If you take any single post, or any given thread, or any given day on this forum - it is a utilitarian place. Questions get asked and answered, feedback is sought and provided, and many photographers professional or otherwise give or receive a little help advancing craft in technical, artistic, or logistical ways.
But taken more broadly, after a certain number of posts and/or years, a sort of community and family forms. Like any family we have some disagreements and plenty of personalities. But the value in family and community is not in it's lack of imperfections or in it's homogenous opinions*. Our diversity and even our conflict unite us and make this community a richly textured and incredibly valuable one.
We are all here too briefly. We all face hardships. We are all imperfect. So at least once a year we deserve to be jolly just for the sake of being jolly. For whatever holidays you celebrate, however you celebrate them...
Happy Holidays. P.S. As a very minor postscript I will be off the forums until mid January as I take my holidays followed by a rigorous business travel schedule to LA, Miami, Seattle and maybe more. If anyone needs help I fear I will not be able to answer to a bat signal here as I usually can, but will of course still reply to emails and calls directly to me.
P.S.S. A very special thanks as well to Michael, without whom this community would not exist, and to Kevin for helping it continue forward.
*I still don't think stitching a bazillion images is fun Bernard!