Outside of my family, I have some very dear friends I have cultivated over the years and through my travels, commiserating and sharing their small joys and triumphs. I am very grateful to them all.

George and Heather Hrabovsky were the first friends I made on the very first day of my arrival in Madison, Wisconsin. I liked his strange charisma even with its authoritarian air. We had a lot of interests in common: gaming, the supernatural, writing, popular science, military stuff. Heather was sweet, down to earth, and very creative. Hardly a week went by where I didn't spend some time with them. They hoped to combine their talents on some educational ventures but sadly Heather passed away from cancer a few years ago. George setup a memorial science project for her. You can see his work at his site MADISON AREA SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Stu Helm, The artist formerly known as King VelVeeda, is a fellow graphic designer from Chicago. Like me, he's ping-ponged between the Midwest and the East Coast over the years but his travels were curtailed when a nasty corporation decided it didn't like his totally legitimate parody nome de plume. Check him out at CHEESYGRAPHICS.COM

Leilah Wendell is a unique writer and artist I met though answering a chance book ad in Twilight Zone magazine. I reviewed her book about her interesting metaphysical relationships for GNOSIS magazine. Since then, we've been constantly in touch. She moved her gallery down to New Orleans at the same time I moved to Madison, WI, so we were practically at opposite end of the Mississippi. Her work and website can be seen here.

Tea is one of the reasons why I liked ICQ (until it got too buggy to use). She's a very interesting person to talk to and one of the few netfriends I have met in real life. See her at TEA'S SANCTUARY

Kara Mae was the first model I met via OneModelPlace.com and she has turned out to be one of the best reasons to come back to the East Coast. She is an entertainment entrepreneur exemplifying the colorful cultural demi-monde of Baltimore. KaraMae.com

Coral is an unusual friend from Philadelphia who I also met online through a circuitous surf through some gothic links. It was quite a surprise to find her so close to me. We spoke online and became friendly and comfortable enough to meet in person. She has been one of my best models and is a passionate animal lover, rescuing ferrets and big rabbits.

Amber Ray is another friend from the Midwest who moved out here recently to make her mark in the world. She is a talented dancer and performance artist specializing in traditional Burlesque. She designs and makes her own costumes. She does specialty modeling ranging from glamour/fetish to fine art for such artists as Steve Assael. She is wonderful to see live on stage!

"Brains & Beauty" may be a cliche, but: Ashes Monroe is all of these and more: getting her doctorate in psychiatry while working as an artist and a model. She is a platinum-haired angel in black come to grace this earth!

Andrea Fanzini, aka Ahnie, looks like a character out of "The Matrix." Much like my friend Ashes, she is attractive and prodigious. She composes music for computer video games, DJs on the odd occasion, wears cool gear, piercings, and tattoos, and is a certified forensic technician and bacteriologist. She speaks German too and has traveled all over the world. See what I mean at her site Nicht für essen.