It was a year ago today we learned of the coming disposal of the comments section from packers.com. I remember the news, the mood of the comments section that day, the wringing of hands, the gnashing of teeth, the rejection. Some said we had it coming. Maybe we did, or at least some of us, with our stubbornness in argument and inability to follow rules of civility as a community of so many colorful and differing presonal philosophies.
My immediate reaction in most situations is to try to think of a solution. Having a background in Excel reporting and coding solutions led me to fairly quickly land on the idea of creating a website. I mean how hard could it be? I mean Vic figured out how to do it and he was around the same age as pkrdug. I knew enough that there were different were several options out there and I was fairly certain piecing together pages with pictures and such couldn’t be that difficult.
In a deep analysis (5 minute Google search) of how to make your own website, I found that Wix was listed as the best and easiest platform and it reportedly could use Disqus embedded in a simple and straightforward way. False start, BoLD 5 yard penalty. Repeat 1st down.
Even before that could be done, a website needed to have a domain. Simple enough, just a quick purchase at domain.com should do the trick. Little did I know I was going to need an SSL certificate so Meathead could have a secure site to visit. Delay of game, BoLD. 5 yard penalty. Repeat 1st down. Of course, had I understood anything about anything, I would have understood most content management systems include a free year of a domain name. Intentional grounding, BoLD. Loss of down. 2nd and 27.
By the end of that first weekend, we had the (poorly) cobbled together beginnings of OUTSIDER OUTBOX and I had applied for an LLC to protect myself from litigation based on the advice of a few web designers that suddenly popped out the woodwork, telling me how I should be doing things and thus OUTSIDER OUTBOX LLC was born.
It quickly became apparent Wix wasn’t as going to fit our needs, so the next step was to begin another site on WordPress to be developed at a slower pace concurrently with the day to day running of the Wix site.
Soon, OO had a business checking account and P.O. Box.
In those first few weeks, I could say, “Good morning,” and I would get 30 upvotes. It was great. No effort necessary. Just a modern day Moses parting the Red Sea and leading the outcasts of II to the promised land of OO. Unsportsmanlike conduct, taunting, BoLD. 15 yard penalty. Repeat 2nd down.
Eventually, I put together some products based on logos created by Gerrit’s daughter and some other entrants and opened the OO store on the WordPress site. We had some writing contributions from Carl Gerbschmidt, Sudsman, and Adamhawk23, and puddyperson and Pie sent in some recipes.
Too many of you to list have contributed in different ways; financial contributions, written contributions, pictures, ideas, logos, moderation volunteering, comments, questions, angry e-mails, the list is nearly endless.
So, as I reflect on the year gone by, I can honestly say that none of it has gone the way I expected, and in some ways, hoped, but still, the basic need was fulfilled. J.K. Rowling wrote in the Harry Potter series of the Room of Requirement at Hogwarts: ‘If you have to ask, you’ll never know. If you know, you need only ask.’ This place is our own place built for us by us. Much like our favorite football team, OUTSIDER OUTBOX LLC has many owners. Each of you owns a piece of it and I think that really captures “the spirit of the thing.” (Thanks Vic.)
So happy birthday to Outsider Outbox and hopefully many more to come. Remember as I’ve said many times since the beginning, this isn’t my site it’s our site. It’s all of you who make it go, I’m just a steward with the keys to T-Bird. Let’s have some more fun, fun, fun.
Touchdown.
BoLD.
Unbelievable.