Bigger than a Caddilac
I hear you... the Zone can eat up a lot of time, and sometimes it's hard to see the return on investment. There are some brilliant and fascinating people here - you among them - and I personally have learned a lot - not always what the writer intended, but that's ok too.
I find I get enough just reading the interesting posts and jumping in once in a while, sometimes posting something new... and then there are the punfests.
Good luck with your work, and please poke your nose in here whenever the spirit moves you.