Blog Reviews

Oh, hi, everyone! It's Madmad, still giggling over some of the funny comments the reviewers had about Senior Citizen Humor. But I'll do my best to get myself under control - it's serious business, this reviewing gig, you know. Especially since it's one of the last ones before the new system goes into place. Unfortunately, Senior Citizen Humor is taking us out with a whimper, not a bang - it didn't do all that well with the readers:

Category	Score	Points
Content	4.73	33/70
Writing	4.27	2/5
Web Design	5.14	3/5
Intangibles	4.5	2/5
Read Regularly	0.91	1/10
Frequency	8	4/5	Total	45

Percentile Rank: 15


The biggest problem cited by most of the reviewers was the lack of originality:

Yet one more blogger who gathers pictures and jokes off the web and passes them off as their own.


There isn't much writing. I recognize most of these pictures and jokes from e-mail forwards.


I had a hard time with this one, basically cause it's lacking on originality.
1. Go to internet.
2. Search old people jokes/pictures.
3. Post findings.
4. Repeat daily or as necessary.


Reminds me of stuff my friends send me on facebook. It's cute more than it's funny.

But the reviewers tried to make up for it with their own funny lines:

About as funny as a "Hang In There, Baby...It's Almost Friday" poster. With an old cat hanging. From a noose.

Funny, but all of the jokes feel old, and I'm not sure that's a good thing.

I tried, honestly, out of respect for my elders at least.
It just didn't tickle me testies.

If I hadn't had my catheter in I would have dribbled into my pants with mild amusement.

And a few found the humor offensive:

Look, I'm all for taunting the elderly as much as the next anonymous internet jackass, but making jokes about elderly women with rotting intact hymens attracting fruit flies seems a little excessive to me. Just a tad, you know?

If I was going to show someone a good example of WHY NOT not blog, I'd probably forward them to this site. I award this blog no points and may God have mercy on it's creator's soul.

And while one reviewer called the blog "aight" and another "cute and funny," most felt the jokes fell a little flat.

... this blog, based on a very funny premise, is a bit of a one-trick pony. Old people ARE funny, but for more reasons than the fact they might not have sex and/or look hilarious when photo-shopped with silly props or an ass-kickin' physique.

I think the stuff featured on this blog is a poor excuse for true humor related to folks over 65 (and counting). If this blogger has nothing truly original, perhaps he should check out some of George Burns' material, and borrow from that? To quote but a few of George's one liners infinitely more clever/hilarious than the jokes I found on "My Senior Citizen Humor Blog": "You know you're getting old when you stoop to tie your shoelaces and wonder what else you could do while you're down there." "I'm at the age now where just putting my cigar in its holder is a thrill." "Sex at age 90 is like trying to shoot pool with a rope." See? Old age IS hilarious, when seen through the eyes of someone who did it rather brilliantly.

The template and ease of use of the blog earned its author some points, but the fact he also has a website, and links to it from his blog, confused some of the reviewers, who felt it was unnecessary and duplicated his efforts.

Why does he need a blog for exactly the same stuff again? Ok, the blog looks better than the website. I had a quick look at the website and fled right back to the blog for the nice calm template ;-)

But even if not everyone found Senior Citizen Humor to his or her liking, it had a few fans who enjoyed the collection of pictures and jokes about aging, even if they were left wishing there was more original material.

the frogster here, taking a look at the reviews of The Nifty Files. The Nifty Files posted a respectable score.

Category	Score	Points
Content	5.88	41/70
Writing	5.42	3/5
Web Design	4.58	2/5
Intangibles	5.17	3/5
Read Regularly	4.17	4/10
Frequency	8	4/5
Total		57

Percentile Rank: 59

The template had admirers and detractors:

The design is simple and effective. Perfect.

The site itself is way too stark...white on light blue. And there's way too much white space.

No excuse for the 1995 layout.

Design is good and easy to navigate. Don't like the turkey pic in the logo though, kinda low rent.

I don't really like the layout. It looks too home-made to me, with the black serif-font on white. I guess serif-fonts are a pet peeve of mine... I really don't like the way the calendar's in serif. And the italic serif links... But maybe it's just me. Honestly, if he just used Arial or something, I'd probably have given him full marks for looking good and navigabilty.

