Just tooting my own horn a bit here.  And mostly because I’m kind of flabbergasted at some of the things I’m finding lately.

Firstly, back in September Electronic Village named me as one of the Top 10 Black Bloggers on the internet (ranked via Technorati authority).  I came in #5, which really surprised me as I didn’t think I scored that high against some of the other amazing bloggers out there, many of whom are on my blogroll.  Apparently there were 75 bloggers on the list then, and now they’ve identified over 400.  Needless to say I slipped down in the ranks to somewhere between 11 and 25, but I’m still honored to be mentioned.

Earlier this week my blog was mentioned in this boston.com piece on black bloggers.

These intellectual challenges to mainstream and other viewpoints are some of the opinions Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander-American, and black bloggers are exposing on a growing number of sites focused on social, political, and cultural issues. The sometimes facetiously named blogs range from Angry Asian Man to The Angry Black Woman. Readers can find Latino viewpoints at Guanabee, The Unapologetic Mexican, or Latino Pundit. Those interested in information from an Asian angle head to Ultrabrown, Zuky, or Sepia Mutiny. Sites created by blacks include The Field Negro, Too Sense, and Resist Racism. But often these bloggers discard the handcuffs of their ethnic origins to tackle subjects affecting a range of racial or ethnic groups.

These sites – many of which launched in the past year, although a few are older – have become places where people of color gather to refine ideas or form thoughts about race relations, racial inequities, and the role pop culture has in exacerbating stereotypes. The writers often bring attention to subjects not yet covered by mainstream media.

(There’s some discussion going on at Rachel’s Tavern about the handcuffs remark.)

And, of course, there’s my date with the radio, which resulted in some visits from the NPR website.  I’ve been invited back to News & Notes for the Monday after Thanksgiving.  My excitement is hardly contained!

Looking back to a few years ago when I started this blog, my goals were to rant and maybe educate a few folks.  I mostly wanted to have a space to write up my thoughts on race so that, in the event that I got into conversations/arguments/debates on the topic, I could point to various posts and say “That’s everything you need to know.”  The mission has evolved a little, but I never thought I’d have so many readers or that I’d become part of such an amazing community.  It’s pretty cool.  Even if I started out a wee facetiously…