Sunday, March 1, 2009

The Top 100 Blogs that Waste My Time…in the Best Possible Way

Ever feel like there’s just nothing new online? There are millions of websites and blogs out there but sometimes I feel like I just keep going back to the same sites over and over again. I’m not complaining…there are a lot of great sites in my repertoire, but sometimes a girl needs a little something new in her life, right?

In an effort to share the internet love, I thought I would pull together a list of the Top 100 blogs I visit when I’m looking to waste time online. Of course these sites aren’t a waste of time but rather informative, fun and even some important sites that might make your next online experience just a little more interesting.

The list below is made of some sites I recently discovered, but most of them I’ve been checking out for years…out of habit. The list is mostly self indulgent as I get to share my online faves, but it’s also selfishly a way to find new sites that I might not have otherwise known about. So read my list and then share YOUR favorite blogs in the comments below. Maybe we’ll all learn a little something which in turn will make us perhaps that much less productive. Deal?

If your blog didn’t make the list, please don’t think I don’t read it or appreciate all the work that you put into it. I’m such a web geek that this list could easily be 200 blogs without batting an eye. But I wanted to include a real mix of subject matters and genres. That being said, there is a certain trend towards TV and entertainment related gossip sites. Can’t help it…sista knows what she likes.

Not too much criteria for this list. The blogs listed are ones that I go to often enough that they are either (a) in my bookmarks or (b) top of mind, and all contain a certain level of addictability. Not much too it other than that.

The following blogs are in no particular order (because seriously that would take hours, and to be honest I’m just trying to kill some time on a Sunday night).

  • Give Me My Remote - Whatevs. You know it’s going to be on the list. But it deserved to be because GMMR is the single biggest website time suck (good and bad) in my life.
  • Fail Blog - Epic fails and occasional wins. This site won’t be found in my list of bookmarks on my office computer. I have enough fails at work as it is. But the real reason I don’t check it at work is that I love to come home, settle in and check out this site as a reward for lasting another day at the office.
  • Facebook - If you’re on Facebook then you know how addicting it can be. The voyeuristic nature of this site can keep me entertained for hours.
  • Wikipedia - Try searching for one thing and you might find yourself there for hours. I know it’s not always accurate but it’s a fun place to start learning.
  • Perez Hilton - Yup, I’ll admit it. I’m there about 100 times throughout the day. And every time I visit there is new content. That’s impressive. Usually mean, but impressive.
  • TV Squad - A great site for TV recaps. Not sure how many people are working for this site, but at the rate they turn out show recaps I would assume they have quite a few busy little TV watchers.
  • Mini Putt - Old school but still all kinds of awesome! Tiger Woods may not be your golf partner in this game, but then again you don’t have to stand up to play, so that’s a win right?!
  • Watch with Kristin - Where it all began. The site which is most directly responsible for the existence of GMMR. What can I say…I love me some KDS.
  • Ducky Does TV - Not only my BBF (best blogger friend) but also one helluva funny writer. You love him on the TV Talk Podcast, and now you have to make sure you are reading his site.

