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Inspired by the Top 10 Worst End-of-the-Year Top 10 lists list that we posted at FaithVillage, here is my own Top 10 End-of-the-Year Top 10 lists list.

10. The Best Selling Video Games of 2011
Sadly, my absolute favorite of the year, Portal 2, was ranked #10. It’s one of the smartest games in existence. I’m playing through #8, L.A. Noire, during my Christmas break, and it’s a little unnerving to have more than a few actors from Mad Men (including the game’s lead actor) appear in the game.

9. Top 10 Words of the Year
As a writer, I felt like I had to include this, but the words this year are lame. I’ll save you the trouble: The word that was most looked up online in 2011 was “pragmatic.” Additionally, “‘austerity’ also made the top 10 list in 2011 along with ambivalence, insidious, didactic, diversity, capitalism, socialism, vitriol and ‘apres moi le deluge.’

8. Top 10 Most Bizzare Tech Stories of 2011
This list exists because someone failed to tell someone else that just because you can do something doesn’t necessarily mean that you should do something. A self-hugging vest? An internet-enabled kissing machine? An MC Hammer search engine? At least they all have this in common: They make me say, “What the what?”

7. Top 10 Gorgeous Gadgets of 2011
Function does not have to follow form. These gadgets remind us that useful tech doesn’t have to be just a metal box.

6. 10 Most Viewed YouTube Videos of 2011
#1 makes me weep for humanity. My favorite is #2, embedded below.

5. Top 10 DFW Sports Moments of 2011
As a recent resident of the DFW area, I couldn’t have picked a better place or year to root for the home team. Having never lived close enough to an NBA (or NFL or MLB) franchise to attend games, I had the opportunity to attend multiple Mavs games, two Cowboys games, and multiple Rangers’ games. I even went to an FC Dallas soccer match, but don’t tell anyone. I was thrilled when the Mavs took home the Larry O’Brien, but I fear this year is going to be quite different. I still plan to attend the games though.

4. Top 10 New iPhone Gaming Apps for 2011
No list can exist on my website if it doesn’t refer to an Apple product at least once. My faves on this list include Jetpack Joyride and Scribblenauts Remix. I’m also addicted to Tower Run, which isn’t on the list, but should be. For more 2011 iPhone fun, check out the Best iPhone Apps of 2011 (get Flipboard A.S.A.P.) and the 50 Best iPhone Apps of 2011.

3. The 45 Most Powerful Images of 2011
Yeah, so it’s not a Top 10 list, but the pictures are powerful. Many of them deal with the devastation that’s been wrought throughout the world this year, whether through natural catastrophe or human depravity. You’ve been warned. While each picture elicited a certain response from me, #20 was the most moving to me.

2. Rolling Stone‘s 10 Best Movies of 2011
I’ve seen five of them, including Peter Travers’ intriguing, brutal pick for the best of the year. I still don’t know what to think of #8, but I do know that I counted 20+ people who walked out of the theater when I saw it. It was as equally sublime as it was pretentious. As for the ones I haven’t seen, they’re on my to-be-seen list.

1. The Top 10 FaithVillage Posts of 2011
One of my articles (a Top 10 list itself) barely eked onto the list, but I’m proud of our team and highly appreciative of our contributors. I’m also pleased that our list is topically diverse and by multiple writers. One of our goals is to always have quality content that’s sure to connect with nearly any type of reader. In other words, if you’re a Christian, you should be able to find something helpful or inspiring on our site. I hope you’ll bookmark us, subscribe to our RSS feed, or sign up for our email newsletter. I’m anxious for 2012 at FV!

What was your favorite Top 10 list of 2011?

10. Grantland / ESPN

Ever since the Mavs won the championship (which I predicted), I’ve become an ardent NBA fan. Sadly, the lockout and the loss of many of the key Mavs from last year have left me with a bitter taste, thinking that the Mavs getting through the playoffs this year would be even more miraculous than last year’s epic run. If you’ve never visited Grantland and you appreciate good writing, Bill Simmons, pop culture, or Chuck Klosterman, you’re missing out on some of the best stuff on the Internet.

9. PostSecret

If you’re easily offended, this isn’t the site for you. If you’re awed by the incredible diversity of the human race—our hidden thoughts, unspoken hopes, and worst sins—this site is fascinating. People send their secrets via postcard to Frank Warren. The often simple words combine with just-as-simple art to produce compact yet compelling studies in humanity. It’s updated every Sunday, but not archived. In other words, the secrets are only up for a week at a time. However, these postcards have been collected into many different books.

