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This past weekend, Lijit was proud to be one of the sponsors for the ongoing Chicks Who Click conference series. San Jose, or to be more specific-downtown Palo Alto, was the setting for this installment of the (mostly) female gathering of those involved in social media and working in the tech industry.

There was a panel featuring Aubrey Sabala of Digg, Margaret Stewart of YouTube and Meagan Marks from Facebook. These three incredibly smart women talked about how they’ve trailblazed their way to fantastic careers by carving out roles for themselves that cater to their strengths. One of the key take-aways from this panel was the notion of “intelligent risk-taking” and that if an opportunity scares you, then it’s probably exactly what you need to be doing.

I spoke on a panel about being a woman involved with a tech startup. (There I am, in the middle, talking with my hands yet again.) Emily Olson of the delicious Foodzie and Suzanne Xie of the stylish Weardrobe joined me as we discussed the different challenges we’ve faced as being part of early-stage tech companies. Suzanne brought up the point that her background is in finance and coming from that kind of workplace, tech seems very open to women. Both Emily and I agreed that being female has helped with marketing our companies in both online and offline communities. A point that resonated with the audience is that if you’re going to have women users, it can be beneficial to have a female voice or face to assist with tech support or new customer outreach.

In case you haven’t experienced it, there really is a kind of magic that happens when you get a roomful of women (and a few men) together, talking about collaboration, connection and how tech can play an important part in building a business. Women of all ages shared stories of how they found jobs on Twitter, used Facebook to get the word out about their startup or formed relationships with major brands all because of their blog. It was an inspiring day, full of shared knowledge and newly-formed friendships. I’m grateful that Lijit was able to help make it happen.

Last month, we launched a contest to find a great Lijit story. We did so to hear what our publishers had to say about us. And it turns out…they have lots to say and many different ways of saying it. (Also? Some only entered to get a free shirt–which tells you a lot about our shirts!) From the humorous to the ethereal to the very concise, the contest entries really spanned the spectrum. After wading through all the posts and getting most of the company to weigh in, we are proud to announce that we have chosen a winner.

Before I announce that winner, some comments about the entry that was deemed most Lijit…

“Everyone loves a video…”

“How can you beat screencast explanations?”

“She rocked that shit.”

“With a name like Keller, how can it not be good?” (contributed by a certain someone named Keller in our office)

With much excitement and an imaginary drumroll, I present the winner of our Lijit storytelling contest…

Keller has put together a fantastic summary of our service, covering everything from the value she gets from using Lijit on her blog (and how we help her blog readers) to how you go about installing Lijit on your blog. She even went so far as to add video screencasts to her post.

You can read her Kindle-worthy post here and be sure to leave a congratulatory comment.

So, to Keller, we say thank you. You are the winner and your Kindle will be in the mail to you on Monday. Enjoy, thanks for using Lijit and know that you have our undying love. (As promised in the fine print of the contest specifics…)

Many thanks, also, to everyone that took the time to enter our contest. It’s publishers like y’all that make it fun to come to work. Your Lijit t-shirts will look great on you.

I love going to conferences and listening. There is always a lot of conversation going on, in sessions and hallways, and I enjoy just shutting up. With so many inspiring bloggers in one place, there is much to be learned. A big part of our culture at Lijit is to listen to what our users have to say and I was honored to do just that in Chicago at BlogHer.

On quite a few occasions at the conference, someone in a group would ask about Lijit and before I was able to answer, a blogger standing nearby would jump in to explain why they were using Lijit. It really is enough to make a girl’s heart flutter. To see the hard work and evangelism that everyone at our company does on a daily basis come to life? Totally awesome.

Here are just some of the Lijit publishers that I ran into, ran alongside, stalked silently, watched on panels, asked for feedback and perhaps even danced with:

A Simple Walk
Deb on the Rocks
Marketing Roadmaps
Surrender, Dorothy
This Mama Cooks!
Inherent Passion
PHAT Mommy
Roni’s Weigh
Crunchy Domestic Goddess
Craftastrophe
OutdoorDogs
Jessica Gottlieb
SecondHand Tryptophan
Queen of Spain
Immoral Matriarch
Average Jane
The Plus Size Mommy
temporarily me dot com
FunnyBusiness
Her Bad Mother
CityMama
Sparkplugging
Mindful Momma
Uncommon Misconception
Scheiss Weekly
Piper of Love
Adria Richards
Jory Des Jardins
Diary of a Crazed Mommy
Assertagirl
Suburban Turmoil
Green and Clean Mom
Blonde’s I-View
Gifted Travel
Cutie Booty Cakes
Velveteen Mind
Kaiser Mommy
califmom
Mommy Needs Coffee
A Mommy Story
Everyday Goddess
Send Chocolate
Big Green Purse
Adventures in Babywearing
motherbumper
the weirdgirl
5 Minutes for Mom
Mommy Bits
No Sense of Time
Twofer Mom
POP! PR Jots
Talk It Up!
Lip-Sticking
The Busy Dad Blog
Adrienne’s House
Whiskey In My Sippy Cup
Miss Britt
The Diaper Diaries
Condo Blues

