Thank You

Chuffed. Tickled pink. Over the moon. Validated. I feel like Sally Field.

I won Best Chronic Illness Blog in the Canadian Blog Awards thanks to you and I want to let you know that it matters, just as it did two years ago. It matters that the CBA had a category for Chronic Illness, it matters that people cared enough to vote for the nominees in the category and on a personal note, it matters to me that I was nominated.

I want to thank The Boy for nominating me, the other nominees in the category Graceful Agony and Chronic Connection for being such fantastic bloggers, the Canadian Blog Awards for doing this every year and for making me aware of so many great blogs, Dave Hingsburger who asked his readers to vote for me, too (Dave won two categories.). And you, the readers who voted for me. This means a lot. And I'm looking forward to figuring out how to put the button on my sidebar.

But here's the thing... Much as I'm really jazzed about this - look at me go, I found another metaphor about being excited - it is the rest of the year that matters the most. The Internet lends a social outlet to those of us who can't get out much. That's the theoretical statement, one that doesn't begin to touch on the reality. Because it's coming here to my little corner of the internet and finding you reading my posts, joining in the rants, laughing at my idiocy, sharing your own stories of disability and pain, putting up with my inability to e-mail or comment on your blogs as much as I'd like, offering support during the rough times and encouragement when the good things happen. Here is a group of friends who have that most special and rare thing: a genuinely liking and love for each other for who we are, people living with chronic illness or disability, people who don't, people who knit and those who don't, parents of kids, parents of cats (and dogs), lovers of chocolate and… well. Pretty much everyone loves chocolate. But yeah. I can look around and see you there, in the comments, in my bookmarks, in my inbox and you are the real prize.

Thank you.