TypePad Featured Blogs

Messy Christmas

Did the dog tear apart the gifts (or perhaps leave one under the tree)? The cherries jubilee set the drapes on fire? You’ll laugh about it some day – or right now, if you like. Messy Christmas recounts the holiday mishaps, family feuds, and perplexing gift choices that seem to crop up only at Christmastime. Published by the Abundant Life Church in Happy Valley Oregon, the site is filled with posts that will have you laughing from start to finish (and perhaps bring a tear or two). It’s a fun read, and one we thought you enjoy, today of all days. And from all of us at TypePad, Merry Christmas! (Say, do you smell something?)

NYBarfly

More fun to read than Page Six, NYBarfly is a laugh-out-loud blog about drinking in New York. This blog is what you'd get if Perez Hilton joined Charles Bukowski on a bar crawl. Dominant, deliberate, and drunk, there is a random mix of gossip and bar reviews that read more like personal diary entries than some stuffy bar guide. We love that they make up drinks for their readers' entertainment and enjoy their love/hate relationship with holidays. "New York City is built on a river of alcohol. Around a bend in that river hides the perfect, crystal-clear Martini," they say. Agreed. But reader beware, this blog is not for the faint of heart. NYBarfly contains nudity, violence, sexual content and all the other good stuff that would make the author of the original Barfly proud.

Daily Monster

Stefan G. Bucher, the man behind 344 Design, is a graphic designer, illustrator, and "good egg." He also likes monsters. His blog, Daily Monster, started as a 100-day project to promote his book, Upstairs Neighbors. Every day, Bucher posted videos of himself deftly sketching creepy and whimsical monsters derived from random inkblots. Daily Monster soon captured the imagination of its readers who began assigning names, jobs, and personalities to Bucher's critters (sometimes even composing odes to the little varmints). When the 100 days were up, Bucher decided to keep the monster love going by turning Daily Monster into an interactive experience; "open source" inkblots are provided so readers may create their own monstrous menageries and submit them to the blog. With a book of the original 100 monsters in the works, Daily Monster is very much alive.

A Writer's Life

If you've ever wondered about the glamorous lifestyle of a successful novelist and Hollywood scriptwriter, wonder no more. Just visit A Writer's Life, where author Lee Goldberg offers a live-wire account of both his trials and his triumphs. With dozens of books and television scripts to his credit, Goldberg is definitely the "been-there, done-that" kind of role model. When you hear his thoughts about screenwriting, you can rest assured that he knows of what he speaks. (He's been penning TV shows since Spenser for Hire.) And when you hear his outtakes from a screen-writing workshop he gave, you'll be rolling on the floor with laughter. If you take nothing else away from Goldberg's generous slices of life, that may be the key -- having a good sense of humor. Currently, you'll be treated to behind-the-scenes narratives from the making of a action-packed TV pilot called "Fast Track."

Where the Hell is Matt?

Good question. Where the Hell is Matt chronicles the adventures Matt Harding, a Seattle video-game writer and designer who has made a name for himself as "that guy who dances on the Internet." Armed with a laptop, camera, and a dubious sense of rhythm, Matt travels the world pausing to dance happy jigs in exotic locales. The result is a series of captivating videos featuring Matt dancing with kangaroos in Australia, Matt dancing with laughing monks in Laos, and Matt dancing with elephants in Botswana (the elephants were not amused). At last count he's been to 55 countries and danced in about 45 of them, and was recently featured boogying amongst screaming Barenaked Ladies fans in their latest music video. Although it would be easy to attach a philosophical message to his efforts, Matt leaves that up to the viewer. "I'm just dancing," he says.

Threadbared

We're really excited to let all our readers know that Threadbared, the excellent humor blog written by Kimberly Wrenn and Mary Watkins, has led to an equally excellent book, recently published by Three Rivers Press. To celebrate this accomplishment, we've done a couple of cool things: First off, we've wrangled a bunch of copies of the book to give away to new TypePad subscribers. Tell friends who are thinking of starting a blog that they can score a hilarious holiday gift, absolutely free, by simply signing up and using the referral code CRAFTASTIC. Hurry, though, because supplies are, as they say, limited. We've also got two great interviews with Kimberly and Mary. The first you can find on our Featured Interviews blog, where you can read about the origins of the satirical site, some of the authors' comedic influences (including, but not limited to Rik Mayall), and how they became a crucial resource for the male short-shorts community. Better yet, we invite every to listen to our 20-minute podcast interview, which was conducted by Jesse Thorn, the uber-talented host of The Sound of Young America. We really think you'll enjoy hearing how Threadbared went from a bright idea to a beautiful book in a little over a year. Congratulations ladies, and keep on blogging!
 

