Katnip Awards

The dog days of summer are so overrated. Here, it’s all about the cool cats we’ve found on Twitter.

In tribute: The Katnip Awards. (Twitter's Oscar or Emmy.)

And this week’s winners are.....................

Fruit of the Loon Award
We remember the day we first saw his tweets the way you remember the day you fell in love. Consistently hilarious. Dry as the Sahara. Sharp as a machete. Not afraid to be kooky, because he’s got that immense intellect to back him up. Oh, and the Washington Post – bastion of frivolity – likes him, too. Put him in your faves group on Tweetdeck. Not a banterer, but always satisfying. Enjoy a bunch of tweets like this from @badbanana.


Lights, Camera, Action Award
It’s easy to think that you’re tweeting with an adorable 10 year old, because this guy uses his childhood pic and is just so damned cheery. Then you remember that he’s an amazing, multi-tasking film director who shot his 1st Max Factor commercial at age 24. Since then, he's added companies like Coca-Cola, Levis, and Sony to his roster. Won music video awards. And much more. But we love him because he's funny, kind and a joy to behold. Ready for his closeup: @jwoon888


The Marie Award
If she never did anything other than create SOYAS -- Sit On You’re A** Sundays – we would love her forever. But this spunky one is half of Twitter’s "Donny & Marie". And has the guts to admit to being a Yankees fan living in Red Sox territory. Believes “smiling is the best way to go through life”. Let's have a big hand for: @vvarela1974


Sully Sullenberger Award
It wasn’t birds in the propellers that took us down. Just a very hectic schedule last week. That's when she stepped in, kept everyone calm and managed a smooth twitter landing (translation: she picked up our tweeting slack). Always interesting, informative and engaging. Genuine nice human being & cool freelance copywriter/blogger: @tcwsonja


Great Sport Award
Something about that mega-watt smile makes us just want to ….pick on him. We’re not sure why, but we can’t help ourselves. And he responds so good-naturedly that we like him more and more. This guy makes short videos to help Twitter newbies. And he’s passionate about being a rainmaker , showing lawyers how to do the same. Devoted husband and dad: @adriandayton


Designing Do-gooder Award
He burst on the scene last month at a workshop led by @goodridge. Okay, maybe he existed before…but Twitter has been a better place since we’ve met. Designer/Creative Director who’s friendly, always quick to share good finds on creativity and willing to play along. This versatile proud papa also helps community coalitions learn how to use social media. @JasonVerhoosky

Positively Potent Award
You have to get up verrrrrrrry early in the morning to beat the “Duchess of Sunshine“. In fact, we think the sun takes its cue from her. Her energy is amazing. Exceeded only by her generosity of spirit and all-inclusive attitude. Just because she started the #PositivePosse doesn’t make her a Pollyanna. She’s a force to be reckoned with when promoting sustainable, natural organic bedding for Natura World. Don’t just observe. Say hello when you see her. @juliarosien


Thriver Award
If you don’t fall in love with her from her avatar , maybe this will get you. She’s kicked cancer’s butt three times. Today, she’s not wasting a moment. Living life full-on. Getting more than just her golf-groove back. Director of her own non-profit and total delight: @stales

Grace Under Pressure Award
He builds websites in Wordpress. Shares good stuff. And devours info on personal development, marketing, history and more. But it’s tweets like this and this
in the midst of this that make him a real winner. @ brucelauzon

That's it for this time. Be sure to congratulate the winners!

Have a great week. And say hello when you're on Twitter.