Grant initially started this blog in the waning days of 2008, and here we are still going strong after two years. Since he bought the three-year hosting plan when the site got started, we’re going to “guarantee” that we will be around for another 12 months, too. And, since he’s such a sucker for renewal specials, too, we suspect we might just go on and on.
We’re still having fun, that’s the main thing.
So far, in case you’re interested, we’ve made just shy of 2,500 posts — and ya’ll have made just over 3,500 comments. Grant, for one, reads each and every one of them, no lie. And we appreciate that we’ve found or posted something that was significant enough to you that you commented.
Despite the holidays, December 2010 was our best month ever for visitors. It’s gratifying to know that, for a number of you, we’re a regular stop. Thanks!
Happy New Year 
See ya soon.
(Photo from Flickr user This Year’s Love. Awesome.)
Just a note to all faithful readers that Absurd Intellectual has gotten dual citizenship. To reflect the fact that all three of the authors are Canadian, that the blog is written out of a Canadian province, and that most of our readers are Canadian, as well as the fact that, if you know where to look, a dot-ca runs you just $13, I am proud to launch absurdintellectual.ca.
That address just redirects to the main Absurd Intellectual blog, which will continue to live at absurdintellectual.com, and I haven’t yet added Canada-specific email addresses. So it’s really just a cosmetic change. But sometimes appearances matter.
In this case, I of course mean no disrespect to the dot-coms of the world. Nor am I trying to say anything about the state of Canadian/American relations. Of all the things to like about the Internet, I think I like its international flavour most of all. On the Internet, we really can all just get along.
By the way, one of the great surprises I’ve had running this blog is the sheer number of people who have emailed me or otherwise contacted me, based on something I’ve written. And, every single time, they have been sincere, polite and friendly — even if they disagreed with something I’d written.
Turns out the Internet, like Soylent Green, is people. And people are pretty okay.
Happy birthday, us!
Yes, although the snippet on the side of the blog says that Absurd Intellectual was proudly established in ‘aught-eight, there were really only a couple of late-December posts before the blog really got underway in January. Yes, it was a New Year’s resolution, and I’m proud to have kept it — three to five posts a day, every day, just things that I find interesting and would like to share or comment on.
But what next? That’s partly up to you.
I am soliciting opinions on how best to serve the readers of Absurd Intellectual. What do you like best, here? What could be improved? What should be dropped? I’ve already heard from readers who miss “Cheese of the Week”, so I’m going to get back into that very soon. But what else?
Would you like more videos? Some short stories? Politics? Humour? Celebrity gossip? Music?
How about the design? Sure, we need a logo (we’re working on it), but from a reader’s perspective, would you like bigger pictures? Wider, full-screen videos? More colour? Different colours?
Is commenting easy? Too difficult? Too hard to get a conversation going?
I’m toying with the idea of allowing regular commenters the ability to write posts or suggest content. Would you like more voices on the blog?
Please comment below. Your feedback will have a direct influence on this blog’s direction over the next 12 months. As always, if you’re a first-time commenter, your comment will be held for moderation, but so long as you use the same email address, we’ll trust you forever after that.
And we don’t spam — use a fake email address if you like, I never look at ‘em.
Every comment with constructive criticism that we get below will qualify for a FREE piece of Absurd Intellectual swag. If I know you in real-life, I’ll give it to you (when I get them made). Otherwise, I’ll have to contact you somehow and ask for a mailing address.
No, I don’t know what it is yet — it might be a mix CD, or a pen-with-logo, or maybe even a T-shirt or a hat. Partly, it depends on how many comments I get and therefore how much I can afford. But it will be something real-world. Free. Mailed to you, if you need it. And all you have to is comment.
From all of us here at Absurd Intellectual, who are moving, internet-less, and spending Christmas with family and loved ones instead of blogging, have a very Merry Christmas.
Or, if you’re from that side of the pond, Happy Christmas.
Or, if you’re not Christian and/or secular Western, we’ll wish you a Happy Holidays, and please enjoy the fact that you have a “free” day off, courtesy our culture.
