+georgeandmary Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 I would like to thank Venona for an exciting morning. I almost feel bad about all the nasty things I said about you in the past. The deception was well planned out to the last detail. I knew it would not be as easy as just showing up at double agent at noon, but I had no idea it would be so much fun. It was like an old detective movie with the cast of characters showing up to the scene of the crime. No one quite sure who to trust or suspect. Then when the clock struck 12:00, a mysterious car drove up with two innocent looking teenage girls. We soon found out that they were undercover agents associated with Venona and that they were there to deliver us with a secret message. They were well trained and did not break their silence despite intense grilling of a seasoned professional. With the message delivered we all worked feverishly to decrypt it. Once the message was cracked we were all off to a new location. Once again we found a messsage from the infamous Venona and it directed us back to the area where we started. Once back at the first location, we soon found the hiding place of the gold garbage travel bug. Detective Pepper found it first and soon after we all followed her lead. I have to admit that Venona had made a couple of mistakes and allowed me to determine who he/she was. However I wasn't sure if anyone else was involved in this deception and when I confronted him/her Venona told me that he/she acted alone. Well Done! Mary Pedal until your legs cramp up and then pedal some more. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 If and when Hotfoot's event page gets approved, I'll post the whole story there. There are a lot of unknown details that will probably be amusing to people. I enjoyed the whole thing immensely. I hope everyone else did, too. I think we should have these sorts of things occur in our area every so often. If Hotfoot's event doesn't get approved, we'll figure out some other venue for The Real Scoop. Quote Link to comment
+georgeandmary Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:If Hotfoot's event doesn't get approved, we'll figure out some other venue for The Real Scoop. If the event doesn't get approved you can take an old disabled cache and convert it to an event cache then archive it. You can have one of mine. I have a couple disabled that I could just as easily not replace. george Pedal until your legs cramp up and then pedal some more. Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:The Venona Story I look forward to hearing all the details. Joani said she knew who it was ever since the November Picnic. We were busy today and missed out on all the fun (but we made it to #501, so we were having some fun of our own). P.S. On our adventures today, we were listening to Cryptonomicon on tape... --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+georgeandmary Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 Way to go Marky and Joanie. I feel for you if you have to drive all the way to the valley to get caches now. I'm driving to LA. I had plans to drive there today but after having fun in Livermore we decided to just get an early start wed morning instead of wasting the day driving to LA in the afternoon. I'm still shooting for 700 (12 more), tomorrow.... tomorrow. george Pedal until your legs cramp up and then pedal some more. Quote Link to comment
+Green Achers Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 I told you I had nothing to do with it but no one would believe me accept one cacher! I'm surprised Venona came forward but relieved as too many fingers where pointing at me. I knew there would be a great disappearing act once I was tagged so I figured I'd better do something fast. I tried so hard to win someone over to trust me but they just wouldn't budge. I pulled the plug in hopes the appearance would happen. I guess that worked. As Fizzy pointed out, there's a lot more to this story. A real life (make believe) who done it! Great job Venona! [Who was it that started calling him Verona? That a song unworthy of that cacher!] Happy New Year Bay Area! Bill of Green Achers Signature and nut to follow Quote Link to comment
+Green Achers Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 quote:Originally posted by Marky:P.S. On our adventures today, we were listening to Cryptonomicon on tape... --Marky That's sick. It must make it hard to think inside the box. Congrats of breaking 500! I'm right behind you (about 422 behind you). Bill Of Green Achers Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 quote:Originally posted by georgeandmary:I feel for you if you have to drive all the way to the valley to get caches now. We really haven't done a lot of the bay area caches North of San Mateo on the west side of the bay and North of Fremont on the east side. I really don't like driving in SF or the Oakland area, so maybe that's why. I'd rather drive out to the valley where it's easier to park... --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+MartyFouts Posted December 31, 2002 Share Posted December 31, 2002 Hi Marky, I've got some bad news. I've audited the logs on my caches and it looks like I have to delete 3 of your finds. But really: Congratulations on an amazing feat. and to all: Happy New Years and may all your caching wishes come true. Marty Fouts ae6ip Quote Link to comment
wa6ube Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:If and when Hotfoot's event page gets approved, I'll post the whole story there. There are a lot of unknown details that will probably be amusing to people. I enjoyed the whole thing immensely. I hope everyone else did, too. I think we should have these sorts of things occur in our area every so often. If Hotfoot's event doesn't get approved, we'll figure out some other venue for The Real Scoop. If the event doesn't get approved, I have plenty of space available on my website, and can place a separate page for it.. Trish In God we trust .. all others, we monitor. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 Happy New Year to all. And to all a good night! Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by wa6ube:If the event doesn't get approved, I have plenty of space available on my website, and can place a separate page for it. Webspace isn't an issue. In fact, Venona has his own website, which never got used. At least, not yet. Check it out. Venona also has a cutout email account and several other interesting items. You folks didn't even start to do the tracing I thought you would. On the other hand, Venona was sloppy in a couple of ways. He learns fast, though! [This message was edited by fizzymagic on January 01, 2003 at 12:39 AM.] Quote Link to comment
