The Five Coolest Blogs of 2009

I took a two and a half month blogging sabbatical, but you can be sure I haven’t been lazy. It’s been cool to watch my calendar fill up little by little, with all kinds of work and play.  I’ve had a lot of time to analyze my career perspective as well, and some things have been upgraded. The time I have spent at Gaiam has been the most constructive and educational use of my time in many years. The things that I’ve learned about SEO has been invaluable. I’m also exposed to marketing, development and, not to be discounted, what it’s like in a cubicle. I don’t have an opinion yet about working in a corporate office, but I don’t think I’ve sold out quite yet. That gig will be over at the end of the month, so It’ll be back to the fight for real pretty soon.

This year I have immersed myself in social media. My little local Twitter community has been awesome, and I have made some close, new real life friendships. All of my business prospects have come out of the primordial social media soup as well. I have also been invited to work with a small, local nonprofit group through the friends I have made through social media.

My psychic junk-food has become cool and creative blogs this year. I’ve found a bunch of really interesting ones, and some that are not as great. I’ve found a lot of really cool art, music and tons of unique information. I’ve created a list of my very favorite blogs.

Without further ado…

Trypnotik Top Five Coolest Blogs of 2009

1. Pink Tentacle is far, and away my favorite blog of 2009. This English language blog out of Tokyo finds some of the most interesting art, music, technology, and generally bizarre content I have seen on the Internet. I encourage you to follow the Pink Tentacle Twitter timeline for some of the stories that didn’t make the cut.
   Notable Posts:
   • 18th-century ‘Hyakki Yako’ scroll (for sale)
   • Upstairs at Kitaro’s: Mini monster peepshow
   • Manga-style illustrations by Shohei Otomo
2. TasteSpotting is a anthology of recipes from countless blogs from all over the internet. I can zone out for hours clicking around and reading through these recipes. Then I think about my 100 sq ft Capitol Hill troll kitchen and I die a little bit inside.
   Notable Posts:
   • Mushroom Hot Pot Recipe – Kinoko Nabe
   • Mussels in White Wine
   • Goat Cheese and Basil Stuffed Tomatoes
3. Dude Craft gathers images and stories from craftsmen. Paul Overton has a clear passion for design and craftsmanship. Dude Craft features a lot of amazing cut paper, found objects, cars, steampunk and other things people make that will blow your mind.
   Notable Posts:
   • Tire Art – Where the Rubber Hits the Soul
   • Papercuts: Stop Motion by Andersen M Studio
   • Puzzling Acorns
4. Mostly Forbidden Zone is a bizarre and sometimes macabre anthology of mostly vintage media. Much of it is completely removed from its original context.
   Notable Posts:
   • How to avoid dry, unruly “jungle hair”
   • The first Thanksgiving Morning
   • Children must have IRON for good red blood!
5. Nerdcore doesn’t get a whole lot of attention simply because it’s mostly in German. If you like looking at really unique, off the wall and nerdy stuff (or you can read German), sift through the massive amount of weird shit they dig up.
   Notable Posts:
   • Gilles Barbiers Real Life-Superhero-Rentner-Sculpture
   • Che Trooper-Sculpture
   • IY Steampunk Arcade feat. Frankenstein

That’s it, there’s the five. This took way longer than it should have. I spent so much time wandering around these blogs and all of the content tangents that were inevitably taken. Pardon my brief close, but it’s late.

Honorable Mentions:

• Indexed
• Driven By Boredom
• The Art of Manliness