There are all my people! I wish I could have joined you guys ..... Still it's good to see familiar faces from the Steemfest back together in the same room :-)

Several thoughts struck me as I read through your post.... I was reminded of a few things. The last few posts for mine have been a little 'on the edge' about our survival in the future, so reading your content (no doubt, as you must've been affected by the cheerfulness of the meetup 😊) helped me get a little perspective.

Steem monsters and Drug wars have taken us by surprise and this organic development in a not all together intended direction means more than it looks. These things indicate that the decentralized nature of this ecosystem is still in effect and the community itself is flexible and open to new ideas. One phrase - Organic Evolution!

What you say about gaining 'critical mass' and 'simplifying/easing the user experience' are interconnected issues that need some work .... not impossible to get done, but then again they aren't easy either. Personally I was hopping that the simplification of user interface could be achieved before the SMT's .....but I guess we still have time.

Thanks for sharing the post man!