Satisfied Mind

by Ryan

If you do anything regularly for a while... sooner or later the weirdos will show up. -Jeff Buckley

I have always admired Jeff Buckley for that line. It came during a gig he had at Sine-e, a venue in New York City where he spent many of his pre-Grace days just... playing music. I'm not trying to call you guys weirdos, but that quote came from a man so comfortable in his element you couldn't help but laugh. In the two disk set Live at Sine-, he will go on to play covers from Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, and Donnie Osmond. Basically, whatever he felt like.

If you are catching the musical analogy, that's what I've tried to do here. I've always seen blogging as the writing equivalent of doing club gigs. Sure, you can do whatever you want with your time and space, but you have to get people to come out and see you. Well, we're one year in and it looks like I can say "so far so good." Of course, we could always do better.

What I've always wanted to do with this space is feel comfortable. I've written for print media before, and I've certainly written for grades before; but I've never been truly comfortable with my style and writing voice. That was the reason we started this blog. Practice. It was an experiment that none of us knew how to execute. What it became was so much more than that.

One of the earliest things we learned was that once I start something, I dive into it headfirst. I've embraced the blog-o-sphere from the get go, and soon sites like KSK and Deadspin became a part of the way I watch sports. Over the past year I've learned so much about the sports world, and I think being a blogger has made me a better sports fan. Sites like Fire Joe Morgan and Hockey-Reference make watching and understanding sports better, and if I didn't come here to publish something to begin with I would have never found them.

I guess the point that I'm trying to make is that I'm having a lot of fun doing this. Thinking back on the year we've seen through the eyes of this blog is pretty amazing in itself. July 1st. Kevin Everett. Red Sox World Series. The Winter Classic. The Super Bowl. Zednik. So much has happened in the last 12 months, how did we ever think we wouldn't have anything to write?

You've seen my posts more than any here in the Roost, and so you probably know quite a bit about me. I'd like to think that in the course of the year I've gotten to know many of you as well. We haven't met in person, and you may not want to be seen with me in public to begin with, but there are people out there I feel like I know. So thank you, everyone. Thank you for reading. Thanks for giving us a chance, and for sticking around.

This is the most fun I've ever had just... writing. Finally, after all that searching and admiring, I feel comfortable here. So thanks for giving me a place to be comfortable, and for being a part of the Roost.