I’m pleased to report that today The Cooler begins its third year of existence. It’s a somewhat bittersweet anniversary in that over the past few months I’ve had less time than ever for the blog. I still think about it every day, and I’ve done a decent job keeping up with other blogs in the neighborhood, but time to write about movies, or even watch them, has been scarce of late. I don’t mean to complain. I feel fortunate to have a day job that is as stimulating as it is demanding at a time when so many in this country would happily settle for a job that would pay the bills. No, the purpose of this note is to promise my readers that I’m still in the blogging game, even though production might go through some lulls this year. I’m putting that in print not because I think that you need to come to terms with it, but because I do.
There are few things I love more than movies, writing, creativity and engaging in thoughtful debate. The blogosphere has enhanced – not just fulfilled – my affection for all those things. It would be easy to forget that not too long ago I was starved to find any movie writing whatsoever between release-day Fridays, and yet now I go into Google Reader at least once a day and never fail to find a handful of thoughtful, entertaining pieces worth reading. Today the challenge is keeping up. It’s a good problem to have. I’m grateful for the blogs I get to read each day and for the bloggers who grace The Cooler with their insightful and confident comments. Special shoutout to frequent commenters of 2009, including Adam, Craig, Daniel, FilmDr, Hokahey, Kevin, Sam, Steven, Tony and whoever I kick myself for forgetting. Special thanks to Ed Howard, for continuing The Conversations series with me at The House Next Door – and thanks to readers who reward our effort on those pieces by reading and commenting on them. And thanks to all the rest of you who stop by and read, offering comments here and there or no comments at all. I know you’re out there, and I appreciate it.
What can you expect from The Cooler over the next year?
Well, we’ve got the Steve McQueen Blog-a-thon coming up in March, which I’m very excited about. I hope lots of bloggers take part (feel free to make multiple submissions). Hosting the blog-a-thon ensures that I belatedly come through with one of my resolutions for 2009, which was to “quit teasing people and write at least one post about or related to Steve McQueen, for crying out loud.” Speaking of those resolutions, I’m happy to report that over the past year I did a better job of enjoying movies in my Netflix queue and my own private collection (Resolutions 2 and 3). Also, I have not only investigated but actually acquired the gadgetry necessary to do a video commentary or two this year (Resolution 5), so that’s something to look forward to. Those projects can be time consuming, so I’m not sure when I’ll be able to launch my debut effort, but I’ve already begun collecting clips for a few presentations. If I could create three video commentaries over the next year, I’d be thrilled. Readers can also anticipate the return of my reviews of ESPN Films’ “30 for 30” series, which comes back in March for one episode and then goes back to a weekly schedule in April. Around all of this, there will be more rants (not all of them weekly), perhaps more quick posts than I’ve done in the past, more reviews and, with your help, more lively debate in the comments. Of course, even when I’m not writing, you can find links to interesting reads in the “Sharin’ the Love” sidebar or through my updates at Twitter.
I hope you’ll join me for another fun year.
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