She's only had about 30 hits so far because I've only plugged it on my notify list, so for all y'all who aren't on it (and why aren't you?), go check it out and make her happy. And if you really want to make her happy, send her mail. I've tried explaining to her that you folks don't write much, but she's sure she can draw you out. So get drawn out. Write!

Tuesday - June 1, 1999
About That Phone Booth...

"Hi there. Miss me?" Repeat as necessary.

You guys are getting used to this, right? Me not updating for a week or more? That's why I created the notify list, you know, so you wouldn't have to check here every day for a new entry and then get mad at me when there isn't one. It's because everyone must like me, there must be no unsatisfied customers. I want everyone to like me, but especially you.

But not badly enough, apparently, for me to post every day.

So during this latest gap I'm sure you thought I was off carousing, painting the town red, tripping the light fantastic, or as closely approximating a reasonable facsimile thereof as a housebound husband/father can. Basically, you thought I was slacking. You did, didn't you? Admit it.

Well, you were wrong. Ha! Again I say: Ha!

I was busily crafting a website the likes of which this world has never seen. Which is not to say it's good, per se, only that you've never seen its like before. Or maybe you have, but the one you saw wasn't created by me. It was probably made by someone who knew what they were doing, someone who sat down with a good idea of what they wanted and then cranked it out in minutes, maybe hours at a stretch. When it's me doing it, it takes for-freakin'-ever. I blame the software.

I usually use Homesite and Notepad when I'm working on my journal. I write the entry in Notepad, then cut/paste it into a pre-fab entry template I made in Homesite. Change a few tags, spellcheck if I feel like it, upload it, and stick a feather in it because now it's macaroni. It's a routine, it doesn't take long, and I pretty much know what I'm doing.

So, of course, when I sat down to craft this latest large-ish web offering, I eschewed the tried and true. I went with the unknown and confusing. I ventured into the deep, turbid waters of Dreamweaver and Photoshop. There's beasties in there, kids. Not necessarily dangerous ones, but they've got long tentacles with suckers on them, and they grab onto you and won't let go until you've spent three hours trying to make something happen that just won't happen. They're time killers. Aaaiiieee, they got me!

Well, I'm free now. I'm pretty much finished. The site I was building is ready for public consumption, just waiting for you to go check it out. So go.

Oh, you want to know what it is? It's the story of an epic adventure, a narrative of a noble quest, a "You Are There" accounting of a world-changing event, the report of a savage journey into the American heartland, a... Oh, hell. It's my version of what happened when Steve and I went to the phone booth. It's at www.deadpan.net/mpb/. Go, read, enjoy.

And if you haven't seen Steve's very funny version, check it out here.

So go on, get out of here! And remember this next time I haven't posted for days. I just might be making something wonderful for you. Probably not, but hey, it could happen. It just did, didn't it?