I don't want a leap day souvenir

[+TerraViators]

I'll take the soft serve, although it will go strait to my hips.

[ZeMartelo]

Would it be ok if I log the caches I found today with a different date?

 

Why? What difference does it make really?

Around here a few people are doing it so they can complete those puzzle challenge caches like consecutive caching days, filling the days of the month, etc etc. Some are blatantly doing it but nobody seem to care so...

[+tozainamboku]

It got me out of the house to find a cache on a day when I otherwise probably wouldn't have.

 

That's a bad thing?

Really depends on what you'd have otherwise done if you stayed at home, doesn't it?

That's correct. The other times there was a souvenir for caching on a specific day, I had planned to attend the local event for it and perhaps do some other caching. On both occasions some emergency came up at home and I was unable to attend (or perhaps it made attending a bit more difficult). The souvenir was obviously not enough of an incentive to ignore what was for me a higher priority. I began to realize that the idea of souvenirs for caches on a given date was not only hokey but distasteful because, as the souvenir is available for a limited time, it implies that I should change my priorities and go geocaching even if I had a more pressing engagement. So when it turned out that I could not only attend the leap day event but even do some caching before it, I really half seriously thought about ways to avoid getting the souvenir. I certainly did not want to change my priorities and not cache just to avoid it. That's why I asked about faking dates or something. Once it was pointed out that is it possible to avoid getting a souvenir, I went ahead and logged my finds as normal for yesterday. As stated way back in post #5, I can ignore the souvenir tag.

 

I know what my priorities are, and hokey pixels on my profile are not going to change them. I'm happy for Groundspeak if they think they can influence significant numbers by giving out souvenirs. I feel better knowing that they know that I'm not that easily influenced.

[+BlueDeuce]

I find that my caching habits have been influenced by the day filler challenge. I'm not sure that I'm ready to blame gc.com for providing a toy in my happy meal.

[+Sol seaker]

I LIVE for those hokey little icons!!!!

 

 

Actually it was really cool SOMETHING got so many people out there.

I met a lot of people at caches yesterday. 8 people at one cache. It was a blast!!!

 

 

I'll say TOZ, if this is the worst you have to complain about, I'd love to be in your shoes!!

Edited March 2, 2012 by Sol seaker

[+Sol seaker]

PS. did you notice how fast they got them out this time?

 

I got mine right away!!

 

Everyone complained at the last one that it took so long to get, and no mention of how fast it came out this time!!

 

Good job Groundspeak!!!

[+hzoi]

PS. did you notice how fast they got them out this time?

 

I got mine right away!!

 

Everyone complained at the last one that it took so long to get, and no mention of how fast it came out this time!!

 

Good job Groundspeak!!!

 

Hm. Still don't have mine.

 

(edit: not that it's keeping me up nights, just sayin')

Edited March 2, 2012 by hzoi

[+JBnW]

What I want to know is how Knowschad got access to Toz's account

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

[+niraD]

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yep, I had a coworker like that.

 

"Just a second, let me log in..."

[tapity-tap-tap tapity-tap tap-tap-tap-tap-tapity-tap-tap tap-tap-tapity-tap tapity-tap-tap-tap tap-tap-tapity tap-tapity tapity-tap-tap-tap-tapity tap]

"Okay, what did you want me to check?"

[+GeoLobo]

I see a future in Souvenirs!

 

For one, Groundspeak could create a set of trading cards from these. Each card would have the souvenir picture on the front, and the image creator, and info about the souvenir on the back. The Souvenirs could be packaged in sets

 

State/Province

Countries

Events

Special (leap Day, International Day. Geo Maze, HQ, etc)

 

I think these would become highly trade-able.

 

Maybe they will even throw the gum in the package

[+tozainamboku]

PS. did you notice how fast they got them out this time?

 

I got mine right away!!

 

Everyone complained at the last one that it took so long to get, and no mention of how fast it came out this time!!

 

Good job Groundspeak!!!

I couldn't care less how quickly the souvenirs came out. I'm still waiting for the Mapquest aerial photos to load.

[+Castle Mischief]

[+Postholedigger]

AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!

 

I got a souvenir!!! GET IT OFF ME!!! GET IT OFF ME!!! *flails about*

[+Ambrosia]

I was being half-serious. Aside from my personal view that souvenirs are hokey and that I don't need some silly tab with silly pictures on my profile to motivate me to geocache, I find the souvenirs for caching on some "special" date distasteful.

 

With the much ballyhooed change to Google's privacy policy there have been a lot of references to how Google has come to view its users as its product instead. While I wouldn't put Groundspeak in Google's class yet, it is clear that the they market their position as biggest geocaching site by far to attract advertising revenue. They seem intent on retaining this position and the souvenirs are no more than a way to bump the numbers of users temporarily to gain some advantage, much like the local news running provocative stories during ratings sweeps week.

