7/16/05:

As God is my witness, I never want to have computer problems again. The site hasn't been updated for a while because of some major computer issues I was having. The tech I brought it to TWICE only made things WORSE each time, all the while charging me a few hundred bucks. I couldn't figure out the problem either, and resorted to reinstalling Windows 2000 FOUR times. After all this frustration I just wanted a stable system - because it was either that or I was going to destroy my computer and then kill anyone who had anything to do with why it was not working properly. So I bit the bullet and bought a new rig. AMD Atlhon 64 3800 w/ dual 120GB drives, 2 DVD / CDRW burners, lights and stuff. My rig is now stable and awesome. Overkill, yes. Scored over 5800 on the 3DMark 2005 benchmark tests.

On the gear front, I went through a bunch of pedals in the past couple months. I eventually settled on some new distortion / overdrive pedals that I'm very happy with, and I added the mighty Octron as well. Went through a couple amp heads as well, and have settled on a TopHat Ambassador 50. I ordered a new cab from TruTone as well to match the head better and I can't wait to heard the magic between them. All this stuff is detailed and photographed on my Gear page, so take a look if you're interested in that sort of thing.

Media-wise, I checked out all the Harry Potter movies for the 1st time and was pleasantly surprised. Also got around to watching the 'new' Battlestar Galactica mini-series, and it was absolutely amazing. No more disco dancing and capes. Watching the original series as a kid, I never was 'afraid' of the Cylon Empire, nor did I really grasp their desire to wipe out humanity. Boy, does this new series pound that message home. Definately not for kids... this is some pretty dark material. Great though and highly reccomended. On the book front, I'm currently I'm reading Lewis Black's book, "Nothing's Sacred" and it is as witty and insightful as it is humorous. I also just wrapped up Dave Barry's, "Complete Guide to Guys" which was a very quick read and was delivered with his trademark humor that I enjoy.

Oh yes, and I had a baby. That is, my wife had one. I was there and part of the process the whole time- it was really incredible! Her labor and delivery were miraculously quick, especially since this is our first. And I was honored to cut the umbilical cord. Our little girl has been fantastic, and at almost 3 months, she's at the point of smiling and 'talking' a lot. She's grown so fast, but I've been taking plenty of pics to remember her development. I put a few up on the Pics page. I don't want to put out too much information on the web, so you'll understand if there aren't many details here!

And remember...
If you wish hard enough, dreams can come true.
-Ben