Alabama Bloggers

I've said it before, but blogging has been one surprise after another. The people I've met (both virtually and in real life) through blogging have been such a delight, and I know that people who don't write blogs and/or don't Tweet sometimes don't understand it, but trust me ... you can build real relationships through the written word, and meeting your online connections in real life can be a real blessing!

Rachel at Grasping for Objectivity in my Subjective Life is the creator and "matriarch" of the Alabama Bloggers group, and we have monthly lunches around Birmingham at which we get to know each other better. It's a slightly different group every month, depending on who's available, and I've been going for maybe two years now? I can't remember how long. But I've met new people at every single one.

The lunch last week was one of my favorites of all time! I got to meet new people AND enjoy some people who've become good friends already.

TOP
Michael (JitteryCoffee on Twitter)
Matt (al.com)
Me
Rachel (Grasping for Objectivity)
Chris (Rachel's husband, blog fodder and HemmiesFTW fan)

BOTTOM
Robin (Alabama Slacker Mama)
Jameson (Robin's son and master Minecraft player and LEGO builder)
Amy (Ordinarily Extraordinary)
Brandi (Bryants of Bham and practically my neighbor)
Jamie (Jamie's Rabbits, behind the camera)

Let me say a little bit about each person, and I strongly recommend that you follow their blogs and find them on Twitter. They are some great people!

Michael: This was the first time I'd met Michael, and he was a lot of fun. I think he's what you kids call a "hipster." Super-cool guy, and I hope he comes back.

Matt: He's really involved in the Birmingham scene, as he writes and Tweets for al.com, one of Birmingham's most comprehensive websites for news and "the happs" around town. I'd met him at least once before, but this was my first time to sit next to him and really hear what he had to say.

Rachel: She's always a lot of fun, and her blog is one of the most entertaining mommy blogs around. She's the friend who nominated me for BlogHer Voices of the Year a couple of months ago, and she's such a cheerleader for all of us Alabama Bloggers.

Chris: Near and dear to me because he enjoys my possibly more male-skewing sense of humor. He's a huge proponent of my alter-ego's Twitter handle, HemmiesFTW, and it was a big thrill to meet him for the first time last week. Yes, first time meeting him in person!

Robin and Jameson: This was my second time to meet Robin and Jameson, as you probably remember they visited my family a few weeks ago. Sweet, sweet Robin ... just go read that post to find out how much I like her.

Amy: Her blog is beautiful; she takes beautiful pictures, and she's such a peaceful person. I can't remember if this was our first time to meet in person or not, but it was a pleasure!

Brandi: I'd never met Brandi before, but we Tweet back and forth a fair amount. We figured out that she lives about a mile from me, and our kids go to the same school. So funny! I love it when my world gets even smaller.

Jamie: Well, I feel like I talk about Jamie all the time, and we all know I love her. I hate that she's the one who took the pictures last week, so you don't get to see her smiling face here. But she makes amazing baked goods, and suffice to say that even if I hated her blog, I'd love her for her cake pops and cupcakes.

Hope you enjoy finding a few new good Follows today!