3000 Blips…

…is definitely time for a celebration, and unusually for me, I remembered in advance that it was a blipday! I need a special picture for such an occasion so I’ll just hijack this pre-Christmas table and claim it for my blip today!
Blipfoto started out as an experiment for me. I have been interested in photography since my teenage years, and was already posting photos on other online sites, and the idea of putting up (only) one picture every day, with a little text accompanying the image, seemed an idea worth trying. However, I’d tried similar ideas before and my motivation had never been strong enough to keep me going.  But Blipfoto was different and the experiment became a habit, and later the habit became a part of my life.
So why did I stick around on Blipfoto? My thoughts will come as no great surprise to others who’ve been around Blip a while. The community is why I enjoyed, and still enjoy, Blipfoto. The photographs are important too but it's the people behind the images and words who keep me here. People I follow almost daily, others who I keep an eye on, dropping in now and again, and members of the wider community, who I meet on rare occasions via “Recent” or “Popular”.
Like any community, once I joined and got involved, my circle of acquaintances enlarged, and some became really good friends. Now a few have moved on from here, but most of you are still along. Some have become friends I meet now and again in real life, others have remained online friends, because they live so far away, or because this current pandemic has kept us home for the last two years. A few are real life friends, who liked the idea of Blipfoto and got involved, and now we meet up more-or-less daily here, despite the many miles that separate us.
When Blipfoto was in danger, and looked as if it could disappear, it really came home to me and many others what an unusual and special place it was, how precious it was. I was very thankful that so many felt the same. A small group took on responsibility (thank you lovely people!!!!) and with their invaluable guidance members worked together and Blipfoto lived on in a new form.
So, a big THANK YOU to all of you on Blipfoto, everyone from the closest friends and family to the members whose pictures I have yet to look at, and everyone in-between. Together you make this a very special place, a unique place, where I hope to hang out for a long time yet!
And since I have hijacked a Christmas table for this blip I’ll take the chance to offer you a virtual saffron bun and glass of mulled wine, and wish you all a very happy run-up to Christmas!  Cheers!