  • Variety - My go to site for TV industry news.
  • The Hollywood Reporter - My other go to site for TV industry news. But THR.com usually has really interesting commentary as well.
  • EW.com - The epicenter of pop culture online. Ausiello has the latest TV scoop, and the rest of the site has interesting commentary on just about everything else related to the entertainment space.
  • FactCheck.org - An important site that I used a lot during the Presidential campaigns. But it’s much more than that. You can’t always believe what you read, so this site comes in pretty handy.
  • Buzz Sugar - A fun site with a mish mash of TV news, and celeb worshipping.
  • Pink is the New Blog - One of my all time favorites. Trent gives his readers a great blend of the real news but with his signature take. PitNB is a little bit of everything from movies to books to celebs to fashion to Britney and the hot gay men that love her.
  • My Take On TV - Amrie may be my friend but she also has some of the best interviews with the hottest TV stars. I don’t know how she keeps up with it all, but it’s a must read.
  • Things I Bought That I Love - One of my very favorite sites on the web. Now only if it was updated it more. The voice of Kelly Kapoor can be heard in Mindy Kaling’s awesome shopping blog.
  • Television Without Pity - Love TV forums? TWoP is the place to be…if you don’t mind egotistical moderators and snippy posters. But other than that it’s fun.
  • I’m Bringing Blogging Back - One of the most fun celeb blogs out there. I’m not a fan of THE HILLS but this site has some of the best commentary online. Plus much more.
  • Fatback and Collards - A staple in the celeb gossip world. From this site was born my very first blog, the now defunct All This Nonsense. Men especially enjoy the pretty ladies featured on the pages within.
  • Pandora - The best site on the web to listen to streaming music. Create playlists and listen to the music YOU enjoy!
  • Ramblings of a TV Whore - I love reading Rae’s take on TV - it’s always a fun time and I usually agree with her every point. And if you’re looking for interviews with the stars of your favorite shows, then add this site to your bookmarks.
  • The TV Addict - A great TV site with up-to-date news and insightful thoughts on the TV landscape.
  • Televisionary - Well written, and well thought out commentary on what we’re watching and what’s coming up in the land of TV.
  • The Big Picture - One of the most amazing sites out there. Important news stories from across the globe told through amazing pictures.
  • Boston.com - My first web site stop every morning (after Gmail). This is where I get my fill of local news. It’s the go-to site for everyone in Boston (and no I’m not getting a bonus for writing that…I work in the newspaper industry…there are no bonuses).
  • Morty’s TV- Maybe I don’t go to this site everyday right now, but when BIG BROTHER returns to CBS I’m completely a slave to Morty’s BB spoilers.
  • Yelp - My very favorite site to get reviews on area businesses, restaurants, and other service I’m interested in.
  • People.com - It’s People.com. Come on. Is much more explanation needed?
  • Pop Candy - A pop culture staple. I’ve never been a cutting edge music fan, so I love to come here and learn about what the cool kids are listening to.
  • CNN - What? I care about world events too (and Anderson Cooper) and important news stuff.
  • The Sports Guy - I hero worship Bill Simmons. A sports writer who just happens to have a hilarious take on everything pop culture. One of the people I would most like to share a beer with.
  • Cake Wrecks - A site full of professional cake fails. It might sound lame but go there and be prepared to laugh your ass off.
  • Funny or Die - When this launched I thought it was going to be just another YouTube’esque site. But it’s turned about to be one of the greatest places for original comedy online. Big name stars (mostly within six degrees of Judd Apatow) are lining up to show off the funny in these great vids.
  • You Tube - The ultimate time suck. I go to watch one video and three hours later I’m still watching laughing babies and people who choreograph special dance routines for their weddings.
  • Zap2It/ Korbi TV - Zap2It is where is the new “tv guide”. And Korbi TV is where I go to catch up with my girl Korbi and find out the latest TV scoop from her special inside sources.
  • The Pie Maker - In a list of 100 blogs there is a little room for self promotion, right? The essential fan site for the almost dunzo (but not quite yet) PUSHING DAISIES.
  • Oh No They Didn’t - All the entertainment news you could want. I was hesitant to include this site on my list because I have a REAL problem with how the site/moderators and its readers STEAL content from other sites. But the site itself (even though it’s often overrun by teeny boppers) can’t be ignored.
  • Lostpedia - If you are a fan of LOST you will be absolutely mesmorized by depth of this site. Simply amazing.
  • The Watcher - Maureen Ryan’s take on TV. Great commentary and insight on a number of shows. Plus she has great access to behind-the-scenes scoop.
  • TVGuide.com - Sadly the site has almost fallen off my radar. I’m still a faithful reader of Matt Mitovich, but now that Matt Roush is gone there’s not many reasons to visit. It’s actually quite sad.
  • iMDB.com - One of my bibles. I probably visit this site 10 times a day. A database of TV, movie and actor news.
  • The Daily Show - If you are a fan of THE DAILY SHOW, I triple dog dare you to check out their site and not get lost in all te great show clips. My particular faves are segments featuring Carell, Colbert, Rocca and Helms. The good ‘ol days (not that the present days are shabby)
  • D Listed - Pure celeb gossip. An old standby.
  • TV Tattle - A comprehensive TV news source. This site scours headlines from a ton of different sources.
