Posted on September 6, 2004

• Five years ago Jessie and I decided to move out of the Midwest to sunny Southern California. Since I can do what I do from anywhere (all I need is my computer and a hi-speed connection), why not go where the weather is beautiful year round? Ever since Jessie became pregnant with Ian, however, we have been going back and forth over the fact that Ian won’t have any extended family in California. His grandparents come to visit every so often, but it’s just not the same as living near them.

  Last week we decided it was time for a change. After doing some research on the Net, we found a nice house in my hometown of Bloomington IL. We flew back last Thurday to check it out. To make a long story short: we bought the house and we are moving back to Illinois in mid October.

  Those of you who live in the Midwest may think that I have gone crazy. We are giving up the best weather in the country and moving back to blizzards, ice storms, and sub-zero temps (and the opposite extremes of heat and humidity). It does feel a little crazy, but Jessie and I have decided that it is more important that Ian grow up with an extended family who loves him.

  Now we are going to start the process of packing up and moving back east. As you may imagine, things are going to slow down around here for the next month or two (though they won’t freeze altogether). I will still post new images from time to time, but I think I will be spending most of the time doing renders at various resolutions that people have been requesting. I want to do more multi-monitor screens, and I want to re-render my widescreens so users of Apple’s new 30″ screen can take advantage of my collection. I may also do some Tablet PC renders. In the long run, I think I will be able to get more work done because Ian will have more people around him than just Jessie and myself.

  To those of you who are concerned about the lack of new wallpapers: I want to remind you that you are under no obligation to renew your membership when it expires. It has long been my policy that members can let their accounts expire, and then renew at any time with the same renewal discount ($15 for 1 year). You can simply wait until enough new material appears to justify the fee. The email which you will receive when your account is about to expire will contain all the necessary details.

  If anyone has any questions or thoughts, feel free to drop me a line. Thanks for your patience while we make some major life changes here.