wa6ube Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic: quote:Originally posted by wa6ube:If the event doesn't get approved, I have plenty of space available on my website, and can place a separate page for it. Webspace isn't an issue. In fact, Venona has his own website, which never got used. At least, not yet. Check it http://home.attbi.com/~Venona. Venona also has a cutout email account and several other interesting items. You folks didn't even _start_ to do the tracing I thought you would. On the other hand, Venona was sloppy in a couple of ways. He learns fast, though! [This message was edited by fizzymagic on January 01, 2003 at 12:39 AM.] Ah .. OK, Visited Venona's webpage.. The warning sign is great .. a la Bill Dana .. Trish In God we trust .. all others, we monitor. Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:You folks didn't even _start_ to do the tracing I thought you would. I could have done a lot more tracing, but I didn't really want to spoil the mystery that way. It was more fun watching the events unfold. Plus, like I said, Joani knew long ago and never wavered. She has deductive powers that are beyond comprehension by mortals. Something to do with being a direct decendant of a Salem witch, I think... --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by hotfoot:Spy Special Approved I wonder if this was the first 5* difficulty event cache! --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+Lamneth Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Green Achers:I told you I had nothing to do with it but no one would believe me accept one cacher! I'm surprised Venona came forward but relieved as too many fingers where pointing at me. I knew it wasn't you Green Achers. In fact, I knew who it was from the beginning. I even had "proof" of Venona's identity but I didn't want to spoil the fun. Venona didn't actually come forward, but was "caught" when someone recognized his accomplice. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 Actually, I checked on that... It turns out that the person that thought they recognized the accomplice was wrong. It wasn't who they thought it was. Venona got caught by a variety of mistakes, though. Apparently a life of crime wouldn't work out so well for him. I expect you to post your whole story on the event page, too! Quote Link to comment
+The Rat Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 I have started the tale on the event page. Let's see the rest of you tell it from your perspective - and finish the story. I want to send the link to Scryer, among others. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 The first part of the Venona story is here. It's taking longer than I expected to do it right. Let me know what you think so far. Quote Link to comment
+Green Achers Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 Now that Venona has been fingered I'm not staying off the forum... I have to ask. quote:Buddy Ebsen?! You're lucky this is just a game! That was a desperate attempt to see if I was still reading this forum. I was and that almost worked. Bill of Green Achers "Why is 'Tourist Season' not mentioned in the Fish and Game Manual?" Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 I thought you might appreciate that. Nobody else seems to have gotten it. Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:I thought you might appreciate that. Nobody else seems to have gotten it. Joani and I thought this was hilarious when we saw the post. Maybe only the baby boomers got it. --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 The trail sign said "Trails closed due to poor conditions" or something like that, but we asked the ranger and he said it only applied to horses. The trails were very muddy and wet. I would suggest gortex boots if you plan on going for these during the rainy season. Enjoy! --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+Green Achers Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Marky: quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:I thought you might appreciate that. Nobody else seems to have gotten it. Joani and I thought this was hilarious when we saw the post. Maybe only the baby boomers got it. --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" I had to look it up. When I saw ol' jed's mug shot, I knew I had Venona's attention. Bill of Green Achers "Why is 'Tourist Season' not mentioned in the Fish and Game Manual?" Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 1, 2003 Share Posted January 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Green Achers:Showing your age Marky I don't mind showing my age, as long as I don't have to act my age. --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
Venona Posted January 2, 2003 Share Posted January 2, 2003 Everything is wrote about me is lies. All lies. I will revenge myself on you! I am not either Eddie Albert or Eva Gabor neither. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 2, 2003 Share Posted January 2, 2003 Don't listen to Venona. He is just mad that he got exposed. I've more or less finished my Venona Story. It's linked from the Spy Event cache page, and also from Venona's home page here. Quote Link to comment
+hotfoot Posted January 2, 2003 Share Posted January 2, 2003 Now I know what all the running around was about when I finally got to Double Agent. I really appreciate you taking the time to write the history of this event. Very nice bit of work. Quote Link to comment
