The Avengers Forever: IMHO

	IMHO: 9 February 2006 Page 20 of 28

I have a life.

Having just turned 51 yesterday, and having taken the day off from work to celebrate, I spent the day mostly just goofing off, for a change. It was an exceptionally rare treat, as real life tends to be so complicated and busy that I sometimes forget to have a little fun once in a while.

Two days ago Jay, my boss's boss, asked my permission to tell his boss about my involvement in the world of The Avengers. Apparently they were looking for some "human interest" tidbits so as to put human faces on department members. Jay likes to refer to me as a "world authority on The Avengers"—mostly as a result of having been interviewed on NPR radio.

Sorry, Jay, I hate to disappoint, but I am hardly a "world authority." For one thing, the interview amounted to a few brief remarks on Laurie Johnson's music. And for another, there are many folks out there who are far more learned on the subject of The Avengers than myself—people like Andrew Pixley, for example, can dance rings around my (comparatively) meager knowledge.

This is a good thing, actually. I've often been accused of having no life simply because I have a huge website devoted to a forty-odd-year-old TV show. In reality, this website has three main reasons to exist: It's an homage to a facet of my youth for which I have fond memories; it's a means to do a little socializing with like-minded people from around the world; and it's a site-building "sandbox," a place where I can experiment with web development ideas. It's not a way to show off that I am some sort of "world authority."

I suppose I could become a "world authority" if I really set my mind to it, but I have neither the inclination nor the time to do so. In addition to a full-time job writing software, I have a life rich with diverse interests and activities. As a consequence, just for the fun of it I've launched a new website, The White River and Northern Railroad, which details my adventures in one of my many hobbies. Sadly, about the only hobby of mine for which I seem have the time these days is making websites; active participation in anything else will probably have to wait until I retire. But in the meantime, I can perhaps do for model railroading what I've done for The Avengers—enrich it in some small way with a web presence.

2006 marks the tenth year The Avengers Forever has been on the internet. That's a relatively long time for a website to be around. Admittedly there were times when it felt like a monkey (or more like an 800-pound gorilla) on my back, and I was tempted to take it down more than once. But its longevity and popularity have given it legs, and it has taken on a life of its own. At this point, taking it down would only serve to disappoint a lot of fans.

Having said that, its future growth will slow substantially. A&E has completed the series on DVD, and following the progress of their releases has been one of the principal sources of site updates for the last couple of years. Besides, there is only just so much you can say about an old TV show, no matter how much you love it.

And that's my humble opinion.

David K. Smith, 9 February 2006