It’s taken me a while to get to this post, but only because it’s taken me a while to fully process and recover from the conference. I apologize that this post has turned into a long list of links, but it is a long list of links that makes me happy. Some of these publishers are women that I met at BlogHer in 2007 and they’re still using Lijit. When I compare this list with the one I put together after last year’s conference, it’s amazing to see the growth. I can only imagine what next year’s post will look like.

Thanks to everyone at BlogHer and I’ll see you ladies (and gents) in New York next summer!

UPDATE: Just as soon as I hit publish, I remember some lovely publishers I left out. Sorry.

[Mandatory note: If I somehow forgot to link to you, please leave a comment and I'll rectify that situation.]

I never cease to be amazed at what Lijit publishers have accomplished and how cool they seem to be. Take, for instance, today’s profile about Lisa Lubin. She’s a three-time Emmy-award-winning Television writer/producer/editor. But that was before she decided to take a sabbatical to travel and work her way around the world. Lucky for us, she has written about the (mis)adventures that ensued as she traipsed around the globe on her blog, LL World Tour.

In addition to sharing stories from her time abroad, Lisa also posts about subjects closer to home like her love for Chicago and thoughts about her hometown in Jersey, along with tips for those women traveling solo and best practices for booking airline flights.


How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

I have been blogging since the summer of 2006. I had decided to quit my job, chuck all my stuff, and travel around the world for a year (which later turned into 2 1/2 years). I was going to simply send ‘email updates’ to friends and family. But a good friend of mine who worked in the crazy interweb world at what was once a small startup in Chicago called Feedburner (now owned by Google), convinced me to start a blog…and off I went into the blogosphere cringing at the awful name every time.

What has been the greatest thing you’ve received from blogging about your travels?

It truly has been amazing. I have ‘met’ so many new friends this way–some that were also traveling and others that were just living vicariously through my adventures. I truly loved helping inspire others and the feedback I received from total strangers was heartwarming.

In your world tours, what has been your top three destinations and why?

This is always a hard question to answer as what I love about traveling is the interaction with people all over the world and I was lucky enough to meet some damn fine people. But besides that, my favorite places were as follows:

1. Berlin–hands down, a cool, progressive city of now. It’s a young city and Berliners are open and artistic. They look back and acknowledge their history, but at the same time are racing into the future. It’s an edgy city with great architecture and art pushing boundaries everywhere you look. I’d live there in a second and you’d find me at a cafe, drinking a beer in Prenzlauer Berg.
2. The Galapagos Islands–Stunning. This was definitely a once in a lifetime place. Each island you visit is different and unique with its own landscape and flora and fauna. The animal life is amazing and with no predators, they simply could care less that you are walking right up to them. I loved my days there of learning, snorkeling, and drifting around at sea without a care in the world.
3. Turkey–I went there on the recommendation of many saying it was their favorite country. I planned to stay two weeks. I stayed three months. The people are universally warm and generous. So many took me in and in a few weeks I was giving private business English lessons, cat sitting at a great flat near Taksim (the center of all nightlife/restaurants), and had a mobile phone with twenty new friends in Istanbul that I hadn’t even known just a few weeks prior. Besides that…the country has an amazingly diverse landscape-from the beaches of the Aegean and Mediterranean to the jaw-dropping ancient Roman ruins to the mountains, lakes and of course, tasty food-it’s a wonderful place.

What has been the greatest challenge you’ve encountered in your journeys?

The greatest challenge? Probably making time to ‘work’ and keep my blog updated. I tried to dedicate days to just hanging out and working wherever I was, but sometimes it was hard to spend the day on my laptop.

How has Lijit helped you to become a better blogger?

I have just started using Lijit (as recommended by that same cool friend who got me blogging in the first place) and am feeling my way around it. The wijit was easy to install on my sidebar and allowed me to remove a clunky section I’d put together of ‘where to find me on the web’ as Lijit already had this as part of their widget.

