Today I'd like to talk about blogging in general, and to highlight three blogs that are are on my blogroll.

I'm in my fifth month of this now, blogging, that is, and I've got to say it's harder than I thought it would be. Not so much the actual writing, I've been doing that off and on for a long time, but the constant tinkering, the thought that goes in to coming up with new material on a daily basis and the search for appropriate images to go with each piece.

For that is the deal I made with myself when I started this blog. That I would write a new piece for each day of the year, alternating stories with articles. The stories come rather easily to me. Too easily, I suppose some would say. I've always been blessed with a bottomless imagination. The thing that amazes me the most is where the inspiration for the stories comes from. It comes from nearly every aspect of my life. Lately ideas have been coming to me in my dreams, of all things. The story I wrote awhile back titled The Hunter And The Hunted actually came to me as I was sitting at the computer waiting for inspiration to strike. I went in the other room to draw the blinds and a huge, horrendous spider fell out of them. Presto, story idea. Manna from heaven, if you will.

The articles are another matter entirely. I find it more difficult to come up with those, especially when news is slow. Not that I write about the burning topics of the day very often, but such are always a good fall-back position when nothing else comes to me.

This whole blogging thing is generally satisfying to me, but I do find myself wondering sometimes when I don't get much feedback what I'm really doing. I didn't start all this to get an audience, it was more about forcing myself to be disciplined about writing, and for that it's been great. I write everyday, which is what I wanted to do, so in that sense it's been good for me.

I guess all I really want to say about blogging right now is that it's been rewarding, and I fully plan to continue, and thank you to all of you who take time out of your busy day to read my scratchings. I really do appreciate it.

Now, all that said, I want to draw attention to three other blogs. I've chosen them not only because they're all outstanding blogs, but also because each of these writers has a very unique style and a gift that I'm very happy they've chosen to share with the world.

The first is Titirangi Storyteller. Veronica is a very gifted writer with a warm and wonderful sense of humor and an amazing insight into the workings of the human mind. I've read quite a bit of her fiction, and hers is a unique voice, utterly unlike anyone else I've ever read. Always a delight, and if you take the time to go through the stories she's generously offered on her site I'm sure you'll find something you'll be glad you came across. See for yourself.

The second is Live Write Dream. Lou is a breath of fresh air. She writes mostly about her life, and she does it very admirably. She shares without dragging you through the minutiae that so often infects personal experience based blogs and renders them tedious. Her writing is clean and fresh and she's honed her skills well. She will hold your attention and leave you wanting more, and that is what a great does. Live Write Dream. Check it out.

The third is the aptly titled The Den Of Psychosis. I love this guy! I have no idea who he is, he keeps his identity to himself, and that's fine. I just love his style and his sense of humor. He tackles every topic under the sun, and he does it with style and wit that you will find nowhere else in the blogosphere. Well, I haven't anyway, and that's fine with me, this guy is a one-man band. Offbeat humor, wry observations on the human condition, and all the strangeness you can handle. If you like taking a walk on the wild side do yourself a favor and go visit The Den Of Psychosis. I personally make a habit of it.

I have avoided writing a piece about Alphainventions up to now for a number of reasons. As a former programmer I can see that the site is in danger of crashing, which it has on a couple of occasions already, and I didn't want to be yet another of the thousands of people promoting it and thereby adding to the problem, but i've had a few conversations with Cheru Jackson and I feel he's on top of things, so here goes.

First, a big thank you to mister Jackson for creating the program. I know it took several months, and i'm sure there a log of bugs that had to be worked out. I know the work that goes in to programs like this having written a few myself, so I truly appreciate the effort.

Most of you reading this are probably users of Alphainventions yourself, so I won't bother talking about how it works. For those of you who don't know, I recommend going to Alphainventions.com and seeing for yourself. I've been using it for going on four months now, and I suppose the main thing it's given me, beside thousands of hits a day in traffic, is a much better sense of what's out there in the blogosphere.

There is such an incredible range of stuff to investigate, and I want to give a big hand to everyone who puts in the effort to share with the rest of us. I've encountered many wonderful blogs, several of which I follow on a daily basis. It's no mean feat coming up with new material on a daily basis. Those of us who do, and truly have something to say will understand.

I know many people you meet in your day-to-day life are unimpressed with blogging. There is a range of attitude towards the act, and some people are downright hostile to the idea. I find that those people are generally the ones who have never actually seen a blog and form their opinion based on what they've heard from others, or simply due to not having anything they think is worth sharing themselves. I feel sorry for them; I think they're selling themselves short.

I'm sure there are many, many reasons why people actually blog. For me, it was a way to keep myself writing, which i've been doing most of my life, but tended to get lazy about. Since starting my blog on January 1st. I haven't missed a single day of writing, and i'm on my way to becoming a photojournalist, inspired by the multitude of positive feedback i've received on both my writing and photography.

Getting back to Alphainventions, I have to say i'm mystified by the inclusion of categories. I use the ones relevant to my subject of the day, but I haven't seen any change in my numbers since this was instituted, nor do I notice any change in the traffic that scrolls past each hour.

Speaking of that traffic, what I have noticed is the huge jump in the gigabytes I now use, according to my server. I've had to pay an increase in my monthly fee because of it, but i'm loving the returns I get, so I don't really mind. I do turn it off now when i'm away to try to keep it down.

I'd love to hear from you bloggers about your experience with Alpha, i've read some pieces about it that were rather strange, people calling it a scam, people saying that their traffic only increases when the use it, but falls back when the don't. Folks, if you're not seeing a rise in your return visitors, Alpha is not to blame. I'd be thinking seriously about my content and what i'm offering if that were to happen to me, which fortunately it doesn't. Don't point the finger at Cheru, he's done an amazing job and well deserves the kudos he gets regularly.

So, yes, Alphainventions. A bloggers best friend. Thank you Cheru Jackson.