Where to start. I intend in the future to talk about things that I think are interesting, and the topic may very widely from time to time. As a way of introduction, I'm in my late 40's, live near Atlanta, Georgia, and currently work as a level 1 tech support agent for a company called Career Connections, Inc., supporting IBM x-Series servers. I'm married (See my wife Linda's blog linked stage right), and own a mixed-breed terrier who considers me her Daddy. for hobbies, I build scale models, mostly aircraft but also delving into SF, ships, Real Space, and some armor. I also fly low-power Model Rockets and like to shoot pistols and military-style rifles. I read Science Fiction (Mostly hard /military SF) My favorite author is Robert H. Heinlein, but I also like David Weber, Spider Robinson, Eric Flint, and John Ringo.

Politically, I am a small 'L' libertarian. I see a half glass of water as exactly that, neither half empty no half full, and I tend to view life through a somewhat cracked pair of rose-coloured Glasses.

Today I attended the IPMS Region 3 convention. It was jointly hosted by my chapter, IPMS Marietta along with the other two chapters in the Atlanta area. This is our tune up for the 2005 Nationals, and it went well. 300 entrants entered 1165 models. This attendance broke all records for a regional convention. I entered 9 models, but it was more for "showing the flag", as I do not build for competition.

The Best of Show was a Sci-Fi Armored Vehicle that the modeler had designed using CAD-CAM software and printed the parts out on a 3-d printer tht builds the pieces by spraying a fine line of melted plastic and building layers. Really cool job that was illustrated with pictures taken of the project as it progressed.

Lots of vendors, but not much jumped out and screamed "BUY ME!" I picked up 3 kits; a 1/72 scale Mirage IIIC w/ Israeli and Argentinian Markings, a 1/72nd scale Red Baron RB-51 air racer, and a 1/72nd scale model of the Blossom sounding rocket (a post-war US V-2 variant). I also picked up a decal sheet of Israeli Air Force squadron badges, and a couple of prints, one of a Spitfire, one of a Hurricane, both Battle of Britain.

The neatest thing was a tool, rather a set of tools. These were a set of small bar clamps that can be used to hold model parts together during assembly. They consisted of a carbon-fibre rod with two polycarbonate arms that had silicone pads on the ends. The can be configured in multiple ways to clamp,. inside, outside, on odd angles or to act as a "helping hand". The soft pads grip without marring the clamped surface and they apply even force to the parts being clamped together. the rods can also be mounted in a block of wood or exctended with a set of provided connectors. Really cool. They're made by a company called Berna and were being sold by a dealer who came to Atlanta from southern France. Gave a very compelling sales pitch, let me tell you!

Hopefully, in the future, I'll be able to post some pictures.