Monday, April 23, 2012

Seven Years Blogging Anniversary!

It's difficult for me to believe this, but I began this blog seven years ago today, on April 23, 2005.  That's 2,464 posts, 9 books and one web-series ago.  If I were keeping count, of course...

I want to sincerely thank all the readers who have joined Reflections since that April day in 2005, stuck around, and continue to frequent this joint.  

I feel especially fortunate to be joined here by such a curious, civil, intelligent and educated readership.  This is more true than ever.  I read the great, thorough, incisive comments here and invariably think, "I wish I had thought of that!"

But I suppose that's the best aspect of blogging: the back-and-forth that occurs in the on-going conversation.  It's always nice to meet folks who love film and television with such devotion, attention-to-detail, and passion.

As I like to say, stick around.  The best is yet to come.

21 comments:

  1. Thou art the man (thankfully not The Man), so as long you keep 'em coming, we'll keep reading.

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  2. Thank you, Randal, for the good words. I shall keep 'em coming!

    best,
    the man

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  3. That's quite a feat, John. Given the amount of writing you've done in print, and the time you've devoted to blogging online, I find it remarkable what you've accomplished over this period. I am constantly amazed with your efforts and, obviously, the quality and depth of the content. Well done and congratulations, my friend.

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  4. Michael: Thank you so much, my friend. I feel very fortunate that I have a life I love, and that I get to write books, blogs, web series (occasionally) and the like. But most importantly, I get to interact with folks like yourself, who love film and television, and also devote their considerable energies to sterling written "reflections" on those topics. Thank you for being a stalwart supporter and friend, and for an outstanding blogger too.

    best,
    John

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  5. Many happy returns for the bloggiversary, John! You continue to inspire and enlighten with your writing, in a field that is so often passed over by contemporary genre fans. That probably sounds awfully pat when written, but I truly mean it. Keep up the stellar work! I'll be watching the skies. ;)

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  6. Jose: Thank you, my friend, for such a well-written (and even poetic) expression of support on this anniversary. I appreciate the sentiment tremendously and will try to live up to your description of stellar work!

    As Dirk Diggler famously said, I'll keep trying if you keep trying! :)

    warmest regards,
    John

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  7. Anonymous6:16 PM

    Warmest congratulations. Your blog is on my short list of morning go-to sites that start my day~ not to mention almost always being the antidote for whatever grim piece of news is the headline on MSNBC!

    ~~Meredith

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  8. Hi Meredith,

    Thank you for the congratulations, my friend and fellow Space:1999 fan. I'm glad and proud to know I make your daily read! I appreciate your kind words very much.

    best wishes,
    John

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  9. Congratulations, John! I envy your output and your insight into so many of the genre entertainments we both love (especially the vintage stuff, which is so often dismissed without much thought). I thoroughly enjoy hanging out in this place, and hope it'll be here for many years to come...

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  10. Hi Jason,

    Thank you for the well-wishes. I appreciate your words, and totally agree about the vintage stuff. Too often people want to deride it as "corny," "cheesy" or "campy" just because it comes from a different time. None of that here! :) I hope you keep coming here to hang out, and be sure, I'll be around...

    best,
    John

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  11. Congrats on this milestone. It's been a pleasure reading many of your reviews and I've gained appreciation, more insight or another angle on so many film and episode blogs.

    Great meeting you at Mad Monster Party, hope we meet again. Until then, I keep reading and you better keep it up! :D

    ps: Funny, 30 years on this date, the ZX Spectrum was launched in the UK. I've got one, but sadly not the power supply needed, it's not your standard juice that this runs on.

    Cheers from Iceland!
    - Jósef

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  12. Josef: It was a total pleasure meeting you at Mad Monster Party. I had a blast hanging out with you, and also looking over your incredibly impressive autographed DVD collection (Scrimm, Hauer, etc.) Very cool.

    Thank you for the congratulations on the blog on this occasion, and don't worry, I'll keep writing! And I hope we get to meet again soon at another con, if not in Charlotte then elsewhere!

    best wishes,
    John

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  13. A few more years and you'll have to submit to Carrousel! I'll be there yelling "Renew!" with everybody else,though. This site is a real "Sanctuary" for us retro sci-fi and horror fans. Keep up the good work.

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  14. jdigriz: Thank you, my friend. Great Logan's Run allusions there! Hopefully my blog's "LastDay" will be way off, in the distant future!

    However, I refuse to go to Carousel. I'm going to "run"...which in this context, means mobile blogging, on my droid or something...:)

    Thank you for the words of support.

    best,
    John

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  15. 2,464 posts, 9 books and a web-series. Impressive. Your status as a Sci-Fi-TV/Film-Internet/Blogger-Nerd is beyond question.

    Did you have to call it Reflections, though? It sounds like a made-for-Lifetime movie. Also, I’m none too fond of your website décor; too clinical. It wouldn’t hurt to class up the joint a bit. Maybe get a few tiki torches in here or some of those miniature fake palm trees. And hows a about serving some drinks while we’re at it? The fruity kind with little umbrellas in them. Look, JK, I’m just trying to help you out here, speaking as a dude. I mean, it is kind of a saus’ fest in here. Drinks with umbrellas = chicks.

    Anyways, happy 7th anniversary.

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  16. Congratulations, John.
    And many happy returns.

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  17. Congrats, John! That is quite the milestone and impressive by any standards. I forget how I came across your blog but I remember reading one of your reviews and enjoying it so much that I ended up going through your archives and reading review after review and feeling like I had encountered someone else who liked many of the same genre touchstones in fantasy, horror, and science fiction. It's kinda spooky but cool just the same.

    Now that I think about it I had actually read two of your books before discovering your blog - your tomes on Sam Raimi and John Carpenter and marveling at all the production detail and indepth analysis in both on film directors who were much maligned in the mainstream but, of course, much loved among genre fans.

    Anyways, your blog is a constant source of inspiration for me and is one of the prime motivators that inspires me to get better as a writer and to continue writing so thanks for that! I look forward to many more posts of yours.

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  18. Anonymous12:59 PM

    Congratulations John with many more years to come. I first knew of you as the author of a pair of extremely engaging books "Analytical Guide To Television's Battlestar" and "Exploring Space:1999" that recaptured those shows from our '70s childhood memories. My daily schedule always has an appointment to check in here at your blog.

    All the best,
    SGB

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  19. Hi Cannon: Thank you for the good words regarding this anniversary. I agree with you about the name "Reflections." Looking back, I wish I'd picked another name, and certainly an easier-to-remember url. If I knew then what I know now, I'd call this blog JKM's flying eyeball. Or something. I'd definitely have those little drinks with the umbrellas.

    Jay-Jay: Thank you, sir! I appreciate the good wishes. I appreciate having your 'round these parts and commenting as well.

    best,
    John

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  20. J.D. Thank you so much for all you said in that comment, from finding me on the net and getting lost in my reviews, to actually ordering and reading (and enjoying!) my books. Means a lot to me. You are a great friend, and an excellent writer. I appreciate your friendship so much.

    SGB: Thank you for making my blog part of the daily routine, my friend, and thank you for remembering two of my oldies (but hopefully goodies...) in terms of my published works. I always wish I'd get the chance to go back and revisit 1999 with all the additional stuff I know now. Maybe someday, If I'm lucky...

    Best to you both, my dear friends,
    John

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  21. What a fantastic accomplishment. I have been around for most of the ride, and as I've said before, there is no better start to my day than coming here and excercising my mind in all things film & television. Your writing has been the ideal companion to discovering movies I had not previously encountered, as well as revisiting past loves. Cant wait to see what's next!

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