Confession: I'm an X-rated surfer

Or so my new company may think. I’m learning quite quickly just how restricting corporate Internet policy can be. When I had down time at my last job (which happened quite frequently), I could surf the Internet as I pleased. Facebook, Gchat, Hulu, Perez, YouTube—the world wide web was mine for the taking.

When I moved on to the corporate world a few weeks ago, I knew that my carefree Internet surfing days were over. I promised myself I wouldn’t be as obsessed with the Internet as I was in my last job. And if I did feel the need to look something up that wasn’t job-related, I’d keep it very work-friendly. As in, only CNN and Weather Channel. A girl has to keep herself informed, right?

Well, unfortunately, because I started over the holidays, when projects and people were scarce, I found myself with a lot of extra time on my hands. I tried to restrain myself, but pretty soon my fingers were itching to type in my old favorite web addresses.

I started by looking up things I wanted for Christmas. My fingers flew furiously over the keyboard as I typed in the familiar store name. I couldn’t wait to feed in to my online addiction of looking random stuff up. After a quick second of loading, I was met with a blindingly bright white page. It practically screamed, in blazing RED letters, “Site restricted due to SEX.” Under that, in fine print, it plainly stated, “Attempt to access site has been logged.”

Crud. First week on the job and they already caught me trying to look at porn. Because you know me (oh wait, no you don’t), that’s totally my thing. Only, it’s not. At all. I was absolutely mortified. My new employers probably thought I was a pervert! And the offending site was Anthropologie.com. Who knew?!

Not long after, I decided to peruse the entire CNN website. (Yes, I had time on my hands.) I clicked on the Technology tab and immediately got the RESTRICTED website again, blaring at me in amazing technicolor. The reason? Games. On CNN. Really?

So in light of my recent restriction revelations, I now present to you my safe-for-work (thus far) Internet favorites:

CNN (except Technology)—My go-to site. But don’t be fooled. My most clicked-on tab is Entertainment. Oh and Travel, too. I like to plan my escape.

Entertainment Weekly—Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure Perez Hilton’s hand-crafted photo drawings and captions won’t cut it in the corporate world. That’s why I turn to EW.com for my entertainment fix. It’s a great place for watered-down celeb gossip and great TV/movie buzz.

Weather Channel—I’m kind of a weather nut, so I love to check out the forecast in my new city, old city, hometown, places I’ve visited, placed I’d like to visit, places I’ll never visit, etc. Checking the weather in Bora, Bora is kind of fun. Emphasis on kind of. Caution: This practice can cause daydreaming…and climate jealousy.

Real Simple—A superb site for finding simple recipes, amazing advice and helpful hints, tips and tricks for everyday life. I learn something new every time I log on.

Now it's your turn. Do you have any safe-for-work favorites? If so, I’d love to hear them. The more the merrier!