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honeychile

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Everything posted by honeychile

  1. Oh you stinker (I guess a septic tank IS pretty stinky)! I can't believe you found that yucky photo. BTW, going off topic for just a moment, for those of you whose spouse keeps complaining about wanting to be more fit, lose weight, etc., point them to geocaching as a great year-round fitness opportunity. Between the photo on the left which was close to the time I started geocaching in May, 2002, and the photo on the right which is fairly recent, I dropped 40 lbs and went from size 24 to size 16. At 5 foot nothing, I'm still round, but not as round as before! I don't really have much to point to except increased physical activity through geocaching. Now isn't that a nice perq? I should've included another verse in my poem: My stick helps me like a personal trainer 'Cause I used to be as big as a cargo container But now when I meet the giant anaconda Stick & I sprint away faster than Jane Fonda! I know, I know...I'll stick to my day job! -honeychile- "a joyful heart is good medicine"
  2. Certainly if you knew in advance there was a problem, you could notify the owner of your intent to seek the cache and go from there. But I think the situation Amish Angel was describing was whether to offer first aid when unexpectedly finding a wounded cache on the trail.
  3. Okay, here's my essay. I've put it into poem form and I hope that's okay. You guys be nice and grade me on the curve ODE TO THE HIKING STICK Nothing so useful I will ever have Than a faithful, poplar walking staff. Unassuming, just along for the ride Staying close at hand, right by my side. When on the search I must ascend, I do it with this faithful friend. Who helps me up the longest trail Supporting my steps without fail. A brave companion on any walk When after the elusive cache I stalk The stick never minds picking up litter, or Being stuck in a hole where there might be a critter! The stick's a kind of gentleman, too When there's mud or snow I have to get through He leaps ahead into water or muck Lending his strength so I don't get stuck. Sometimes the stick's a warrior friend When I see arachnids round the bend He always leaps into the fray To brush those spiderwebs away! He's on the watch for brush and briars Making a way as the route requires In fact sometimes when the signal dies He lifts my weak GPSr up high! When I find the cache and take a seat Spreading the treasure at my feet Having a snack, draining a cup The stick's what helps me get back up! And when it's time to head toward home After a caching day on the roam My stick's a lightweight, sturdy pal A staunch guide through each new locale. And then unlike my human friends Who when offended require amends My stick's willing to make his bunk Along with a backpack in my car's trunk. Where he is happy to wait, content Until the next trail or caching event Where he'll be needed once again My dependable wooden walking friend. -honeychile- "a joyful heart is good medicine"
  4. I'd be pleased if someone tried to help out one of my caches by replacing missing, rotten or weather-worn materials - even the container - if it was warranted. I'd probably be a little embarrassed, though, if one of mine was in bad shape and I hadn't caught it through regular maintenance. If you replaced dead tupperware with a nice ammo box, I'd also want to repay the expense. The only "help" that ever annoyed me was a couple of times when someone moved my cache because they didn't like the hidng place. I don't like having to hunt for my own caches (I have a hard enough times with other folks' caches). But even then, I shrugged it off and went to examine the location. Once, it really DID need moving because the location had become too obvious. In thinking about it afterward, I think it was my pride that was the root of my aggravation -- after all, did I really want the cache to be plundered because the location had disintegrated? Or would I prefer that someone move it a bit until I could get out there? Yeah...the latter...but it still stung a little. Of course, the problem with waiting for permission is that you're no longer there and unlikely to go back to save someone else's cache. I guess it depends on just how bad it has gotten and how thick your skin is if your good samaritan efforts aren't appreciated. I'm always happy to beef up the contents of a cache, and have been known to add another logbook if the original is filled or destroyed, but that's about as far as I usually take it. Once a local cacher asked me and a fellow-cacher to help with a cache due to health issues and I was happy to do that. I think it's great that you care enough about the sport to want to help make the experience of the next guy a little better. -honeychile- "a joyful heart is good medicine"
  5. quote:Originally posted by sept1c_tank:Honeychile, you'll love this one. It's a mini/urban/multi/offset library cache that is stuffed with about 50 geocaching buttons _by honeychile:_http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?ID=91845. Omigoodness! I DO love that one! How nice of you to give my buttons a plug, too! I put buttons in this cache, too -- I made some special buttons with an old-timey looking picture of a kid laying on the ground absorbed in a book. The caption reads, "Books open up - you fall in." I'm hoping that will help with my quest to get permission. I thought about a bookstore as someone else mentioned, but I felt that stepped over the "no commercial caches" rule, and so I'm hoping to get permission from the library. Actually :: the only thing I'm waiting on now is for my latest case of poison ivy to heal so that I don't look like a mutant when I pitch my idea to the librarian! Thanks again for all the help.
