1,001

"Ed, wake up."

I stirred. My eyelids were stuck together. Somebody was shaking my shoulder.

"Wake up Ed."

I remember now. I'd fallen asleep at my desk. My head was down on the desktop, cradled in my arms, an elbowy fortress on the blotter providing protection from the hordes of scattered model building stuff. I lifted my head and tried to open my eyes. I wish I'd closed the blinds last night, the sun wasn't helping.

A newspaper plopped down in front of my nose.

"I haven't got all day Ed."

I straightened and slowly leaned back in the chair to look for my tormentor.

"Leslie, how'd you get in here?"

"The door was unlocked and you weren't answering the bell."

"Did you bring coffee?"

"Yes, it's over there on the table, but look at the paper first."

I reached over to the crisp newspaper resting on the results of last night's marathon modelling session. I gingerly lifted it off, hoping it hadn't scrunched the staircase I was building. Nothing was disturbed other than a few stair treads that were knocked loose. I unfolded the paper and scanned the front page. 

"Astronauts Prepare to Leave Moon. Crash Leaves Two Dead. Afternoon Showers. What am I looking for?"

"Page three, below the fold."

I went to page three. There was a picture.

"She's beautiful." I read the caption under the photo, "Meagan is an astrophysicist by day, but by night she loves to boogie with the stars."

"Not her."

"30 Squares Reaches 1,000 Post Milestone"

"That's it."

"Can I have some coffee?"

"Read."

"On April 14th, the noted model streetcar blog and E. L. Moore archive reached the 1,000 post milestone. When asked about the secret to the blog's longevity, the reclusive head of the 30 Squares media empire said, "I'll post something and think, this it, no more. Then a few days later I think, I'll post this idea and that'll be it, no more. This was repeated a thousand times. Maybe I need therapy?" Rumours have been circulating over the past few years about 30 Squares' retirement from the blog-o-sphere, but it appears there's no end in sight. The most popular series have been E. L. Moore in the 21st Century and the pulp streetcar-noir novella, Light Ray Blues."

"Novella? That was non-fiction. You and I were there."

"I know. There's more. The blog is currently focused on building a large streetcar diorama and a small replica of Mr. Moore's legendary Elizabeth Valley Railroad. Time travel is also a recurring theme. The head commented that he'll "get back to writing about making little buildings and sandwiches when the mood strikes." A reception was held at the 30 Squares workshop at Ocean and Sinatra last Thursday evening. Look, there's our picture."

I pointed to a blurry photo near the bottom of the page. Leslie took a peek.

I dropped the paper on the floor. Leslie was holding a coffee in each hand. She offered me one. I took it.

"Here's to another 1,000."

We clinked cups and took celebratory sips.

"Let's get going on 1,002."