2007-07-14 22:27:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT MY FAIRBANKS LIFE!THE GIST: My Fairbanks Life is a personal blog written by Theresa Bakker, a stay-at-home mom and freelance writer from Fairbanks, Alaska. Much of this blog is written about nature and the wonderful wildlife/scenery in Alaska. The writer also discusses books that she enjoys, family, and other random topics.THE GOODS: Excellent quality writing with an overall inspirational tone. Many nice photographs accompany posts.THE BADS: Those uninterested in nature may not enjoy the subject material. Writing style may be more complex than most blogs.ME THINKS: I've never been to Alaska, but now that I've discovered My Fairbanks Life...gosh do I want to! Theresa Bakker, author of this blog, paints a picture of Alaska with her words that could honestly make anyone (even someone like me who gets outside probably 10 minutes total each week) want to hop on a plane and discover the beauty that Alaska has to offer. From simple topics like native flowers to more a...

All About Cairo, Egypt
2007-07-12 19:39:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT ALL ABOUT CAIRO, EGYPT!THE GIST: This blog is, you guessed it, all about Cairo , Egypt . The writer discusses the negative and positive aspects of everyday life in Cairo. Also written about is the impact of religion, customs, and tradition on the people of Cairo. It is a personal blog, but also contains essays with sources cited and opinions on current events.THE GOODS: Posts are very well-written and insightful. Layout is easy to navigate.THE BADS: Blog is quite new (4 months of content.) Posts may be too lengthy for those with short attention spans. If you don't care about Egypt, you probably won't care about this blog.ME THINKS: Being the ignorant American that I am, I really only think of a few things when someone says the word Egypt: King Tut, tombs, sand and pyramids. All About Cairo, Egypt sets out to prove that there is much more to life in Cairo than what the tourist agencies present.The main writer of this blog is Lady, though several posts are written ...

An Appreciation of Time...
2007-07-06 19:00:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT AN APPRECIATION OF TIME...THE GIST: An Appreciation of Time is a personal blog written by an engineer from Malaysia. The primary focus of this blog is time management, and techniques for improving it to benefit your personal life. Also discussed are issues such as stress, family and prioritizing.THE GOODS: Blog is written with a positive, introspective tone. Topics are discussed thoughtfully and honestly.THE BADS: Minor punctuation issues. Blog does require a fairly good attention span, as posts are somewhat involved.ME THINKS: "Life is like a business where the time allocated to us is the capital." This quote taken from the introduction pretty much sums up what An Appreciation of Time is all about. As the writer (Zunnur) so honestly points out, many of us in today's work-oriented culture take for granted the time we have to enjoy ourselves. This blog attempts to offer solutions to help us manage our time better, so we don't miss out on the little things in lif...
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Weather Musings
2007-07-02 19:15:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT WEATHER MUSINGS!THE GIST: This is a blog about all aspects of weather. It explains common weather terminology in layman's terms, and discusses current weather trends. The blog does not focus on one specific location, but rather weather throughout the world.THE GOODS: Layout is fairly easy to navigate. Helps make sense of confusing weather terms. Lots of information about current weather events.THE BADS: Spelling is not so hot. Blog posts are written in all caps, which is quite distracting. Some topics may be too complex for people not inclined to enjoy science.ME THINKS: If there is one thing we all have to talk about in this world, it's the weather. From making a doctor's office visit more comfortable to making conversation with an old acquaintance, it's the one topic we can all rely on. As you can certainly imagine, there is much more to the weather than casual observations. Weather Musings attempts to take weather to another level, talking about the scienc...
More About: Sings

Polliwog's Pond
2007-06-25 18:44:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT POLLIWOG'S POND!THE GIST: Polli wog's Pond is a personal blog written by a mother of six who lives on an island off of Washington state. The writer mostly discusses what goes on in her daily life. She also talks about interesting links she has found on the internet, blogging, and a myriad of other topics. Another feature is "Saturday Stuff", a weekly post recapping anything of interest to the writer throughout the last week.THE GOODS: Layout is absolutely gorgeous. Writer updates frequently with an overall positive tone to her writing.THE BADS: Some posts may be a bit boring to those outside of the writer's demographic. Some may be turned off by the large amount of networking the writer does.ME THINKS: First and foremost, Polliwog's Pond is an absolutely gorgeous blog. The writer(Polli) has proven that not only does she know her way around HTML, but she has also surrounded herself with some very talented friends. The header of her blog is something you'd expe...