  6. I bought a cool fake book, very large, that looks very realistic. Instead of pages, there are tiny latches revealing a box inside. I'd love to get permission to put this in our local library as a novel (pun not intended) geocache. My thinking is to hide the book on the shelves in some obscure area, get the librarian to put a regular library tag on the book, along with a "placed with permission" label inside. The posted coordinates would lead to the front door of the library and a puzzle would eventually give the call letters (or maybe title) of the fake book. Our library has a lot of lovely artwork, displays, and sculptures inside that would be good fodder for puzzles, and would make a fun cache for a rainy day. I know of at least two similar caches elsewhere, but I'd like to be able to cite several more to convince our local (very conservative) librarians that this idea would not cause trouble and would, hopefully, showcase some of the displays and resources that the library has to offer. Would you email me if you own (or have found) a library cache in your area? If you post information in this thread, please do not reveal cache secrets or identify specific caches. It's such a fun idea that I'd hate to spoil it for anyone. If you have comments about this concept, I'd be interested in hearing that, too. Thank you for your help! honeychile
  7. Hi there, guys. The travelbug idea as Oz has posted it is interesting, but fairly complicated. Regarding traveling caches, I'm sorry but they are no longer permitted (review the guidelines) without special permission from Groundspeak.com. You will still see some out there because Jeremy's stance is nearly always to grandfather caches when the guidelines change. Besides, the idea of a travel bug hidden inside a legitimately placed, well-maintained cache works much better than a moving cache, which often goes out of the control of an owner. It's not good for the sport or the control of the cache if it's planted someplace off-limits, too close to another cache, or in a poorly chosen spot. Most of the workable moving caches I've seen operate within a single large park or similar area. So it's just a question of moving it a bit. That sounds like more fun to me than seeking something that's always moving out of reach. It's also easier on the environment, I think, too, and prevents "scorched earth" searches that some of us may have seen (or participated in). I have one bug with a storage area, almost like a mini cache (it's http://www.geocaching.com/track/track_detail.asp?ID=15409, but the items in the "thing" are rarely mentioned and seem unimportant. Maybe I should've specified something interesting. Cache on! honeychile
  8. It doesn't sound as if there's anything to take over. If the cache is missing, then you should archive it so that others don't attempt to seek it out. You should also contact your approver (who has posted a note on the cache page).
  9. I've got one. When it gets dusty, washing with soap and water restores it like new. Handy for my cell phone when not geocaching, too.
  10. I don't know. It seems that the heart of the sport is finding caches yourself, not asking someone in another area to find it for you. And what's in it for the out-of-staters? Do they get to log each micro on its own? Is each micro listed on its own page? It sounds awfully complicated. I'm all for developing the sport and making it more interesting -- pushing the envelope, even -- but there has to be a point. Tell me more about how this will work and how it's worth the extra hassle (reviewing and approving 14 micros, out of state people keeping up with them, etc.)
  11. I agree that it would probably go missing (just about when someone needed it). It gave me another thought, though. What if you made a big graphic (posted on the cache page or linked to it) that looked like a supermarket bulletin board, with all kinds of stuff posted on it (jobs, lost pets, maid service, business ops, etc.), and somewhere on this graphic is the info needed to find the clue. It would be up to the seeker to figure it out.
  12. I mostly lurk in the forums. Staying up-to-date takes more time than I have -- I like it when my geocaching friends give me a heads-up on interesting threads, though.
