Monday, November 27, 2006

Turkey Trots

Welcome, fellow LBers, to the first of my official "summarizations"! I think a lot of you have been otherwise occupied this last long weekend, and have been unable to follow the Atlas Quest message boards to the full extent you may be used to. Perhaps that should be "fool extent", but no matter. Help in on the way! I have taken it upon myself to supply you with a summary of what I consider to be the more important/interesting/self-serving threads over the last four days, for your edification and pleasure. Without further ado then, here is "The Official Thanksgiving Weekend Atlas Quest Message Board Summary"!

1) Dixie really started it all, with a thread called "Gobble Gobble", starting out as a heartfelt (or gibletfelt, whichever your preference) wish of fortune and happiness on this festive holiday, but which deteriorated quickly into a discussion of "gruel"... those who are surprised by this turn should leave now.

2) Little Foxes shared an amusing anecdote about a young'un who came up with the perfect title for a Letterboxing book. Kids say the darndest things...

3) A thread was opened regarding the newest scourge to assault the otherwise pristine and genteel sport of Letterboxing. This nemesis is called TerrorCaching, a sport in which hapless rubber stamps are sacrificed to the unyielding gods of Happy Meal Toys. Oh, wait, did I read that wrong? Terracaching? A more sophisticated and friendly form of Geocaching? As Emily Litella used to say... never mind...

4) A thread regarding the unimaginable DANGERS that may befall you while letterboxing.

5) Ok, so this one started a while ago... but the "Two Guys" series continued unabashed for the entire weekend (though, it certainly DESERVED to be bashed). No, it isn't something bad you did in a past life to deserve this, it is just one of those unfortunate things, like mosquitoes or poison ivy. Don't blame me. Ummm... ok, actually, I guess you CAN blame me...

6) What do you give the man who has everything, except all the incredibly essential and vital items necessary for a successful career in Letterboxing? Just ask MO UR4Me.

7) Apparently, a lot of people had Lucky Charms for Thanksgiving Dinner, because there was a huge surge in the references to "Blue Diamonds".

8) Opinions are like Digital Cameras... everyone has one. Did I get that quote right?

9) Stargazer wanted to make a game out of a Letterbox. Apparently, we're game for this game. Although, after a long hike, I am usually more game than I like to admit.

10) Dr Phil invoked the ire of many an LBer, and as usual, a vibrant and edifying conversation ensued. On the Message Boards, NOT on Dr Phil. He just sucked.

11) The age-old question of Image Transfers came up. The answers were thoughtful and intelligent.

12) Dear Dixie had a question regarding marking boxes as "retired". In the process of this discussion we were reminded of several facts specifically cogent to Letterboxing: "missing means you don't know where the flippin thing is", "the opposite of active is INACTIVE", "If you don't know where the flippin thing is, the status should be 'Unknown'", "if you KNOW...it's not UN-known", and "you can call it whatever you want in the privacy of your own home."

13) To log or not to log, that is the question. Apparently, the answer involves several dozen responses.

14) Tortuga... Turtle... slow? But wait! What does a turtle do when it sees a bug?

15) Geocachers... friend or foe?

16) Ways to tell if you are a letterboxer... 'nuff said.

And then it was Monday. Have a great post-long-weekend week, everyone!

-wassamatta_u