+Pepper Posted January 2, 2003 Share Posted January 2, 2003 Hi ya'll I made it to WA safe and sound. Wow I love it up here except for the rain, matter if fact it is raining now. I broke up the drive with road side caches all the way up Northbound only. We just got an ISP and here I am, WOW the forums have been busy since i've been gone. Ok let me start with congrats to Joani and Marky on hitting 500, geezzz guys your doing great and I wish you could of made to the event of Dec 31st it was big fun. I did get the Buddie Ebsen hint, i'm a smart girl some times, and after that it just confirmed what I already knew! Now I need to log some caches firstly the Double Trouble cache which I was FTF and secondly the event cache. Chuguy and Chugal thank you sooo much for WA Atlas it is coming in handy, although the husband downloand WA maps in my GPS for me so I am in good shape. Fizzy you are too much and I am gonna miss you something awful. Hotfoot, Fizzy said he would adopt you from me and that works well you two have fun (without me ) Well I must sign out I caches to log and sleep to get. Pepper Horizontals where it's at! Quote Link to comment
+Lamneth Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:Don't listen to Venona. He is just mad that he got exposed. I think fizzymagic's alter ego is getting out of hand... I'm imagining fizzy's good and bad personalities talking to each other like Gollum in "The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers" Maybe we should have had a paddy wagon parked around the corner at the Spy Special event and thrown a net over him when he showed up? Quote Link to comment
+The Rat Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 quote:Originally posted by SuperGenius: I did get the Buddie Ebsen hint, i'm a smart girl some times, and after that it just confirmed what I already knew! Pepper Pepper, Glad you made it safe and sound! Now about this Buddy Ebsen thing - I guess I'm too dense - or maybe too old. He was Fess Parker's sidekick in the Davy Crockett series, and later, Jed Clampett. I don't get the hint. Please explain it. If it's a spoiler, send it to me off list. Quote Link to comment
+Pepper Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 here's my take on the buddy ebsen thing. I am not as smart as I thought I was, but I was thinking that buddy ebsen was on Green Achers, not the Beverly Hillbillys. So with me being wrong in my thinking, I was telling myself that Bill AKA Green Achers was not Verona. As far as the correct part of the hint I guess I did not get it, but I got what I need in a backhanded kink of way. I'm tired and have no idea if that made any sence at all? All is well so far, but I am real sure we got a room for the weekend in a not so good area . Darn the luck. Well I still need to log my Northbound I-5 caches maybe I will do that now. Missing ya'll something awefull! Pepper Horizontals where it's at! Quote Link to comment
+The Rat Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 quote:Originally posted by SuperGenius:here's my take on the buddy ebsen thing. I am not as smart as I thought I was, but I was thinking that buddy ebsen was on Green Achers, not the Beverly Hillbillys. So with me being wrong in my thinking, I was telling myself that Bill AKA Green Achers was not Verona. Okay, well that sort of makes sense - at least as much as me vandalizing Livermore city property and soaking one shoe. Like you, I got there eventually anyway. I think it was Eddie Albert on Green Acres. But what was Venona thinking of? I still don't get his Buddy Ebsen reference. Is this like Family Feud where you win if you are the best at guessing the same wrong answers that the audience does? (E.g. People named Alfred ... A: Einstein). Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 quote:Originally posted by The Rat:I think it was Eddie Albert on Green Acres. But what was Venona thinking of? I thought it was perfectly in character for Venona to mix up Eddie Albert and Buddy Ebsen. That's part of what made it so funny to me. --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Marky:I thought it was perfectly in character for Venona to mix up Eddie Albert and Buddy Ebsen. That's part of what made it so funny to me. That was the idea; Venona was trying to claim he wasn't Green Achers but ended up with the wrong actor. The fun thing about it was that it was a backhanded jab at Bill at the same time. Bill told me it almost got him to post! Rat: I don't think I heard about vandalizing Livermore property. Is there something I missed? Quote Link to comment
+Green Achers Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:Rat: I don't think I heard about vandalizing Livermore property. Is there something I missed? But first, remember Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) 1. You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Do you understand? 2. Anything you do say may be used against you in a court of law. Do you understand? 3. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future. Do you understand? 4. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you before any questioning if you wish. Do you understand? 5. If you decide to answer questions now without an attorney present you will still have the right to stop answering at any time until you talk to an attorney. Do you understand? 6. Knowing and understanding your rights as I have explained them to you, are you willing to answer my questions without an attorney present? Now spill your guts, Rat! Where were you? ________________ Ebsen: Remember that I had "quit" before that Jed comment. Venona was telling everyone they were wrong about me being invloved. He was also trying to see if I was still reading the forum (which I was) and bring me out swinging. It was the same thing HotFoot did to Lamneth quote:Originally posted by hotfoot:The alternative to all this is that Lamneth is being a dirty little boy and is playing with himself. At which point I guess we are mere voyeurs. quote:Originally posted by Lamneth:HEY! ...who you calling little? _IAE2S SAFND R0YHR SXQS6 RETFI UO2_ and look that that reaction! HotFoot was trying to get Lamneth and Venona interacting and it half worked! Bill of Green Achers "Why is 'Tourist Season' not mentioned in the Fish and Game Manual?" Quote Link to comment
