MU* Anonymous

The man nervously stood up from his place in the ring of folding chairs that had been clustered in the center of the bare meeting room. He glanced sheepishly at the unfamiliar face of the others seated around the circle, then fixed his eyes on a spot of dried spackle, swallowed once, then intoned the familiar phrases.

"Hello, … my name is papa, and I'm a MUDaholic."

MU* is an abbreviation for any of MUD, MUCK, MUSH, MUX, MUSE, MOO, or several other variants. These are all, though partisans of each will swear to the uniqueness of their own brand, basically online multi-player text-based roleplaying games.

I could write at length about MU* varieties, their technology and history, adventures I've enjoyed in these virtual realities, but I won't because they are part of a chapter in my life that Thomas Merton's words have convinced me to close. MU* passtimes are generally harmless fun in themselves, but are not harmless for me when I can't stop playing from my desk at work or thinking about them more than I think of heaven or other things that I know to be of lasting value and my true destiny.

(That last sentence is a great embarrassment to me.)

During my years of online adventuring, I have generally kept a wall between my MU*-self and my real self. However, in parting I've shared the address of this blog with a few friends I've made in MU*space in case any are interested in continuing friendship with the real me.

To my visiting former comrades-in-fantasy, you are most welcome. I doubt that many of you will find much of interest here: no tips on fighting with Klingon weapons or how to find the magic ring in Dragon Keep. It's still the same me, only a little more authentic. I hope you'll find something worth repeat visits.