There were interesting threads, some wild debates on music (see http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=2514) and 'characters' about even in mid-'97, but yeah, when Pat went to the hospital, something happened to the 'feel' of the place. Maybe it was the awareness that all those names were real people, and that we were interested in them, as well as musical opinions.

When "messages since last visit" and "Private Messages" was added, it added a whole new level to the place. 'Spaw just gets an *, as he says, for being "the one in the barrel" when a lot of the coalescing from 'space debris' to 'solar system' was occurring.
(hey, I'm too tired to think of a cuter metaphor right now...ok?)

Anyway, one the highlights of my time here was getting to actually meet Pat & family for a couple of hours a couple years ago.