Thank you, readers

Just a quick note on a day off.

There may not be a new sports or entertainment post going out today, but I wanted to extend a thank you to all the readers who take in the ramblings of a south city St. Louis kid. I’ve been writing since I carved out my first piece for the Brentwood Eagle, my high school newspaper, and liked the idea of an opinion with my name attached to it. That was 24-ish years ago.

Since then, I’ve spread words across the net like butter on a piece of sourdough bread, hitting all the corners. KSDK, The Jewish Light, St Louis Game Time, a variety of STL sports blogs like Cards Conclave, Dose of Buffa, and this Substack spot. It’s been a surreal experience to keep firing out articles to the masses, whether it be a thousand or 400.

Paid or not, I’ve made a challenge to myself to maintain a certain output. An article per day isn’t an easy benchmark to hit like it used to be, but it’s the goal. If there’s 30 days in a month, I want 30 articles posted. Drink the whole bottle, if you know what I mean. Leave nothing on the table.

But a day off is nice. Unplug the brain, and do some listening. Gather material for the next one. Every writer has parts of the day where they like to write, and sometimes those times pass through without a new entry. Instead of forcing it, holstering is better. Or you take a beat, and thank the readers. That’s subscribers here that I adore, and readers around the net. The people in Turkey love me.

I’m no use if there’s no one reading. That’s when it becomes a diary, like a public one that gets picked up in a library years later. No matter what they say, writers do read the comments and give a shit. At the end of the day, we care. Good or bad, it gets in somehow, and melds into the system. I don’t believe a single writer who says they don’t read comments or feedback. Liar! Pure. Stoic. Bullshit.

It keeps us going. It keeps me going. While the words don’t flow to as many people as they use to, I’ve never had this much fun writing. Out of all of those sites listed above, the Buffet has been the best experience. The wife can even admit I’m writing as free as ever. Truly. Good readers help. Substack pushes the work around the net, as far as I know. There’s still people out there interested.

At 42 and being able to say “fuck” when I want in an article, making all the traditional AP style loving folks crankily shake their heads, I’m happy.

Short story told long and then pulled back in, thank you and keep reading.