Where to get started in the world of blogs

It's a nickname that suggests the sound made by sudden, spurt-like draining of one's consciousness in regular wet chunks, not onto paper but into the Internet's soupy sea. Blog. Blog. Blog.

It's short for Weblog, regularly updated personal accounts of the lives, passions and dislikes of ordinary people around the world. But as it is with most things, the mere definition fails to capture the essence of what the word means to most bloggers.

Weblogs can be diaries, lists, reviews, observations; subjects are ever-changing according to the writer's whims, which make them more personal than message boards. They are references, time capsules, forums to exchange experiences, knowledge and comfort.

Lots of blogs simply chronicle the inanity of life: accounts of the stages of one's hangover, analysis of writings found on bathroom walls, imaginary journals of people's cats.

Blogs are antidotes to boredom. They're also the latest phase of the Internet's ever-evolving role as psychological buffer, allowing the personal to be public without anyone's knowing a diarist's true face, if he or she so chooses. That said, many post their pictures along with their entries. Bloggers want people to know them by reading them.

Besides, why cramp your hands with writing into a diary that might be stolen by someone close to you, when you can post your darkest fears and emotions in a vast forum that's as anonymous as you want to be? It's as safe, and cathartic, as hollering into space.

Only here, someone can hear you scream — and will likely write back about it.

The best thing about blogs are the interpersonal, and emotional, connections they lead to, as well as commiseration and wake-up calls. "This blog is my therapist," one LiveJournal diarist confessed in her profile. "Please respect that."

When some mass-media outlets began to encounter blogs three years ago, there was a fear blogs and their roles as international town criers would supplant the need for professional reporting altogether. That hasn't happened ... yet.

Nevertheless, the blog universe is getting better connected. The uninitiated may want to visit sites like www.LiveJournal.com, www.diaryland.com or www.weblogs.com to get started. And while there are a million stories in the naked Webverse — and hundreds of thousands of bloggers in North America alone, we're guessing — herewith is a list of some of the more useful or entertaining. (Parents, please note: Blogs are unedited accounts, meaning many have curse words and deal with explicit subject matter. Others suffer from aversions to punctuation. You have been warned.)

1. http://appellateblog.blogspot.com

Lawyer-speak puts the average person to sleep. That's why attorneys get paid the big bucks. However, among the links to various snore-worthy decisions is the site "How Appealing," filled with plenty of interesting, fun-filled jurisprudence hijinks. A favorite is civil suit that resulted in the Weekly World News having to pay a photographer $26,000 for inserting an alien into his photograph of President Clinton under the headline, "Alien Backs Clinton!" We knew that space guy looked a little fake.

2. http://kafkaesque.blogspot.com

On "My Life As an American Gladiator," peruse the ramblings, non-sequiturs and bizarre thoughts of a poster called Kafkaesque that manage to be both disturbing (Clamato Beer is a beverage of choice) and cool (look at his list of recommended movies and CDs on the left). Even the writer's asides will help you crack a smile: "I was just attacked by a yawn. It took me unawares, like a crafty werewolf wearing soft loafers, or maybe espadrilles."

3. http://reddirtgirl.diaryland.com

This blog by a recent Seattle transplant from Louisiana chronicles her smatterings of discoveries about her new home in entertaining tales. Great for two reasons: One, it enables local readers to see how seductive the city can be through new eyes, and two, it will enable us to chortle with evil laughter when her pleasant observations ("It never rains in Sunny Seattle") get dashed with the passage of time. This link will take you to DiaryLand's home page, then simply click on "Browse the Members" link on the left which will direct you to a page that links blogs alphabetically.

4. www.livejournal.com/users/scene_stealer

One of many ongoing blogs about local scenesters, this diary gives a musician's (and music fan's) insight to local bands, their shows and their CDs, how tough it is to find love — or even like — in Seattle, lack of sleep and being a parent. "Mood swings. I'd like to have one emotion and stick w/it please ... "

Links to friends' blogs chronicle the same things from different perspectives and, all in all, spare you trips to the Cha Cha and other local bars. Why that would be preferable to actually going out, we have no idea. But they are there to do the work for you.

5. http://www.improvisation.ws/mb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4475

Warning: This is not for young or sensitive readers! But it is by far one of the funniest blogs out there. A classic that circulated last summer, it chronicles the adventures of Ali Davis, an employee in a porn store. "The other day I realized, as a cold claw of pure fear squeezed my frantic heart, that I have been working as a video clerk for 10 months. ... It has been a test of patience, humility and character. It has been a lesson in dealing with all humankind, including their personal bodily fluids. It has been $6.50 an hour."

Though — again — this is not for children, it's far more funny and insightful than disgusting. Enjoy, and be glad you have not chosen this employment path.

Melanie McFarland: mmcfarland@seattletimes.com