For at least a year, and maybe even almost two, my Residua website has been stuck at he end of April 2005. It is twenty-six months in arrears already. Which is to say that it is dead for all intents and purposes. Simon Rae-Scott, who had developed the site before the appearance of weblogs or blogs, stopped responding to my pitiful entreaties months ago. No matter how much money I offer him to put the site in good order, he remains mum. I have no idea what has gotten into him, but I have a hunch that my ex-wife is behind his silence, for Simon also works with her. And she is much better endowed than I will ever be.

Fortunately, my No. 1 son has come to my rescue. As the creative director of Ralph Lauren’s website, much of which is dedicated to advertising, he can help a lot, too. He has found a website developer in Canada who is prepared to rebuild the Residua site as a blog. Although readers will not be able to post their comments, as that function will be blocked, the software will be such that I will be able to post my pieces with hardly any trouble. It is still hard to tell when all this will come to pass, but I hope my new site will be operational by the end of the summer. Much will still depend on Simon’s collaboration, because more than a million words needs to be transferred to the new site.

One way or another, the end of my misery is in sight. And I am most excited about it. In a few months, I will be able to post my pieces on the World Wide Web as soon as they are written. The whole operation will be as easy as sending the piece via electronic mail. The Residua site will come alive at last. There will be readers galore, I am quite sure. They will be additionally enticed by an improved search engine, which will offer much more flexibility than is the case at the moment. And the motto of my site, taken from The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, will ring true for the first time in so many years: “Now that we are brothers and friends…” Oh, how I love that blessed motto!