ScroogieII

OKAY - now I'll tell you my singular Up Close & Personal bat story. It was a large, two storey, four bedroom, American Foursquare style house on the very rural farm on which I had grown up, in fact The House in which I had (mostly) grown up. When I was at the tender age of 10 we moved from the farm into town, as my dad had a machinery dealership in the town and my mother had gone back to teaching school, in the same town. They had finally come to the conclusion that it would make sense to live in town, whereafter only my dad would have to commute, not both of them. Problem was that they didn't tell me. Later, after arriving [home] from a camping trip with a cousin and uncle, we entered The House to find it empty. COMPLETELY empty. NO furniture, no nothing. I will admit that I then experienced a feeling quite unlike I'd ever experienced previously, nor ever thereafter. In later years I heard jokes about kids so completely unloved and unwanted that "They came home to find that their parents had moved". That was me. In any event, I got over that and life went on, taking me through more years of school AND work on the farm, ultimately plunking me down in my latter teens, a time when we all venture into booze, drugs, sex, or whatever. As best I can ascertain, this was pretty much the norm in small towns all across Canada, and probably throughout North America. With my crowd, or at least one of my crowds, it was booze. At the age of 17 or 18 that particular crowd thought weekends were made solely for boozing. Being underage, our first roadblock was finding booze, which was usually, or often, at least, handled by one or another of the bunch. The second was finding a sufficiently secluded place in which to partake of our newfound boozy riches, thereby avoiding both legal intervention and parental damnation. Following my family's' taking leave of The House it was intermittently occupied by hired men who worked on the farm, sometimes with family, sometimes without. In any event, during our boozing times it happened to be empty more often than not. Given that we were still working the farm, Dad kept the heat on in the house and the refrigerator and the cupboards somewhat stocked, as we used the house as a lunchroom. SOOOOO, it was inevitable that it should occur to me that it might be a perfect Boozing Spot. To cut to the chase, as it were, during one of our weekend sessions at The House, after we had all imbibed sufficiently to be feeling invincible, a little bat flew by us in the kitchen. Feeling no inhibitions whatever, though I was aware that rabies had been found in the area, I reached out and grabbed the bat. It immediately bit me so I released my grip. It unfolded its wings and proceeded into the dining room, never to be seen thereafter. Drunk as we were by that time, it never occurred to us that a bite from a bat might lead to further, unpleasant, consequences, or even that we should chase it down. After all, It was gone, but the beer wasn't. I lived, and, as far as I know, so did the bat. The Scrooge

Yeabut - CW, do you have further (GOOD) news to impart, or do you prefer to let us hang for these "some years"? Example ONE Example TWO Two examples of those typical Europeans who either don't know about window screens OR neglect to close the door. LOLOLOLOL But then there are the FINNS, who always manage to keep their cool under any and all circumstances. BTW, Hi Kai! How gozzit there? And the Aussies, ever vigilant with regard to windows and doors, manage to keep the little fellas outdoors. Anyhoo, Yeah, I, too, await further information and instructions from our esteemed leader here. I suspect that, during the present thawing spell, following an earlier frigid spell, our leader may well have gotten a boot stuck in the mud on his way back to the house, and has yet to make his way to the computer. The Scrooge

In the near future a new category proposal will be announced. It focuses on an avian member of the mammalian order Chiroptera. I expect most of you will find it quite interesting! The Scrooge

Preserved Machines on Public Display - FOR SURE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been a true GEARHEAD all my life, and a mechanic since I rebuilt my first engine, a 3.4 litre Jaguar, when I was a teenager. I find it impossible to walk by an interesting bit of machinery, of any type, without stopping for an long, close look!!!! I've Waymarked a pisspot full of them, to boot! AND, I just joined the group!!! Also, I do several (most?) of the other machinery related categories (surprise, surprise), so I'm quite familiar with all the exclusions. The Scrooge

Yeah, that last is probably a better choice, in many cases. It does make sense in some cases, but not all. Of course the outlying cases simply don't come to mind at the moment, though... The Brain Dead Scrooge (spent the whole day dealing with various unfamiliar software(zzz), few to none of which were terribly "user friendly".)

Yeah, wishin' & a hopin' here, just as you are. For that I'd even pay REAL (CDN) $$$. The Scrooge

You've not addressed the single item with which I had trouble: After the 3 day wait with NO VOTES having been cast, is the Waymark approved or declined? I have since been apprised that it will be Approved, hence no more haziness, for me, at least. The Scrooge

