(sorry, this is a long one)
Hey friends, folks, fellow roadster family, (ref. Roadster Shopping Rage)
We have all recently evidenced a graphic case of how the printed word can be
very powerful. The things that we say in jest, with smiles or grins or a
'yah,right' look on our face can come across very differently when being
read. The first 'flameout' I witnessed after joining the list involved the
PO of the car I had just bought, so I sat by (yes, lurked) and saw how
things developed, realizing that I could easily have responded and been
sucked up into the madness, given an irrelevant opinion, possibly been
chastised as biased, but realizing (from my own personal experience) that
the "Send" button is powerful and irrevocable.
The list, as we all know, is very helpful and inspiring of cameraderie
(sp?).
At times, the word 'thread' is very appropriate, as the tangents are many
and varied.
Let's not continue this un-constructive madness, as by doing so we are
getting in the way of some pretty constructive items and knowledge being
passed, and that is what this is all about. Today's Evidence: Craig's
article on suspension safety, Pat and Kyle's exchange about temp sender
wiring polarity, the list of things to do when considering valve seat
replacement, these are constructive and further the group as a whole.
While I personally can confess before the group that I found the cataloging
of what little diagram (griffin, gnome, grinch, etc) was on top of their
shift knob a bit tedious, after the 18th or 20th posting I was rolling
laughing at myself for not realizing it for what it was. I enjoy Dan
Neumann's occasional hour by hour postings of mechanically induced rage (to
which I can relate), followed by sadness at potentially missing Shasta,
followed by unsuppresed joy at his rolling stock (and beer-fetcher) being
back in order. (I especially relate to that "beer-fetcher" part)
The devotion ("rabid-ity", I know, is not a word) astounds me, and I'm proud
to say has infected me.
But in all honesty, I'd rather read about "Shiftknobs of the World" than
feel the collective consciousness get all spun up because someone, whether
new or old, has come across in a manner they didn't mean to, or in a manner
they DID intend, but is not appreciated by some/most/all (circle one).
Let's re-run that picture of Hayden Lake, (or where ever that setting was
early this week) take a few deep breaths, (insert HAVE A BEVERAGE HERE for
whom it is appropriate) and go on.
We have more productive knowledge to spread, and we, in our madness, all
seem to have missed some thing really groundbreaking.....
Pat Horne finished a message with
"Good Luck Pat ".
!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I felt a pang of confusion and concern until I read down to another posting
on the digest version of the day, which ended in
"Peace, Pat", and then I knew the world had not all gone awry.
(now Pat, having never met me, may or may not understand that I can seldom
resist inserting a humorous twist in things I write or say, and I really
like the spirit of adding "Peace" to the end of every message sent. So I
hope he smiles at this, or just mumbles "what an a#$" and reads on to
something constructive)
Enough hot air outta me,
Fergus O'Farrell
69 2000
in a van down by the river
((completely accepting of being flamed because I put too many parentheses in
my writing))
|