Time, time, time. See what's become of me.

In the early days of each season of American Idol, watching the show is akin to incurring closed head trauma, freeing up much time to post. The thoughts behind this one aren't really fully formed yet, but I'm going to go for it anyway given the ample 10 minutes before bed and a lack of quality television. Bear with me.

Just exactly how long are you going to keep this up?

Maybe I should explain myself.

Other than for work, I write only here. And this isn't going to last forever. Remember the man from the days of old-timey radio, who would clunk shoes on the floor to make it seem as if another had come in the room, the man of a million voices and a xylophone and whatever the heck that was that sounded like thunder? What do you think he did when television debuted? I wonder if he hung up his hat, or was relegated with his red stapler to a desk in the damp network basement.

The Internet will see its day, just as the 8-track and the loin cloth did before it. And the blogger will become what the cassette tape was to the 90s: old school and outdated. And although I won't say it won't happen, I am hard pressed to imagine an interactive media so widely consumed that will provide a forum for writers like us. But then again, unlike Mr. Gore, I didn't think up the Internets in the first place.

Along these lines, sometimes I wonder if "professional" bloggers have a backup plan. And not because these folks aren't talented, but because I'm not sure that blogging will ever reach the level of legitimacy that other media, particularly print, have. How many times have you been asked to describe just exactly what dat der blog was? Ever had someone giggle slightly when you detailed just what this is that we pour our heart and souls into day in and day out? That this isn't the making Shrinky Dinks of the writing world, that this is more than just a hobby to you? That, albeit a stretch, maybe this part-time pursuit of yours will persist into the next medium, as the mascara-heavy Guiding Light did 70 years ago? (I heart you, Reva!)

And furthermore, a fit in one medium doesn't necessarily transfer to another (I know someone is thinking of Cher, and I get it, she was a great variety show hostess and a "meh" early 90's singer, but there are as many Joey Lawrences to combat your claim). Do you expect that someday you will just fade away into Blogger or Wordpress obscurity, just as the David Cassidys and Kajagoogoos of the world did before you?

Maybe it's better to bow out gracefully, to leave before the medium becomes obselete, to back up your posts and photos and keep them tucked away next to your senior yearbook to show the grandcats.

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In other news, did I forget anything?