8. GoodReads

I used Shelfari for ages. After using that site to catalog my library, then not finding an easy way to export that list, I jumped ship to GoodReads, a similar social network for book lovers. I’ve been happy ever since, especially with GoodReads’ iPhone app that allows me to scan book bar codes in order to add them to my digital shelf. It also helps me keep track of what I’ve read and how much work I still have left to do.

7. 101books.net

I don’t recall how I stumbled onto this humble blog with grand ambitions, but I’m glad I did. It’s fascinating reading for book lovers and English majors. Robert Bruce, unhappy with his lack of reading fiction as an adult, decided to read Time Magazine‘s Top 100 books since 1923 (the year Time was founded). He added Ulysses to the list, since it is widely considered a literary masterpiece, but was published in 1922. Bruce blogs about interesting trivia behind the books, then provides an easy-to-read and honest assessment of the time he spent in the book. I once spent a weekend poring over every post until I caught up to “real-time.”

6. Christian Nightmares / JesusNeedsNewPR / Huffington Post Religion

Both Christian Nightmares and Jesus Needs New PR are blogs that detail the rather weird side of Christianity. Sometimes funny, sometimes scary, but, to me, always interesting. Be warned: These sites are not for the faint of faith. HuffPo Religion is where I find news of note in the Christian world that is making waves beyond the church’s walls.

5. Netflix / Hulu

I cut cable’s cable this year, but I’m not so sure it’s been worth it, especially given the inability to watch the NBA other than through traditional cable. While I was confused by the moves Netflix made this year, I still think they have the best streaming video selection available. They easily re-earned my loyalty after announcing The Return of the Bluths. My six-month free trial of Hulu plus has been nice, but I’m not sure I’ll cough up the dough to keep it. However, I appreciate that both Netflix and Hulu are pushing us to that day when a lá carte video consumption through one service is a reality (ahem, iTV).

4. Pandora / Spotify / iTunes

Earlier this year, I jumped on the Spotify bandwagon. Nearly every song imaginable available to me anywhere at a low, low cost? It couldn’t be true! While I appreciated the software’s ease of use, the streaming option was less than ideal, especially in my car via my iPhone, as songs would sometimes skip—an experience I thought had died along with so many CD players.

However, this article by independent musician Derek Webb opened my eyes to Spotify’s dark side—namely, that the artists make a pittance compared to other services. For instance, Derek relays that he makes $1 for every 3,500 streams of a song. In contrast, he makes $1 for one song purchased through iTunes. As a result, I’ve sworn off Spotify and stuck with the tried-and-true combo I’ve come to know and love over the years—Pandora and iTunes. Additionally, after reading Derek’s article, it’s hard for me not to think of friends who are independent musicians (Daniel Whittington, Aryn Michelle, Air Review) when debating what service to use to purchase music. Now that iTunes Match has become a reality, I’m content with my listening decisions.

3. Google Reader / Flipboard

These are the two main ways I comb through piles of content at a time. Google Reader allows you to subscribe to most any website, so long as that website has an RSS feed. I use Google Reader both at home and at work. Friends sometimes ask me how I find such things on the Internet. This is how. Flipboard is an iPhone / iPad app that presents your most important content streams in a visibly pleasing and easy-to-navigate way. Subscribe to their “Cool Curators” or any number of respectable news sources of interest, including your Google Reader subscriptions, add in your Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn account, and flip to your heart’s content. It’s engrossing because it’s a well-conceived app.

2. Twitter / Facebook

I vacillate between which one I like better. Twitter currently stands as the winner, but Facebook is such a behemoth, and I’m becoming a fan of the new Timeline design. I use both on what feels like a non-stop basis. They’re social networks of substance, so long as you’re putting substance into them. Speaking of social networks, my number one visited site for 2011 is . . .

1. FaithVillage

I never truly thought that I’d work for a company dedicated to creating worthwhile content for a website. I never presumed that all of the work I’ve done in the past, both professionally and for friends and family, would find such a fitting outlet in one job. I never thought that these semi-coherent and woefully sparse blog posts would lead me to a job where I get the daily opportunity to write and edit and argue about grammar with people who are smart and funny and friendly. I never thought that I’d be working for a company that is creating a new social network that will help churches and Christians throughout the country, and maybe one day throughout the world.

