Summer's Unofficially Over

I don't officially make calendars nor do I hold any meteorlogical degrees, but summer officially ended for me yesterday as my final shift at the ballpark for this summer was fulfilled. The local professional team isn't going to the playoffs this season after being eliminated a couple of weeks ago, but it was still a fun season of baseball that allowed me to witness a triple play, a handful of balks, and a couple of other rarely-seen calls. With baseball season coming to a close, though, that means my focus can return exclusively to hockey and, in turn, this blog. This article is just a few shy of 6600 in HBIC's existence, and that brings me to the crossroads once again.

I've been quietly working on something new for this blog that I've wanted to add for a while, but I couldn't quite get the formatting right. I'm still not completely satisfied with the results, but Version 1.0 of this addition accomplishes what I wanted. I'll release that tomorrow for all to see, but it'll be something that I'll keep working on as time passes. Or for however long this blog keeps running.

I promised changes this summer to how this blog works and functions, and I've been quietly testing a number of things to see how I like some of these changes. A few have worked, a few have not, and I'm trying to figure out some other options for the things that did not work. Not taking a day off all summer from both jobs has contributed to less testing time that I would have liked, but I have no one to blame for that situation except for myself. C'est la vie, I guess.

Speaking of not taking a day off, let's get to the crux of this article on the final day of August. I had never envisioned this blog lasting as long as it has, but there are stories, both old and new, that are worthy of some examination. There will certainly be more stories over the coming days, weeks, and months that can be examined, dissected, and debated. The question I have struggled with for the past two years as another hockey season looms is "for how long do I want to keep doing this?" when I never expected it to get this far.

Three years ago, I said I would stop at 6687 articles as a tribute to the two players who I've admired the most in my career - Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby. Both men came into the Penguins franchise as game-changers, and they lived up to expectations by winning multiple Stanley Cups. That number is still in play as I approach 6600 articles, but the days would be numbered as this blog neared 6687 entries in total. That's something to ponder.

Maybe I just need hockey to start again. Of course, I spent most of yesterday sleeping before doing more of that today, and I find that I'm really starting to like sleep. Feeling constantly tired isn't something I envisioned for the summer, yet I found myself constantly running on empty all summer. Some of that lack of sleep could be solved simply by pushing this blog aside to allow me more time to do more of what I want, but old habits are hard to break.

With another summer in the books, I can honestly say that time is fleeting. Time waits for no man, and time is a limited resource that becomes much more valuable as it decreases in quantity. I never seem to have enough of it, and I'm always looking for way to gain more. One of those ways is to sacrifice some activity that occupies that time which could be better used elsewhere, and, at the end of the day, HBIC might be the sacrifice. No pun intended.

For now, though, I'll see you tomorrow. There's more to write.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!