In addition to being recognized for her travel blog in various places online (like being a finalist in the 2008 Weblog Awards), her articles and photographs have been published by Sunset Magazine, The Boston Globe, Go Nomad and The Savvy Gal among others. She’s lectured on traveling solo and will be teaming up with Whole Foods, REI and Hostelling International for ‘Travel and Food’ seminars this summer. Keep an eye out for Lisa because if you have any questions about traveling, chances are she has your answers.

I love indulging my wanderlust by reading Lisa’s blog and am honored that she’s chosen Lijit as her blog search tool of choice. Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions Lisa and for inspiring us all with your adventures!

We’ve decided it’s time for a mid-summer contest. Nothing complicated–we just want to hear your Lijit story. To reward your efforts, the best storyteller will win a Kindle and ALL submissions will get a super-comfy Lijit t-shirt.

What should you write about? Absolutely anything having to do with Lijit.

Your contest entry could be about how you found out about Lijit…

“I landed in Nashville for the BlissDom09 conference. It had been a REALLY long flight day for me. The last leg of my trip was out of Denver, and I picked up my luggage and searched for the hotel’s shuttle van…

We talked a bit and I learned that she was representing Lijit, one of the sponsors for the event! (Sorry, I didn’t have the sponsors memorized.) Her name was Tara and I was feeling lucky to have met her like that, one on one, ridin’ in the van…”

–From Carissa at GoodNCrazy

Or simply what you like best about our service…

“This isn’t even the coolest part of Lijit, though, IMHO.  Instead, in my mind, the most interesting feature is the “Research” feature.  After you’ve searched for a specific term or after you reach TOCWOC through a search engine, the Lijit widget shows a Research area which gives you other possible posts or pages from TOCWOC and from the entire Civil War blogosphere!”

–From Brett at TOCWOC

Of course, you could be like Louis Gray and write a post that explains our service better than we do…

“Google’s goal in life is to find the one right answer that is true for everyone. Search for iPhone, and you should get the same answer I do at the top of the results, blanketed by potentially relevant ads from the company’s partners. Lijit’s goal in life is to find the one answer that is most accurate, depending on where you are searching. Search for iPhone on my blog, and you will find the most relevant responses that come from my blog and my content from around the Web, including Flickr, Twitter, Delicious, YouTube and other social sites. Search for iPhone on Steven Hodson’s blog (also using Lijit), and you should get a different set of responses based on his activity.”

–From the blog of Louis Gray

Then, like Louis, you can turn your babies into little Lijit evangelists as well…

(But that’s not necessary to win the contest.)

To enter the contest:

• Simply post your Lijit story on your blog.
• Link back to us here.
• Leave a comment on this post with a link to your entry to insure we don’t miss your post.

You have thirty days and we will pick the winner with the help of everyone around our office. To answer potential questions, Lijit employees and their families are not eligible to win. (Lenora and Walter, I’m talking to you two!) Also, if you have posted something about Lijit in the past, feel free to republish your older post and we’ll consider it a valid entry.

In addition to the Kindle, you’ll also be featured on our blog, our homepage and receive our undying love & devotion.

Seems easy enough, right?  Have fun and we look forward to seeing what you come up with!

There are four kinds of people that work here at Lijit*: those that race cars, those that run, those that bike, and those that do other things**. I’m of the opinion that bikers make up the second largest majority around the office, being slightly beaten out by the overall geek population. When I got word that there were a couple of self-proclaimed geeks that were riding their bicycles across the US to raise awareness about bike-commuting, I knew they had to be Lijit.

Meet Carlos and Joe, the two geeks behind Real Geeks Ride. They started their cross-country cycling adventure on May 20th and are chronicling their journey via blog, tweets and pictures. We’re honored that they’ve chosen to use Lijit on the official RGR blog but reading about their travels just wasn’t enough. After a few emails (and one phone call he took from the side of the road in Nebraska with big trucks whizzing by), Carlos was happy to answer a few questions for us.

How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

I have been in the blogging world on and off for the past few years. It tends to be event/travel oriented, rather than opinion or news based. I started blogging in high school but dropped it when interest was lost. I picked it up again when I traveled around the world with a ‘worldly singing and dancing group’ to keep my parents and friends up to date.

What has been the greatest thing you’ve received from blogging?

