MS
MuSings
Monthly Online
Magazine
By and For Those
with MS,
Multiple Sclerosis
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Monthly Online Magazine By and For Those with MS, Multiple Sclerosis |
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Tables of Contents Other Monthly Please Visit
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Photo in upper margins by Ralph, Graphic within by HeatherAnne Playing this page: September Morn I'm Just So Proud! By Car (Carolyn Reynolds) Every now and then somebody asks how this all started, this magazine called MS MuSings. I still like to tell the story of this magazine, and it seems the more I tell it the more it feels like some sort of legend, a tale of extraordinary people living extraordinary lives. It began in a chat room where a lonely MSer called Car came to find out what the heck this thing called MS was all about. I'm Car, and I have to say I was about as down as you can get at the time I found a chat room called Klinks. The good people there let me ask all the questions I came in with, they laughed with me when I said silly things, and they cried with me when I thought I didn't have a friend left to cry with. The whole process of leaving my job, my career I loved, was extremely difficult. I came to Klinks where nobody told me to just get over it. I met wonderful people, so caring, so intelligent. . . .and as I searched for something to do with myself, something to keep myself occupied and out of the loony bin, I made a decision. I loved to write, and I had met others who shared that inclination, and some who had stories that needed to be told. With some coaxing and downright begging I had the decision made. I would develop a magazine and it would be ours, a safe place always for those with MS to land, a place to express our individuality and stretch our creativity, and maybe to learn something in the process. The problem was I had no idea how to go about doing this. I wasn't even a very good web surfer at that point, so I had to find a way. By a very good stroke of luck I found out my friend Barb's son was starting a job in the computer field, and that he was already maintaining his own website. Would he help me? Scott has been wonderful and patient and has guided me along the way. I found I already had Microsoft Pub on my computer, and that was an easy program for me to use to put together a monthly magazine. Scott found me some free space, and with some patient guidance he got us online those first few months. It wasn't always easy, but the one thing I could always count on was the writers. Eight of us made that first trip together online that first month, September-October 1999. It pleases me to say that most of those folks are still writing, some each month, others from time to time. Our growth and my learning process convinced me I needed a better program, one that allowed me more flexibility, so I purchased MS Frontpage and have been putting MS MuSings together with it now for over two years. We also outgrew the free site spaces we used, so I went with HealingWell when they launched their webspace. After some problems there, we have now found a home with Scott's space, and so far it has been working out quite well. To me it's worth it to have a site I pay for to not see those annoying ads flashing while I'm trying to get lost in my reading! As we grew many new friendships formed through our pages. In fact a group of us are about to get together in person for the fourth time in St. Louis this month. We have become like a family, and we always have our arms open to anyone who wants to be a part of this gathering. Has it always been smooth sailing? No. . . . but we have weathered all the storms that have come our way. What will the future bring us? Who knows ~ but I do know that I will not face it alone, none of us will. We will have each other. We love meeting new writers and making new friendships. That's just the way we are. So if you think you'd like to be a writer for MS MuSings, just drop me a line and we'll talk. Perhaps I'm a little prejudiced, but I happen to think this is a very good place to be, a soft landing spot indeed. Happy Fourth Birthday, MS MuSings! And a special thanks to all who make it happen! All of our magazine's sections can be found on the Navigation Bar to your left on each page. Please, Bookmark us and come back often so you see what is new in this month's issue. I'm proud of it, as I'm sure all who were involved in it will be! We do have a Guestbook you can sign if you'd like to drop us a message, or you can always email the writer or me, and I'll pass your message along. Reach the magazine: car@msmusings.com Click on banner below to vote for this magazine. We are currently #1! You can vote as often as you like. Why not vote after you read something that touches you or makes you smile? Help keep us #1!
FDA required disclaimer:
We like to keep our magazine accessible to readers of all ages. Please consider that when you submit something. If any change is needed I will let you know. All that you find here is protected by copyright. Please get permission from the author or the photographer before using anything you find here.
Reach Car by email to comment or to submit: reynolds@psci.net |