Too late - you've already managed to confuse me. The Scrooge

If it's difficult, then why? Approvals generally will occur after a single officer reviews and approves a submission and no other officer reevaluates the Waymark and then declines it. Denials are either straightforward, in which case an officer simply clicks the "Decline Waymark" button, OR through lack of certainty, chooses, to click on the "Let your group officers decide" link below the Approve - Decline buttons, at which time the submission is subjected to a vote by the officers of the category. As it appears to me, if the officer who initiated the vote should, as well, vote to approve, then, if no other officers vote, the submission will be automatically approved after 3 days. However, should the officer who initiated the vote choose to vote to decline, then, if no other officers vote, the submission will be automatically declined after 3 days. However, if, prior to the 3 day waiting period, a majority of the officers have voted in one direction or the other, the submission will be immediately approved or denied, depending entirely on the majority vote. Thinking back (kinda like remembering, isn't it??? Just wish I could remember what that was like!) I tried a WM in my queue (don't get excited, there were only two, and now there are none) and realized, well, really nothing. I found that when submitting to a vote, the officer needs to offer a reason, but need not vote then. BUT, as I recall, the officer must, on the next page, vote, BUT has the option of abstaining. This could/would mean that a Waymark may be sent to vote, thence complete the vote, without any votes being cast, in which case it would, I believe, be approved sans votes. On the flip side, I suspect that a Waymark submitted to vote by an officer who abstained could ultimately be declined (given the three day waiting period rule) by the single "NAY" vote cast by an officer within a group containing as many as 15 (pick a number) active officers, should none of the others choose, nor decide, to vote. Am I missing something here? Those who know otherwise had better jump in right here and correct me, as I'm still not totally and completely certain that I'm correct!!!!!!!! Then maybe Ariberna could get a truly definitive answer to his question! Possibly our knowledgeable Wayfroggie might be able to weigh in here. - - - - - Wayfrog?!?! - - - Where art thou? echo - echo - echo - echo - - - - - - I get nothin' - - - mebbe he's still sleeping off his New Year's Party - - mebbe better we don't wake him just yet - we'll wait ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ... ZZzzzz The Scrooge PS - OH, I finally GET IT. I now understand why Ariberna is still having trouble working this all out!

Happy New Year, Ariberna. Tell us just what it is about the about the "voting system" you don't understand and perhaps we'll be able to explain it, at least to some degree. And again, I forgot about the 3 day voting time required. The Scrooge

Done - Why do I always forget about that step? BTW, joined Hydro a couple of days ago. I expect you've gotten a notice. Keith

It's so long since I've even looked at the requirements that I'd completely forgotten about the HTML ban, as you well know. I doubt I've ever submitted one to the category without HTML & CSS. But I'd be willing to take this one on, too. It potentially has some real meat to it. How many have I done? >100: Quite a few on the T0SHEA account were Barb's. Keith

ALL RIGHT! Just did the Doll Block. That Calgary register might be a saviour, but, first don't forget the 70+ on the national register that are still undone. As well, I'm seeing 181 on the Alberta Register, so you shouldn't have to go far afield for a month or two! The Scrooge

Just got to thinking: If we can keep encouraging our Papy in his ongoing endeavour, mebbe we can create the "Longest Ongoing Thread". Who knows? It was just a thought. In any event, I reiterate: BEST WISHES to ALL OF YOU for the New Year, and all the years to come!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR, Mami & Papy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Scrooge

OH CW!!! Only Every Week? Now, reading as literally as I can, I understand your short missive to mean "One Absolutely and Completely Novel, Previously unWaymarked (including those of Kevin and others) Site Per Week, each and every one unsullied by Crossposts." I'll do you one better: (but this one is actually a lark, truly easy-peasy) Send me at least one "Western Canadian Heritage" Waymark per week and you'll be allowed, but only if absolutely necessary, to purloin other categories from any and all aforementioned Waymarks to maintain your resolution (meaning submissions of >1 Waymark in that week), and I will happily, even gloriously, forgive any transgressions, AND promise to NEVER, EVER mention any transgressions to ANYBODY, EVER! That said, I envision lotsa trips into town in your future, in any event. That's just 52 "Western Canadian Heritage" Waymarks for next year, from which you can choose of 80, to date, listed on The Register. Remember that there are eight already done so far in the city (four of mine and four or yours). Then let's not forget about the Alberta Register, which may hold untold new opportunities for you (I'll admit I've not explored it vis a vis Calgary). This certainly doesn't mean that you can't venture outside the city. That would be perfectly acceptable. Deal? BTW - How's the new phone/camera doing? Worth the wait? I hope! In any event, HAPPY NEW YEAR, CW!! - not to mention HAPPY NEW YEAR to anyone else who should happen by. BEST WISHES to ALL OF YOU for the New Year, and all the years to come!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Scrooge PS - I'm quite sure that Phil won't mid our stealing his thread for the moment HAPPY NEW YEAR, Mami & Papy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As stated further above, I'm quite familiar with transformer sub-stations, and seem to be the only North American expressing an interest. I'm still in! Now , with regard to Hydroelectric Power Stations, I've probably done more of them than anyone in North America, 35 to be precise. Water Dams, even more. Need I say more? Keith

Thanks Fi Guy. I was unaware of that, but it's strange that I hadn't noticed that before. Mebbe it has been happening all along and I didn't notice. In return, how about a belated Happy Boxing Day back at ya!