Lindsayism.com

Lindsayism.com is the online home of Lindsay Robertson, a NYC writer who is pretty awesome, if you ask us. Check the bio for the specifics, but suffice to say her blogger cred is impeccable, thanks tor publication in Gawker, McSweeney's, a recurring gig on Jane Magazine's excellent blogs, and her day job at Comedy Central. (We love all those places!) Lindsay's self-appointed beat is decidedly personal, as evidenced by the impressive category cloud in the sidebar of her blog, which includes such delightful topics as "highdeas," "eyeroll," and "brilliant!" That said, Lindsay definitely has a favorite subject -- comedy and comedians. If you're a fellow aficionado of stand-up, sketch, video shorts, and the men and women who are blessed with the talent to induce gut-wrenching laughter, you'll undoubtedly find a lot to like at Lindsayism.com.

fourfour

The diabolically funny creation of Brooklyn's Rich Juzwiak, fourfour offers recaps of two popular reality television shows: Bravo's Project Runway and the CW's America's Next Top Model. Combining screen captures, sound clips, and dazzling displays of Photoshop wizardry, Juzwiak's long-form critiques have a fanatical following that wait breathlessly for each week's new posts. In addition to unloading this twin-barrelled blast of bitchiness on fourfour, Juzwiak also pulls double duty as the commentator in residence on VH1's Celebreality blog. Thank heavens Rich has enough cattiness and creativity to keep up both gigs. Who knows what crazed PR and ANTM fans would do without him?

Andertoons Cartoon Blog

Fans of classic single-panel cartoons, will be happy to discover Andertoons Cartoon Blog, Mark Anderson's online journal. You probably know Anderson from his work in Medical Economics or The National Law Journal or minor niche publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Reader's Digest, and Good Housekeeping. Mark is equally adept at humor about families, humor about business, and whole bunch of other categories, as well as custom illustrations. On Mark's main site, you can browse a massive archive of panels and purchase the rights to individual cartoons for any number of uses. Of course, if you're a TypePad blogger, you can install the Andertoons widget and get a daily cartoon on your blog for free. In any case, check out Andertoons Cartoon Blog for a glimpse into the life and mind of a working cartoonist.

Bad Hair Day

Everyone has a bad hair day from time to time. Most of us skate by with a baseball hat and the silent forgiveness of our friends and coworkers. If you're a celebrity, you don't have that luxury. Leave the house with a lackluster coiffure or, worse, a full-blown hair disaster, and you're definitely going to hear about it. Keeping up their end of that bargain, Bad Hair Day delights in celebrity shame -- a well-worn blogging formula that, well, just works. What Go Fug Yourself is to clothes, Bad Hair Day is to locks. And just like the super-popular Fug, Bad Hair has teased out some repeat offenders. Nicole Kidman, Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, the Hilton sisters, Britney Spears, and the cast of American Idol have all earned their very own categories. So, if you revel in split ends, bad dye jobs, bizarre bangs, and other hair horrors, make sure you bookmark this blog. They comb the web for celebrity embarrassment, so you don't have to.

Comedy Central Insider

Comedy Central expands their empire of belly laughs with their blog, Comedy Central Insider. Do you have a fetish for South Park, Adam Corolla's Steve-O, or frightening pictures of Carrot Top? (Please say you don't.) In any case, CC Insider can probably meet your comedic needs. First and foremost, the blog takes some time each day to  post videos clips from the network's flagship property, Jon Stewart's brilliant Daily Show. The folks at Comedy Central figured that since every other blogger on the planet was linking to excerpts from the show, they might as well get into the act themselves -- a very smart move that is approximately 500% cooler than sending bloggers cease-and-desist letters. Rounding out the Insider, you'll see posts about just about every show in Comedy Central's growing lineup, plus guest posts from comedians like Kyle Cease, Andy Kindler, and Becky Pedigo. Subscribe to the RSS feed to enjoy exclusives like "Never-Before-Seen Sketches From 'Chappelle's Show's' Third Season" and a steady stream of great comedy tid-bits. There are plenty of fascinating blogs out there, but not that many are as laugh-out-loud funny as Comedy Central Insider.

Threadbared

Threadbared's creators, Mary Watkins and Kimberly Wrenn, have a different take on sewing, knitting, crocheting, and other home crafts. And luckily for you and me, that take involves cruel, hilarious mockery. No, not of their friends' finished products, but of the people and bizarre pieces that they find in vintage ads and patterns. Combine scathing titles with withering descriptions, or better yet, channeled dialogue from the models themselves, and you've got a recipe for tear-inducing laughter -- and lots of appreciatory comments. We particularly enjoy when they pick on children. If you're a fan of the girls' vintage wit, you can show them some love by buying a t-shirt, or maybe you'll want to wait for their book.