Sunday

So I missed the official anniversary day of the blog. Not a bad day. Just didn't prioritize.

Thought it was time to move on from the Italy pictures. This is a shot from our last official FFF in StL last Summer. We need some new material from the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend.

A reporter named Rhonda Michaels (not her real last name) from the Fort Wayne (IN) Journal Gazette called me yesterday afternoon to follow-up on a lead that she had received from a guy I knew in Chicago a couple of lifetimes ago. The paper was running a series on former Arthur Andersen accountants and somehow my name had come up. They had done a Google search and, remarkably (actually, shockingly to me), had found 4000 Days. (The story on how they got my cell number really doesn't wash, but I'm not quibbling on that one.)

The long and the short of Ms. Michaels' inquiry was a dead end for her AA & Co story: I had no knowledge of the guys who were still in the C-town office when the Enron thing exploded. But we had a nice conversation comparing dates, places and used-to-be's, and then we started comparing experiences in blogging. She had scanned some of the history recorded in 4000 Days, and she asked if I would respond to some questions for possible use in another personal-interest story in her file. As best as I can recall, here's the gist of that part of the conversation:

RM: So I've read various entries on 4000 Days, but I'm not sure that I have a handle on it's purpose. Can you fit it into a broad topical category?

LtPC: It's primarily a family gig. My kids have been out of the house (and mostly out of town) for many years, and I felt pretty detached from their lives. I literally stumbled on the blogsphere about five years ago, and they say, the rest is history.

RM: And the title?

LtPC: It just came to me. I'd been looking at the calendar, trying to realistically figure out when I might be able to retire, and at that time, 10 years seemed like the closest round number. 10 Years didn't have much of a ring to it, nor did 3650 Days. Since early retirement, whatever the date, didn't seem likely, 4000 Days won out.

RM: So how does that math look today?

LtPC: Four years down now means that I'm a little less than 40% home from the original estimate. That's still ballpark. But, retirement? Who knows. I doubt if I fully retire for a long time. Unless the Powerball comes home. (And you have to play to win. Which I don't.)

RM: Do you have a writing schedule?

LtPC: Not really. When I first started, I tried to write everyday. But for the last couple of years, I've been lucky to get in entries three to four times a week.

RM: And your topics?

LtPC: I haven't checked, but I used to have plenty to say about cycling, NASCAR, and miscellaneous other sports. I've backed off much of any extended commentary in those categories because I don't think my (few) readers have a lot of interest in those things. The same now with politics.

RM: But isn't a blog supposed to be the perfect forum for an author to express his/her opinions?

LtPC: True. But that gets into the debate of the "why and what" for the author. Lots of times, opinions on hot topics like politics, religion, social issues and the like can impede otherwise good relationships. And check the ratings: not a lot of folks out there care about the ascent up Mt. Ventoux, or the RPM's in the 24 car.

RM: For what it's worth, I have no clue what you just said. So what's been the best part of your blog?

LtPC: I like the daily contact with my daughters. I like the outlet for that creative gene that never quite succumbed to the technical deluge in graduate school and my business career. I like turning a couple of good sentences into a paragraph, and a few paragraphs into something cogent. About something.

RM: What is your biggest challenge when you open an entry?

LtPC: There's always a form of Writer's Block with which to deal. I prefer to do something original as opposed to just recount my day (usually very boring). I like humor from my daily life, and I draw upon my relationships with several very good friends. My pals, Pete, Roy, Bill, and occasionally Jake can make things interesting.

RM: But isn't that just more of "What I did today"?

LtPC: It can be, but my friends and I manage to present some trials and tribulations worth a little recognition. We are not a mensa group.

RM: What's the deal with the numbers 1,2,3, and 4?

LtPC: Uh, that's not showing your best investigative reporter traits, Ms. Michaels. It's not much of a secret that those are my anonymous names for my four daughters, by birth order. I generally avoid the use last names here, and for the girls, not even their first names. The blogsphere is a dangerous place.

RM: So have you had any problems of that nature?

LtPC: Nope. You're the wildest hare I've encountered. Although Bob Costas was a little sketchy on the flight back from Europe.

RM: OK then. I've got a deadline to meet. One last question. What do you see for the future with 4000 Days? Any new ideas?

LtPC: My goal is to keep at it. To keep coming up with some original ideas that will make my narrow readership smile. Maybe even lol (...:)) occasionally. It keeps that almost-daily contact going, and gives Dear Old Dad the illusion that he still matters. And it feeds the bandit gene that has never quite left the frontal lobe. I may even write about this interview.

RM: Thanks for your time. We have a great wine bar in Ft. Wayne next to the paper. Let me know if you're ever in town. I have an aunt who might be available.

LtPC: As long as she doesn't read the New York Times. Stay in touch. You can always comment here.

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There you have it. Another reader who just couldn't tear herself away.

Have a great week.

BCOT