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"Without origin, there is no progress." observed our taciturn
friend Meshach after a month-long silence. "It is only with
respect to where we have come from that where we are now has
any meaning."
"This would be in regard to..... ?" we replied, never knowing
where the little guy is coming from, but sensing that he hangs
out with Dante and the Hunchback and other tortured creatures
when he's not around here, which has been a lot lately.
"With regard to EVERYTHING, you idiot." he replied sternly,
his small severe face more severe with disappointment. "At
what point in a journey does direction become unimportant ?
Is it all right to be lost, if it's only for a while ?"
"Are we lost ? " we asked, knowing that questions like that
pop the buttons off his little shoes, and make him fume and
spit and lather. Which, as it turned out, is about what he
did, realizing once again that talking with the likes of us
is like talking to no one. (An activity to which we have
become accustomed.)
But as always, the little pilgrim has a point, and this time
it's not on his little head. The close of the year 1995 is
upon us, and it is a year worth noting.
And, if one presumes to keep a record of the weeks, one
inherits the year by default. And de-fault is ours if we
do not make note of this colorful calendar, and its most
important dates.
We began this little enterprise early this year, sporting this
absurd little play-dough gif (they do make play-dough in browser
gray now, don't they ?) and having, for the first time in many
years in the news business, a real purpose.
We saw something important happening before us, and we knew we
had to write about it, and we had to write about it here. It
was not clear why, but that hardly matters. Fishermen fish, and
pundits... pund, we suppose.
It was not long before Jim and Kathleen Yungel joined
in with what soon became
The Salisbury Alternative Music Scene, which since
then has become the happening place to find out what's most
happening.
Bob Drudge built a shelf that became a library, and
then a small city. His original "Virtual Reference Shelf"
grew beyond anyone's expectations (including Bob's, we suspect),
and has become the definitive source on what is where. It's the
Virtual Reference Desk now, and it's got most of the
answers, if not all of them.
Patricia Weeg brought us the world, and the world
visits her often. We embarass the shy Ms. Weeg too often,
but we never grow weary of exploring the amazing pages she
and the Delmar Spiders weave at
The Global Classroom.
Soon after we began the Journal, the real writers
whose contributions make it the stalwart little
publication it is today joined us, and have been
with us since. Jo Cambell, whose wealth
of experience and warm, easy style has given us
perspective on national and international issues,
as well as those closer to home, set a tone of
professionalism and class that has served us well.
Kelley Rouse brings us women's issues, city
issues, and images from around the Shore and from
around the world. With her camera and her writing,
she demonstrates the web as a reporter's medium, and
she shows how it should be done.
The elder Paparella, always practical in everything
he does, writes of what he knows best: food. From
the history of the oyster in the Chesapeake Bay to
mushrooms on the forest floor, if it's worth eating,
Dad knows about it.
The lovely Rita Foust is a deep and soulful
woman, and she spins us tales with ancient roots. She
tells of solstice times, and early rites, as well as
the change of the seasons in the country.
Two good friends, one old, one new, have given the
Journal a bit of polish and a more cosmopolitan
look in the past few months. Randy South
gave us the new Meshach, and in so doing gave us
a whole new look. HTML Editor Bob Long
has used our pages to show what printing on the
web should be like, and we are Netscape enhanced.
Van Williamson, raconteur, bon-vivant and
radio impressario, joins us from time to time with
tales of outlandish events in exotic places, but we
believe him anyway. Van's Radio From Downtown
productions are always amusing, and so is Van.
(Look for Van's musical activities
coming to a url near you.)
We mustn't forget friends like John Ward, Charles Piazza,
Mike O'Lenick, Jeff Lee, Scott Jones, Memo Dirriker,
and all the others whose contributions give the Journal
its variety and its many voices. Friends we have never
met, like Tara Calashain send us thoughts from
around the world, and heighten our awareness of the
outside.
Our gentle bride, Rebecca, whose patience we have
tried in a thousand ways over the years, never lost
her resolve as night after night, and weekend after
weekend was taken by Meshach and his insatiable
appetite for time and for family resources. If the
Journal is a child we have taken in, she has been
responsible for its feeding.
We also must not forget the most important part of
any publication... our readers. We thank you for the
notes, the corrections, and the encouragement over the
past year, and hope that you will continue to explore
with us, each week, what our future holds in store.
It promises to be an interesting year.
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"Live in '95 - The Year in Review"