Grüß Gott - God shall greet you. I'm not a praying man, but this is the proper Austrian greeting. I'm sitting in for Robert and Keith, who are both busier than I am at the present time. So I get to write my first (and last?) editorial.

As you might know, I am entitled the "Austrian Editor," which wasn't so hard to achieve, since I'm the only staff writer with an Austrian citizenship ;o) And I have decided to keep my nationality intact. I'm living in the US for over ten years now, visiting Austria and my family about once a year. I have a green card, thanks to my wife, which gives me all the rights of an American, except the voting right, which doesn't mean much anymore anyway. But the natives are still treating me with mistrust, so I don't feel I "deserve" an American citizenship. But enough of that.

My bilingual Austrian Insights in this month's issue about the Prater amusement park fits perfectly into my (Austrian?) philosophy of life: live for the moment. It keeps life exciting. We Austrians are friendly, laid back, honest, and helpful. We don't really worry about the past or the future. Dealing with the present is what gives you the only real power, where you can make a difference. And it keeps the ulcers away.

As a most recent example, I had some trouble with the census form. It came in March and it asked: "...who lived in this household on April 1?" How am I supposed to know that in March? So I waited until April 1 to send off the form. My "live for today" philosophy also serves me well in tennis (pun intended). After a bad shot it's not worth lamenting. Don't worry about the past, concentrate on the matter at hand: the ball coming at you for your next shot! You can't change the past or the future.

So simply deal with the present and enjoy this month's Vienna Online. Always return to the front page, so nicely laid out by our editor in chief. You'll find links to Paul Huang's "Instrumentally Speaking (the oboe)," our musical offerings, and so much more. And finally take our new poll.

Live every day to its fullest, like it's your last one.