 

I have no doubt that some will say Groundspeak is only trying to create a camaraderie or sense of community among geocachers. But I don't buy this. There is already quite a sense of camaraderie without having to look at someone's souvenirs. What these special days do is work in the opposite direction where someone can glance at your profile and see you didn't find any caches on leap day. What's wrong with you? Aren't you part of the geocacher community? No, the only rationale explanation for having these souvenirs is for Groundspeak's marketing.

 

I, for one, do not like being seen a product, by Google, Groundspeak, or any other internet site I use. However, I realize that this is the nature of the beast. We would not have many of our favorite websites if it weren't for the ability to monetize the value of their users. So it is with reluctance that I will log my finds on 2/29/12 and add one more user to the number of accounts that geocached that day. I hope in return that my premium membership will not go up and that Groundspeak will fix the HORRID maps.

Maybe I'm just naive, I'm sure that there are multiple reasons that anything is done. But whenever I visit Groundspeak and the lackeys/owners talk to me about things like souvenirs, shop Groundspeak stuff, block party, etc., they always get excited about these fun things for everyone to do, have, and experience. They don't talk about advertising and promoting Groundspeak.

 

Sometimes I think that the lackeys at Groundspeak are having more fun than some cachers are.

[+Too Tall John]

It got me out of the house to find a cache on a day when I otherwise probably wouldn't have.

Funny thing about that. I went out on the 29th to get a PnG nano at 11 pm in a snowstorm and getting the souvenir was a surprise to me. I just knew if I ever get serious about filling in the "Finds for Each Day of the Year" matrix in my statistics, it's a four year wait to the next 2/29.

[+hydnsek]

What I want to know is how Knowschad got access to Toz's account

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

[+JBnW]

What I want to know is how Knowschad got access to Toz's account

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

[+tozainamboku]

What I want to know is how Knowschad got access to Toz's account

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

Are there souvies for how deep you can nest quotes?

[+Too Tall John]

What I want to know is how Knowschad got access to Toz's account

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

Are there souvies for how deep you can nest quotes?

Would they be rewarded retroactively? I suspect KBI and I would earn it from our discussions a while back. I know I broke the quotes more than once just for having too many nestings...

[AZcachemeister]

What I want to know is how Knowschad got access to Toz's account

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

Are there souvies for how deep you can nest quotes?

Would they be rewarded retroactively? I suspect KBI and I would earn it from our discussions a while back. I know I broke the quotes more than once just for having too many nestings...

I don't know.

[+The A-Team]

I'm getting a splitting headache looking at these posts! They're like some kind of optical illusion.

[+Roman!]

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

Are there souvies for how deep you can nest quotes?

Would they be rewarded retroactively? I suspect KBI and I would earn it from our discussions a while back. I know I broke the quotes more than once just for having too many nestings...

I don't know.

 

IBTL

[+Too Tall John]

...........

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

Are there souvies for how deep you can nest quotes?

Would they be rewarded retroactively? I suspect KBI and I would earn it from our discussions a while back. I know I broke the quotes more than once just for having too many nestings...

I don't know.

 

IBTL

Uh-oh...

 

You have posted more than the allowed number of quoted blocks of text

[+JBnW]

 

Uh-oh...

 

You have posted more than the allowed number of quoted blocks of text

So...did you get a new souvi for maxing out nested quotes?

[+choochoo1996]

Think I will renew my PM and cancel my subsciption to the weekend newspaper....you guys are way more entertaining....

Thanks for making my -35 celcius 8 foot snowbank morning the best read I have had in a long time...Now to go dig myself out so I can get to work tomorrow...If I start now I just might make it...

[+Ambrosia]

I'm getting a splitting headache looking at these posts! They're like some kind of optical illusion.

Lightweight.

[+sduck]

How many more RCTs and reviews will it take before quacks throw in the towel? Unfortunately, they never will however compelling and overwhelming the evidence against their claims are. As James Randi would say, they're unsinkable rubber ducks.

[+Totem Clan]

I'm getting a splitting headache looking at these posts! They're like some kind of optical illusion.

Lightweight.

Try OT sometime. You'll go crazy or get over it. One or the other.

[+Too Tall John]

Uh-oh...

You have posted more than the allowed number of quoted blocks of text

So...did you get a new souvi for maxing out nested quotes?

Would you believe it if I said yes?

Edited March 5, 2012 by Too Tall John

[+JBnW]

 

I told Toz he should really choose a better password than "Geocaching"

That's why he changed it to "icecream."

 

Actually, it was "puritan" that did the trick.

 

I'm going to bet it is puritan, with a few random numbers after it.

