This region of the blogosphere was shocked to discover that all traces of the formidable and much loved blogger Anna Raccoon have been erased.
Her website is no more, her facebook, twitter and email accounts have been deleted and little trace remains, apart from the few cached web pages in Google. It is almost as if she has suffered a systematic 1984-like purge from all known records.
Several long-time collaborators of Anna's have tried to contact her but no news of a reply has been received yet. Well, apart from this tweet from Obnoxio the Clown:
I am the bearer of foul news. Anna Raccoon has ceased blogging. She is fine, but has decided to give up blogging and has taken her site down
about 16 hours ago via TweetDeck
Retweeted by 1 person
obotheclown
Obnoxio The Clown
There are several theories:
1. Just fed-up with blogging
2. Legal pressure
3. Health
4. A joke
5. She has a new job as Gordon Brown's assistant
If this is really the end of Anna's career, then her insight, humour, rigorous research and compassion will be much missed. I think there are few, if any, bloggers out there who could fill her boots.
Whether Anna's disappearance is permanent or not, I feel it would be prudent to protect her legacy. I think it would be a crime to deprive the web of her best posts.
So, does anyone wish to collaborate on an archiving project? If so, please use the email at my contact link. Similarly, if anyone wants to suggest or vote for the best of Anna's posts that they think should be preserved, then please also get in touch. We don't have much time as Google's cache eventually removes old posts.
== UPDATE 1 == [13-Oct-2010 20:50]
Gildas the Monk posted an excellent eulogy to Anna on Grumpyoldtwat's blog here: Ana Raccoon.
GOTY also mentioned the following:
Gotty says:
Anna is fine but for personal reasons she felt that now was the right time to quit blogging. Best wishes Anna for whatever you decide to do in the future .... and thank you ;-)
== UPDATE 2 == [14-Oct-2010 20:00]
Anna has written a farewell post here.
Rather sad but at least Anna is choosing a less stressful, happier life.
To Anna:
Many thanks for the hours of amusing, entertaining, beguiling, illuminating and surprising articles you provided for the legions of blogonauts. You most certainly made a difference, a very good one and have set the bar very high.
Take care, enjoy your life, you deserve it.
Bon Chance, Daedalus.
She surely wouldn't have just binned all that writing, surely?
ReplyDeletePerhaps there is a vault somewhere that she has it all stored.
I agree with you Dick. She must have kept a copy. That's not to say she wants it public though, sadly.
ReplyDeleteLife's but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. (William S)
ReplyDeleteTwo top blogs gone, in quick succession - first John Ward's SLOG, then Anna Raccoon. John posted a farewell. Anna didn't. Anyone out there got a halfway-decent conspiracy theory?
ReplyDeleteLaurent:
ReplyDeleteThank you, very apt, if rather bittersweet, quote from the Bard there.