During this bike ride, blogging has given both Joe and I hundreds of people looking out for our safety and health. They ask about us and offer suggestions when we write about our health issues. Knowing that we have moms across the country expecting our safety is uplifting.

What has suprised you on your cross-country bike trip and why?

It is most surprising how different each state reacts to cyclists on the road. We are currently in Nebraska and receive a wave from every other car (not exaggerating). Our experience here is that people give ample room when passing, and are willing to help at any moment. This differs greatly from our experience in Iowa, where we were screamed at, almost hit a few times, and given the finger more times than waves.

What has been the biggest challenge you guys have encountered on your trip so far?

The biggest challenge has been keeping up with the blog. After biking 100+ miles and arriving at our destination at 8 pm, the last thing we want to do is edit photos and write about the past few hours. However, we gain so much push to do ‘work’ when people send us messages of inspiration. It has been the hundreds of messages we have received that allow us to overcome not wanting to post.

How has Lijit helped you to become a better blogger?

Lijit has allowed me to become a better blogger by making it easy to search for people doing similar things. The more I read within a certain field, the more it gives me the ability to see the different writing styles of that field.

If you’re interested, you can follow along with Carlos and Joe on their blog, on Twitter or through their Flickr pics.

Additionally, if you’re in the Denver/Boulder area, you’re invited to meet the guys this Friday, July 3rd, as they make a stop in Boulder. We’ll be meeting up at the Boulder Draft House, from 4-6 pm, to enjoy some happy hour beers with the guys. (Look for us in the back room!) Ride your bike, stop in, and let us show Carlos and Joe just how much we love our bikes around here.

*A very sweeping overgeneralization, of course.

**Other things include: rugby, hiking, parenting, photography, playing video games & tweeting.

I first met Jason when he had installed our widget on his blog…four times. We always appreciate enthusiasm like that, but one widget is normally enough. Turns out he was having problems with his advanced Typepad template and we grew to be close through many tech support emails. Imagine my surprise when, just a week after we had solved his problem, he sent me an email saying he was going to be in Boulder for business.

Since we have an “open-door” policy around Lijit, I told him to stop by…

and he did! We spoke for a half-hour and it reminded me, once again, just how spectacular it is to meet our publishers in person. Jason was incredibly energetic, full of questions, and loved the idea of Lijit. In my opinion, this makes him an ideal candidate for a Publisher Spotlight profile.

Jason is a productivity consultant and does a lot of work in helping people to be more efficient and effective in their work. Not to mention he’s an incredible triathlete and really nice guy. Let’s find out more about Jason’s thoughts on blogging…

How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

In early 2002, I had lunch with Robert Scoble in Seattle, Washington, and he suggested I “just get started.” In fact, his advice fit hand-in-hand with my own coaching philosophy…Get Started.

My current blog is titled “Your Best Just Got Better”, Jason Womack Blog, and has been “in action” since March of 2004.

What has been the greatest thing you’ve received from blogging?

As an executive coach and triathlete, I dedicate my life to performance, in both theory and action. To perform means: To carry out, bring about, accomplish or achieve. Blogging serves at least two purposes for me as a consultant and practitioner of this methodology:

1) Writing about what I learn about, my experiments and the results gives me the opportunity to slow down and reflect on the lessons I experience on an “almost” daily basis.

2) Recording those lessons in a blog gives me a reviewable “resource” to demonstrate my growth over time.

I am a “fortunate blogger” in that I have a few people who read what I write, and I’ve made more than one group of friends around the world because of the community we’ve been able to build via online, on phone, and in person meetings. Here’s an example: A group of us put together the “bloggers’ bike ride” several years ago. (You can read about it here.)

Of all the posts you’ve written, what has been your favorite and why?

Over the years, I don’t know if there is a “favorite” post, but I tend to spend most of my time contributing to two categories: Perform (at work) and Competing.

Both of these sections collect my thoughts and suggestions on the “time management” problem we all face: Too much to do (well) and not enough time to do it (at our best.) My job-really, my life-is to research practice and share the world’s best and most sustainable answers to questions like: “How can I be effective at work?”

With so many things available to distract us, can you share some of your tips for being the most effective while at work?

For some answers, visit the blog! One idea to get you started is: For the next 5 days, separate EVERYthing you get into one of two buckets/folders/stacks on your desk/in your email/within your notebook.

1) Action materials/action reminders: Everything that when you see it you think, “I have to DO something about that.”

2) Reference materials: ANYthing you see and think, “I might need this later on.”

