[Meet Moe who has a nostalgic site on pop culture and memorabilia for the period of the mid-50's through the mid-70's. His site covers mini essays, histories, images, quizzes, timelines, music, biographies, humor and more. He also has tips for students on essay writing skills.--ck]
Sometimes we meet people in the WebTV community we would like to introduce to everyone. One such person is Moe, aka Terry. His site is called Moe's Boomerabilia. It is a site that takes us back in time to the wonderful days of the fifties and the sixties. A time when life was simpler and lifestyles were much different than they are today. For those of us who remember those times it will be a nostalgic trip of memories. For others, it will be a way to experience what life was like then in a very entertaining way.
This is what Moe had to say about his experiences with WebTV. "I am a webaholic. I use my WebTV far more than my computer. Six hours a day would not be uncommon for me. (Is spring here yet?) Yes, I'm a hopeless addict. I try to justify it by telling myself I'm learning new skills, so it's not unproductive time."
I asked Moe the things he liked and disliked about WebTV. He said, "I should blame myself for wasting too much time, but I'll blame it on WebTV, so that would be one strike against. The pluses, however, far outweigh that factor such as friendships, the learning, the WebTV as a research tool, a communications must-have, an entertainment center, the gratification that comes from building websites, and the portability of the set. It's a fine little friend."
Moe said, "I bought a Sony Plus in January, 1999, and have been hopelessly 'hooked' ever since. Even though I've been on the net since 1994, (currently using a blue Apple Mac G3 with DVD drive and all the bells and whistles], I had no experience with HTML or creating websites - or even sigs - until I got this magical little box! I was surfing the newsgroups on my WebTV and was impressed with all the colorful, often intricate designs of 'sigs.' I had not encountered anything like it on my computer. I had thought a signature was simply a brief quotation that one added at the end of an email. I found out that these fancy 'sigs' were created by using HTML."
He continued, "My boomer pages are easy reading for all ages and, although my key target audience was fellow baby boomers, it should also appeal to anyone interested in pop culture and memorabilia from the mid-1950's to the mid-1970's. Students looking for essay material might also find it useful. I have a deep nostalgia for my youthful years, particularly the '60's. I wouldn't refer to myself as an 'old hippie,' but I have always had a profound respect for the strong, genuine convictions that young people had then. Whether it was a belief in the power of love or a conscientious objection of the tragic war in Vietnam, at least the young boomers expressed their feelings. We seldom see this now."
He also said, "Apathy seems to be more prevalent in the past two decades. It's really quite sad when you compare the two eras. On the upside, though, a lot of those young boomers are now in positions where they can change things, such as the ecological problems, homelessness, civil rights, diseases, and crime. Many Gen-X'ers are right in there, too, with their sleeves rolled up. I guess it just seems to be the exception rather than the rule. One becomes jaded over the years too; the rose-colored glasses are gone now."
When asked to share a little about himself, Moe had this to say, "I live in Waterloo, Ontario in Canada. It's a university town about 70 miles west of Toronto. I got my university degrees from the University of Waterloo. My major was English - literature and language. I taught essay-writing courses for four years - Moe's Tips On Essay Writing. I have also taught English as a second language from my home. I have been ill for a couple of years and have not been able to teach, except for a one-on-one situation from my home. But I hope to teach more university writing courses, as well as literature. My specialty is early 20th century American literature and the English Romantics. I love Keats in particular, especially his odes. I read him long before the university; this is a passion, not just a scholarly interest." (Go here to see Moe's Word of the Day).
He added, "I am a baby boomer. I love teaching writing, reading and language. I have a miniature apricot poodle - the one you see in my corner backs - who's 14 but thinks he's 2. I adore him. His name is Benji and he is my best buddy. Like most guys, I love the toys of technology, so I have a DVD player in my bedroom as well as in my study. I'm a movie buff, both oldies with Bogart, and new ones such as the 'Matrix.' I love television, too - all the news magazine shows, especially 60 Minutes, and some sitcoms - Frasier, Friends, Just Shoot Me and Saturday Night Live is still ok in my books. What else? Mexican and Chinese foods. Friends. Parties. Beer. Laughing. Crying. Being ALIVE! Oops, did I miss the big guy - GOD. That about covers it. I'd better let GOD be the last word."
'MOES BOOMERABILIA'
Website Recognized By Local Newspaper
[KW RECORD, Sat, AUG
7/99]
"BOOMERABILIA WEB SITE TAKES YOU BACK IN
TIME" by Geoffrey Downey for 'THE
RECORD'
Drive-in movies and Mad magazine, soda
fountains and a hip James Dean. That's
what baby boomers are made of --
according to MOE'S Web site.
MOE'S BOOMERABILIA
[www.angelfire.com/ca3/moesboomerhumor/i
ndex.html] is a collection of pop
culture hits from the 1950's, '60's and
early '70's. MOE, who describes himself
as an "early baby boomer," created the
site about six months ago to fill in a
void.
"I researched other sites and I found
that there's a lot of them, but they
tend to be specific. They might be on
Woodstock or television in the '50's,
but in my case I brought a little bit of
everything together," MOE said.
The Waterloo resident and former
University of Waterloo English
Instructor's site is more personal than
a simple gap filler.
"I have a kind of nostalgia about my
youth and things like the drive-in
theatre, the soda fountain, pinball
machines and counter-culture," MOE said.
"I thought there would be a fair
audience for that and there is."
People are coming by to tune in, turn
on, but not drop out on topics like
Muhammad Ali, Woodstock, 1950's
television shows, Route 66 and classic
cars. This twenty-something reporter
learned a lot of interesting
details about the history of the Edsel
and Studebaker.
While MOE misses the physical elements
of this era, it might be the spirit he
misses most. He cites the recent third
incarnation of Woodstock as an example.
The spirit, however, is not completely
gone. "We've still got rock and roll,
thank God, and some of my favourite
groups are still playing -- the Rolling
Stones, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Tom
Petty," MOE said.
Boomers don't represent the majority of
surfers, but someone is visiting MOE'S
site. He has received his fair share of
fan mail. "I've gotten a lot of e-mail
from people all over saying thank you so
much for the trip down memory lane," MOE
said.
So put on your bell bottoms, turn on
your lava lamp and go get your kicks on
Route 66 -- virtually, of course.
Want more
MOE? Check out my
other site....
MOE'S TIPS ON
ESSAY-WRITING
