Well, that was quick. I'm done, Slog. I feel like I barely had a transition from nervous-yet-overconfident fresh news intern to jaded-yet-wise-and-still-overconfident former news intern. It's been good and satisfying, by way of not being exactly what I expected. Rather than try to force out more platitudes, I'd like to share non-sequitur things I'm taking with me from The Stranger.

1. A profound love for grammar and formatting. It's just a free, uncomplicated extra step to make any piece more effective. And I appreciate getting called out on errors by commenters.

2. Tolerance and generally warm feelings toward trolls. Even the most inane, bitchy, trolling comments and commenters flatter us by proving that what we write is worth responding to. And it's the sort of incredibly cruel, honest feedback you can't get anywhere else, which is useful, provided that you actually give a shit about what you're writing and have opinions and stuff. It's also fun to predict who will comment and what you all will say.

3. A tattoo. Mom and dad, it's a bass clef on my left shoulder blade. I got it on the night of October 28 after a few drinks. Hat tip for the idea to care bear.

Bye, Slog! I had an absolutely great time here. If you're at all curious, here's what I've been up to for the past couple weeks, and will continue working on for the next few months. (Go Sex Week!)

P.S. My dad is running for mayor in 2013.