10

Ten years ago to this very day, a bright-eyed hirsute young man full of spunk and vigour sat down at his computer, signed up for a Blipfoto account and set the tone for the journey that would ensue by providing the world with a disappointing photo of a map and some waffle about house-hunting. 

Flash forward ten years and those eyes are duller now, the hirsute young man now full Bruce Willis, Jason Statham, Vin Diesel…….Tom Allen, robbed of his mane as he crashed headlong through the one-way nightclub door of youth into the smelly back alley of middle age. The hard-earned bags ‘neath his eyes reveal a weighted soul brought low by the arrival of additional offspring and the completion of a second marriage/divorce cycle. His spunk neutered, the vigour long since drained from this sorry specimen.

And yet. And yet like (exactly like actually) the Dark Knight he so oft reveres, he endures. Unbowed by the slings and arrows of outrageous misfortune (buying shares in Netflix, but only the DVD-rental bit), he endures. Treated as a mobile cashpoint, a spider tamer and jester for those he loves the most, he endures. Mercenary saboteur of his own sanctuary (loft conversion), he endures. Often cruelly denied of beauty (why Asda? Why haven’t you got tulips today?!), he endures. Not all heroes wear capes*.

Ten. Ten long years he endures. Selflessly draining the life force from family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances both real and imagined, forever grateful for their feedback, support and sucker sukher help.

His first responder, forgot shall he never be (except for that time when he was, but was brought back into the stream of consciousness by Sheilwill), his immortal omnipresent first words now carved into the larger of the once young man’s two buttocks like a prison tattoo administered with a pin and a Bic biro: “Kendal - I thought you were from Essex - welcome to Blip anyway : )”

Words that shall live long in the mind and be carried forward, passed on to the ancestors of all those brave enough to read them.

It is for this reason, that ten years on (and off), this ultimate display of complete and utter self-absorbed piffling waffleage is dedicated to Pedros for his kind words, smiley face and for being utterly representative of the welcoming tone of this site as I took my first tentative step on the road to Blipmascus.

Thank you for those that have followed me this far. Like Forrest Gump popping out for a quick jog across the USA, I shall continue to aimlessly weave my way back and forth and through this thing called life, documenting anything I deem partially interesting for as long as Blipfoto will have me.


*They are massively impractical (see The Incredibles), quite hard to get hold of and don’t really go with my thigh high boots.