How has Lijit helped you to become a better blog publisher?

I’m a Lijit fan and continue to talk about them in our seminars because:

1) They care. While working in Boulder, I was invited to “stop by”, and I got a tour of the office as well as a tutorial on how to best use their service.

2) They are there. Now, when I go to my blog I can search (and find) something I know I wrote about.

3) They are there (part II). While I’m on the phone with a client, I can ask THEM to go to the blog, do a search, and find what it is they’re looking for, or what I want them to see.

4) They get it. These days, its not just about capturing information; it’s about pulling the information BACK that is in there “somewhere.” This is a reason I recommend all bloggers at least “experiment” with Lijit.

As a blog publisher, knowing that Lijit is there by my side, I am really thinking through my blog posts, asking myself, “Would this come up in the way I would like it to if someone searched my blog for one of these terms?”

Thank you to the Lijit “family” for doing all you do to keep us moving forward.

You’re welcome, Jason. Thank you for your support. And if anyone out there needs help accomplishing more, be sure to check out Jason’s blog and follow him on Twitter for even more helpful information about how to make your best even better.

Part of my job is to check out the bloggers who sign up for Lijit every day. This is always one of the best times of my workday because I get to see such an interesting cross-section of what people are blogging about and how they go about conveying their passion to others. Of course, when I see a URL that pops out at me, I become even more intrigued. This was the case with PJ. His blog is called Real Men Drive Minivans and he’s a proud daddyblogger. (Hey, if real men can eat quiche and wear pink, I’m pretty sure they can drive minivans and use their kids as blog content…)

In addition to blogging about his son, PJ shares a Wordless Wednesday series and writes extensively about his adventures in the kitchen. I reached out to PJ and asked if he would be kind enough to answer some questions for this profile. Read on to find out what real men think of blogging…


How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

I’ve been blogging since January 2008 with an NFL football blog, but kind of dropped the ball on it shortly after my son was born a few months later. For a number of reasons, I didn’t attempt to revive that site, but rather launched my current blog, Real Men Drive Minivans, as a creative outlet while being a stay-at-home dad. Initially I wanted to get into blogging to learn more about web 2.0 and social networking, and now I’m using it as a way to learn new skills for an eventual return to the workforce.

What has been the greatest thing you’ve gotten from blogging?

I’d say the relationships I’ve managed to develop in a short period of time with some other dad and mom bloggers out there. As a new parent trying to find my way, there is a ton of information out there and some anecdotal evidence that the decisions we’ve made so far have been good for our son.

Of all the posts you’ve written, what has been your favorite and why?

Recently I’ve been participating in Fatherhood Fridays over at Dad Blogs where us daddy bloggers link up our individual blogs with posts relating to fatherhood every week. As part of my contributions I’ve been writing a series of posts examining whether or not fathers matter anymore. Aside from the generalizations made about stay-at-home dads, there are a lot of poor characterizations of fathers in the media. I’ve already posted two times in this (number to be determined) series and I have at least two others planned for upcoming Fatherhood Fridays. My first post “Don’t fathers matter?: Kneeling on concrete” that I published on March 20th is kind of what got my fire going to discuss this issue, so I would have to say that, at least for now, it is one of my favorite posts.

With all the media attention surrounding mommybloggers, what are your thoughts about the future of daddybloggers?

I think we’re still trying to find our voice. There are a lot of stereotypes being perpetuated about dads–that we’re dolts, we get lost in the supermarket, we don’t know the difference between a frying pan and a Santoku. The rhetoric is even worse for stay-at-home dads–we’re lazy, we’re unemployable, we’re destroying the family dynamic. While this may all make for a funny TV commercial, the dads I’ve met through blogging are highly focused on the very important role they play in their families. I really enjoy reading some of the mommybloggers as well and they deserve all the accolades they receive. My hope is that in time, we daddybloggers can take the momentum we are building to fight these stereotypes.

How has Lijit helped you to become a better blog publisher?

I’m still pretty new at this but I really like interpreting the stats and looking for trends. I spent nearly twelve years in the financial services industry, so I’m a bit of a numbers geek. My blog is still pretty new and I’m just now expanding my focus beyond the content to capturing my target audience.

Thanks for your time PJ and if you’re interested in searching for more of what PJ has to say, please use the Lijit search on his blog and follow him on Twitter.

JEM is the mastermind behind AdminChronicles and an expert in all things office/work-related. What better way to share her expertise than by starting a blog? On AdminChronicles, she provides advice on telephone etiquette, lists some interview don’ts, helps with how to handle criticism, and offers ways to master Outlook. (Who couldn’t use information like that?)

