I'm with you GRAVEDIGGER. METAL music has touched me like a guardian angel. No shit! It has, believe it or not, kept me strong and out of the trouble so many others have gotten into. Over the years, especially my teenage years and early 20s, HEAVY METAL really shaped my life and made me a true individual. It was obvious to me how much Metal meant to me when, in the USA, METAL disappeared, and I was the only one(no exaggeration)around who still listen to it. I tuned out the media completely, cutting myself off from TV and Radio(as I do now). And the price I payed for standing alone was, of course, being alone. I just was not interested in going to bars, clubs, or concerts anymore, and only because the music brought me down. REALLY screwed with me if I gave it a chance. SO I hated it and distance grew between myself and the friends I had made since I was in grade school. Of course I wasn't alone all the time, but when I was, I was happier, more satisfied with my life than everyone else I knew. It was all METAL music that made me very unique. Unlike the rest. Now, 11 years later, mid-30s, wife and kids, great job, and STILL standing alone when it comes to the music I love. Looking back, I don't regret a thing. METAL brought me here and METAL will take me home. METAL is soo much more than entertainment to me. Soo much more than music. IT IS A WAY OF LIFE. AND FOR ME, IT HAS BEEN A GREAT LIFE! THANKS TO ALL HEADBANGERS AND BALLCRUSHERS!!