I THINK BRITNEY GETS IT..... SHE SPEAKS OUT!

THIS IS BRITNEY NOW!!

Britney Spears gets it.

A 300-word "Dear Fans" letter posted Friday on Spears' official Website, the fallen pop princess said she understands why her faithful are disappointed, and promised to pay them back with a new album and tour "sometime later this year."

"If I were you I'd be unhappy, too, if I had to read what I've been reading every day," Spears wrote. "But trust me, I get it."

Spears didn't specifically reference her recent misadventures: the missing underwear; the Paris Hilton confabs; the New Year's nodding off, the list goes on.

"The last couple of years have been quite a ride for me," a diplomatic Spears wrote.

A less-diplomatic Spears blamed the bumps in her ride on a familiar villain.

"The media has criticized my every move, and printed a skewed perception of who I really am as a human being," she argued. "I know I've been far from perfect, and the media has had a lot of fun exaggerating my every move."

Spears' missive comes days after the aforementioned New Year's incident in which the mother of two, while in the act of hosting a Las Vegas bash, "went into a dead faint," the media member known as the New York Post said, or merely grew "tired and 'fell' asleep," Spears' new-old manager said.

While it might follow that the nap blogged 'round the world inspired Spears to make her public declaration, it appears she was moved by another event: the impending death of World of Britney (worldofbritney.com).

"I noticed today that one of my biggest fansites is shutting down soon, and I want you all to know that I do understand all the reasons that went behind making that decision," Spears wrote, "and I am sad to see it closing."

"I am now more mature and feel like I am finally 'free,' " said Spears, who last month celebrated her 25th birthday by "shaking her booty," in the words of TMZ.com, for Beverly Hills paparazzi.