Extra Ordinaire
2007-06-21 19:12:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT EXTRA ORDINAIRE!THE GIST: Extra Ordinaire is a personal blog written by a 13 year old boy from the Philippines. It discusses the writer's interests and opinions on a variety of topics from pop culture (movies, games, etc.) to technology. There is also information about the writer's recent move to the United States to attend school and his experiences with school.THE GOODS: Wide variety of content. Layout is easy to navigate.THE BADS: Many posts are not in English. Writer is very young which may be unappealing to older readers. Being a personal blog, it may not be interesting to casual browsers.ME THINKS: Upon first glance at Extra Ordinaire, my eyes were immediately drawn to the writer's "About Me" section on the right side of the page. Given the huge English vocabulary the writer (Czian) seems to possess, I found myself absolutely marveling that he is only 13 years old and has just finished the 7th grade! I consider myself to have been fairly intelligent when...

Correr Es Mi Destino
2007-06-17 03:01:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT CORRER ES MI DESTINO!THE GIST: Correr Es Mi Destino is a blog written by a recent immigrant to Ottawa, Canada. The writer talks of her experiences with the Canadian immigration process, the culture shock of living in a new country, and the everyday complications brought on by this. The writer also speaks of her extensive travel experiences all over the world. The majority of this blog is written in English, though a fair amount is in French and a few posts are even written in Mandarin.THE GOODS: Layout is pretty and easy to navigate. Lots of genuinely intriguing stories and content.THE BADS: A sizable number of posts are not in English. Language may occasionally be a bit harsh for some readers.ME THINKS: From the moment I laid eyes on this blog, I knew I was going to like it. After the American people elected George Bush again in the 2004 elections, I vowed I would be immigrating to Canada. Unfortunately for me this idea never came to fruition. For the writer of ...

Knotgypsy's Journey of Creation
2007-06-14 19:28:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT KNOTGYPSY'S JOURNAL OF CREATION!THE GIST: Knot gypsy's Journey of Creation is a blog about a woman and her love of beaded macrame jewelry. Included are photographs of her creations, and stories about the jewelry. She also has links to purchase her work. Occassionally, the writer posts about personal things unrelated to her macrame jewelry.THE GOODS: The writer creates beautiful jewelry, much of which you can purchase right from the page.THE BADS: This blog caters to a VERY small niche audience. Unless you are familiar with the writer or her work, there is very little reason you would probably visit.ME THINKS: I knew I would have to face writing difficult reviews when I started this blog, and this review is going to be a perfect example. Knotgypsy's Journey of Creation is not the kind of blog I can really expound on...I know nothing about beaded macrame jewelry. For that reason alone, I find it very difficult (if not impossible) to comment on the content factor ...
More About: Gypsy

The Guitar Resource
2007-06-12 20:03:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE GUITAR RESOURCE!THE GIST: The Guitar Resource is a blog all about, you guessed it, the guitar. The main focus is learning to play the guitar and resources for improving your play. Featured are tips and instructions on how to read tabs, ear training, learning chords, etc. There are also videos of some of the guitar greats like Jimi Hendrix showing their stuff. Another feature is the forum for people to discuss the blog or guitar playing.THE GOODS: Layout is impressively clean and easy to navigate. Information is presented simply yet thoroughly.THE BADS: Blog is fairly new (only 4 months of posts.) If you don't play guitar or want to play guitar, you probably won't care about this blog.ME THINKS: I must say--this blog is impressive. As someone who plays the guitar myself, this blog is a veritable wealth of information on the subject. From tips and tricks to improve your play, to the basics of how to start playing...it's all here. Also featured are cool, usef...
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Everybody Loves Free Stuff
2007-06-11 18:40:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT EVERYBODY LOVES FREE STUFF!THE GIST: Everybody Loves Free Stuff is a blog about promotional products and promotional marketing. It is the blog of a company called ePromos, which sells promotional products to companies (think those free pens and calculators you get from real estate agents.) This blog basically just showcases new trends in promotional product marketing, and gives people interested or involved in this field some ideas and tips.THE GOODS: Lots of information for people looking for ways to market their business. Simple layout that is fairly easy to navigate.THE BADS: Probably not too interesting to those outside of marketing. Blog is affiliated with a company that sells the products mentioned (may be a turn off to some.)ME THINKS: I must admit I was disappointed to realize that this blog wasn't going to be giving away anything free--it's just about promotional products businesses can purchase and give away to prospective clients. Despite this little...

