I’m back! Sorry about the absence. The server that runs my website committed ritualistic suicide last week. My friend John then put in a heroic weekend training its replacement. That we are here in the first place is all credited to John and he deserves a round of applause for providing me with superior hosting services. Therefore, go to the audio biography and buy one of those CDs from the links provided. John’s company will get a small commission and then I won’t feel like such a freeloader.

I don’t have a lot to say. I started on my CPAP last night. Which, of course, means that I now look like the elephant man while I sleep. Wonderful. However, I do have to admit that I slept really, really well. I don’t feel like crap this morning. I don’t have a headache and I’m not seeing flaming demons trying to douse my head in nacho cheese and devour my soul while taking me to the depths of hell. (Okay, that only happened once and it’s possible that it was the coffee causing a hallucination, not my lack of rest.) Matilda tried out the machine before bed last night. She thought it was pretty cool (it is, actually . . . I just feel like an idiot). Gertrude, however, is terrified of the thing that her father has become.

“It’s just your daddy, Gertrude,” her mother cooed.

“Yes, but he is more machine than man now, mother. His soul has become dark and twisted from his adherence to the dark side. And now we must destroy this specter of evil that was once my father. Be quick, mother. Hand me the wooden stake and I shall drive it through his heart and rid ourselves of this evil.”

At least that’s what it sounded like. She may have said “Ha ooooh.” We’re still waiting on the UN translation.

I was recently questioned as to whether or not I had any strong feelings regarding our government’s current actions and if I was going to come out against the war. The answer is yes and no. I do have strong feelings about what is occurring in the world. I will not, however talk about them with you or anyone, except those very, very close to me.

Oh, sure, I could probably populate months and months of this blog filled with vitriolic rants about war, poverty, and all –isms on the face of the Earth. I really, really could. But what would it serve? There are thousands upon thousands of people across the globe who are writing about war, poverty and all –isms on the face of the Earth.

So, I will sum myself up right now. I am neither liberal nor conservative, Republican nor Democrat, Communist, Socialist, Fascist or Populist. I belong to no church, mosque, temple or place of worship. I am neither a hawk nor a dove. I do not subscribe to any one school of thought. I do not see either black or white. I get angry, but I do not misdirect my anger. I believe in dissent as well as faith in leadership. I believe in ecology and environmentalism, but also support capitalism. I believe in finding truth. I believe in science, discovery and curiosity. I do not believe in repression, regression or possession. I do not believe in sovereignty. I am not a joiner.

My deepest held belief is in the sanctity and beauty of the family, both immediate and extended. I believe that it should be the center of anyone’s life. I believe that the family should be a workable, supportive unit that seeks to raise and support human beings.

I believe in the overall goodness of humanity, despite what we may see. I believe that with a little work humanity can overcome its problems.

However, all these beliefs and disbeliefs should be tempered. Because I also believe that as a person grows, evolves and changes that their beliefs can change. Knowledge is the most important commodity on the planet and should be sought from birth to death. The more knowledge we can amass, the more growth we can expect. I believe that a person should challenge their beliefs on a daily basis and continue to grow. Rather than saying “Because it is so,” one should say, “But why is it so?”

But most of all I believe the worst thing that has happened in the last two decades is the hijacking of Saturday morning television by adults. Because every child (and inner-child) should greet the weekend with six straight hours of animated bliss bolstered by sugarcoated confections that are part of this nutritious breakfast.

And from that belief I will never back down.