1,000th Post

Yes, it's true - this is the 1,00th post on this blog. It's slightly overdue, in that I had hoped to get to this milestone before the wedding back in April, but obviously that wasn't to be. Still, that makes 1,000 posts in the 2,625 days since I started the blog, making an average of one post every 2.5 days. I think that's pretty good going.

Previously, and until very recently, whenever I hit a 100-post milestone I blogged some nonsense about a minor celebrity - the Hoff, Paris Hilton, John Collins, Jade, and so on. Given that this is a far greater milestone, I wasn't sure whether I should mark it with an even more minor celebrity, or perhaps a greater one. Is the celebrity-ness proportional to the significance of the milestone, or inversely proportional?

In the end, I decided that I had to mark the milestone properly, and post a reflection on one of, if not the, greatest icons of our time. A hero non-pareil, a great leader and statesman, and one of the key influences on my thinking.

I refer, of course, to Optimus Prime.

For those who have been living in a cave, Optimus is the leader of the heroic Autobots, one of the two factions in the great Cybertronian wars. Marooned on Earth some 6 million years ago, he remained in stasis until woken by the eruption of Mount St. Hilary in 1984. He then led the Autobots in renewed conflict against their great enemies, the Decepticons, seeking to liberate his home planet from their evil dominion.

Unfortunately, he was never to complete this great task. Although the plans for the final invasion were well advanced, Optimus was recalled to Earth in 2005, when Autobot City came under attack. There, he was slain by the maniacal Megatron. Like many a great leader before him, he died with his greatest task yet unfinished; he was allowed to view his promised land, but not to step into it.

Optimus was a paragon of dedication and leadership. His compassion, and his care for those under his command, knew no bounds. "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" was a sentiment dear to his heart, a sentiment he embodied right to the end.

Optimus, on this day of days, I salute you.

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And to you, dear reader, I give my thanks for staying with me for these 1,000 posts. There may be one or two bits of nonsense yet to come. Here's to the next 1,000!