The CDP
2007-06-10 23:55:00
CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE CDP!THE GIST: The CDP is, first and foremost, a personal blog. It features humorous essays encompassing every mundane aspect of daily life—trouble at work, first jobs, childhood, marriage…you name it, it’s probably been written about already. In addition to the plethora of personal essays, there is pop-culture abound on the CDP. Most notably, every Friday during the on-season of ABC’s hit show “Lost”, the CDP posts a segment called “Lost Friday” (referred to by many as “the funniest “Lost” recap on the web.) Also abundant on this blog is talk of music, TV, and movies (usually with a satirical, witty twist.)THE GOODS: The CDP features so many topics that there is probably something here for everyone. “Lost Friday” is also a great chance for people interested in the show to enjoy a fun discussion. Best of all, the quality of the writing is amazing.THE BADS: The CDP does feature a very distinct type of humor which may not sit well with ...

Expedited Reviews
2007-05-31 19:40:00
Due to the large volume of submissions, it may take upwards of several months to get to your submission. If you simply cannot wait that long, I am offering expedited reviews for a small fee. For a donation of just $5.00, I will move your blog to the head of the line. Paying the fee does not ensure that your blog will be deemed awesome, but it does ensure your blog will be reviewed quickly. Follow these steps to take advantage of this option:Click the button above and make a donation of $5.00 (or more if you're feeling ever-so-generous.) Once you've done this, email me your submission and mention that you've made a donation for an expedited review. I will then move your submission to the head of the queue. It's that simple!If you've already made a submission and are getting impatient waiting for a review, you can also make a $5.00 donation to convert your regular submission to an expedited submission. Just send me a follow-up email to let me know you've already made a submissio...
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Judging Criteria
2007-05-31 19:25:00
CONTENT- The main thing I'll be judging blogs on is the quality of their content. Blogs are meant to be a way for everyday people to show off their creativity and mad writing skillz, so I'll be holding this category in the highest esteem. Grammar, spelling, sentence structure...these will all be looked at.LAYOUT- I will definitely pay attention to the layout of your page, but it's not really as important to me as the content factor. Blogs are a fun way for folks not incredibly savvy in HTML to get their stuff out there, so I'm not going to hassle anyone for not going hog-wild on their template (I don't know the slightest thing about HTML, so I really don't expect you to.) If your page is full of misleading ads, broken links, and script errors...that's another story.UNIVERSAL INTEREST- Niche blogs are definitely accepted and encouraged, but your blog should still be interesting to casual browsers. If I can't just jump in and become engaged by your content...that's a problem....
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Submission Guidelines
2007-05-31 19:09:00
1. DO NOT SUBMIT ADULT SITES! I absolutely will not review them. If you even send me the link, rest assured I have a voodoo doll and a pin with your name on it. A little bad language and humor is okay, but I absolutely will not tolerate pornography. Sorry.2. SEND ME A PITCH! When you email me your URL, please provide me with a brief synopsis of your blog. How long has it been around? What do you mainly write about? What category would you consider your blog? etc. This will give me a good foundation for understanding what your blog is all about.3. ALL BLOGS MUST BE IN ENGLISH! I say this only because I can't review something that I can't read. Your blog might be good and lovely, but I simply won't review it if it isn't in English.4. USE GOOD GRAMMAR! If your blog is riddled with spelling errors and grammatical mishaps, chances are I will not review your blog. Or if I do, it will only be to make an example out of it.5. BE UNIVERSALLY INTERESTING! If your blog is simply a journal o...
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General Questions
2007-05-30 23:11:00
Q: What are you using to view my blog?A: A computer, silly. Okay, okay...I have a 20-inch iMac, and for my browser I use Firefox and Firefox alone. My Firefox browser is equipped with the AdBlock Plus add-on, so if you've got something dumb on your page like pop-ups or gratuitous advertising...I'm probably not going to see it (so if I think something looks halfway decent but someone using IE sees a bunch of ads and junk...that's why.) In all seriousness, I highly suggest you ditch IE or Netscape (god help you if you're still using it!) and get Firefox post haste. It really will make your browsing one heck of a lot better.Q: How are you qualified to review blogs and rate their awesomeness?A: Simply stated, I'm not. I'm just a 20-something girl with a fair amount of time on her hands.Q: Why would I want you to review my blog?A: For some honest feedback, and who knows, maybe a little recognition for your hard work? Oh, and link traffic too. That always helps.Q: Do I have to link ...
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