Cebelbrating the first drunk post of 2006

No, just kidding. The last drunk post of 2005 got me in trouble. Not about to repeat that brilliant performance. (Ha.)

But while I’m inebriated and blogging anyway, I might as well make something of it, right?

Right?

(Stop reading if waxing chummerly annoys you.)

Ok, well, let me just put it like this, coz it’s worth being said, whether there’re external influences in effect or not. Or whatever, shuddup. No, shuddup. I’m giving a speech.

So so so, 2005 well, 2005 I arrived. I mean, metaphorically but physically (in the Bay Area) too. I mean, well not exactly, because I’ve been here since like the summer of 2004, but that doesn’t count. But listen, listen. Scott was reminding me of this, and it’s not insignificant… no no, I met Scott, I met Matt, Ryan, Nicole, Om, Glenda… geez, who else was there? At a WordPress meetup.

Get this. They introduced me as the “Drupal guy”.

Yeah.

Anyway, that’s fair and all. Spread Firefox was just taking off. I’d done the New York Times ad but it wasn’t such a big deal. I was only a few months into my work at CivicSpace.

Yada yada. I’m boring myself.

Anyway, here’s the thing. This year, the Open Source Mafia opened its doors. Yeah, the mafia usually doesn’t talk about itself, but it’s open source, so there! (no one cares if you’re oxymoronic in cyberspace).

Anyway, okay, I was going to post about this in another post, but I’ll go ahead and let the barracuda outta the fish bowl… right, right, the shindizzle (people keep interrupting me): this year (2006) open source will come of age, it will become mature and capable; we will chip away at the limitations being imposed on us, in terms of choice, in terms of autonomy, in terms of free will.

Yeah, don’t believe me. Fuck off. Go read something else. (Why are you here wasting your time anyway?).

Anyway, there are these amazing people involved in this. More amazing than me. Hugely so! Yeah, huh, really. You think I’m joking. Wahhoooooo!! No way. These people way rock more than me. Dammit.

And I can’t name them all; there’s too many. But they know who they are. And the point of all this crap, well, it’s to let them know that I care; that this year, that me (agrammatical and all), wouldn’t be where I am without them. This is the drunk, sappy post that gives credit to them all; that says, “I’m nothing if not for all y’all”… Look, my pride is nothing. Hey what difference does it make? Each and everyone one of you who have been there, continue to be there, are the spirit of the change that is happening, that I take part in, have pride, continue to champion, I thank you, acknowledge you, encourage you forward… and am fabulously more wealthy for having such rich individuals in my life. (No, not fiscally, asshole.)

Fer real. 2005 fades and I’m bringin’ all y’all bitches with me into the next. Really.

Propz.

Author: Chris Messina

Inventor of the hashtag. #1 Product Hunter. Techmeme Ride Home podcaster. Ever-curious product designer and technologist. Previously: Google, Uber, Republic, YC W'18. View all posts by Chris Messina