 

 

I'm going to bet that Toz's password is 4 paragraphs long.

Yet another runnerup for "Post of the Day" (the series). Got a good laugh. Everyone is in such a good mood...it must be Friday.

Are there souvies for Post of the Day?

Are there souvies for how deep you can nest quotes?

Would they be rewarded retroactively? I suspect KBI and I would earn it from our discussions a while back. I know I broke the quotes more than once just for having too many nestings...

I don't know.

 

I gotta get me one of these!

[+DragonsWest]

BTW, whatever became of the idea for states to have actual artwork, rather than the sorta rubberstamped souvenirs we get for them? I mean, California is The Golden State, it should at the very least feature rolling hills of golden grass (where we hides a few of them thar caches, the rest are in the Redwood forests which play havoc with your GPS reception muah ha ha ha ha, but I digress) or something. Nevada the Silver State should feature something silver-ish, like a prospector finding a silver ammo box. Washington the .. uh .. wet state could be a big drip.

Edited March 6, 2012 by DragonsWest

[+Totem Clan]

BTW, whatever became of the idea for states to have actual artwork, rather than the sorta rubberstamped souvenirs we get for them? I mean, California is The Golden State, it should at the very least feature rolling hills of golden grass (where we hides a few of them thar caches, the rest are in the Redwood forests which play havoc with your GPS reception muah ha ha ha ha, but I digress) or something. Nevada the Silver State should feature something silver-ish, like a prospector finding a silver ammo box. Washington the .. uh .. wet state could be a big drip.

I finally looked at mine. Oklahoma's is stupid tornado of all thing. They couldn't find something better than that.

[+Chrysalides]

I finally looked at mine. Oklahoma's is stupid tornado of all thing. They couldn't find something better than that.

Hey, you have a double rainbow as well. Gotta admit it's more exciting than Wisconsin's, unless you happen to be dangerously lactose intolerant.

[+BlueDeuce]

Artwork? I should be able to refuse any souvenir that my numerologist disagrees with.

 

Fact is you can't please everyone. There are lot's of things I don't like. Here, there, whatever. Some of it matters, some of it is just personal preference.

 

I do draw the line at questioning whether something is actual artwork or that it is stupid. I find it insulting to those who are trying to offer something to the community.

 

Leave the artist out of it, talk to management and offer a solution.

 

Note: this was directed at the latest comments, not the OP.

Edited March 6, 2012 by BlueDeuce

[+DragonsWest]

All I see, as the example above, is a shape of a state and two letter abbreviation on the Souvenir main page. Why not doll those up a little?

[+BlueDeuce]

I'll get on it right away.

[+DragonsWest]

I'll get on it right away.

 

Corn. Lots and lots of corn.

 

Oh, and maybe a cyclone, too (my dad's alma mater)

[+BlueDeuce]

I'll get on it right away.

 

Corn. Lots and lots of corn.

 

Oh, and maybe a cyclone, too (my dad's alma mater)

 

Let me find the crayons. but no complaining!

[+Chrysalides]

Let me find the crayons. but no complaining!

That would be an infringement of our first amendment rights, which is universally regarded as the right to freely complain.

[+jellis]

Not sure if anyone mentioned it but I think you can remove it by contacting a lackey. Moun10bike removed some of mine I didn't want.

[+Totem Clan]

Not sure if anyone mentioned it but I think you can remove it by contacting a lackey. Moun10bike removed some of mine I didn't want.

I don't care enough one way or the other to bother. In fact today was the first time I even looked at the pictures. Now they will just fade back into the background.

[+BlueDeuce]

Let me find the crayons. but no complaining!

That would be an infringement of our first amendment rights, which is universally regarded as the right to freely complain.

 

I know. It didn't work on any of my teachers either.

 

 

bd

Edited March 6, 2012 by BlueDeuce

[+NYPaddleCacher]

All I see, as the example above, is a shape of a state and two letter abbreviation on the Souvenir main page. Why not doll those up a little?

 

Because that's not the souvenir artwork. Those images are just the "thumbnail" images for the actual full artwork. The artwork for California looks like this:

 

 

The thumbnail images for the German states don't look much better than the thumbnails for U.S. States either. The thumbnails for the few country base souvenirs that have been created are a bit better but in general they're just images/links to be clicked on to view the full artwork.

[+hzoi]

I finally looked at mine. Oklahoma's is stupid tornado of all thing. They couldn't find something better than that.

Hey, you have a double rainbow as well.

 

Double rainbow! What does it mean???

 

(sorry, had to)

 

As for the state thumbnails -- just be happy if your state is properly represented. Alabama's is all cattywampus.

[+Castle Mischief]

As for the state thumbnails -- just be happy if your state is properly represented. Alabama's is all cattywampus.

 

I HAD NO IDEA.