Some of the reviewers took points off because of the lack of original material:

(If I'm mistaken, my apologies; but as I've seen so many of the posts 'everywhere' I'm rather certain I am correct in my beliefs of recycling -- and improperly at that.)

It seems that despite putting their own website url on the images, the content is not their own and they don't credit where they found it. That's even worse than a pet peeve -- it's a HUGE No-no. I respect blogs with originality more.

Funny discoveries by the authour including hilarious packaging, newspaper articles and adds and videos. In that sense it's not original, but the short text with the graphics are well done and definitely bring out the humour. The authour has an eye for the strange and captures it well.

Not much writing involved here. Just some straight forward posts that are funny stuff found on the net.

While some of the reviewers were completely turned off by the incorporation of recycled material, but most found the site entertaining. Except for the occasional sour grape reviewer.

Very funny.

The text for each entry is short, to the point, and effective.

Yay! Short funny posts. Good eye for funny bits off the web. You can come and go and not need to learn this guy's (or gal's) life story (or sex).

I really enjoyed visiting The Nifty Files and I will be returning.

It's just okay. There isn't much writing to judge and the template is very plain.

Good job of separating things into categories of topic.

That said, the brevity of the site, humorous photos of signs, ads, etc. make for quick reading, and most everything draws a smile. The blogger obviously enjoys pointing out the humor in the everyday.

Too many pics, too many links, not enough funny.

It's bookmarked and I will be a regular reader.

haikus of funniness, but like mental cotton candy, it left me wishing there was more substance.

Most of the negative comments were aimed at the site's "cutesy" feel.

Very funny.

Let's just say it ain't just a clever title. I don't like being constantly ordered by EVERY post to "be nifty". I am not nifty. Will not nift. Have never nifted. I don't even know what 'be nifty' means, and I just had a hard time getting past it.

I think this blogger has a clearly "cute" sense of humor, too bad he/she feels the need to tell me why the various pics/videos are so darn hilarious in a way that says "I want you to laugh for the exact same reason I am. Also, I think you might not be smart enough to figure out what's going on unless I tell you. Here's hoping I get a job writing for The Family Guy, because they constantly over-expalain jokes, too." (This, in my mind, is what separates true funny from so-so.)

Here's a case where, in my humble opinion, the "intangibles" rank higher than the other categories. I have to say I laughed at the actual pictures, but the commentary left something to be desired... something... Oh yeah... finesse.

I'm sorry to say that I didn't find this blog funny. And the "Be Nifty!" at the end of every post annoyed me. I also found the template to be generic and kind of boring. Sorry!

Good job of separating things into categories of topic.

It's bookmarked and I will be a regular reader.

haikus of funniness, but like mental cotton candy, it left me wishing there was more substance.

Blogs in the review queue, check out the following comment and consider yourself warned:

I sooooo dislike the suck-up "I'm being reviewed" post. At least there were links to our recommended reading, but honestly, I really, Really dislike that play. This was reflected in the 'pet peeve' portion of the score.

The Nifty files faired pretty well, and many of the reviewers expressed their interest in becoming regular readers. Well done, Nifty! Keep on blogging!

the frogster here. Today I'm crunching the numbers for Armadillo Trader. Armadillo Trader got strong marks for his posting schedule, but got dinged a bit for his overall content.

Category	Score	Points
Content	5.38	38/70
Writing	5.94	3/5
Web Design	5.25	3/5
Intangibles	4.5	2/5
Read Regularly	5	5/10
Frequency	10	5/5
Total		56

Percentile Rank: 52

Templatewise, the reviewers' opinions ran the gamut:

Please change the font of your posts! I don't want to be blind by 30! Otherwise, not bad!

The site itself was laid out very professionally. It was easy to navigate and I love the category break-downs that are available. When I read his writings, its as though I am having a conversation with him. He writes the way he speaks, or at least it seems so. He also has a sarcastic cynicism that I find refreshing.

I don't like the layout. The middle column is much too narrow, the outside two are each almost as wide again. It distracts from the content. Given that the posts are all very long, you really don't want to be giving people any more reason to get distracted... I also don't like the font. I prefer sans-serif, especially when the page is already crowded and there's a lot to read. It just makes it a lot easier on the eyes.

Widening the middle column woould go a long way towards fixing the layout.

