Today is a special day; a day in which we take a break from the frantic flow of our regular lives and give thanks for the important things in our lives. Almost all of us are blessed in ways that we are too busy to acknowledge with the frequency that we should; for my part, I am grateful for my family, friends, health, a rewarding career, and the ability to pursue my interests.

More than that, though, I am thankful for:

• The existence of cars, miraculous machines that the world too frequently ignores, underrates, and maligns. Cars aren’t just a lot of fun to drive and enjoy; they democratized access and transportation by giving each of us the ability to cover great distances independently and relatively cheaply.
• This blog, which has grown beyond my self-interested and frequently eccentric murmurings, blossoming into a real destination with a diversity of viewpoints and voices.
• My fellow Car Lust contributors, who have helped carry so much of the editorial load and whose participation has made this blog infinitely more interesting.
• Our readers and commenters, who enliven this place with conversation and who make Car Lust the most commented-on Amazon blog.
• The entire Car Lust community’s patience with my frequent absences from the blog, driven by a personal and professional schedule that has been remarkably frantic in 2009. 
• The virtual but very real friendships this blog has allowed me to create with my fellow contributors and with many of the commenters. I would be significantly less fulfilled as a human being had I not gotten to know (among others) Cookie The Dog’s Owner and his love of Alarm fur Cobra 11; Mochi Mochi’s breathless excitement about automotive beauty in odd places; Anthony Cagle’s love of huge American iron; David Drucker’s and Rob the SVX Guy’s completely divergent views on, well, everything; Big Chris’ devotion to the Chevy S-10 and booming sound systems; Nathan’s earnest quest to find a poor man’s BMW; David Colborne’s ability to mix wry automotive commentary with esoteric military history; Chuck Lynch’s appreciation for George Barris cars; …m…’s odd attraction to both the Toyota Echo and Tommy’s Dad’s amazing genius at used car challenges. This is to say nothing of the honor of conversing with Virgil Exner Jr.
• Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit fame, who has repeatedly shown his lack of good taste by frequently linking to us over the last few years. I am convinced that most of our contributors and readers found us through his links. Thank you, Glenn.
• Amazon, to an incredible degree, for providing the resources to run Car Lust and for allowing me to donate my time to this blog and trusting me to ensure that my involvement here doesn’t interfere with my job helping improve our Auto Parts & Accessories store.
• Chuck, for taking the Vega Turkey picture above. It’s timeless and completely wonderful.

—Chris H.