I visit FaithVillage every day, and even if I didn’t work there, I’d still visit it every day. I never tire of searching for new content partners, reading our contributors’ posts (or, truth be told, seeing my name on a byline), quibbling over headlines, or even being berated for word choice. (Editor’s Note: berated is too strong a word there).

And I can’t wait for you to see what our real site will look like in 2012.

So there’s my Top 10 visited sites of 2011. What were some of your top sites this year?

Because the day before I felt like this:

While there are thousands of people much worse off than myself, part of my self-pitying ice cream coma arrived as a result of finally learning the answer to a specific job application process that’s lasted for the last three months. (The answer was no in case the picture didn’t clue you in). I drowned my sorrows in a PB&C shake from Cold Stone Creamery. It helped. A little.

But today, like every day, is a new day. Motivation has returned. Self-confidence, ever wavering though it may be, came back to roost. I have ideas for better utilizing my time. (I’ve watched the entire first season of 24 in about a week – thank you Netflix streaming -  and tore apart my defunct PS3, among other things). I’d like to help you, or your friends.

This is where you come in.

• Do you need a simple website?
• Maybe a brochure or newsletter or heck, even a magazine?
• An article written and pitched?

I can write. I can design. I can do layout. Yes, I will ask for a fee in return for these services, but it will be a mutually beneficial venture: inexpensive for you, experience for me. Pricing will be discussed up front, before any work is done, and will be on a case-by-case basis based on your needs.

So if you or someone you know is in need of a small website (I can host it as well), graphic design work, or copywriting, use the contact tab on the left side of this website to contact me.

I promise not to spill chocolate shake on your website.

[P.S. I am still looking for a full-time job in the DFW area, but plan to continue freelance work when a new gig is obtained... as long as the new gig is OK with it.]

It began with this article: HOW TO: Find a Job on Twitter, from Mashable.com. At the end of the post, the article lists multiple twitter accounts to follow if you need to find a job. I clicked the ones of interest to me, and as I was about to start clicking “follow,” I thought…Wait a minute… If this new account decides to follow me back, or if any other traffic should arrive as a result of starting to follow these accounts, do I really want my lame Twitter page to be their first impression?

So I googled “Twitter background templates” and found this free downloadable Twitter background PSD file from @chadengle of fuelyourcreativity.com. I edited it and wound up with the background currently seen on my twitter page. It’s still fairly simple, but it’s direct and looks better than before.

Finally, I felt confident to start following new accounts (listed here for your amusement). Then things got really fun. I’d begun using Hootsuite online recently at my current job and knew it would be a useful tool for this new endeavor. I didn’t realize how powerful the tool they’ve created is until I saw how it could help me in a job search. I created a list on which I could place only twitter accounts related to my job search in Dallas and Fort Worth. I created a column that only tracks the hashtag #tweetmyjobs. I created other columns that deliver real-time results for “Dallas jobs” and “Forth Worth jobs.” In perusing the results, I found @writerjobsdal, an account aimed directly at the type of job I’m looking for. I started to find interesting jobs almost immediately, but my eyelids could bear their burden no longer. I left the search until today, but knowing that I’d set in place useful tools for my search allowed me to sleep soundly.

Feel free to make recommendations of Twitter accounts, or share your own story if and how using online tools helped you get a job. Or, you know, offer me a job in DFW.

In What Color is Your Parachute, author Richard Bolles lists a few sites for career quizzes. While I’m fairly knowledgeable about who I am, what I can do, and the type of job I’m looking for, I thought I’d give a few of them a try. The very first test, all of twenty-four, very easy to answer questions, pegged me. If you’re looking to be told what a good career path might be for you, try the Princeton Review’s Career Quiz. Here are my results, if you’re interested:

Your Interest Color is BLUE
People with blue Interests like job responsibilities and occupations that involve creative, humanistic, thoughtful, and quiet types of activities. Blue Interests include abstracting, theorizing, designing, writing, reflecting, and originating, which often lead to work in editing, teaching, composing, inventing, mediating, clergy, and writing.

Your usual style is YELLOW
People with yellow styles perform their job responsibilities in a manner that is orderly and planned to meet a known schedule. They prefer to work where things get done with a minimum of interpretation and unexpected change. People with a yellow style tend to be orderly, cautious, structured, loyal, systematic, solitary, methodical, and organized, and usually thrive in a research-oriented, predictable, established, controlled, measurable, orderly environment. You will want to choose a work environment or career path in which your style is welcomed and produces results.

Careers from The Princeton Review Guide To
Your Career linked to “Blue” interest: