So long! Farewell! Auf Weidersehen, Goodbye!

As some of you have pointed out, it's been a while since I last posted. To be honest, I've more or less decided that it's time for me to move on from Crankster. I started this blog when I was hitting my mid-thirties, living in southwest Virginia, and seriously afraid that I was turning into an old man. It was a place to put those worries, talk them out with the world, and generally stop my slow descent into middle age.

In the last three years, a lot has changed. I've moved to a new city and been bombarded with all sorts of new irritations, challenges and experiences. I've done some new jobs, gotten going as a professional writer, and generally complicated my life in all sorts of bizarre ways. Along the way, my sister has gotten a liver transplant and my daughter has transformed from a baby to a toddler to a little girl. One cat has died, but the other is still thriving; Bagheera remains a daily source of joy and anguish. My wife and I are still chugging along, disturbingly happy with each other, and surprised that our fifth wedding anniversary is coming up.

Over the past three years, I've also met a lot of cool people, many of whom were kind enough to comment on this blog. I've even met some of my favorite writers, like Pickled Olives, the CEO, and Cranky Franky.

Long story short, I'm no longer worried that I'm becoming old or falling into any sort of routine. A large part of this process has been my blog and, through it, my interactions with you. I've been very lucky to have a group of loyal readers who regularly checked in and pushed, prodded, and encouraged me to do new things and go new places. You have helped me to become a better writer and a better thinker, and I owe much of my current writing success to you. I'm sorry for neglecting you over the last few months, but I want you to know that you've been in my thoughts.

I don't want to turn this into some sort of promo for other efforts, so I'm going to hold off on talking about my professional projects; on the other hand, if any of my long-time readers are interested in checking out the websites that I now write for, please drop me a line and I'll send you the urls. In the meantime, I'm working on a new blog, Bruce and Mr. Boston, in which I'm documenting my ongoing attempt to expand my cocktail-making horizons. It's kind of a fun, personal, pet project. If you get a chance, please drop in.

Again, thank you for everything!

Crankster