Journals Editor Joe's Fourth of July Blog Picks for 6/30

Hi everyone -- I'm picking this week's blogs, with a little help from
Journals Editor Jeff and your submissions. (I will
post my picks to the Journals Main
Page and in the Journals
Message Board in a little bit.)

It should
come as no surprise that our theme this week is July 4th
Blogs. However, I do have to admit that my interpretation of
the "Fourth of July" theme is a little... flexible, though looking
back, it's somewhat similar to last
year's angle, which was "People Who Serve."

* Our first featured pick is
Liz of Journal HeroToHero.
Her blog is a chronicle of her work with HeroToHero.us, which collects
shirts from firefighters, police, and other first responders to give to
US troops fighting abroad. In her words, "NO politics, NO pro or
antiwar...  Troops in the desert are able to say 'Hey, that's
MY home. Check 'em out!'"

Liz just completed a
30-day tour around the country, visiting first responders, collecting
shirts, and taking tons of pictures -- see the entry
that kicked off of the tour.

For more
information about what's she's doing, check out HeroToHero.us

*
Journaler Myra uses her blog, Thin
Blue Line, to report on law enforcement issues. She
highlights news stories, reports on officers killed or wounded in the
line of duty, and also provides commentary on issues affecting the
police.

Her blog's name comes from a phrase coined
by 1950s-era Los Angeles Police Chief William H. Parker, who called
police the "thin blue line" that separates society from
chaos.

* Maria over at Maria's
Musings is employed full-time, yet also finds time
to be a volunteer firefighter/EMT. She also created the Web site for
her volunteer fire department, the Eastern Prairie Fire Protection
District in Illinois.

* Lest we forget,
service comes in many forms, as Journaler Patty
shows us; her blog is Tales
& Tails of New York, where she shares her
stories of animal rescue & adoption in New York
City.

* And of course, sometimes it's just enough to
be nice and do things for other people; Pam over at
On
the Bright Side compiles daily quotes, trivia,
poetry, definitions and bits of inspiration that she finds on the Web,
and presents them in her blog (346 entries and counting...
)

* Lastly, since the next Space
Shuttle launch is currently scheduled for Saturday, July 1st
(the next launch attempts would be Sunday, then Tuesday and Wednesday;
so, hopefully, we'll have astronauts orbiting on July 4th), here's a
space and astronomy blog: Journaler
Stuart is a self-described amateur astronomer and
published children's science author; his Journal is Cumbrian
Sky, and features plain-spoken, easy-to-follow
discussions of space and sky-watching topics.

(Cumbria is a
county [oops, not country -- Joe] in the northwest of England, and Stuart can also be heard on
his local BBC radio show -- here's his profile on the BBC
Web site.)

Also, here are a  few
other respondents from my call
for July 4th-themed entries:

* Journaler
Beth researches craft ideas and compiles them in her
blog, Holiday
Fun and Memories

* Blogger
Stacey dug into her High
Above Courtside archives to highlight "Fist
Fights of the Founding Fathers", featuring the American
institution of ass-kicking. (Par for the course, she features some
un-gentle language, so you are
warned.)

* 
Angela over at Lil'
Country Charm has a little piece of Americana for
use as a tag graphic for your blogs, Web pages and e-mails -- check it
out.

As always, please leave a comment in the
Journals or blogs that you read. Also, don't forget, if you want your
own chance at being featured, send me an e-mail at JournalsEditor@aol.com.
(Please include a link to your blog.)

Lastly, in a
bit of self-indulgence: Here's to wishing best of
luck to NASA for a successful launch of Discovery
(Mission STS-121), and a safe return of the shuttle and all
its crew.

Have fun, be safe, and have a great
Independence Day holiday.

Thanks --
Joe

Tag: Guest
Editor's Picks