I live in Decatur with my partner, Priscilla Meddaugh, Millikin's journalism specialist. Here's where you'll find what I like to do, when I'm not teaching or researching.
Fencing
I started fencing in August, 1986, when I first got to Kent State University.
I was active in the Kent State University Fencing Club from 1986 until 1993,
when I left Kent for East Lansing, Michigan. For more on fencing, check out
the following links:
USFA (United States Fencing Association): the governing body of fencing in this country.
KSU Fencing Club, where I started
I'm currently the advisor for Millikin's fencing and martial arts student organization. Meetings vary by semester.
Karate
I'm a recent initiate into martial arts. I started Tang Soo Do at the Michigan
State University Karate Club on March 11, 1997 and have been active ever since.
It's a great workout that enhances mental concentration, plus the people who
practice martial arts tend to be good people. For more on karate, see the following:
North American Tang Soo Do Federation
Martial Arts FAQ, a really good resource if you're thinking about beginning.
Science Fiction
I admit it freely; I'm a geek. I
love SF. Always have. Unfortunately, I don't get as much time to read for pleasure
as I'd like, but I typically get a dozen or so SF novels read each year, plus
plenty of short stories. Some interesting SF links are:
Aboriginal Science Fiction, a great Science Fiction magazine chock full of great short stories.
Clarion Writers' Workshop, a summer institute for people who write SF.
Computer Stuff
Did I say I was a geek? Yep, guess I am. You know you're a geek if you spend
more time typing at your computer (or clicking, as the case may be) than you
do speaking to people. That's been me. From email to electronic texts to MUDs,
I'm definitely a computer geek. It all started in Fall, 1987, when I started
working for CAI (Computer-Assisted Instruction) at Kent State. There I was responsible
for checking out software (including Microsoft Word version 1, believe it or
not) and helping people with it when needed. As it turned out, we all ended
up helping each other, since Computer Services shared the computer lab with
us. As a result, I gained valuable experience using IBM's SCRIPT document formatting
language, VAX, and email (hard to believe that email has been available to us
university types for that long!).
More recently I was responsible for computer operations at Michigan State's Teaching Assistant Program, and I've taught a professional writing course which met 2/3 of the time online.
Some really good computer links are:
PC World, IMHO the best PC magazine out there.
Symantec Anti-Virus Center Good stuff on Viruses. Check here for virus hoaxes before sending them to your friends!
Urban Legends at About.com. Check here for those nasty chain letters or offers before sending them to your friends (or to me).
Tucows, a great source for free/demo software.
Evaluating Web Pages Good information on how to evaluate the information you get on the web.
Music
I'm also a guitar player. Started back in 1982 when I purchased a Fender Musicmaster
guitar. Been playing ever since. I now also have a Fender Catilina, and a Squier
Affinity Strat. My most recent acquisition is an Epiphone Les Paul Custom, which
I purchased in preparation for performing. In Spring 2006 I was asked to play
guitar in a band that, for now is known as Broadband. We're currently in the
process of booking gigs, and should begin playing sometime in November.
Some good music links are:
Elderly Instruments The best guitar store I've ever seen. Want to play on a $16,000 guitar. Elderly has it hanging on the wall to pick around on.
OGLA (Online Guitar Archive) The place to go for guitar tabs, though in recent years other sites are a bit better. As of my last check (August, 2006), there were legal issues.
Ultimate Guitar Tabs Archive This one has surpassed OLGA. If you need to play a song, check here.
Harmony Central, which contains OLGA, also has very useful user reviews of equipment.