It is happening again

About 26 years ago Stephen M Jones and I set up a mailing list linked with a new website called sevcom.com. That was early days for the Internet, when both websites and mailing lists were a fresh idea. That site meandered through some highs and lows, ending up being a ‘web log’ in 2008. The ‘blog wandered a wobbly path up to 2019, when it stopped, sat down, scratched its head and wondered what was the point?

All that history will soon be told here, in detail. But let’s first talk about here. Why sit for six months, staring at the ground. What is nilamox, and why is it not sevcom?

Well, nilamox is a word that doesn’t mean anything. That is to say, no one had said ‘nilamox this’ or ‘nilamox that’, and in this interconnected babel-space it’s hard to find a word like that. We wanted telemox for a while but a company had once used that word, even though they no longer exist.

Back when sevcom was born there were more words to choose from. Sevcom was short for Severed Communications, which was the chit chat of the band Severed Heads. Now, seeing as ‘Severed Heads’ was supposed to be a throw away joke name, there was always something very wrong about keeping it so long and even registering as a business. When 40 years rolled around we wrapped it up, and thought it time to try some other thing.

History

History is wonderful, it’s all the adventures and places and people and achievements you’ve collected over time. History is terrible, it’s all the baggage and scars and enemies you’ve also collected at the same time. Both are true, and you have to take both. But I think it’s OK to start a new episode, a new chapter, a new outlet. There are so many people who want the past – but who will make the new past for them to yearn for in years to come?

There are people out there who remember everything I have done better than I can. OK so that’s their job. That frees me up to do my job – which is keep on pushing forward. At one time I thought it all had to be new – the format, the delivery, the voice of it. But now I understand – just let the past go, do not be influenced for or against it. Be youthful in ambition and let it find its own way.

I hope that nilamox will be like sevcom, but not like sevcom.