Bleed Cubbie Blue was founded February 9, 2005. That makes us eight years old today! Balloons, cake, etc.

Seriously, I want to thank every one of you, because without you, BCB wouldn't be the large, vibrant community it is. Yes, even those of you I've had strong disagreements with -- I know everyone's here for the same reason, which is to discuss the team we all love and hope for brighter Cubs days in the future.

Pitchers and catchers report to Mesa to begin spring training Sunday, with the first scheduled workout Tuesday (some sources say Monday) -- earlier than usual due to the World Baseball Classic this year -- so this seems a particularly good time to celebrate another year of Bleed Cubbie Blue.

Let's make this a great year. And hope that the Cubs make this a better one than last year (that's a pretty low bar to hurdle, actually). Since this BCB birthday happens to fall on a weekend, there's not a whole lot of news going on today. So... have a birthday celebration here, with your BCB friends.