Smithers MINNEAPOLIS

An explanation

As some of you may know, I work in the bicycle industry. I worked for the same company, with the same boss, since the year 2000.

On January 1^st of this year my, now former, boss accepted a new position and is working for our parent company in Europe. That left me in charge of the company here in the United States.

My first thought upon hearing the news that I would be taking over operations of the company was “Holy crap, I am going to be busy.” I started to look for things that I could cut out of my life in order to make more room for work. I could not get rid of the kids and I still wanted to kind of ride the bike once and a while, even if I’m slow and kind of suck at it. It was at that time that I began to think about dumping the blog.

There was much lamenting as I agonized over the decision. Super Rookie wrote something helpful. But I finally came to the conclusion that I should stop blogging and wrapped things up with a final post.

From that point on, every time I would run into someone on the street I would hear “I really miss your blog,” or “Why did you stop blogging?” or “Hey asshole, start blogging again.” The mailman, the garbage collector, some dude who came over to install a new garage door opener, always the same thing.

So, in the past few weeks, I started thinking about it. I have been really busy with work, but I have also been thinking about how I miss this form of communication and the creative exercise of writing.

I started a Facebook page and did some writing there but it was not the same and my heart was not really in it.

I have some concerns about being responsible for a company and continuing to run this blog. I worry that it will send the wrong message to my employees if they see this site. Even though I write a lot of stuff off hours that gets posted during the work day, I don’t want them thinking that I screw off all day while I expect them to be working.

I was also worried, now that I am actually responsible for a company, that I would write something really controversial that would get someone’s hair in a knot and, since the bike industry is so small, it would come back and bite me in the ass.

I had to think about it. So I thought about it. I had to make a decision. So I made a decision. That decision is to no longer give a shit.

I do what I want. And I guess I want to blog.

Plus (dis) says blogging is the new not blogging. That means I am cool again.

Right?