Look out below.

They say if a tree falls and no one hears it, it doesn't make a sound. That means the result of this latest update -- one that's, what, a good 16 months overdue? -- should be silence.

Total silence. Right?

Testing.

Caaaaaaan anyonnnnneeeeeee heeeeeeeeeeeearrrrrr meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee?

(Echo.)

I always knew the death of this blog would be my laziness. I suppose that's better than having a blog die because you were too proactive, which would mean people didn't like what you had to say or that they could only stand you in doses. Too much of you at one time was a bad thing.

In that case, I guess I'm relieved my blog died because I'm a fat lard who lost interest in telling people -- some friends, some former friends, some eternal enemies, some absolute strangers -- about the random, meaningless events of my day on an internet journal.

Some of you might have actually liked my blogs in a weird, detached, "I'll read about what's on your mind, I might even say hello to you in the comments, but I probably won't call you to see what's on your mind or say hello" kind of way. And to those of you, I want to say thank you, because you're the ones who make updating this blog every 16 months totally worth it.

In fact, it's people like you who've semi-driven me out of semi-retirement. I liked those impersonal hellos. I liked that writing on this blog felt like talking to a wall, only the wall sometimes responded in vague, quickly forgettable, inconsequential terms.

Call me a hopeless romantic, but I had this crazy idea that personal interactions were more meaningful than the ones that occurred through e-mail or the internet. That's what slowly pulled me away from the blogosphere. I'd actually resolved to put that credo into action ..... but, as you know, my laziness was the death of that.

Hence, I've come to accept that impersonal pleasantries are just part of a life cycle in reverse. Babies literally cling to people. Adolescents hold hands. Young adults give daps. Adults use instant messenger.

By the time I'm in my 40's, I fully expect to ignore everyone I know.

Until then, I shall communicate with you all -- eternal enemies and absolute strangers alike -- through cyberspace. Some people will call it a barrier. We'll call it the vessel that's keeping our familiarity with each other from fading into oblivion.

At least until we're 40.