Thanks for Four Years of Awesome

It was a (presumably) cold November day in 2006 when I made my humble debut on Phillyist with a post called Elevating My Frustration. It was about elevator etiquette. I've come a long way since then. I featured interesting Twitter users and hope some of them will follow us into the future at @keypulp. I wrote not one but two posts on the mysterious Toynbee tiles. The local sleuths who spent years investigating them were the subject of a Sundance-winning documentary called Ressurect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles.

I also did a series of posts about my job hunt, which started off cheeky, took on an odd sense of detachment, and ended in full-blown existential crisis. All throughout these early posts, I was drawing lots of comments from my adoring cadre of readers.

And by "readers" I mean family. And by "family" I mean my Mom. Thanks, Mom.

My personal favorite post contained almost nothing written by me: it was an interview with Ben Folds, wherein he spoke a bit about his writing process and expressed much love for Philly.

For my farewell post, though, I tried to think about what story affected me the most as a person, and as a blogger. That post was A Friend Under Fire, which chronicled one of my Marine Corps-veteran friends' more lurid experiences in Iraq. The post itself was grounded in that experience, and talking with my friend about it was deeply affecting. I never took a journalism course, and very little of what I've done at Phillyist would qualify as journalism by any definition. But this story was one that matters, that illustrates a moment in time that changed many lives. And if I didn't ask him to let me write it up on Phillyist, I'm not even sure he would have given it more than a cursory mention.

That post is perhaps the most extreme example of what Phillyist has done for me over the years: it's allowed me to explore subjects, both cheeky and decidedly serious, that I wouldn't otherwise write about. That opportunity began when our long-time Editor Jill Ivey signed me up to write for Phillyist. It continued with the work of Editor Andy and my fellow Associate Editors, Ross and Allison. Together they have given Phillyist cohesion and direction, and I've had a great time working with them.

But our staff also deserve a huge thanks. After all, they're employees, parents, students, and spouses—and some are simultaneously all four. They have made time over the years to contribute writing about the city they love, and it's that content that made Phillyist so much fun to read. I'm excited to continue working with those who are coming to KeyPulp with us, and wish the very best to those who are moving on to other projects.

And that brings us to you. Yes, you. Phillyist has always been here for our readers, and you have been awesome. We truly appreciate all the time you spent with us.

Thanks for having me, and maybe I'll see you again sometime,

Joe

Contact the author of this article or email tips@phillyist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Joe Ross in Miscellaneous on January 31, 2011 4:00 PM Comment 7 Likes Likes

Tags:

• Farewell
• Phillyist

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