JaxDog

From a new cachers perspective, I love the swag part of caching. Actually, I am a sig item freak. My wife otoh, loves swag of all kinds. She is currently chasing rubber dinos and army men. Since we do enjoy the swag aspect, we spend about 50.00 per month on giveaways. We find something of interest in about 1 in 7 caches. We pull rusty junk and taco sauces out about 1 in 6. We always add multiple swag items unless the O/P specifically requests no SWAG due to an anti swag beliefs or lack of container space. Thus far we only have placed two caches. One is a theme cache so it doesnt count. The other is a drive by specifically done for kids/those new to caching, and swag folks. We must have some great GCers here as I have not found a single piece of junk in the cache yet. 3Doxies even left us one of his stunning sig GC's and another very cool sig item was left for us by another cacher. In summary, we love swag and are therefore willing to give more than we get in order to leave something for those that choose to participate. In the end, we want our caches to be remain full of goodies so we maintain them that way. We never expected the SWAG to be self perpetuating. While I do understand your frustration, in the end, it is what it is. Pretty deep, huh?

Just wanted to let everyone know that there are still a few race tags available. Jackalgirl went out of her way to help me out this morning and get me all squared away. I tip my hat to JG for stepping up and combining a worthy cause with our fine hobby,sport,game. So let the race begin. My cow's got a Hemi !

I'm a newbcake with only 71 finds and only one cache placed. I did do an FTF prize which were a few GC tokens as I recall. 3Doxies was the FTF and left me a stunning Geocoin as a welcome to the world of being a C/O. So the coolest thing I have ever received was a prize for leaving an FTF prize ! lol I have only found 2 FTF's. Neither had prizes or SWAG. In both cases I was ecstatic to be the first as it was placed by the C/O exactly as he/she intended. Sig items are likely one of the most desirable items. A geocoin, a pathtag, anything you make by hand or customize........with geocaching love ! Finally, don't worry about the "FTF Prizes stink" crowd. It's YOUR cache. If you want to go with an FTF prize, go for it. If not, run log only or just SWAG. No matter which way you go, if you put some effort in to the hide, the cacher that writes in that log first is going to have a big smile !

Oh and when I find the guy in town that keeps leaving Taco Bell Taco sauces in caches, there will be trouble !

When we were out last weekend, we came home with a bag of cache trash. I would prefer to see a cache with only one or two non rusty items versus stabbing myself (yet again) with a rusty pin. If you're going to pull trashed McSwag, even if you dont particpate on the SWAG side of caching, maybe grab some cheapie-cheap 20 for a dollar army men or something. Who doesn't smile when they see a green plastic army man in a cache ! My 2 cents. Your mileage may vary.

www.pathtags.com.

I too would like to get involved sending and receiving. Thanks !

What an absolutely incredible coin. You really should be designing currency for countries around the world.

We have no kid factor. We don't chase swag. Even being really new to this, it has become clear that if you were totally focused on swag, you would burn out pretty quick. I guess that I geek over sig items. My wife seems to love finding stuff. Yesterday she found a hand-made kind of friendship necklace thing that she flipped out about. We always trade up or even. Most caches are TN but we always leave something. Since we have been running mostly grab and go's because of snow and weather, we have been "upgrading" or adding to caches......kind of a pay it forward thing I guess. Since newer folks and parents with kids hit these, we wanted to help ensure that they have something to remember their adventure. The only exception is that we don't leave swag on stated log only caches, although cool caches demand at least a token or coin as a show of respect to the CO. We just hid our first cache which isn't even published yet. I guess it would be considered unappealing for most vets as it is an easy in town grab and go. We wanted to place something that was easy for those with kid factor as well as provide a good easy cache for premium members taking someone new out. We will keep it well stocked for the youngsters and are awaiting some good adult stuff to arrive via mail. Definitely something for everyone. It's close so very easy to maintain.

With only 19 finds, we clearly have that 'new car smell.' The toughest right now is having to learn two completely different GPS systems.......mine as well as my wifes. Yesterday we wasted 45 minutes driving back and forth looking for a turn that was two turns ahead on my PN-40. Clearly, not an idiot-proof device. Micros in a region known for a bit of snow. What is wrong with you people? Cache maintenance. In spite of so few finds, I have gone through more baggies than the rasta dude that hangs out in the park downtown. Who knew that a rusty nail, a rubberband, and a piece of chewed gum clearly fell within the definition of swag. Hit the Dollar Store. If you failed to bring swag and find something in the cache that you can't live without, LN and take it, being extra generous during your next outing or cache run. Forgetting to grab my swag bag prior to staggering through the bush. Apparently I didn't get muddy enough or collect enough bleeding scrapes and thorn holes the first time. Rembering at GZ to stop staring at the idiot box and just look around a bit. Understanding when it's appropriate/acceptable to ask a question here without someone unleashing the Hand of God. Tippy Toe is my motto. I have met IRS agents with more warmth. On a serious note, my wife and I are having an absolute blast. We thank all of the CO's, volunteers here at Groundspeak, and GC'ers everywhere that make this hobby, sport, game what it is. I have to get my route homework for today's run done now before JMansMom wakes up or I'm going to be in serious trouble. It is way to early in the morning to have her flying around the house on her broom.

There are some bicycle combo locks....bar locks and barrel locks that come to mind. Very simple to operate and would cause less potential confusion. There is a cache here in east TN that is similar. While I haven't chased this one down yet, I didn't see anything in the logs to indicate that people were irritated by it or had problems.

I guess it depends on your wife's personality. I am married to a girly girl but she is tough as nails growing up in the Rockies. We had been looking for a co-hobby for YEARS without success. I brought GC'ing up, explaining the basics of the game, hobby, sport. I also explained that we really needed something to do TOGETHER where we get to spend quality time together without the tv, internet, text messages, footbal, etc. Well, we tried a couple on Saturday and spent all day Sunday caching. I avoided micros like the plague, selecting larger caches. I handed her the GPS when we got within 500 feet and let her direct. I also hung back, allowing her to look and explore. I listened intently when she caught me up on nothing in particular ALL DAY LONG ! Mind you all this took place in snow and mid-twenties weather. So how did she respond ? Like a maniac. Climbed up hills on all fours. She repeatedly Jammed her hands in to dark, dank, spidery holes to ferret out caches. Beamed like a school girl every time she located a cache. We went to dinner Sunday night for taquitos and Coronas. She had this huge smile on her face which was awesome. (It's tough to get a wife to smile!) She has her McTOys and army men displayed proudly on the bookshelf and shows them to anyone that stops by. We bought her her own GPS. Tonight I am giving her the basics. This weekend she wants to solo some caches with me there for support. So what do I think about her rabid zealessness for geocaching? If momma is happy, then the whole danged house is happy ! Can I get an Amen from all the married guys in the house ?

This was a great read. It wiped out 3 of my 5 choices for containers. Looks like lock & locks or ammo cans. It seems that friends don't let friends use crappy containers ! Team JaxDog