It’s that time of year! Holidays, shopping, eggnog, mailing it in at the office until you replace your desk calendar. Similar to how we don’t like to hear holiday music before December, we’re not big on prematurely churning out year end recaps, but now that we’re hitting the home stretch and the world wide web is switching over to cruise control it’s time to hop aboard.

When dredging my pop culture addled brain for what I thought of most when I thought of 2011 it became impossible to deny that the year will forever be known as “The Year of Swanson” on the internet, not to mention here at UPROXX since Cajun Boy and I came aboard. CB scored the Offerman high school photo exclusives for god’s sake. We could have renamed this joint RonRoxx and no one would have blinked.

I don’t anticipate our love for the fictional embodiment of manliness will wane, but I see no way the internet Swanson lovefest remains sustainable in 2012. This medium goes through phases faster than a teenage girl on mescaline. So to celebrate “The Year of Swanson” I’ve gone back and compiled the ten finest internet tributes to the man, the myth, the legend. And with another idiotic Globes snub and Parks on repeat tonight it’s only fitting we launch this today. Year of Ron! Year of Ron! Year of Ron!

In June, prolific internet person Alex Leo created a Ron Swanson + Meat mini Tumblr on her own personal Tumblr. I’m 99% certain NBC borrowed the idea for this magnificent supercut.

More here.

I stumbled across this when putting together this collection of political posters for fictional characters. It was created by a TeeFury designer who views Swanson to be the anti-Obama when it comes to things like charisma and desire to help others. I haven’t seen anyone in the tee yet but they have a casual nod of approval coming their way.

Get it? Swanson? TV Dinners? Ron Swanson + Food? This was pretty much a layup for Vulture and Jon Defreest.

This and the Tom Haverford variation were created by Elisa Ortiz of Centreville, VA for her local Trader Joe’s. It never was clarified whether Elisa works for Trader Joe’s or is just a frequent shopper, but the internet sincerely appreciated her efforts.

Tauntr made Halloween a little too easy this year.

An installment of Kyle Hinton’s pop culture paper dolls project. The accessories really bring the whole thing home.

Another Vulture/Etc. collabo that made me feel like my parents were fighting until I pictured a George Sr. vs. Oscar Bluth sort of stand off.

Piggybacking the single-serving Moustair internet person Avery Monsen willed this into existence.

The original pop culture Ben & Jerry’s flavor that kicked off the phenomenon that catapulted our friend Jon Defreest into legendary status in internet pop culture art circles (those dudes get so laid). This masterpiece was Jackie Robinson of Ron Swanson internet tributes early in 2011.

Sam Spratt’s epic work of art belongs in a museum.