  • Interbridge - It’s where I go to find out who will be on the late night (and early morning) talk show circuit for the week.
  • TV Decoder - TV news from The NY Times. Brian Stetler and his crew have some interesting insight on all things TV.
  • Twitter - It’s how I know what my online friends are up to, and sadly how my “real life” friends keep tabs on me. Right now it’s my crack.
  • Hulu - The best place to watch TV online. Hands down. Now if only all my shows could be found there.
  • TMZ - I feel a little dirty going there because I don’t like there tactics for getting the celeb scoop. But I haven’t stopped going so clearly I’m not that affected by it.
  • Buddy TV - A TV site with a lot of potential. Their original content is great, but the site layout overwhelms me a bit. I stick to Oscar Dahl’s stuff - he’s a great writer (and a hell of a nice guy)
  • Yeeeah.com - What can I say, I love me some celeb gossip.
  • Project Rungay - Hilarious site which goes after the fashion you see on TV. Always makes me smile.
  • Confusing Words - As I don’t consider myself much of a writer, this is my go to site when I need to figure out the difference between words like : bear, bare and beer. I’m not that smart. I’ll admit it.
  • Pop URLS - A link aggregation of some of the most popular news stories on the Web.
  • iGoogle - This counts as a site, right? It’s where I can quickly glance at the headlines of my top 10 favorite sites.
  • Viewer Discretion - The Boston Globe’s Matthew Gilbert and Joanna Weiss would still get my vote for some of the best TV commentary out there..even if they didn’t work downstairs from me.
  • Go Fug Yourself - Like ripping apart what celebs are wearing? This is your site.
  • Tim Goodman - I didn’t really start reading Tim Goodman until about 2 year ago when my office was in San Fran. Now he’s a daily staple.
  • College Humor - Sometimes (ok mostly) raunchy, but always hysterical videos.
  • Web MD - At times I can be a hypochondriac…this site doesn’t help.
  • Evil Beet - Evil celeb gossip, but with great pictures.
  • Futon Critic - Want the latest TV press releases…look no further.
  • Deadline Hollywood Daily - I never knew about this site before the WGA strike, but now I look to Nikki Finke for the latest industry news.
  • Ad Week - My ‘real job’ is in Marketing so there’s always a ton of interesting finds on this site.
  • What Alan’s Watching - Alan Sepinwall writer for NJ.com, but if you want to get more of his unabashed thought, then check out his blog.
  • Craigslist - I spend waaaaaay too much time on this site, usually looking at places to live here in Boston, and then occasionaly (and by that I mean constantly) I look for apartment in L.A.
  • Celebrity Tweet - What are some of the top celebrity twitteres twittering about right now?
  • Post Secret - We all have secrets. Some people choose to share them on post cards to the world. I support that. But there are some sick people Mofos out there.
  • Yahoo! Games - You can often find me here playing Cribbage or Literati at 3am. (I’m not the best sleeper)
  • Stumble Upon - I suppose this whole post serves as a ’stumble upon’, but the site itself is a great place to discover new blogs.
  • Time - I’m smart. I read Time Magazine online (mostly their movie and TV news), but it’s still Time.
  • Apple Movie Trailers - I’ve never been a big movie person, but I love checking out all the new trailers as they’re made avaiable on this site.
  • Engadget - I’ve never been a real early adopter but I secretly want to be. This site satifies the inner geek (ok maybe not so much inner as much as I’m just a geek).
  • TV Week - Another great site for TV industry news.
  • Fanboy.com - Just what you’d expect to find on a site named Fan Boy. A mish mash of pop culture from today and yesteryear.
  • Pop Eater - Videos, pics and news that will satisfy your hunger for all things celebrity.
  • Boston.com/Newton - It’s where I go in the morning to find out what’s happening in my home town.
  • After Elton - Until Ducky started writing for them I didn’t really visit After Elton all that often. What can I say, the gays crack me up. Insightful and often biting commentary offering the gay perspective on entertainment.
  • Wired - Remember that inner geek I was telling you about? Yeah, another site to serve me. Great tech news served with a slice of pop culture on the side.
  • Pop Sugar - Have I mentioned I’m a fan of all things pop culture. If I only took this much interest in school I could have had multiple PhD’s by now.
  • eHow.com - I’m not good for much, so I love a site that give me tips on how to do just about anything I ever wanted to do. It’s brilliant and so addictive.
  • Search Engine Land - I love staying up on the latest techniques and trends in the SEM world.
  • Flickr - I’m not a big Flickr user myself, but if I do end up on that site then you better believe I’m going to get sucked into some serious photo searches.
  • How Stuff Works - Another great site to learn a ton about a bunch of things you never knew you wanted to learn about.
  • The Smoking Gun - I’ve been going to this site forever, but it’s still good for hilarious mug shots and info on the most ridiculous of crimes.
  • Zappos.com - I love shoes. If you’re going to buy shoes online, this is the site where you go to do that. Very simple.
  • eBay.com - Another oldie but goodie. I’m not a big buyer but I love looking at the expiring auctions to see if there is anything worthwhile jumping in on at the last minute.
  • The Onion - One of the smartest and funniest sites on the entire world wide web.
  • Amazon.com - The mac daddy of internet sites. Between the gold box deals and the moutains of TV on DVD, it’s where I’ve been spending a lot of time (and money).

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