Raymond Johnson @ downclimb.com

When I was a little kid, I was vaguely aware that there was something special on TV past my bedtime. I didn't know why it was special, but I knew I wanted to see what it was. As I got older and stayed up later, I finally saw The Tonight Show and became a regular viewer. Now that I'm older, I look back and appreciate that I grew up just in time to experience some legends. Just as I'll never forget Harry Caray calling the Cubs, I'll never forget the charm and friendliness Johnny Carson brought to late night TV. Johnny must have been the most likeable, enjoyable man on TV, and that's why his passing now is such big news. He's been out of the public eye for over 14 years, so we still remember the youthful, funny, and charming host of The Tonight Show . So youthful, in fact, that he seemed like somebody who'd never die. But he did, and I'm glad to see that nobody is hiding that emphysema was the cause. So farewell, Johnny, we'll miss you mor...

I've watched plenty of tsunami coverage; being on winter break at the time of the disaster certainly guaranteed that. Out of all the horrible stories there have been some good ones, but few as cool as this one . In the Bay of Bengal on several islands exist tribes of very isolated, native people who appear to have survived the tsunami better than most could have. They're not friendly to visitors, so the fact that a survey helicopter got shot at with an arrow is a healthy sign.

I've never "vamped" anything that I know of, but I've "revamped" this site once again. It's a toss-up whether I've spent more total time working on the site or actually blogging. I'm uploading right now, even though I know I have some work to do to make all the pages validate again. Changing the look of the site is nice and all, but I know I really need to work on adding the stories and pictures I've collected since 2001. It's hard to believe it's been 3...er, 4 years since I put that kind of thing together. I'll get it done - it just takes the right amount of more important work for me to do and a certain comfort and need to procrastinate on those things for me to get serious about the site again. It'll happen, and maybe I'll post some news between now and then.