Starting out

Naturally, I wanted to start this blog with some appropriate quote by Dante. "L'acqua ch'io prendo gia' mai non si corse" (Paradiso II:7) came to mind, but I suppose it doesn't really fit, because a number of people got involved in blogging long before I did, so these waters have indeed been traversed before. For the moment, though, I can't think of a better quote. But I'll post this anyway, invite some friends to join the site, and then we'll see what, if anything, develops.

I want to express appreciation to my friend Barney Madsen, who introduced me to blogging about a month ago and quickly got me hooked on it. This is a splendid outlet for my natural desire to reflect, muse, write, and occasionally pontificate, and may in fact be the closest I ever come to being a published writer. Requirements for membership in this blog are minimal: they are simply that all participants be relatives or friends of mine (including acquaintances I may pick up in the future, through the Internet or otherwise); and that there be no postings of a vulgar, off-color, or inflammatory nature. (Instructions on how to post website links, articles, and the like should appear in the dashboard; if not, I'll tell you how via e-mail.) Also, please do not post any private messages on the blog, as whatever appears here is intended to be for the group. (I have invited about 30 people to participate, and will add more names as time passes and I update a few e-mail addresses.) Any messages of a personal or private nature should be sent to me at my e-mail address, which all of you should already have. I figure this is a good way for the important people in my life to get to know each other as well -- to socialize, as it were, in cyberspace. Within the framework I have outlined, there is no restriction on subject matter, so you may share whatever you wish with the group. (Views expressed in future posts by anyone other than myself will therefore not necessary reflect my own.) Although the site is mine and I am the sole administrator, it is not really about me as an individual; rather, I am simply the one link each of you has in common.

So with that, welcome aboard, and I hope this turns out to be an enjoyable and edifying experience for one and all.