ROVIN' AND RAVIN' WITH MIKE

copyright (c) 1999 by Michael Segers

- all rights reserved -

"Mike who?" you may wonder, and why should you care where he

roves and why he raves? Let's take that one step at a time.

"Mike who?" Since for 35 years, Michael has been the most

popular boy's name in the United States, that can have many

answers. Specifically, Michael Segers--teacher, restaurateur,

poet-wannabe, and once a terrorist at the United Nations. (At

least, that was the opinion of five of the largest security

guards I have ever seen, but that's another article.)

I've roved around this old world a bit and around cyber-

space as well, raving all the way, while I've met a lot of inter-

esting people, picked up a lot of useless information, and de-

lighted in good food, bad movies, beautiful plants, odd animals.

A few years ago, I wrote a series of columns about

Peanut.org for local newspapers, which earned me praise for

playing so convincingly the part of someone who knew nothing

about computers. The truth, however, is that I was not playing.

My convincing voice of a simple mind was simply that--the voice

of a simple mind.

Now, in a new series of columns, which will go directly to

the Peanut website (no trees were killed for the production of

this article), I'll take you along, not only on my rambles

through cyberspace but also on my peregrinations through what I'm

old fashioned enough to call the real world.

Check in to learn about films (in the theaters or on video),

websites and even books (for other old fogies such as I) that

have brightened my life, and can brighten yours. I'll introduce

you to some of the most unforgettable people I've ever met: from

the widow of a Nobel-prize winning author to the parents of a

young Marine killed in Vietnam. And in other articles, I'll

share information that intrigues me, on topics ranging from

dinosaurs to medicinal herbs.

Most of all, I hope you'll feel you are joining me as I

rove, and you'll feel free to rave along with me. The joy of

writing for internet publication is that, as that wise old

Canadian Marshall McLuhan said (although he did not live to see

the 'net), the medium is the massage. Not the message, the

massage, the rubbing together of minds. So, we may create the

first massage parlor in cyberspace.

Having grown up in Sylvester, Georgia, the peanut capital of

the world and the home of the first community freenet in Georgia,

I hope that I can share with my readers some of the special

pleasures and benefits of life in a small town in Georgia, a

small town with increasingly strong connections to the rest of

the world. So, wherever you may be, gentle reader, welcome to

the peanut fields and cypress ponds, the dirt roads and pecan

groves, that I call home. Kick your shoes off, and let me hear

from you.

In every article, Ill share with you are least one World Wide

Web sites. Since I have talked about roving here, let me refer

you to www.lonelyplanet.com. Choose your country (for school or

travel or day-dreaming) and follow your cursor to unexpected ad-

ventures.

Till next time, keep your feet dry and your mind full of

noble thoughts.