Update for everyone: I'll probably be out of hospital some time next week.

Well, after mourning TM and my hard-earned status as fortissimo user, I'm here.

@BigDub In a local paper: "The inventor of Autocorrect just pissed away. He was an anthole. Restaurant in pieces."

Suddenly, after a longish wait, I found "Global Moderator" beside my name... well, quite a few people here know about me from TM, but for all those who don't or who did not really care at the time, here's all about me. I don't have a fancy website - more or less because I'm busy updating my wife's website. But here's everything of interest about me:
I'm a 53-year-old Bavarian (well, German national, but I prefer my local tribe) living in Austria, near Vienna. Married to an opera singer (www.reginaschoerg.com). By trade, I am a historian.
My musical past consisted of children's choir, then the local church choir and finally, after studying voice with several renowned teachers, soloist with the Passau Cathedral Choir and the Dublin Guinness Choir. From age four, I played piano - did not really like it, but was good at it.
Until I accidentally put my hand through a glass door and cut a nerve. Fortunately, the same year I had won my first trumpet in a raffle... went on to Kinneil Band in Scotland (current British National Champions!), then back to Germany. Seven years in Ireland, playing with a number of brass bands and the Greystones Symphony, eventually conducting this orchestra. Since then, Principal Trumpet of the one and only Vienna Klezmer Orchestra (www.klezmerorchester.at) and webmaster for Munich-based Markus Fluhr Big Band (www.bbmf.de).
So far, I have performed on trumpet in twelve different countries and a total of 97 orchestras or bands (usually as a sub). I have been known to pack the car at a moment's notice and drive several days just for one interesting gig...
My finest moment in history? When I walked into a Vienna coffee house and they had a clarinet converted into a table lamp!

Feel free to contact me - I'm sure to answer.

Three important points:

1. I would be extremely honoured if Rowuk were to consent to share the Holy Office of Moderatorship.

2. I acknowledge that administrators are human beings with all human failings. But perhaps the administrator could be persuaded to open a second account as "admin - private" to voice those topics he/she/it can't address in an official capacity. Then we could soundly abuse him without abusing the office...

3. The main reason for the disappearance of TM was that no one knew who the admin was, where the community was based and how to access the server and such small technical details. I am not aware that the situation as to TB is in any way different. If we don't want to have the same thing happen to TB, we need to make sure someone else apart from the admin knows how to manage things in case the admin has toothache or the runs or is incapacitated by the three main reasons why trumpet players disappear: Drink, Dungeon or Death.

@Dr-GO
Old chestnut... Two guys are carrying a grand piano up a skyscraper - the lift was too small. Finally, on the 29th floor, one guy says to the other, "I've got good and bad news for you." - "What's the good?" - "We're on the correct floor." - "And the bad?" - "We're in the wrong house."

Just to clear up things before any misunderstandings crop up.

In the thread about graduate schools Dr. Mark became unnecessarily and personally abusive to Kehaulani. He was asked to apologize and avoid abusive language (in a Private Message), was then warned publicly and became directly abusive to me and refused to adhere to the Rule of Respect. He left one last very abusive message and left.

The Good Lord told Man, "I am going to create women for you, beautiful, obedient, and submissive. And you will find them in all four corners of the world."
And then he made the world round, and laughed.

I don't intend to go into discussions of which mute to use where. I'll just add a small hilarious anecdote... Once, while playing in a certain orchestra, the piece had the two trumpets using harmons... first with the stem in, then with the stem extended and finally with the stems out. Unfortunately, we had only one and a half bars to get the extended stems fully out, so we had to take the stems out while leaving the mute in... you can imagine what happened. At the strategic moment, not only the stems came out, but the mutes as well... and there was a well-synchronized "kerlunk" as two Harmons hit the stage floor almost simultaneously...

@OldSchoolEuph Very well put. Could not have done it better myself, and I'm a history professional.

No need to go to Kelly's. Some of their mouthpieces aren't really what you would look for these days, being copies of copies of superannuated junk. But there is a solution:
http://www.mundstuecke.ch/en/
The Brand brand (could not resist that pun, sorry) has established itself as an extremely good and at the same time inexpensive mouthpiece maker. Their mouthpieces have endeared themselves to European players who frequently have to do winter gigs in freezing temperatures - these mouthpieces don't get cold or freeze to the lips.
Actually, I've got one sitting on my desk right beside me, as my "buzz while I'm writing e-mails mouthpiece". And I've played it through several Christmas seasons so far. I'm really happy with it. It usually travels with me, and whenever things get scary, I switch over to it. It does not have quite the punch of a Bach Megatone (which is what I normally play); but it's extremely handy in extremes, like playing an outdoor big band gig in Italy, having half and hour's break and finding that in the sun, the mouthpiece got too hot to handle. Had to take the Bach Megatone off with gloves!! and substitute the Brand for it.
I've heard that, if suitably contacted, they will offer special terms as regards paying in instalments and the like.

Civilian ship, yes; but apart from passengers - many of whom were American volunteers for the British forces - she was carrying a freight of explosives and was in waters declared a war zone by both the British and the Germans.
As to Vinzenz Schrottenbach, he was not just an Austrian Navy reservist, he was a specialized engineer officer after first going through Cadet School and then taking up a Navy career.

No. That was an unsigned autograph card for an already established soloist.

Why can you describe the People of Hungary as "Nazis on Gallows"? -

Because they are Hung Arians.

Journalist: "Why do your buses always travel in groups of three?"
Bus Driver: "We need to protect ourselves against the angry mob."
Journalist: "And why is the mob so angry?"
Bus Driver: "Because we always travel in groups of three."

What's the worst nightmare of a sleeping bat?
Diarrhoea.

Single guy: Goes to the fridge, does not find anything interesting and goes to bed.
Married guy: Goes to bed, does not find anything interesting and goes to the fridge.

"Emergency! There's a young man climbing up to my room!" -
"Madam, this is for the police. You called the fire service."
"Exactly! He needs a longer ladder!"

"Men are like lava lamps: Nice to look at, but not very bright."