  13. At first, I used to try to get outdoor-related items like a compass, bandana, etc. But now I try to find cool things that may or may not be related to geocaching or the outdoors. One of my caches has skeleton keys in it (Keystone Caper); one has chopsticks (The Chinese Dragon); one has little pewter hiking boot charms (Cache Charming); another has wheat pennies (Honest Abe); another has Russian pencils (From Russia with Love; and one has handmade garden stones (with words like peace, love, joy, on them). I'm always on the lookout for inexpensive things that might make an interesting themed cache. Sometimes people don't appreciate these odd items, but I always put a few "regular" things in there, too, and usually some of my buttons just in case they're looking for the regular fare.
  14. I'm always excited to find a travelbug. I like to see handmade and signature items, too, although I may leave them for someone who's a collector. Foreign coins are nifty. I found a silver dollar once -- that's a pretty generous thing to leave in a cache.
  15. Several of my caches start out with a theme, but I don't require the finders to hang with the theme -- they can trade anything they like. When I do cache maintenance, I put more theme items in. Here's a few -- Cache Hound The Chinese Dragon Keystone Caper
  16. Hawk 12 was about 100 miles, but it was not anticipated that anyone would bike or walk between stages. It's been archived since spring, but hope Hawk-Eye will be able to re-enable it soon.
  17. The rage is understandable when you see the rest of the picture . . .
  18. Good ideas, above. ErSamin, you don't mention your gender -- I don't suppose you are a woman? It's hard for women to get good-fitting shoes because most women's athletic shoes either use a boy's last and size it up, or a man's last and size it down. Neither gives the more narrow heel and relatively wider toe box that a woman's foot typically requires. I buy shoes made by RYKA or other manufacturer who makes a last based on a woman's foot. And if you're not a gal, then maybe this info will be useful to gals reading this thread.
  19. Whenever I go to the post office to drop off my buttons, the clerk always asks if there is anything hazardous inside the package, to which I always respond, "no nuclear weapons inside . . . today." I've always wondered what would happen if someone responded -- "Ya got me!" to that question. Kidding aside, though, we live in such dark times that the line between reasonable caution and paranoia is shrinking. Nothing in the geocaching.com guidelines requires anyone to buy the official label, of course. But clear labeling might stave off future misunderstandings. Spyderman pointed out that one of my own caches here in Winston-Salem isn't labeled very clearly and I'll make it a point when I do cache maintenance to see that all mine get a clear, unmistakable label. Geocaching is barely tolerated in North Carolina State Parks ($25 fee for 90 day placement), but they require a clear container. Much as I like ammo cans, I think I'll follow suit if I ever hide one in a national forest since they seem to be taking a similar strict stance.
  20. Thanks for the plug, Dave! My buttons are licensed by geocaching.com and can be seen here I can tell you from experience that your hands will get very tired indeed from pressing with the inexpensive kits and messing with the various rings and productions steps. It's difficult to press hard enough to keep the buttons together, too. The bench press or semi-automatic system works much better, but is expensive. I use a semi-automatic system that seals the buttons tight without a lot of hand or upper body strength. And, of course, the button is only as attractive as the design. I generally don't charge an art fee and am happy to try to please you by either creating something unique or fleshing out your own ideas. Most of the buttons on my page are designed for general use and I originally felt the same as some of you about buttons with names on them -- but I've changed my mind. I've received many emails from people who are collecting these signature items.
  21. I'm the lucky winner of the GC GEEK cache. I didn't plan it that way, but I grinned when I saw the waypoint name.
  22. If you're ever in my neck of the woods, please visit this cache and others! I thought it was pretty cool to get the GC GEEK classification, too!
  23. I agree the rules need to be defined. Why not use this thread to discuss and propose what the guidelines should be for event caches? I'm just yawning and waking up here on the east coast, so I'll think about it and weigh in later. I'll be interested to see what some of the rest of you think.
  24. Pigman claims to have forsaken his evil ways and many of the travel bugs are allegedly in this cache which I have approved tonight. I look forward to hearing whether the seekers find the cache and are able to retrieve the bugs.
  25. Pigman claims to have forsaken his evil ways and many of the travel bugs are allegedly in this cache which I have approved tonight. I look forward to hearing whether the seekers find the cache and are able to retrieve the bugs.
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