I’VE HAD a Tumblr account for almost five years. In that time, I’ve met new real-life friends, connected with interesting people through messages and reblogs, gotten a peek into the inner-working of some of my favorite authors (Neil Gaiman, Roxane Gay, and John Greene all have accounts), and, well, gone down the total rabbit hole that is Tumblr.
If you’ve never signed up or been intrigued, you’ve also never lost midnight through four AM (or eight AM through ten AM, or any other combination of hours) looking through hilarious GIFs, tear-inducing quotes, obscure internet videos, and any of the endless bits of interesting Internet gold that gets shared to this popular blogging platform. I’m not saying the Internet’s potential for sucking you into your computer screen for hours at a time is a good thing, but if you’re going to do it, Tumblr is the way to go.
Here are a few blogs you might want to check out:
Hot Guys on the Train
A daily collection of the chosen male commuters. Have you ever stayed on the subway or other form of public transportation an extra stop or two, people watching? This blog captures that from the comforts of your own home, and whoever curates this does a pretty great job of living up to the blog’s name.
Last Night’s Reading
Drawings and quotes from readings given by authors in New York City. These capture some of the best lines from the event and come with “curator” Kate Gavino’s excellent portraits of their speakers.
Col. Chris Hadfield
Oh, just a Canadian astronaut who blogs from the International Space Station (and the grounds of earth, when he’s here). The photographs from space offer beautiful perspectives of our planet and the other interesting tidbits he shares are excellent, too. What else would you expect from an astronaut other than awesome?
Tinder Guys Posing with Art
This is exactly what you think it is and it’s hysterical.
Unf*ck Your Habitat
This isn’t just for people whose abodes are total messes, it also provides a seemingly bottomless archive of tips and solutions for just about any at-home cleanliness issue you might face. If cleaning isn’t your strongest suit, this blog offers motivation, support, and accountability to get and keep things clean with a “real talk” attitude — if it’s not clear from the blog’s name, she curses a lot. Go see what the 20/10 and a drain volcano are all about… they’re life changers.
Smart Girls at the Party
Do you love Amy Poehler? Of course you love Amy Poehler! This is her online project with Meredith Walker for young women (and young women at heart) that encourages activism, volunteerism, and being yourself. It’s a daily dose of positivity marked with heartfelt realism.
The Washington Post
Maybe you’re thinking, “Seriously? A newspaper?” but whoever they put in charge of The Post’s Tumblr account is a person with a sense of humor. Expect hysterical GIF responses and “Overheard in the Newsroom” posts mixed in with informative content.
Screenshots of Despair
Aesthetic poetry you might not notice, if not for these screenshots from apps, computer screens, and other technological things that offer robotic written speech, occasionally telling us something too real or straightforward to handle. “Great job on that 0 seconds of walking you just did!”, for example.
Today’s Document
Daily featured documents from today in history from the holdings of the U.S. National Archives. A daily dose of history for us visual learners.
GLAD YOU’RE NOT HERE!
“Postcards and angst from yesteryear,” Ever find an old postcard in a book or box of things, maybe one that you got secondhand or belonged to a relative? There’s a particularly pleasant nostalgia that comes with messages and signatures of the past. This is that without the moth balls.
F*cking Homepage
These daily informational posts are broken down into several categories including “Person of the f**king day”, “Educate your ignorant @ss”, and “Useful sh*t of the goddamn day”. Consider this blog your curated guide to the rabbit hole.
