Deuce

Today marks the official second anniversary of Pole Hill Sanitarium. (The page was here long before there were any words on it.) I half-seriously thought this blog would be long gone by now for lack of reader interest, but you guys keep surprising me by continuing to hang around.

There still are times I feel like I haven't quite figured out what this blog is for, but I think overall that it serves its purpose. Although it often seems self-indulgent to me, I've been wanting to put down my impressions of the classic rock years in permanent form for some time now, and through the Album Project (which may or may not ever be completed) and the occasional obituary I hope to achieve that goal. As I look back, I've lived through some interesting times, and though I expect that history to be well-chronicled, I may know a story or two, and may have experienced some things, that would otherwise have been forgotten.

I thought, as did a number of other people, that I'd be writing more on political topics. But I've concluded that although I have an opinion or two I like to share from time to time, I'm not a political blogger. Good political blogging is bloody hard work, and I do enough of that at the treatment plant. Bad political blogging is not worth the reader's time, much less the writer's. The other problem is that I have little optimism about the current political climate. I regard Obama/Biden as bad, McCain/Palin as worse, and Hillary Clinton as just another woman in a pantsuit. We have big problems to deal with in the next four years, and only small people with giant egos to face them. If I wrote down all my political thoughts, this place would become such a bummer no one would come here any more. What I'd like to focus on more is not the politicians, but the regular people who are struggling hard to make things work in these difficult times.

A lot has happened to me personally over the last year, which I'm still doing the best I can to digest. One thing blogging has done is given me an outlet where I can express my feelings, however crudely, and receive feedback from people I've come to trust and regard as friends. The main reason I keep this place up is in order to keep hearing from you and to continue to spark conversation among the diverse assortment of folks who come by here. You have been a big help in getting me through some difficult times these last few months. I sincerely thank each one of you, whether you've been here from the beginning, have only started visiting recently, whether you're lurking (come on out!), bitching, or stalking(!). My hope is that I can keep Pole Hill interesting for all of you for another year.