Good luck, and good fortune in whatever you pursue from this day on Michael.

Take Care,
It's been a pleasure to read your Slog AM's

From me in port somewhere in the South Pacific

Annoying media trope that you gobbled up and spat out: 'this year will be the busiest traffic ever'. Did it not occur to you that this headline appears multiple times in EVERY media outlet EVERY December of EVERY YEAR?

Thank you, Mr. Bell, and thank you for one more picture of Ms. Gouda.

See you along some dusty trail, Michael

@2, did you not read the citation he provided? I think he’s well aware. Makes me glad I’m not flying this weekend, especially with the sweater competition

4 - Did you not see the headline he recited? Moron.

I have enjoyed your Slog AMs! And with today’s post about earthquake effects probably underestimated by a factor of 2 to 5, I will use this as an argument to my employer to let me work from home forever, instead of in my old downtown death trap office. Thank you. Best to you, Gouda, Pika, and the mystery wife you refer to.

Thank you Michael for making my days a little brighter right around 8:20am every morning! I hope to see your name around town in your other pursuits, and I’ll definitely have to swing by and see your art at Cafe Vita!

Goodbye Gouda! Please stop by slog again sometime. This can’t be the last we see of you!

I don't understand the people who are SO ANXIOUS to board the plane and then SO ANXIOUS to leave it after landing. Standing in line to get in the plane, can't get there fast enough! gottagetintheplanenownowNOW!!! And the second the seatbelt lights goes dim (or even before) they're up and getting their stuff and gottagetouttatheplanenownowNOWNOWNOW!!!

Fucking Type A obnoxious motherfuckers.

9, So you fly commercial?
Hayseed.

~ 9 Why do you pronounce in a public forum these very simple things you cannot understand?

@9:

I attribute it, at least in part, to the fact that people are trying to grab some of the very limited overhead space for their carry-on bags, which nowadays given the ridiculous baggage fees airlines impose (as if they expect a "normal passenger" to travel without bringing a change or two of clothing), is apparently one of the few actual perks still available to flyers. I've had the unfortunate experience of being in a final boarding group, getting to my assigned seat, and finding literally every bin crammed to overflowing with suitcases, ginormous purses, computer cases, coats, you-name-it, leaving no room for even a modest-sized messenger bag or fedora I'd rather not wear for three hours or have crushed between my feet under the seat in front of me..

Deplaning seems to be a similar experience: after being jammed together for several hours in stuffy metal tubes, breathing stale recycled air, in seats apparently designed for the sole comfort of anorexic midgets, next to overly talkative passengers (often with decidedly questionable personal hygiene habits), and incessantly screaming toddlers, who can blame people for wanting to high-tail it out into the comparatively expansive terminal gate as quickly as possible?

Well-done with the newsies, Michael.

Dog save us as we head into the new year with the government, stock market, and political “system” all on the brink of an apocalyptic crash.

So long and thanks for all the fish : )

@11,
Why does anyone comment in any anonymous two-bit blog?

I always thought your AM post should've been named "The Morning Bell."

Goodbye Michael! Reading your slog am was always a treat.

goudaforever

@12 is exactly right. If I didn't have something to put into an overhead bin I wouldn't care if I was the last one on the plane. One loophole around baggage fees: if you are in the boarding group that gets on after the lepers and know there will be little or no overhead bin space by the time you enter the plane, you can check your item at the gate for free. Flight attendants are happy when people do that since it makes their job easier.

I super rarely fly and so like trying to board early enough to at least obtain a window seat as I'll never ever tire of the majestic views such a seat provides. Last time I flew I was on a red eye and got to watch a beautiful fucking lightning storm a few miles away w/ bolts cracking through the clouds a couple times per minute. Was probably the highlight of a trip back to see my family honestly.

A couple years before that I got stuck in the middle seat (honestly don't have much preference of middle vs aisle, as I really only want that window) and the stuffy business class stooge who got the window apparently tired of my staring over his lap as we were taking off and he closed the window. So then instead of staring out the window, I chose to just stare directly at his head for as long as I could (like two consecutive minutes) in an effort to make us both super uncomfortable and maximize the awkwardness of the trip. Was pretty fun. Frequent flyer goofballs should be forced to cede window seats to us simpleton plebes, if not banned from the seat outright.

(also best wishes to Michael and all the farm animals under his wonderful, watchful care. @18 was a goddamn shoe-in for the next gold star comment award. I was robbed.)

Michael was great, but I hope the next intern is a dog person.

@20 He does have a dog, I think it's just camera shy or something.

Slog will be a sadder place without Gouda gracing its pages... and I hope to see more writing from you somewhere, Michael!

Damn-it Michael! I'll miss you, man.

Thank you for your work on Slog AM Michael, and good luck as you go on to new adventures.

@1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 16, 19, 20, 22, 23 Thank you for your reading, well-wishes, and kind words! <3

Happy Trails, and thanks for all the fish, Michael!

Oh, and thanks for the Golden Star! but, obviously, you overlooked this one:

From 'Fighting on Twitter? In the UK, You Could Be Arrested for That.'

" 14. 'Yes, we really need to ban language that causes 'annoyance, inconvenience
or needless anxiety to another.' This from the country that brought us Monty Python.'
--Graham Chapman Weeps "

I'm so sad you are leaving, thank you for the news and the Gouda pics, they're as great as Henri's (le chat noire)!

Say it ain’t so, Michael! We hardly knew ye. And other cliched phrases. Seriously: You were the ONLY reason that I read The Slog news roundup. I will miss your swell, clever, well-sourced, beautifully-phrased and sardonically-spiced columns. And Gouda! I hope that The Stranger powers-that-be know a rare writer when they find him/her/them and hire you for other stories.

*noir

I appreciated the local flair of photos and news from Fremonllingford and your humor, Mr. Bell. I will keep an eye out for you and Pika around the neighborhood but I will not be creepy about it. Cheers!