When I tell people that I read blogs, they usually say something vaguely condescending to the effect that "it must be nice to have so much free time." Most people think of blogs as public diaries kept by the kinds of egotists who make loud, inappropriate political comments at family barbecues or hog the discussion at book clubs, or wannabe journalists who post inflammatory stories with no fact-checking. And among the 20 million blogs that have been created to date, there certainly are plenty of those, and some are even good.

The truth is that I recently quit my day job to start a company of my own and have absolutely no free time. The business blogs I read aren't written by, or for, fools. Reading them is something I consider part--granted, an entertaining part--of my "job."

I'm sure many of those naysayers are the same people who think by running a business from home, you have time during the day to get all of your housework done, watch some soaps, and have dinner on the table when your significant other walks through the door. Yes, after five years of working from home, there are still people in my life who think that should be the case. Sigh.

Like Hillary, I depend on business blogs to inform me about what my solopreneurial peers are doing...what they are thinking, what resources they have found (or even developed!).

I too have the ritual of coming down to my computer each morning and hitting my Bloglines account before anything else. While I admit that there are a few guilty pleasure blogs that I follow, the most important folder on that account is the one simply titled business blogs.

Right now there are about 10 blogs listed there, and every blog I list in that folder is by someone I'd love to do business with someday, for one reason or another. This "virtual peer group" gives me enough information about their lives as small business owners, both personal and professional, to keep me inspired, and keep me coming back for more.

But I now feel that there is a "there" there. As soon as I grew comfortable navigating my way through the complexities of the blogosphere, I realized that I was beginning to find my way back to the same places over and over again.

And finding that community is an important support when you're out there running a business on your own.