Again, a belated MERRY CHRISTMAS to each and everyone here, which includes you, Bootron. I hope everyone here has gotten the Christmas Gifts for which they'd wished, and even that they'd wished for gifts, personal or plural, for all of humanity. Given that this is SUCH a belated Christmas wish, I shall also include a Happy Boxing Day wish for the Brits and the Canuckys, the Aussies and the Kiwis!!!! Anyhow, to get to the gist of this post, Bootron,, I just approved This Waymark in Nevada Historical Markers. Though I could perceive no HTML nor CSS being employed in the Waymark, the text in the "Marker Text " section of the the Waymark was produced with no formatting, the entirety run together into a single, long, difficult to follow, paragraph. The original as written, or, in this case, copied, as is specified in the category, was posted with paragraph breaks, which were apparently ignored by the server in the approved Waymark, the whole becoming a single long paragraph. After approving, I inserted the appropriate paragraph breaks in the simplest manner of which I'm aware (<br><br>) to make it more readable. So, my question to you, Bootron, is this: Have I simply experienced yet another glitch, or is this a more deep rooted problem, inadvertently introduced by recent "changes, improvements & updates" with which Waymarkers non-conversant in HTML/CSS may have to deal in the future? Will it soon become necessary for Groundspeak to stage (costly) regional seminars, educating all and sundry in the fundamentals of HTML and CSS? NAW! better you check your code. BTW Bootron - the little black "Enter your text, hold ctl and right click for more options" banner, which constantly follows me around in my footsteps, I REALLY DON'T NEED in front of my face throughout the construction of this, or ANY, post!!! In my 73.5 years on this planet I have endured a great many "less that brilliant" ideas here, and elsewhere, and this one is right up there with the best (read worst) of them. BTW, when I DO hold ctl and right click, the only two options I find are "Paste" or "Paste without Formatting" - the latter helpful but equally available without the ctl. It's available on pretty much everyone's menu box which appears after a "right click". DUH! PLEASE, PLEASE do something MORE constructive with that aggravating little chunk of code that sends us that utterly useless little black box, like sending it, bequeathing it to ... ... (well here I'm barred from mentioning anything, or anywhere, even slightly resembling a political vein, so we'll have to leave it to your imagination.) Otherwise, your Everlasting Fan, Keith

Again, What he said. Keith

What he said! Keith

Yeah, Fi Guy. I'd be happy to add Transformer sub-stations to my agenda. I've always found them quite interesting. Keith PS - It just occurred to me that, if you'll recall, pix of two of mine were used as examples on the category page, so yes, I'm quite familiar with the category. AND, unlike Phil & Thierry, I have only 44 categories. AND - If you'd like a recommendation, I would suggest Country_Wife for this and any future categories for which you might need more warm bodies.. She is just getting back into Waymarking and I happen to have made her acquaintance recently (virtually, that is). She is one of the small group of Waymarkers I know who invests the time and effort in really researching their Waymarking subjects, Her Last being an example.

Phil, you just blow me away with your stick-to-it-iveness. CONGRATULATIONS!!! just doesn't seem enough, so I'm (unscrewing the cap from) a bottle of Alsace Gewurztraminer that I bought for Christmas, that I might toast you. (Raising Missouri Wine Glass) - Here's to the absolute, undisputed and unequivocal KING of posting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Raising Glass once again) - And here's to another 7 years!!! Way to go, Papy! Erik mentioned the 189 categories that you help manage, but he neglected to mention the 10 grand-kids that also occupy an inordinate amount of your time! Keith

And another one bites the dust, but not really. Atlas Obscura was an admirable suggestion, however untimely. Keep thinkin' there, Lightnin Bug. You may come up with an original and undiscovered one yet. After all, it's happened many times previously, and could happen again. Though statistics in this vein may not be in your favour, such has never stopped other great thinkers from achieving monumental and world shaking discoveries, conquering diseases or, indeed, combatting laundry lint. Just never give up the ship - who knows what may eventually spill out of that fertile mind of yours? I, personally, impatiently await further conceptual or inceptual input from yourself. Keith PS - That was, however ineptly and undeservedly aimed, essentially a (quite probably vain) attempt at humorous satire, a milieu whose intricacies with which I've not yet become completely familiar.

And Thank You! for the information, as provided by a "Local". Information such as this is often "gold" for those who travel to unknown lands, thence tear their hair out in the effort to bring to light information on all that they've experienced while there. Again - THANK YOU!!! dR4GONdd (Can't, for the life of me, think of how to pronounce that, though. ) Keith

No Andreas, ruination will happen only if we allow it to come to pass. Yourself, and other Waymarkers of your estimable caliber, can, and will, I hope, continue to do what it is you do best by providing us with notable and commendable Waymarks, disregarding the aggravations of the moment. After all, the current moment is very brief, immediately superseded by another, possibly better, moment. Less than honourable Waymarkers, less than honourable category officers, are simply part of the landscape, as we and they are both simply human, a species far from infallible. We need to deal with them as encountered, just as we need to deal with health issues as they arise or traffic accidents as they happen. But, for the most part, we generally allow neither health issues nor traffic accidents to bring our lives to a halt. We simply soldier on, as we should here, in the face of effects perceived as deleterious to the continuation of Waymarking. More simply stated, a single negative or "less than honourable" individual can only bring down the castle if such is allowed to happen by the inhabitants. Keith