I had an interesting transaction today on ebay.com where the seller was proud member since 2011 and he touted it.  He's a good example of what made ebay great in the beginning and what makes ebay still great today.  Fast, responsive, proud of the work and products he sells.  

Our exchange was a bit more than the usual, point, click "Buy It Now" pay and wait because I reached out with a counter-offer and we negotiated a settled deal.  But it struck me.  2011.  "How long have I been using ebay!?"  I went through the trouble of looking it up and I was rather shocked.

![](https://steemitimages.com/DQmcgsyivi4F6ckeedSVEmxR7WChVvdKZSoNcQdcJ8ijK9d/image.png)

I hear a Prince song playing!  1999 is ancient.  But it underlines the power of getting things right and serving a real need from the get-go.  Although I've only been on Steemit a few short days, I already see this place as a community that will only grow and stick around for a long time.  This community of authors is finally one that has figured out how to bring back the simple joy of writing while solving the sticky problem of earning a little something on the side for all that time you give up to put fingers to the keyboard, however eloquently or terribly you may convey your thoughts to the world at large.

Over the years, the tech of the day has evolved and with each new wave, I'm amazed at what has come to pass, yet, I have more often than not adopted the next logical evolution in the path to ever greater tools to live our lives.  Within any platform, people revolve.   The ones that came early get better, or they fade away, creating a vacuum for new folks to join in.   Those new people bring new ways of interacting and helps keep the platform fresh.  Through it all, there's often a community, or several communities that stick around for the long haul.

When you consider the platforms, the people, and the technology and paradigm shifts that have come with each new evolution, it's absolutely phenomenal to see what is coming forward with blockchain technologies and the whole distributed, trustless computing model first ushered onto us via Bitcoin.

I truly look forward to participating in this Steemit community and sharing my thoughts and cannot wait to see (and participate) in the coming blockchain-driven revolution.