Don't Stop by Without Sayin' Hi, Y'all: Aka: (The Teller at The Bank Won't Cash My Paychecks. Guess She Doesn't Have a Blog, Either.)

Just popping in to send you away again! It's like a progressive lunch, only without the actual vittles. A Southern gal's worst nightmare, y'all. WORST NIGHTMARE. I wish I had some homemade cheese straws and a glass of sweet tea to offer you, but instead I just have these two really valuable links to share:

First: If you do nothing else at your computer today, go now and read Beth's whole post over at I Should Be Folding Laundry about the value of comments to a blogger. I'm going to pull out a few quotes that really summed it up for me. If you're a blogger, these will likely really hit home with you. And you can link to Beth's post on your blog, too, she said so! If you're a blog reader but don't have a blog, you'll love it too, because I think it explains a lot about the mystery surrounding commenting and some basic truths you may haven't considered.

Here's an excerpt from Beth's post today.

I will not speak for ALL bloggers, but I will speak for most, commenting is our payday. Very few of us receive a handsome salary (I've always wanted to say handsome salary) or ANY salary for blogging. Which is fine, many of us blog for the love of blogging, not for money. Some people actually lose money because they pay to keep their blog and pay for their design but do not receive any financial kickbacks. It's a hobby, something we enjoy. Sometimes it's hard work, sometimes it's painful, there are so many reasons to keep a blog, but there is one thing all bloggers have in common, it takes our time, it comes from our hearts, (I hope) and most of the time, bloggers are proud of what they have written.

How do we get paid? Through your comments. A comment is more than just a comment, it's feedback, it's conversation, it's appreciation. You not only hold our "paycheck" in your hands, you also hold our longevity. A blogger who is appreciated is more likely to be a happy blogger and a happy blogger blogs for a long time and doesn't stop because they are under-appreciated or frustrated.

And oh-so-importantly,

You may think that what you have to say doesn't matter or your words are insignificant. You may find it hard to believe, but your words are important, they make a difference. Every comment that comes through my blog, is read and appreciated and I know I am not the only blogger who feels this way. I KNOW THIS.

And I KNOW she knows this because she and I had a lengthy and heartfelt discussion about this very topic last week. She's summed up exactly how I feel about comments. And I totally understand the reasons for not commenting, because I don't always comment on every blog I read either. I'm too busy, I'm not in the mood, or most importantly, earlier in my blogging life I didn't comment because I thought the moment I spoke up in the comments the whole thing would go deadly silent because of the utter stupidity of what I'd said and because I wasn't a "member" of the regular commenting club for that blog. That immediately all the other commenters would start frantically emailing one another with "Who is SHE? Why is SHE here commenting? OHMYGOSH! What a weirdo!" I was too intimidated by the other people who seemed like they knew more about all this blogging stuff than I did. Who was I to speak up?

I'm here to tell you that if you feel that way, oh, honey! You could not be any more wrong. You are SO a part of this here FriedOkra club, because I'm writing what I write for YOU. To make you smile, laugh, cry, or cook a pot of barbecue. And the more I hear from you, the more I want to write - the more I want to make you laugh, share my thoughts and feelings with you, and tell you how to make Grandmama FriedOkra's Chocolate Pie. (Which, OHMYGRANNY! Coming soon!) Most bloggers are at driven at least in part by their readers' feedback, and let me tell you, I'm THE poster child for comments-driven blog-satisfaction.

So comment! No one will laugh or email behind your back. Nothing you say will be anything other than deeply appreciated and cherished. (Unless it's mean, but nobody mean reads here, so I don't even consider that possible, really.) And leave your email, so I can respond to you. And let's have us a relationship, and more importantly, let's have us some fun!

If you still don't want to comment publicly, then email me. Some people already do this and I LOVE it. My address is on my sidebar.

To all of you who tried the barbecue recipe, thanks for telling me! My whole weekend of bloggy updates and housecleaning was done in direct response to the love you shared by trusting me enough to cook a recipe I recommended. Dang, that felt GOOD.

Y'all keep it up and I may come clean YOUR house for you!

Now, for the second link -

There's a giveaway goin' on over at Chic Critique this week for a FREE copy of the book Sephora: The Ultimate Guide to Makeup, Skin, and Hair from the Beauty Authority. Click over and get registered - the drawing will be held on Wednesday.

That is all.