The Great Purging 2.

Back in February of last year, I completed the first Great Purging of my blog roll.  It's now time to revisit the blog roll and cut off more of the dead weight.

Here's what is going to happen - quoted from my own blog last year with only one little change.  Yay laziness.

It's time for the first second Great Purging (and no, I'm not talking about the Great Purging that typically follows a trip to the Taco Bell Drive Thru). Instead, it's time to whittle down my blog list. Whenever I stumble across a new, interesting blog (mostly baseball related, but not always), I try to add it to my blog list so that I can find it again. The problem is, my blog list has grown unmanageably large...too large in fact that when I click "show all" my computer slows down as the list is formulated. As such, any blog that hasn't been updated within the last 12 months is being shown the proverbial door.

However, as a last hurrah, I'll give 'em each one more shot at past glory in an everlasting tribute in this particular blog entry. (Ok, so it's not quite a Pulitzer, but hey, better than rotting away as a bunch of 1s and 0s right?)

Alright, let's see who gets the proverbial flush:

Note:  I started with 223 blogs on the blog roll - let's see how many remain after the whittling process is completed.  For reference, after last year's purging, I only had 156 blogs remaining....so there was a gain of 67 blogs over the year...the net gain though is still to be determined depending on how many get purged.

Bozeman Breaker:  Sometimes a blog lives on with a final post, other times it disappears entirely.  For Bozeman Breaker, the latter is true.  You can, however, register the domain name now if you'd like.

Past the Pylon:  The last blog entry in this blog was titled "retirement."  It was a mostly football blog but I enjoyed it plenty!  Again, there are no archives to look at.

Crazy Genius/Mind of a Mad Man:  This was a sports blog back in the day - now to my surprise it's some sort of website in progress...in Russian (I believe).  All I know is that there appears to be a banner with a bunch of koi swimming around, a couple of words in what I think is Russian, and not much else.  Weird, and definitely not something that should be on my blog roll now I'm guessing.

Topps Baseball Cards:  In a surprising twist, the last post on the blog (titled The Current State of My Hobby) seems to sum up how many people feel about the Topps monopoly now...of course, this particular final post was written prior to the Monopoly taking effect...

Cardaholics Anonymous:  Another totally defunct blog.  However, should you deem the blog name clever and a "must have" you can register it with Go Daddy again.

Trading Cards, TCGs, and Me:  If there is one theme that seems obvious (to me) when looking at the final articles of defunct blogs, it's an overwhelming sense of boredom with the hobby.  Here are blog author Nate's final words "When will a manufacturer start using the creativity and make something different each time." 


Kimaloo Cards:  The last blog entry was titled Kimaloo Cards has moved.  Unfortunately, I no longer recall where the blog moved to (or even if the new location is on my blog roll).

The Sports Card File:  Another dead and gone blog.  I hate when blogs I deem worth reading completely disappear, even if you no longer update I wish the entries would stick around for posterity.

Weekly Box Break:  Besides the overly ambitious name, this blog was a great idea.  Unfortunately, I guess the author subscribed to the Mayan idea that the world was ending (albeit a couple years too soon) and figured the weeks would end on July 4, 2009.  Of course, that would be apropos wouldn't it?  Shades of Independence Day (the movie).

Treasure Never Buried:  Once again, a quotation from the blog itself: "For now, I'm not sure what the future of TNB will be. It's been months since I last posted and even longer since I last collected. So, for now, I think it's fair to say that TNB is no more. I will keep this blog alive for posterity's sake and for the off chance that I decide to revisit this venture in the future."  I was disappointed by TNB going belly up since it was a fun read each day while active.  I suppose there is the off chance of a revival, but since it's been a year and a half I highly doubt it.


Lance Johnson, Jeremy Burnitz, and More:  Here is the last post, from July 9, 2009.  "After a good 2 month absence from the computer world, I am back....for now. As for my collecting tastes, they have changed drastically. I don't really collect Lance Johnson or Jeromy Burnitz too much right now. As of late, i have been collecting everything of my favorite team, the Phillies. I also have been getting into cert autos and GU stuff rather than ttm/ip. I dunno, looks like I am changing a bit. As for blogging, expect this blog to be alive and kicking. To everybody I owed cards to (I hope nobody), please let me know and they will be on your way asap. As for now, keep a lookout for more posting and what not. I am also looking for anything Phillies, so hit me up if you want to unload."  Once again, a blog promises a return to greatness and ends up defunct.  It appears this blog was another casualty of the disenchantment running somewhat rampant in the hobby right now.


The World of Sports According to Me:  The final post is about the second of the Indians 2009 season.  I suppose sometimes it is better to simply stop following along, especially as an Indians fan (and a Reds fan up until last year).  


West Virginia Cards:  The final entry here is a video entry, and that level of dedication doesn't usually portend a disappearance from the blogosphere.  But alas, the blog wouldn't be part of the Great Purging if it were still active now would it?


The Pettitte Pursuit:  A great trader is missed now that the Pettitte Pursuit is no longer active.  The blog itself was mostly trade related - but I completed plenty of trades with the author, and that's reason enough for me to wish the blog were back in business!


Baseball Card Spot:  The last entry of this blog was commented on by exactly one person (me).  There was never a reply and the rest, as they say, is history.


Olagato House:  Sometimes blogs go belly up because the author tires of the subject, other times they go defunct for far more serious reasons.  Judging by the final post on this blog, I can only hope for the best..."Only sleeping (or depressed, or busy, all very personal things not fit for this blog"


The Eclectic Quill:  This was one of the non-baseball blogs on my blog roll.  It was full of (often biting) political, social, and religious commentary.  I didn't always agree with the author, but it was almost always an interesting read regardless.  It will be missed.


Phew!  That's 17 more blogs off the blog roll (which now stands at 206 total blogs).  Unfortunately, there are still some others that haven't been updated for over a year, but this was depressing enough and so I stopped.  I'm thinking I'll have to do a Great Purging in another six months just to catch up...and there are quite a few blogs at the 10 or 11 month inactive mark right now...which portends another large crop of blogs to purge later this year unfortunately!