How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

AdminChronicles was on the “launchpad” for approximately a year prior to its official launch in July 2008.

I started AdminChronicles to share my knowledge. I have had a very diverse and progressive administrative career. As the Office Manager for a direct report to the chairman of a Fortune 500 company, I mastered the “unwritten” rules for providing support at that level–tools that were far beyond the traditional typing, filing or scheduling meetings. The science of providing support to a senior-level executive is much more nuanced than people would expect and I wanted to share my first-hand knowledge with my peers in the hopes that it would help them achieve career success.

What has been the greatest thing you’ve received from blogging?

The greatest thing that I have received from blogging is the relationships that I have established with other bloggers in my niche. The opportunity to avail myself of their expertise has been invaluable to me as the editor-in-chief of AdminChronicles as well as to me as a “working” member of the profession. In addition, blogging has allowed me to sharpen my communication skills (both written and verbal)–I’m confident that there’s a book in me somewhere!–and develop skills in the areas of web/blog design, marketing and social networking.

Of all the posts you’ve written, what has been your favorite and why?

My favorite post is a two-part series titled, What is a Board of Advisors and Why Every Smart Professional Should Have One. This post is my favorite because it is somewhat of a blue-print of my own career. My success is without a doubt owed to both my ability to partner with other administrative professionals as it is my own desire to succeed.

What online services or tools do you recommend to other admins and why?

One of the tools that I would most recommend to my peers is CEO Express, an internet interface for executives. The site filters and organizes the content executives need on the Internet while adding features to the site to make their lives even more streamlined and efficient.

My other favorite online tool is AdminSecret (where I am a featured writer). AdminSecret is one of the premiere social and career networking site for admins.

If I had to make just one major recommendation for my peers it would be to READ. Reading not only helps me to sharpen my writing skills, but it helps me to frame my thinking in a way that allows me to partner successfully with executives. On my nightstand this week is Cathi Black’s (the president of Hearst Magazines) book, Basic Black: The Essential Guide for Getting Ahead at Work. My other favorite book for admin professionals is written by Rosanne Badowski (the assistant to Jack Welch), Managing Up.

How has Lijit helped you to be a better blogger?

My association with Lijit has allowed me the opportunity to guide the progress of my blog by allowing me to understand my readers interests. Lijit serves as a “real-time” view of what is working and what isn’t working. It helps me to tailor my offerings to meet my communities needs.

A big thank-you to JEM for sharing her thoughts on blogging and what it takes to be successful doing it. If you want to dig deeper into her admin knowledge, be sure to visit her blog and use the Lijit search to find out even more.

April 15th is a day that can strike fear into the hearts of many Americans. To show our support, we’re happy to share what some of our publishers had to say about today…

–If you’ve forgotten what today is, refresh your memory and check out the blog Don’t Mess with Taxes. Besides having an awesome name, they have posted a very handy to-do list which should help anyone still confused about what they need to do today. (When you’re done with the list, watch the tax propaganda video they’ve posted featuring Donald Duck.)

–Wondering why we pay taxes? MOMocrats has a post up that explores that very question and comes up with some good answers.

–Taking part in a tea party today? One of our publishers has a post up explaining his view of the tea parties happening all over the country and why ordinary Americans should be upset with out current tax system.

–Wondering if tax reality lives up to the media hype? One publisher has a post citing research that shows how Americans perceive what is fair when it comes to paying taxes, while another publisher references the very same research in his post to show that Americans are happy with what they’re paying.

–Excited to be done paying your taxes? The Foundry blog has a friendly reminder that everyday is tax day and provides a list of the taxes that you pay throughout the year.

–Curious as to how we might fix some of our current tax problems? The folks at Angry Bear say that the solution might involve taxing soda pop.

–Looking for a little poetry to brighten your mood? Check out The Moderate Voice and the lovely ‘Tax Day’ poem that they’ve posted. And yes…it rhymes!

–If all else fails, may we suggest three of our publishers that are certain to help out on a day like today? Headache and Migraine News posts about the differences between a cluster and a real migraine, The Happiness Project is an entire blog devoted to posting ways of being happier, and if all else fails, head over to Drink of the Week to try one of the many tax-relieving beverages that he shares.

We wish you only the best on this (somewhat) stressful day and welcome any taxing comments you may have!

[Photo credit: 427]