First and foremost, a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone at AN and a reminder that we all share the same qualities: "Only a turkey would bleed green and gold like we do."

Hopefully the next time I "see" you the A's will have a new stadium and perhaps a few new exciting players who offer promise for either the immediate future, or at least for the near future. I am taking a leave, or "sabbatical," through the end of January. Halley's Comet comes by once every 76 years and apparently my sabbaticals come once every 73,004 comments. (Holy cow! Get. A. Life.) I will continue to serve officially as blogfather, even in my ghost-like form, though it is front page writers and moderators who will have their pulse most directly on AN.

There will be a guest front page post this Saturday, recommended by danmerqury and not just because it has uber-pretty charts, and then Saturdays in December and January will be handled with care (even using styrofoam packing peanuts that were stolen from a styrofoam Stomper) by longtime ANer, and all around good great guy, Yon Yonson.

Finally, a public service message on this Thanksgiving Day: After tonight's feast, please don't let yourself get addicted to your Thanksgiving leftovers. It's really hard to quit cold turkey.

Much love, and I offer my true thanks to all of AN's dedicated front page writers who keep the blog going each day, as well as to a community that has been very special to me and has produced more friends than I ever thought possible. Be good to yourself, be good to each other, believe in green and gold miracles in the face of all available evidence, and if you find a spare moment, email Blez and urge him to get me a pony this Christmas following 6 consecutive years of unfulfilled promises. Happy Thanksgiving, AN.