One thing I've grown to dislike as a citizen in this media saturated culture is the plethora of year-in-review "programs" that show up on the radio and TV. Even though I recognize the value of remembrance and even nostalgia, such efforts seem to show a lack of creativity and originality. This year, however, having become a content provider of sorts, I am better appreciating the value of such programming. What it lacks in originality it makes up for in ease of creation. So, in all hypocracy, I offer the Hamburgerland year-in-review. But in an effort to show some creativity, I will focus not on what I've written, but rather the things I never got around to posting.

(Note: Yeah, I know that a year-in-review post should have been made by yesterday at the latest. I frittered away yesterday by searching for birthday presents for Bunnah and by watching an extra episode of Farscape. Sorry.)

I saved a few aborted posts over the year: A couple of dreams, an extra paragraph from the July 29th post, some raw data to seed a rant about web site design and "special features" that restrict access to some users. I even have one entry to start my unrealized project of reviewing the hamburgers of Seattle. And then there's the ideas I've had for sidebar pages--lists of things I would do if I had all the money in the world (and the morality to spend it frivolously) or what I would do if I were in charge or sarcastic replies to silly advertisements. Little one liners I think up while making my way through the day. The common denominator here is that they didn't generate enough verbage for me to bother to post them.

Of course, I should have mentioned that the first thing excluded from the blog was a book review. One of my concerns when starting this blog was if I would be able to find enough about which to write. I had planned to aid that effort by posting the book reviews I write for my original website. (Sort of my original blog, if you will.) Since I'd be writing them anyway, I thought I'd save myself some work. Problem was, I quickly developed a concept of an audience for this blog (small as it may be), whereas I still think of the old site as read by no one but myself and seminarians doing a Google search for The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal. (No, it's not for sale. Sorry.) I posted the review for Dracula, but then when I wrote up my opinions on A Study in Scarlet, it didn't seem worth posting here as well. Or maybe I just had better things to write about--I forget. Anyway, there's been a few times I've considered a review worth sharing, but usually I spare you a cross post. (Heck, might as well give you a link so you can see for yourself.)

One time I started a "project" but failed to deliver was when my company went through contract negotiations. Some remnant of my high school journalism class awoke and I had the ambition to chronicle the negotiation process for the world. The problems were that I wasn't on the negotiating committee, didn't have the opportunity or inclination to get input from my co-workers and didn't have the time to write something of any depth. The result was that all I wrote was my own reactions to the infrequent meetings of the rank and file. Now I remember why I didn't ace journalism. Anyway, I made a few posts along the way, but really failed to document the process, especially towards the end.

Another time I dropped the ball, though it took place behind the scenes, was failing to write a post on Hell House. I had first read about it on another blog. (Slumberland or Slacktivist or muteTroubador, I forget which) As a theologically conservative Christian with "blue state" social leanings, I wanted to add my own two cents to the discussion. So I gathered some links to the other viewpoints out there, checked out the Hollywood Hell House site and went and rented the video to see the Hell House first... well, second hand. However, by the time I got the time to sit down and write, it was November and the whole concept seemed dated. Maybe I'll have to dig the topic up for next Hallowe'en.

And of course, there's all the cool posts on other blogs that I think about mentioning but never do. Such as the Meet Me in Seattle exercise at Slumberland, which I misunderstood, or the Random Book Meme at 42. Most recently I got excited over the color photos from the early 1900s linked to by Klausner at Opinions and A**holes. (It is so cool. My grandparents were kids when these were taken!) However, tsunami thoughts pushed such ephemera aside.

So anyway, that's what you were spared. And now we turn our gaze upon a new year. Unless you're following the Chinese lunar calendar. Or the Jewish calendar. Or the Aztec calendar. Or the... Anyway, unless you die, life goes on. Hope we have some fun with it.