Altadenablog's first entry (which we think was "test") was in late September, 2007, as we were fiddling with formatting. Our first actual news entry was in October. It took us well over two months to get our first 1,000 pageviews.
Today, April 8, 2010, we have crossed a marker: half a million page views. We wouldn't have made it that far unless we had you, our readers, sponsors, correspondents, and commenters, who have supported this endeavor for two and a half years.
Thank you to our sponsors and those who tickle the tip jar (in the right column), who believe enough in this work to provide substantial support. Thanks to you, we have more bandwidth, better equipment, and some redundant systems in place that help us support our mission, to bring you the news of the most interesting community in the San Gabriel Valley. We are truly humbled at the support we receive.
Thanks to those of you who write us: from insightful comments to full-fledged articles by such local lions as Michele Zack, you've helped make us the independent voice of Altadena.
Thanks to those of you with your ears on the ground, who steer us to the real stories that are happening in our town. We're especially talking about the uber-connected Monica Hubbard, Alice Wessen, and Carolyn Seitz, whose contributions are invaluable. If they don't know what's happening, it' s not happening.
We cherish our relationships with the law enforcement community and the deputies in our Sheriff's Station who put themselves on the line for us every day, especially Sgt. Dan Bartlett, Lt. Sheila Sanchez, and captains Roosevelt Blow and Steven McLean, who (usually!) answer our questions.
Bill Westphal is a force of nature in Altadena, and this work and this community are richer for having him involved. He gets our most fervent thanks. We're glad he uses his powers for good instead of evil!
Thank you all. We're just getting warmed up!
UPDATE: knew we were going to miss somebody -- and that would be our faithful Skywatcher, Chris Considine, who helps us with everything aviation-related. (When we started this site, we never KNEW that what flew overhead was so critical to getting an understanding of this community -- but it is! Ancora imparo!)
