Ten years ago tonight, as I uploaded the very first version of Planet SOMA — using my brand new 28K modem — I don’t think I realized what an effect the damned thing would have on the next ten years of my life…

Join the fun and see all the nifty cool and self-indulgent bonus materials celebrating ten years of Planet SOMA and its siblings…

The hubby and I spent yesterday afternoon in Winston-Salem. I’ve always liked it there, and I’d argue that it may well be the most attractive city in North Carolina. It has a denser urban feel than many similar or larger cities in the area, most likely because until the 1920s, it was the biggest city in the state.

As I’ve opined many times before, the size of any given city in the 1920s is perhaps the most accurate single predictor of how “urban” we perceive that city to be today. It seems the form and density of 1920s development is what defines urbanism to many of us, if only from an aesthetic perspective. A city can have earlier or later development too, but without a fairly high proportion of semi-dense early twentieth-century residential and commercial areas, it just seems quaint and precious like Charleston or a little sanitized and bland like Charlotte and Phoenix…

Winston-Salem is our own little slice of Pittsburgh, not just gritty and industrial at its heart, but also built on numerous hills and more than a little run-down. Yet there are still beautiful and stable inner-city areas which are amazingly inexpensive compared to their counterparts in Charlotte or Raleigh or even Greensboro.

Yes, Winston-Salem is a really nice place…

Isn’t there someone out there who can make sure that Pat Roberston stays on his medication? Seriously. I’m worried that he may hurt himself one of these days, bless his heart…

After three days, I now have an internet connection again. It’s a long story, but now that it’s back, I’ll try to actually answer email and post pictures from the trip and stuff. I know you’ve all been sitting on the edge of your chairs waiting for that, right?

Happy New Year. Just returned from an unannounced few days in Charleston and Savannah, and I haven’t dealt with the email or anything else. And I’m not planning to until tomorrow. This is merely to let anyone cares know that I’m alive and well…