And on a more serious note --I was just telling a new friend today at lunch about the Mudcat. And I absolutely got chill bumps talking about the idea that we're talking right now, this very minute, with people all over the world. And even if it's asynchronous (which I'm actually learning to spell without looking it up), it's still a conversation. Bill Sables can be writing something to us over in the U.K., and Alison will respond from Australia (as soon as she gets back from Ireland) and then Escamillo pops up with something from South America and Rick Fielding adds his two-bits from Canada ... and on and on. It just amazes me how small our world is when we're in this community.
And it gives me an unbelievable travel bug. Since Allan C and Bill Sables Mudcat World Domination Tour this summer, I've become convinced that every vacation for the rest of my life will be a musical vacation, and that I'll try to plan my travels around places where I'm most likely to bump into a klatche of 'Catters. (and, if you're ever in the Rocky Mountains ... ) If I won the lottery tomorrow, I would instantly start a Mudcateers World Domination Tour fund so we could all just freely visit each other any ol' time we wanted to step out of the Cyber world for a while and into the 3D one. And then I'd buy a big bus and paint it in paisley and off we'd go ... (wait ... that's another movie ...)
I've just never had the opportunity to hang out with this many people who loved music as much as I do -- and having run into Mudcat almost two years ago (!!!), I've expanded my musical knowledge unbelievably. And spent WAY too much money on CDs, but hey... every silver lining has its cloud.
I'm one of those people who'd probably go to school for the rest of her life if I didn't have to make a living, so the Mudcat fulfills that desire to keep learning new stuff. For every genre or musical form represented here, there's an entire history to learn. Very cool ...
I've learned to play the guitar (somewhat) over the past few months, thanks to encouragement by people here. I've certainly learned many, many new songs.
So, in spite of the headaches and occasional spats among posters, this place continues to enrich me in ways I simply couldn't have imagined -- and didn't even fully grok until I'd been around for several months. I make my living sitting in front of my computer and I actually have bought a kitchen timer to make sure I don't spend more time on the Mudcat than I do making a living. But I'm not addicted ... no, really. Wouldn't YOU rather sit in a coffee shop and shoot the breeze than work for a living???
www (worldwidewyo)