For the 5,586th post…

No matter how you slice it, ten years is a lot. I can remember the very day I wrote the first blog. I was nervous, but also very-aware of how lost it would likely become in what I call the “washing-machine” of the web. Who would even see it? Likely no one. Even so, I can remember the anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach, and all I was writing was sort of a “Hey, this is who we are. Let’s see what happens from here.” sort of post. Nothing special. Definitely written to be more wide-eyed, than side-eyed. In fact, if I could characterize it in one word, I’d use “naive”.

For a while after that first post—we only wrote one-a-day back then—there was nothing. No comments. No engagement. Just nothing. We just kept writing. Then eventually someone did respond, writing something very encouraging, saying that some people did notice and were reading. That one comment made all the difference.

I wish I knew who it was that took the time to leave it, but I do know the person signed the comment as Rasputin, spelled backwards, with an “e” at the end. Funny thing about Grigori Rasputin, who was a Siberian peasant that used his charisma to rise and become Alexandra’s (The last Czarina of Russia) mentor—he would eat his meal, lick his fingers, and then hold them out for his female followers (that worshipped his every move) to kiss. Rasputin wasn’t much of a rule follower, but in the end the rules—social and otherwise—didn’t matter. Charisma won the people, or at least the people Rasputin needed to influence, over in the end.

I’ve said it before and will say it again—thank you for caring. Had no one commented, we might have continued writing anyway, because Amanda and I just got a rhythm and kept going; but, that engagement helped us see what the blog could eventually become.

5,855 (soon to be 5,856) posts later, and here we are. Still making statements, still working to connect people, and occasionally—even getting it right.

I’m never quite sure how to characterize this site. I’m sure many of our readers would call it a fan-site. They wouldn’t be wrong. It IS a fan site. The thing is though, for me—it’s a lot more than that. Yes, it is personal, and perhaps that is my downfall. My blood, my sweat, and my tears have been generously poured into the words along the way. I think that’s why it has been so difficult at times for me to separate. For me, they’re not just words, and I had to work diligently to learn when and how to let go.

I’m always amused, then angry, when someone points out that it’s “just a blog”. My response—whether I say the words or just think them to myself—is typically, “Have you ever written something every day and let other people read it for one year? Three years? Five years? How about ten years?” It is personal, like it or not. In turn, I am offended when people say not to take it all so personally. Are you kidding? Try it yourself for even five years. Write something every day, let the world read it—particularly a group of very opinionated people—and let me know how it goes for you.

Daily Duranie isn’t “just” a blog anymore than a book is just a book, or an album is just an album. On any given day, Daily Duranie is equal parts snapshot of whatever we are feeling at that point in time, and labor of love. That’s what makes us unique, and also what has been my own pitfall.

Here’s the key, and perhaps the most telling part of the equation: we care. Amanda and I have always cared deeply about the topic at hand. She and I are not journalists. There is no “removing ourselves” from the story, here. We are not unbiased, and have never made claims otherwise. We are unabashedly Duran Duran fans, to our very core. You know what else? That is why you read our posts.

I don’t know more about this band than anyone else. I haven’t had lengthy conversations with Simon, John, Nick, or Roger, or even know them personally. The only difference between what we offer, and everyone else out there, is simply that we pump bits of ourselves and our emotions into each word we write. We don’t report the news. We comment on the news. You might not agree with what we say or how we feel. If we were writing unbiased, unfeeling, news, or were strictly an informational resource, this site would have lost its luster years ago. If you’re looking for unbiased writing about music, this isn’t the place to find it, be that as it may.

So yes, it is a fan-site. On a purely personal level, I struggle every single day with the enormity of posting my thoughts and allowing them to roam free, for all to see and judge. Yet I keep doing it. Apparently, I enjoy that sort of torture. It reminds me of a line from “You Kill Me With Silence”.

Something else
I like this bed of nails
That’s what I tell myself

It is a personal triumph, and a little bit of a relief to have made it this far, as though the shadow of this day has been looming on the horizon for quite some time. Maybe it has, to some extent. I know I’ve thought about it a lot this year, during a time when there wasn’t much “happy” going on to tear my thoughts away from real life. I don’t know what kind of fanfare I expected to find once September 13th arrived on the calendar, I just know I’m happy to still be writing on the 14th of September of 2020.

Over the years, I’ve seen people come and go. Avid, voracious, supporters start off reading every single day, and then as time goes on, they drift away. Audiences rarely stay the same for ten straight years, even when we are talking about Duran Duran. People come and go, fandom ebbs and flows like the tide. Right now, it is quiet—even for Daily Duranie. No new album, no live dates, no meet-ups or in-person anything due to Covid-19 are pretty much the hallmarks of fandom right now. It is hard for all of us.

While sometimes it feels like there is very little “good” to be found in the world, I still appreciate moments like yesterday, when we can gather and connect in a Zoom party. Chatting with everyone made it all feel a little less weird and a little more like normal. I just can’t wait until the day comes when we can stand around in a hotel lobby squealing in delight as we greet one another with hugs and smiles. THAT is what I like writing about, and THAT, above all else, is why Daily Duranie isn’t done yet!

Thank you to everyone these past ten years. Life is bizarre right now, almost, but not quite, like the movie “Groundhog Day”. Amanda and I know there are thousands of things that need attention each day, and if we command even 30 seconds of your attention to skim a blog, vote on a poll, or…cause you enough emotion that you choose to engage in some way, we thank you.

I have a lot of love for so many of you out there, you just cannot even begin to know. This all started because in adulthood, I finally found a true group of (mostly female) friends to lean on. That group gave me the confidence I desperately needed, and shared some of the wisdom I was lacking. The longer I’ve written, the more people I’ve met. Some are not necessarily friends, but have still taught me much needed lessons. Others—like Jason—are the brothers I never had, but always wanted. I am lucky.

Overall, I’m lucky. I can’t wait for the day we can gather together, have the opportunities to see Duran Duran, and bask in the wonder of live music. I want life to return to normal, and I worry that we never will. Give me the band, a hotel lobby bar, vodka tonics with friends, and the ability to move around freely without my motives being questioned. That’s enough for me.

I don’t know how long Duran Duran plans to keep writing, recording, and performing, but Amanda and I are in it for the long haul. Writing and creating content each day is a habit, after ten years. Why stop now? Ten more years!

-R