Hello, kiddies.

I have an obligation to all of you who “dared to click the link” at least once over the last five years… Just like most of my colleagues have done for many and various reasons, I had to take the hiatus that I did. Twenty odd eleven has certainly been one for the record books for a lot of us. I don’t have to go into the specifics, as most of this year’s tragic events are probably as fresh in our minds now as they were when they first happened. Personally, it’s been a real rollercoaster of a year to say the very least… when last I posted for Mr. Grogan’s Soul Club, I had no idea it would take a whopping six months to come back. I never expected it, and I certainly wished it didn’t happen the way it did, but sadly, it did.
As one would readily guess, most of the events leading up to the hiatus were rather heartbreaking, especially the loss of both of our beloved cats Indigo Girl and Bear. They were both well in their senior years, living to be fifteen, but they will forever be our “babies”. To be fair, we do see some significant light at the end of the tunnel, all things considered…
We finally relocated to our new digs in the city. The place is pretty cool in a relatively nice neighbourhood. The new “kitchen” is much larger than the old, although I am still going to have a great deal of difficulty getting all the excess records off of the floor. What’s good about that scenario however, is that I have been taking great care to actually listen to stuff that I hadn’t heard in at least fifteen years. I don’t know how else to segue into the crux of this multi-purpose post, which undoubtedly is the future of this here piece of cyber-style real estate.
What do I really do with it; it’s in such disarray, and most of the old posts that I said I was going to restore are for all intents and purposes beyond restoration… I’ve wrestled with this problem for months, leading up to this, the fifth birhtday of Fufu Stew, which truthfully, I really never thought that that would come to pass, much less, that the blog would have come relatively close to getting a half million hits in five years time. I know, it would have probably fared better if I kept at it and posted a little more regularly, but as I always say, real life is a mother!
I admit, I set my expectation level real low when I first started. Looking back on it all, I really never dreamed that I would have come this far, meeting many great people from literally every corner of the earth, learning so much about the obsession of cratedigging and the fruits that result. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to each and every blogger whose sites I have visited, to each and every blogger that has been so kind as to include me as a part of their blogroll, to each and every blogger for their benevolence in sharing the fruits of their digging… It all goes a very long way, and needless to say, you all will forever have my respect, admiration and above all else, appreciation for everything you have done to help make the last five years of my life mean something from a creative standpoint.
More on that later, but for now, I must go ahead and start the blog over again from scratch. All of the original posts prior to mixcloud will disappear as I work on the new design. Most likely they will be redone, at least the better ones will at any rate. When it does shake out, and believe me, at some point it really will, I know that besides looking a hell of a lot neater, the browsing experience will be a lot better overall. As far as the path I intend to take, I have but one simple premise: I will always like making mixtapes. In fact, it’s about the only way I listen to music anymore. Ever since 1983, and that first cassette I got from an old friend, I tried hard to recreate that experience, over and over, leaving absolutely no stone unturned. With all those years of trial and error, I finally feel that I have achieved a personal goal. As always, I am proud to be able to share them with one and all as best I can, and as much as the apparent law will allow. One of my wife’s colleagues call it “paying it forward”. Some call it “share and share alike”. Whatever one wishes to call it, the end result is that the Fufu train will continue to chug along… with that said, the new pahse will leave me free to continue my love of making mixtapes. Period. From this point forward, the rules are there are no rules.
and now for the closing commentary…
Twenty odd twelve is here. I am so glad to see 2011 disappear in the rear view mirror, you just don’t know how much. I still hold true to my one and only resolution for the new year, and that’s to try and make it better than the last year.  The most I can do is the best I can. I want to take these final fleeting moments to wish you all the best for a prosperous new year full of good health, happiness, a good degree of security, and most of all, SOUL! As always, whatever you do, be sure to do it good, and please be safe doing it. I can’t wait to get started, with a little luck, the reconstruction will commence on Wednesday. Real life will always take precedent, but I will always try to use my spare time wisely. Til the next time…

Peace and blessings.