Some of the writers were enthusiastic about the writing:

This guy is a great writer. I didn't think that his blogs were hilarious but they were kind of amusing.

There's some great humor here, but the blog is all over the place in terms of tone, themes, etc. I think it should find a niche and stick to it, whatever that might be.

Very funny blog -- writing is top notch.

The posts are very long and sometimes the humor gets drowned in the details. I kept wishing he'd break it up a bit, to allow for pacing. I did appreciate the originality of his material, it is clear he put a lot of time into these columns.

The reviewers found the site funny, if not hilarious:

This is a fun little blog. Often, I'm not entirely sure where he's going with a few of his anecdotes (and the payoffs don't always work.) But he warmed my cold heart nonetheless by ridiculing Rachel Ray.

I'd check back from time to time to see what he's writing, but hope for a tightening up of the writing style, it would punch up his humor lines more.

Not a bad blog. Still too little material to tell how he's going to grow. Most of the stories are amusing and occasionally he really gets a good riff going.

While it didn't make me laugh, it did keep me amused and interested enough to read his older posts. I'll definitely come back!

The general consensus seemed to be that Armadillo Trader is a promising blogger with a bright future ahead of him once he finds the voice that brings the most out of his writing skills. Well done, Armadillo Trader. Keep on blogging!

Funny, sincere, and the posts are a nice length. A winner!

She was pretty funny! I like her writing style and the way she just kind of launches
into whatever she wants to tell. No messy ramp-up here!

I visit her blog often; she has a good strong writing voice. There are lots of mom blogs out there, but few that manage to walk the line of conveying the humor and chaos of family life without sounding fatiguing and grumbly.

Basically, I thought her posts were short and cute -- in the vein of many "mommy
blogs" I've read in the past. I'm not laughing, but I DID smile. (Mostly because
I'm ever so grateful NOT to be saddled with 6 kids. Aieeeee.)

I didn't hate this blog, which is saying something since I've loathed some of the blogs
I've read here. I found it mildly funny.

I give this blog points for being somewhat cute and endearing, and I would recommend it if you're looking for that kind of thing.

Kids saying kid things isn't all that funny to me. Hearing about normal everyday
married life isn't all that funny to me.

There isn't really much to say about this blog. I come here expecting to review humor blogs, not personal blogs. I suppose some of the situations have a germ of something that could turn into a sitcom type plot... but it's completely unintentional.

Mom blogs don't really appeal to me, and it's nothing really original/outstanding from any other "mom" blog.

Overall, however, Suburban Correspondent seems to have have a strong hold on the readers who enjoy family humor.

the frogster here, checking the reviews of Turkeyblog. Turkeyblog put up a pretty good score.

Category	Score	Points
Content	6	42/70
Writing	6.71	3/5
Web Design	6.94	3/5
Intangibles	6.53	3/5
Read Regularly	5.29	5/10
Frequency	6	3/5
Total		59

Percentile Rank: 67

Turkey Necks faired better in the template category than some of the blogs I've recently compiled reviews for, though you can't please everyone:

The look of this blog is fantastic. Definitely not like other blogs.

I know that many reviewers don't like black backgrounds and white typeset but I didn't mind that here and I liked the layout a lot. I thought that the cutout drawing of (presumably) the author was kind of cool and I also liked the green and black together.

I like the template, it's original and fun. There's no information about the author, which is a bit disappointing. Also the twitter thing confused me, what's the point of it?

The white writing on the black background is very painful for ones eyes, and then on top of that with the green sidebar, I feel like I've gone into a hypnotic shock.

The reviewers were either put off or intrigued by the course nature of many of the posts:

A bit angry, but then, I'm no girl scout myself.

All in all, excellent job, very funny--crude and hostile, which I like--and I'm definitely going to bookmark it.

Turned off from the start by the instant "That lump you found is Cancer" crack. Poor taste. Blog color matched the tone of the writing, it reminded me of baby food spinach. Even the most health concious mother has reservations about feeding her baby such ugly looking mush.

Oh I like the hell out of this blog. The author is completely full of himself and not timid about it. There's something very entertaining about a cocky as all hell blogger. The subject matter could be a little more captivating, but overall, he's definitely got himself a strong blog. Good work giblet man.

