On August 16, 2015, I wrote The Roof.

It clocked in at 265 words and told the story of a madman with a hatred for log cabins and local silversmith-cum-punching bag William Badger. “This is it,” I said as I hit the publish button, “people are gonna love this stuff.”

And they did, it’s still one of our most popular posts, but I soon realized that I needed more material. So I wrote an article about hog theft, more than a few about divorces, and one or two about syphilis and UFOs.

Then unexpected things started happening. I always assumed that I’d quit after five posts. That’d I’d grow despondent and go back to a life of wishing I had enough money for grad school. Yet you, all of you, refused to let that happen: people called me their favorite internet writer, one of Huntsvillain’s biggest boosters turned out to be the son of Ecuadorian immigrants, our first logo was designed by a dude from Dubai, and people from New York, Michigan, and Canada faithfully listen to our podcasts. Oh yeah, by the way we have a podcast.

All of these are beautiful individual moments and things. Though taken together they reveal something deeper. They show that my history, Alabama history, contains a universality – an accessible kernel that speaks to the triumphs and tragedies of the human experience. There’s something wonderful about this place and its people. I’ve always known it. Now you know it too.

So what was once mine is now ours and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Thank you for reading because I do this for y’all,

John O’Brien