Polished prose of 2008 -- our cup overflowed

It's end of year time, so let's take a look back at what I helped produce for you, dear reader, in 2008:

-- More than 1200 posts, give or take, on this here blog.

-- Fifty or so Tjis.

-- Thirty features, most of them a good 2500 words or more in length. Here's a look-see at some of them.

In January, I told you how Patrick Lynch was off and running for governor in 2010.

February brought news of the growing thirst for craft beers in Rhode Island. We also remembered the hardship of the Station fire disaster on its fifth anniversary.

In March, Rhode Island experienced its own NH primary moment when Hillary and Barack went head-to-head. And with the 2008 baseball season approaching, we discussed vexation in Sox Nation about the scarcity of Fenway tickets. The venerable Joel Rawson made plans to leave the ProJo, and proponents carried the fight for renewables to the State House.

In April, we mused on the political appeal of a three-way 2010 gubernatorial race in which Linc Chafee could twit both ends against the middle (we're still waiting on you, big guy). Local Heroes were saluted, and in May, the RI blogosphere got its due.

When it came to economic development in RI, I raised the prescient (and obvious) question, Can't anyone here play this game? Providence parents wondered whether Tom Brady would make a long-term difference in the schools. WJAR's Bill Rappleye felt the sting when he, appropriately, asked Governor Carcieri about nepotism.

By July, a future gubernatorial run by David Cicilline already looked unlikely to some observers, and the ProJo continued to shrink, but Jack Reed was sitting pretty.

John Maeda arrived at RISD, and the What Cheer? Brigade keeps making a joyful noise.

The Phoenix celebrated 30 years in Vo Dilun.

A happy crowd at the Biltmore marked Obama's historic win.

Buying local made more sense than ever. And we recapped the Year the Crap Hit the Fan.

Thanks to all for reading along in 2008!