Wow, my eyes really hurt after reading this guys entries, and I'm more offended than when I read that Britney Spears was the number one story on CNN.

I scrolled around, trying to find a post that would draw a smile or a laugh, it just felt mad and mean.

As far as funniness, most of the reviewers dug at least some of what they read:

When I first clicked on it, I didn't care for the "s"-bomb in his header, but I started reading and fell in love almost immediately. He even made me laugh out loud, and almost nobody manages that.

You had me at 'hello' with: True, some might argue that I’ve always been all out of funny, but to those I would say “look, I don’t care how long we’ve been married, if I wanted my wife’s opinion, I’d have sent you a text message asking for it.” And then you kept it up. Most excellent.

This blog was amusing to me. It's kind of like listening to your pervy cousin at the family reunion...you have options...you could go listen to Aunt Erma talk about her bunion surgery...but you (wisely) decide to hang out and listen to your cousin ranting about bending his boner during a sex dream involving a teenager.

Let's see... I really dig how the dialogue balloon changes phrases each time you refresh the window. To be honest, and I did leave this as a comment on his blog, I immediately banked heavily on him being a regular amusing read and immediately put him in my bookmarks when I read "and I bent my boner." That right there hits just the right amount of humor and schadenfreude in my book! Good luck to him and his blogging endeavors!

The reviewers' opinions about post length differed greatly:

My only constructive criticism would be for him to try shortening his paragraphs. White space is unbelievably important when you're reading on a computer screen. Standard paragraph lengths need not apply.

Short posts containing short paragraphs are easier to read, thus the reader does not get bored easily -- good job on that front.

Not a bad read. Some of the posts seemed like one really log sentence and that's not good 'cause when you're reading you don't know when to take a breath and then you have to go back and try to read it again inserting your own mental commas so you don't turn blue from oxygen depravation when all you really wanted was the funny stuff that is harder to laugh at now 'cause you're studying too hard. (see?)

Looks like Turkeyblog gained a few fans while the reviewers were looking it over. It also offended a few people, but somehow I don't think that's going to bother our turkey-necked blogger. Well done, Turkeyblog. Keep on blogging!

the frogster here. Today I'm crunching the numbers for Mommy Has A Headache. Mommy Has A Headache faired quite well with the reviewers.

Category	Score	Points
Content	6.09	43/70
Writing	6.64	3/5
Web Design	5.82	3/5
Intangibles	5.27	3/5
Read Regularly	5.45	5/10
Frequency	6	3/5
Total		60

Percentile Rank: 69

The reviewers were madly in love with the template. This must be so, because there weren't 20 comments about how the template caused the reviewer to need to lie down. Look. Below is the only template comment of the bunch:

The design is OK. Pink ain't my thing. But it is uncluttered and easy to navigate. The banner makes me laugh.

There was some speculation by the reviewers that labeling this a humor blog was putting it in the wrong category:

This is a slice of life blog, not a humor blog. Just be what you are.

God I love the ex-pat Brits. This chick rocks.

It is refreshing to read a female blogger's content that isn't kid or family centric. It's also funny and thought-provoking.

Once they got the categorization out of the way, most of the reviewers were satisfied that their funny bone had been tickled, at least a little.

Today I went and she's complaining about using toilets in foriegn lands. Still not laughing. Her voice seems self indulgent and a bit spoiled. A lot of these observations could be amusing, but they are overlong. I kept skimming hoping for a smile or a chuckle or a twist that would make me pause and think.

I like the fact that she doesn't just recycle news stories (and that when she uses news, she ads comments more than 'laugh at this' with a link). Original content/own ideas/own images etc. should count for quite a bit in rating blogs in general.

Overall it was amusing and irreverent, which I like.

I enjoy her dry sense of humor, and only take umbrage at her convoluted style of conveying whatever message she's trying to convey. For instance, a post about her adorable child helping to clean the house ends up with a (funny?) note about an overpriced out-house? Mmmm-kay. My point, which is flushed with excitement at the prospect of being made, is that "transitions" are key to cohesive writing. I may not use any in my own pithy offerings, but that doesn't mean I don't like 'em.

Very long posts that aren't particularly funny.

There's nothing sexier than a funny lady, and EmmaK is a funny lady. I really enjoy reading her naughty posts, even if they run a bit long for my taste.

