Today's my first day back on the job after almost 2-and-a-half-weeks on vacation, and let me tell you, you all have been keeping busy!  It took an hour-and-a-half this morning to sort through about 1200 emails (a mix of spam and violation reports), and I've been spending the rest of the day catching up on the online goings-on around here with my colleagues who generously kept an eye on things while I was away (on top of their usual duties).  So, if you expected to hear from me or see me comment or act on something or another in the last couple weeks and didn't, now you know why.  (At the urging of my coworkers, I left the laptop at home!)

Coming back after a break, let me tell you what I see.  I see a lot of new names and "faces" commenting, blogging and reviewing, and that's exciting.  A look at our metrics shows that the number of public profiles and blogs are up, and that the number of posts and comments published continue to increase on a weekly basis.

I also see, as I have over the last six months, a community struggling always to grow and become itself, and to shape itself and discover new ways to discuss what's on our minds without resorting to baser impulses.  It's not always an easy task, but many of you continue to take it on, encouraging each other and reflecting on your own behavior at the same time.  The more we model the online community we want this to be, and the online community members we want ourselves and our neighbors to be, the less of a "policing" role this job will have to do.  And you know what?  You're already doing it.

But at any rate, I'm back.  Heh.  And as usual, reading as much of what you put up here as humanly possible.  Of course, that's not all I do here.  Other stuff includes the weekly ngage e-newsletter that features the previous week's interactive greatest hits, as it were, plus user profiles.  And, tomorrow, we're relaunching the Bakosphere blog, a look at the interesting and quirky stuff that happens when Bakersfield and the Web collide.

And, of course, I'm hosting the latest in our on-going series of real-life get-togethers for B.com bloggers, commenters, reviewers, and lurkers, this Saturday at Dagny's.  We're looking to branch out to other kinds of meetups in other locations, too, so please give us your ideas and let us know if you're coming.  I look forward to meeting more of you on- and off-line!

Bakersfield.com Bloggers' Meetup

Dagny's Coffee Company, 1600 20th St., Downtown

Saturday, May 19 from 3:30 to 6 p.m.

All are welcome!