Recently, I have been thinking about how long it has been since I started at JoeUser. I went to check out my account details and saw I have been here since the 27th of September, 2005. I also saw I have a whole lot more points than I thought I would (currently 68728). For someone who has never been concerned with the points system, this came as a real pleasant surprise. The other big piece of information I found while trawling around is my current ranking. I’m currently at Number 38. I ...

Preamble to my amble: some of my favourite posts of the past have been of the rambling kind. Sometimes these provide insights, sometimes these provide a comfy place to sit and put my feet up for a while and sometimes they provide me fodder for my somewhat vicarious nature. Of course, it goes without saying that anything I say in here is my opinion only and is not meant to be misconstrued as attacks or flames at anyone. _______________________________________________________________________...

In a recent post, I told everyone of coming back to work to find my computer had been stolen. While I’ve been able to recover most of what I had on this PC, I lost all my personal email addresses. This list was very comprehensive and included friends, relatives, business and music industry contacts. I’ve no idea how I’m going to get some of these back again. It is a real hassle. So, I’m asking if you could all send me an email so I can get your addresses again. If you could send them ...

So, I started back at work today after having just over 3 weeks break. Man, getting out of bed this morning was a big struggle. I enjoyed my time off but was disappointed the weather here wasn't better. It has been a very cool summer, with lots of wind and storms. It wasn't conducive to sitting on a beach or for swimming. However, I did spend a lot of time sitting on my balcony, taking in the rays when they came out and generally relaxing. Anyway, I get back to work to find someone ha...

Christmas this year was spent interstate with my large family. It was a first for my wife, though. Being the only child in her family, she never experienced anything quite like our rowdy, chaotic, fun Chistmas day celebrations. We stayed with one of my brothers, drank too much on Christmas eve, woke (or rather were woken) far too early on Christmas morning, opened presents (I got a new digital camera - a Pentax, no less - will post pictures in due course), then went to my sister's home for...

Well, the end is just about upon us. The end of the year, that is. I usually like to take this time to get over hangovers and the massive feasting that occurs. Oddly, though, I’ve not yet earned a decent hangover and the feasts have been more like small snacks late a night. But I still feel the convivial mood of the season, even if I don’t have a small man with a large hammer inside my head trying to bash his way out. I think the reason the feeling is different this year has more to do...

This is a follow up to my recent 'Problems with blogging' article. Yesterday, I noticed my latest JU Writers Club piece Link , which had been showing under the forums 'Writing' thread, is now no longer showing there. I don't know if this is related to my previous problems, but it is frustrating regardless. I am also still unable to create a blog group for the Writers Club. If someone could enlighten me as to what may be causing this, I'd appreciate it.

The last few articles I've put up here, despite selecting the 'Display in Forums' selection, are NOT showing in the Forums. Consequentely, a lot of my regular readers, who pretty much surf the Forums, are missing my articles. I'm not so egotistical to think they would be upset because of this but I am wondering what the heck is going on. Can anyone give me any ideas as to how this problem can be fixed?

I want to say Happy Thanksgiving to everyone here at JU. Australia doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving, but personally, I really like the idea of a day of thanks to remind us all of how fortunate we are. Having been here for a couple of years now, I've made some great, real friendships, evenn though I've never met any of you face to fce. I value all my friends here as much as I value my friends in the real world. You guys and gals are a disparate bunch who constantly challenge me and keep me...

One of the few problems I have with JoeUser, as a site, it the time difference. A lot of the activity occurs while I’m pushing out Z’s on the other side of the world. It can be somewhat frustrating because it means often times, my responses are missed because everyone else has moved on to the next conversation, article or what have you. There is nothing anyone can do about this, I know, but I was thinking what I would like to know is where JUsers are, in terms of the time. For instance,...

I've just set up a Gmail address and if anyone sends me their details, Toni and I would love to send some christmas cards to our JU friends. The address is dynamaso@gmail.com Looking forward to hearing from you.

Toni just rang to say there has been an earthquake in Hawaii. Apparently, there have been no fatalities reported, but Oahu is without power. I just hope Tex and the boys are alright. Adrain must be beside himself with worry, on top of everything else he's having to do.

Yeehaw, my home line is finally connected. It took a whole lot longer than I had anticipated, given I was told over 3 weeks ago it would only take 3 to 5 days. Oh, well, at least it has finally happened. Now I have no excuse to keep up with all my JU friends. I'm looking forward to getting a couple of pieces of fiction I've been working on for a while up for all to read. Of course, being able to sit on my balcony, with its ocean views and talk to you all more regularly is something I loo...

Those of you who know me know I’m a musician and a huge music fan, as is my wife. As a big fan, I have often been asked to name my favourite piece of music of all time. As a big fan, this is probably one of the hardest questions I’ve ever been asked. I’ve never been able to supply an adequate answer because there is so much good music in the world, narrowing it down to a single album has proved to be impossible. I’ve stood in front of our substantial collection many times but could never ...