I also tend to forget my own birthday

Today is July 31, 2005, which means that yesterday, B@B celebrated its first blogiversary. Yes, it's been a full year of raging left-wing rants by Yours Truly.

I started B@B last year because I needed a place to vent my general disgust at the direction the country was taking, and because I already knew in my heart that we were in for four more years of George W. Bush, despite John Kerry's good debate performance the night before my first blog post. I started B@B because there's only so much ranting to which Mr. Brilliant should have to listen. Even the most selectively deaf spouse can only tune out so much. Some wives nag; I rant about sociopolitics.

While we're still not in the top tier of blogs, or even the second, third, or fourth tiers, I'm happy with the progress we've made. About 200 people visit here every day, which is chump traffic in blogtopia, but 1400 visits a week ain't chopped liver either. It's a bigger audience than just Mr. Brilliant and our two cats, which is what I had before. And the cats really don't care, as long as kibble is delivered into their bowls on time.

Some of our readers go off to our sibling sites, Mixed Reviews (for movie reviews) and Modern Fabulousity (where my partner in movie review crime covers the cultural beat. We've been blogrolled by some of the blogs I respect most, and we're listed at Liberal Oasis, which ain't chopped liver either. And perhaps the biggest thrill of all is our mention on Air America's Morning Sedition on June 28, a moment which will forever go down in history as My Moment of Truly Pathetic Geek-Ass Glory. Not bad for a 50-year-old Jewish broad from the suburbs of Jersey.

So it's off to another year of ranting and raving here at B@B. It's got the potential to be a roller-coaster of a year -- for the world, for the nation, and for me personally. I look forward to us all shutting our eyes tightly and screaming in unison as the little carny-ride car we're in continues to careen out of control.

Then we'll go for pizza.