My, time flies when you’re having fun, doesn’t it? Of course, time flies when you spend large parts of it under sedation, too, as you are all no doubt aware. But I’m pretty sure that the speedy flight of a year’s worth of sequential moments is due more to the whole ‘fun’ thing (as opposed to the meds) because, for me anyway, life has taken quite a turn since the first of August, 2008. Not that the prescriptions haven’t helped because they have. A cheery disposition like mine often requires the aid of pharmaceuticals (don’t look at me like that, it’s not your place to judge, things are what they are). Still, life has evolved in quite an astounding manner over the course of the last twelve moons.
You see, it was on August 1st of last year that my byline first appeared on Food for Thought: A News Café. The world awoke that day to find my mug appearing right there with Doni’s, Kelly’s and Jim’s on the home page of this upstart website that purported to be a grassroots source of community news and entertainment. A new media outlet unencumbered by a distant and heartless corporate mentality. A site populated by intelligent and talented people serving their equally intelligent and talented friends and neighbors. What a grand idea! Count me in!
Unfortunately, I was at that time employed by another local media outlet. Well, I was employed by that outlet for about seven or eight minutes after my byline and mug appeared on anewscafe.com, anyway. Seems I vastly underestimated my corporate employer’s willingness to share their Resident Buffoon with any little mom-and-pop website. Apparently, buffoons don’t grow on trees — they might fall out of them, but they don’t grow there. And, I guess cartooning buffoons, lovable and fuzzy as they may be, are expendable. C’est la vie. Adios, gainful employment; hello, shopping cart, recycle center and artistic freedom! Besides, when I asked for my job back they laughed like hyenas on nitrous oxide. They weren’t nearly as dumb as they looked. Who knew?
But the universe has a soft spot for fools and often allows them their folly. Such is the case for me. Doni and Kelly, being the type of kindhearted people who take in strays and put feeders out for little woodland creatures every winter, sighed a heavy sigh and allowed me a forum for… well… the kind of drivel you’re reading now. I told you Doni and Kelly were kindhearted, not that they were savvy business people. The savvy business people had already spoken in regard to my career and had cut their losses. Fortunately, Doni and Kelly didn’t have shareholders yet. I had found a home.
Over the past year I have sat back in wonder and awe as A News Café has built its audience. In an economic climate where businesses are doing well to maintain solvency, anewscafe.com has grown and is thriving.
Why? I’ll tell you why, not that I know, but I’ll postulate that because Doni, Kelly and the others charged with guiding the site, wagered that if they provided the community with honest, thoughtful and reliable news and features that the community would support those efforts. Add to that the idea that the community deserved a local outlet that respected that community’s intelligence and marvels at the wealth of talent living here; it stands to reason that such an endeavor would be embraced. I think those of you reading this now would agree. The success of ArtHop, Viva Downtown, the Cascade Theatre and Enjoy magazine are other barometers that indicate we are experiencing a real surge in community arts, and with it, a boosted sense of civic pride. I think anewscafe.com has played a small part in that rebirth. I know I am blessed to be this little website’s Resident Buffoon. It’s a pretty sweet gig. Thank you for making the past twelve months so much fun. And thanks for braking when you see me in the crosswalk… I appreciate your restraint.
Phil “Philbert” Fountain has been contributing to anewscafe.com for more than a year now. To be honest, we weren’t aware his posts were actually appearing on the site. We thought we were deleting them. Apparently a technical glitch has allowed them to show up in full public view. The editors would like you, our valued readers, to know that we are working diligently to correct this glitch and ask for your continued patience. There is no way we can adequately apologize for the suffering you’ve endured the past year. We hope you understand. Thank you.
