Greetings, everyone! This is Kimberly, the Webmistress. I wanted to write a personal message to note the passing of yet another milestone related to Chris’s career: the 20th anniversary of the creation of this website!

Those of you who were on the site (and the companion mailing list) way back when might’ve heard this story… but I need to write something, so let’s take a trip down memory lane.

It was in March of 1995 that I first met Chris Connelly. I was a sophomore in college at the time, and I was planning to see Chris and the Shipwreck Band on tour during my spring break. Unfortunately, the Philadelphia show had been cancelled, so I called WaxTrax!/TVT to find out what other shows were within train or driving distance. A kind soul named Adam gave me dates and locations, and offered to arrange for an interview with Chris if I could write something for my college newspaper. An interview?!? Of course I said yes — I’d figure out how to get it in print later.

So, off I drove to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (my first “long-distance” drive). I met and interviewed Chris before the show, got to hang out during sound check, took some photos of the band, and watched the show from the very front of the room. I also hung out after the show, hoping for another chance to chat with Chris and with the band. Finally, I got up the nerve, took a deep breath, and asked Chris, “Can I set up a web site for you?”

“A what?” was his answer. I ended up having to explain not just what the web was, but email, the Internet, and a whole lot about computers. (Thank goodness William Tucker was close at hand — he was quite interested in the conversation and encouraged Chris to say yes. Thanks, Tucker!) I returned to school, wrote an article for the newspaper, and started working on a web site. I don’t know when it launched, exactly, but it was live before the end of the semester — just before my 20th birthday. And since I turn 40 tomorrow, I’m calling today the anniversary of the site.

The site was originally hosted on my computer science professor’s workstation — the URL was http://blackcat.brynmawr.edu/~kimberly/CC/. Purchase of the domain name didn’t happen until three years later, and by that time, this was the “official” site — Chris had given me his full endorsement. What Chris didn’t know — what neither of us knew, at the time — was that in doing so, he was helping me to kick off my career as a web professional and as a small business owner. I can’t ever thank him enough for that!

Our friendship, too, has lasted these twenty years. I wonder if, twenty years ago, I could’ve imagined that one day I’d be helping Chris’s kids prepare for an egg drop competition at school? Probably not. And that’s not the only friendship that’s been an important part of my life — I’ve become good friends with so many of you, my fellow fans!

All of this is due to this magical thing called the World Wide Web. I’ve been speaking about the history of the web a lot, lately. Sometimes I still can’t believe that this hobby became my career. And sometimes I can’t believe we’re all still doing what we’re doing, twenty years on: Chris creating beautiful music and art for us to enjoy, and us still enjoying it. Sounds like something worth celebrating, to me.

Thank you, all, for being part of CC.com and happy anniversary to us all!

Love,
Kimberly Blessing