TORONTO - A blog that cost only $10 to start up a few months ago is raking in major recognition for its writer, Neil Pasricha of Toronto.

"1000 Awesome Things" has caught the attention of media outlets around North America, and on Tuesday it won a coveted Webby Award in the best personal/cultural blog category. The mood-lifting site also nabbed a People's Voice award in the same category.

Pasricha, a 29-year-old human resources worker, says he's been approached by top literary agents in New York City who want to make his blog into a book. He has settled on one -- Erin Malone of New York's William Morris Agency, which is also behind the blog-to-book phenomenon "Stuff White People Like" by Christian Lander -- and says they're shipping a proposal to publishing houses this week.

"There's just so much bad news and sad news raining down upon us every minute of every hour of every single day, so '1000 Awesome Things' is just a brief little escape from that," Pasricha, who doesn't make a cent off the site as he doesn't have advertisers, said Wednesday in a telephone interview.

"For two or three minutes a day we can sit around, cover our heads with a blanket and talk about how fun it is to take that first shower when you get home from camping for a week; or talk about getting that popcorn kernel out of your teeth; or wearing underwear just out of the dryer; or having a whole row to yourself on an airplane."

Pasricha plans to go to New York for the 13th annual Webby Awards gala, hosted by Seth Meyers, on June 8, and is excited about the prospect of meeting celebrity Webby winners.

"I'm going to try to rub shoulders with people like Jimmy Fallon, Trent Reznor, Sarah Silverman and try not to trip on the red carpet," he said, adding he's fretting over what he'll say in his acceptance speech, which -- according to Webby rules -- can't be longer than five words.

"It's really hard to think of something to say," he said.

"Last year, Stephen Colbert accepted with the phrase `Me, me, me, me, me,' and Al Gore accepted ... famously by saying: `Please don't recount this ballot.'