I do read this blog regularly and have always enjoyed it.

The reviewers mentioned one particular post quite often.

I found one funny post (niche porn) amongst all of the posts I read. Most weren't funny ha-ha, they were funny sad, and that makes me sad. Bitter isn't funny to me.

The porn section killed all interest entirely. Not funny. No thank you.

I would NOT read this blog on a daily basis, but would (and will) definitely check in from time to time. I mean, her Porn Post alone was worth the price of clicking over.

Mommy's Headache has led to a blog that was a hit with our reviewers. Well done, Mommy! Step away from the aspirin and keep on blogging!

It's Madmad again, happy to report that most of our reviewers seemed to like Chocolate for Your Brain, a blog that was new to me.

Category	Score	Points
Content	5.76	40/70
Writing	6.86	3/5
Web Design	5.33	3/5
Intangibles	5.76	3/5
Read Regularly	2.38	2/10
Frequency	8	4/5
Total		55

Percentile Rank: 49

The biggest complaint they had concerned the length of the posts:

Half the posts I read were just way too long. My A.D.D. kicked in and I found myself dreaming about Eva Longoria and waffles. On the upside, the posts were easy to read, not all boogered up with ads (rare these days), and posts NOT related to boring daily activities were actually pretty clever.

I found the posts to be a bit long with the funny bits far and between.

The author needs to be a bit more to the point in order to keep the reader from dozing off before they get to the good bits.

Honestly, whilst reading the post on Hillary, I was entertained, but had about 6 swathes of boredom between the jokes. I'm glad I kept reading through though as the jokes were worth it. By the second post though? I was asleep.

... your articles are waaaaaay too long; you need to shorten your paragraphs, and you need to clean up your punctuation.

The posts are all very long. None of them were funny enough to keep my attention for even half of the post.

There's a kernel of humour in each of the posts, but it kind of gets lost in all the words...

Several reviewers commented on the quality of the Sherry's writing, even if the humor wasn't to their taste:

Well-written, intelligent. Cute, some moments of insight, I laughed more than cringed, which is a good sign (I especially liked the proposed Mobil ads). A bit too precious for my tastes at times with the stories about kids, but I'm a cynic.

This is a genuinely silly little blog that shows a lot of effort put into the writing. I enjoyed it's offbeat nature, though nothing has yet made me laugh. But depending on your sense of humor you may get a few more chuckles out of it than I did.

Overall I'd recommend checking it out.

Her blog is well written but her posts didn't make me laugh. I DID read her archives and did NOT base my opinion on just a couple of posts.

And a good number found it funny, too:

Great, Funny Blog!

This is what a humor blog should look and read like. The writing is top notch and there's actually a lot of funny insight.

A good blog with some solid observational humor from everyday life. She writes pretty well and in a witty and insightful manner to boot. I'd definitely return.

OK...the GPS blog I totally didn't get and almost gave up on reviewing her. BUT I decided to suck it up and went on to the next one...Eureka! It IS funny! She writes really well and is humorous.

I'm clicking YES in the regular reader tab, because there is no - Check from time to time - tab. And this blog is definitely worth that.

This woman tackles a subject not handled by most mommy bloggers. So it has its audience, to be sure. She needs to clean up her grammar and spelling, especially since she gets published.

Template issues were of concern to some:

My only criticism is that I thought the layout was a bit bland. Otherwise I enjoyed it and will be back!

The template was a little screwy. Too many colors that don't match. Brown and Grey?

The amount of text in the sidebar is a bit off-putting. It seems a bit crowded on that side.

The design is a basic template, so points off there -- but not too many 'cause the site is being remodeled.

Then an entry about her approach to being reviewed. Hint to Sherry: if you want people to click on your earlier work--if you feel that including your archives in your side bar isn't enough--then don't just mention the articles, link to them.

A number of commenters were put off by a post on being reviewed here:

I personally didn't like the post about being reviewed -- with directions on how to proceed. An average visitor would not have such directions; I do my reviews as an average visitor and stumble about the site/blog. Plus, if you're going to direct us as to what to read, make links to those pieces.

The nervous post about this review was a little cheesey and gratuitous. Do your thing, if it hits, it hits.

Overall, though, it seems the reviewers enjoyed the writing. I'm off to check it out now myself!