Other places popped up to register domains. Some were fly-by-nights, others legitimate. But did customer service improve at Network Solutions? Why? They were after all the Domain Gods! *crack of thunder*

And so it came to pass when my domain was set to expire on November 4th. On September 26th, I arranged to change my domain over to Register.com, where I could control my domain since the ISP who hosted it was inept in maintenance, and Network Solutions required the ISP to make any contact changes. Register.com lets people do it themselves, and lo & behold a coupon for $6 off for the yr was impending.

But Network Solutions wouldn't let it go! The mighty Domain God said "Thou hast no valid method of verification to confirm yon transfer from our control to that of the heathen's. Begon, little flea!" But like David of times past, I cast stones of facsimile and the verification method was established by October 26th, exactly one month later.

This didn't stop the Domain God, who put a false freeze status on yon domain to make it look as though it were in process of being transferred, this to stop said change of Valhallas and ensure its renewal fee by November 4 or face oblivion and loss of domain from which they enjoyed annual offerings since 1997.

Second, this whole A/S/L is bullshit anyway. It has nothing to do with Internet safety and setting parameters. It has to do with whether to pick you up (you're young enough) or pick on you (you're old enough). My first experience with A/S/L was in my first week of Acrophobia, when in game rooms, people compulsively came in and the first thing they asked was A/S/L. When I realized this was happening several times per game, I decided not to answer anymore. It became clear that this wasn't for gauging the tone of the room, because all you had to do was sit and watch the acronyms or chat to figure that out. In time, people stopped answering A/S/L, or put things like "yes/not enough/alpha centauri" for answers.

It became clear to me that the vast majority of A/S/Lers were 13-15 yrs old, and made the moves on anyone who'd let them. *cringe*

btw: A/S/L means Age/Sex/Location

This leads up to the latest nuisance who tried to bugger into my life unbidden. Some kid on a very lame BBS apparently clicked my signature and visited My Pets, and then decided to muscle his way into my Yahoo friends list. He asked authorization and - being that BBS, I thought he wanted to audition for one of my Trek sims, as I often run casting calls. So when he was on at the same time, I asked: "Who are you, and why did you ask to be added to my list?"

He goes: "You're very demanding."

*cough* *sputter!* exCUSE me?????????

I told him I don't authorize strangers unless we have business to conduct.

"I saw ur dolls site"

Bad news already. The dreaded "ur"

"Yes, and?"

"a/s/l?"

That was it. I deleted the child and put them on ignore. God help me if I ever accept any stranger again on anything. They get the decline and "I don't authorize strangers" response. Case closed. End of story. Finis.

If teens want to show their age, all they have to do is "A/SL" or "ur" or "kewl" or use numbers instead of "for" or "to." Come on, kids: show us why you're afraid to show your parents your fucking report card.

I don't recall exactly the circumstances, but from what I recall, the Doctor left us because someone had told him I said something which absolutely wasn't true. And my dad and Chakotay (don't ask. I don't know why he was there) and me managed to track him down at some concierge in a motel, which apparently served a trio of motels in the immediate area. This was in a tower in the central motel. For all I know, this central structure might only have had parking and the restaurant to accommodate the other two. He gave me a card with the Doctor's code on it. At the time I thought it was his room number in the motel to the south across the parking lot.

Well, Dad drove us home. I was SO pissed off! He didn't like the Doctor anyway (in the dream) and thought all this running around was a waste of time. So I took a bus all the way back, thinking all the while what trouble the hologram could get himself into before I got there.

I was attacked outside the south motel, and entered wearing a gauze loincloth-shaped thing and holding small accent pillows over my chest. I was REALLY pissed off now! The elevator attendant was giving me lecherous looks while answering my questions, leading me on as if the Doctor was in that building. The elevator consisted of that portion of the floor rising to the levels. At one level, I think the second or third floor where they had the buffet, we stopped in front of a trough of stew, and I tried some. But I saw in it mushrooms shaped like - well, what's usually shaped like a mushroom? Anyway the "stems" betrayed what these might have been. Their materials were mushroom-like but their contour - UGH. I grew queasy. It's like someone cut these off mushroom people and threw them in.

I can't say why, but somewhere on the fourth floor or fifth, I had a vision of the Doctor in his hotel room, arranging with an escort chick to meet her that evening. I was in the wrong building! After getting out, holding the pillows, grabbing the card and realizing then that there were instructions on the back about viewing the room number. Visions while walking revealed the Doctor's actual location and room number, and I was determined to save him and bring him back home. But just while I walked past the central structure to get to the smaller, northern motel, the fucking alarm clock went off and I woke up.