The 1st Brass Balls Award

Not too long ago (ok, longer than I meant it to be), I told you about a wonderful new award that Rys, Aunt Becky, and I were going to be starting...the Brass Balls Award. Well, I'm finally getting off my ass and awarding it.


This award recognizes "an exemplary post that took an amazing amount of guts to not only type out but put out there for the world to see". I can think of no post that fits this description better than That Which Is Left Behind. That Which Must Be Said. on BandBackTogether.com. This post was written by the amazing GuiltySquid who writes at the blog of the same name. GuiltySquid's post talks about her father and how special he was and his devastating loss through suicide. People can be so hesitant to talk about losing someone through suicide because they fear the people they tell will think less of their loved one or might say something hurtful about the person lost.  As GuiltySquid said,

"Suicide is a topic that no one wants to be connected to. People don’t want to talk about it. They can’t hear about it. They don’t want to comfort you because they don’t know how. It’s not something that they want to believe can happen to you. They don’t know what to say. They don’t have the answers either, and that makes it difficult for them."

Because of her bravery in putting this post out there, it may be just a little easier for people to talk about their loss or to comfort a someone who loses a loved one through suicide. That is an invaluable gift she has given all of us.

Take a moment to go read GuiltySquid's post and check out her equally amazing blog. This woman's got a set of big brass balls and we need to celebrate that.

*Brass Balls and Brass Tacks

There are hundreds upon thousands of blogs out there and many of those blogs have posts on them that touch you in some way. They may make you laugh or cry or just think. But, every now and then, someone writes a post that bares their heart and soul and when that happens, the results can be amazing. When just one blogger has the courage to bare their soul, others can be inspired to share their stories. Lines of communication can open up that were formerly taboo. Connections can be made that help someone feel less alone. Friendships and communities are formed.

This summer, my dear friend Rys from Confessions of a Clutter Queen came to me with an idea of how to recognize these courageous bloggers. We started bouncing ideas around and The Brass Balls Award was born. Since this award would recognize "an exemplary post that took an amazing amount of guts to not only type out but put out there for the world to see", we decided we needed a few things. One, we needed someone else to help us with the selection. We didn't want this to be just two friends making a decision by themselves. So, we recruited Aunt Becky from Mommy Wants Vodka to join our endeavor. Two, we decided this award needed to be more than just bloggy bling. There needed to be a physical award. Sure, there will be bloggy bling but there will also be a piece of bling created by yours truly. This bling can either be worn as a necklace pendant or used however the recipient wants.When you get down to brass tacks, real people sharing a bit of their lives is what blogging is all about. When those people take it a step further and show some real courage by sharing something personal and intimate, well that take Brass Balls. We plan on announcing the first recipient of The Brass Balls award within the next few days (no later than Monday). After the first Brass Balls Award is given, the current winner will be invited to help us chose the next worthy recipient. I really hope this award will allow these very special bloggers and posts to gain a wider audience. Getting more people to read these truly ballsy posts can only be a good thing and I hope y'all enjoy being a part of it.

*Thanks go to Rys for the rockin' title. I couldn't resist using it.