+Pepper Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 That was my delima on the whole Venona situation. After doing hand writting comparisons I was darn sure it was Fizzy because of the small r's in his hand writting. When we were out caching together one day we had this dicussion and of course he was denying every thing. Bill so happy to see you back in, now are you Green Achers or I quite? Making some friends already up here in WA and I must say Dawn of the Seattle Seekers is a sweet one. Missing ya'll! Pepper Horizontals where it's at! Quote Link to comment
+Pepper Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Please, Please post the group pic you took at the Event on the Event cache page. I will be pestering you via phone calls sometime today. Pepper Horizontals where it's at! Quote Link to comment
+georgeandmary Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?ID=42905 It's been getting a lot of hits and it sounds like the log is full. Can someone drop off a new sheet since I'll be a few before I can get there. george Pedal until your legs cramp up and then pedal some more. Quote Link to comment
+TeamJiffy Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 We had a _glorious_ caching 24 hours that just ended, thanks to these folks! My wife (F.) had a meeting she needed to attend in Castro Valley today at noon-2PM. Well, we ran into fizzymagic at a cache in San Jose last week, and looking him up in the Geocaching web site, I saw a couple of caches labelled IQ Test (and then a similar one in spirit, Magic Trig) that he created that looked to be a lot of fun. I suggested to F. that we make it a caching trip to Livermore/Pleasanton to find them, and stay at a hotel over-night. Then, I decided, for no particular reason on Thursday, to check out the Regional forum page, which I hadn't done since well before the holidays, and saw the long thread about Double Agent. All I can say is "THANK YOU" to fizzymagic and Lamneth, and also to "Venona" of course (Double Trouble), for these wonderful caches! We've never done so many puzzle caches in one day - and I'm glad that we decided to find 2 of the satellites to Magic Trig late last evening, to give us some extra puzzle solving time (and also have a broadband Internet connection in the hotel room to look up Topo Maps!) (Fizzy - we emptied water out of Satellite #2 - it was quite full - good thing you thought ahead and had the card with the distance laminated). Again - thank you so much for setting up these caches! My head hurts at the end of the day from all this puzzling, but you've got us grinning from ear to ear! This is honestly the best day caching we've had! -Joel Quote Link to comment
+TeamJiffy Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 We drive in this area all the time - this is quite easy for us to do. We'll do it tomorrow A.M.(Sunday, Jan 5). What shall we do with the existing log sheet? (We'll save it until we hear from you.) quote:Originally posted by georgeandmary:http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?ID=42905 It's been getting a lot of hits and it sounds like the log is full. Can someone drop off a new sheet since I'll be a few before I can get there. george Quote Link to comment
+Green Achers Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 quote:Originally posted by SuperGenius:Bill so happy to see you back in, now are you Green Achers or I quite? Making some friends already up here in WA and I must say Dawn of the Seattle Seekers is a sweet one. Pepper So glad you made it up there safely, Pepper. I thought about you all day as I started caching in Modesto at the Flower Clock Web Cam... and the place was full of Renaissance characters. It looked like your bio photo! Stay warm a dry up there... we don't want a hear about a Chilli-Pepper. Bill of Green Achers "Why is 'Tourist Season' not mentioned in the Fish and Game Manual?" Quote Link to comment
+The Rat Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Green Achers: Now spill your guts, Rat! Where were you? You think I'm going to fall for that good cop/bad cop routine? No, I cleverly confessed to Fizzy off-list only to find out he was ready to use it against me. I cannot say more, for fear of compromising Double Agent. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! I'm innocent and if you let me go I'll never do it again. Quote Link to comment
+georgeandmary Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 quote:Originally posted by TeamJiffy: What shall we do with the existing log sheet? Do a quick comparison to the web page and if it matches then throw it away. It's a sign only so there shouldn't be any great logs to read. george Pedal until your legs cramp up and then pedal some more. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 quote:Originally posted by The Rat:No, I cleverly confessed to Fizzy off-list only to find out he was ready to use it against me. I'm decided I'm not going to use it against you as long as you continue paying me blackmail! And blackmail, for me, means more crypto caches! Quote Link to comment
+Marky Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:And blackmail, for me, means more crypto caches! Yes! More crypto caches! --Marky "All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr" Quote Link to comment
+Lamneth Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 You'll have to come back to Livermore and do HotFoot's three caches: Coffee Central, Plumbers Other Friend, and Tour de Farce. They're outstanding and highly recomended! Quote Link to comment
wa6ube Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Marky:Originally posted by fizzymagic:And blackmail, for me, means more crypto caches! Yes! More crypto caches! Trish replies: "Marky, you will love the one i'm putting together in the South-bay"... Trish In God we trust .. all others, we monitor. Quote Link to comment
+TeamJiffy Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 I just spent ten minutes reading the description of hotfoot's three caches. These look great too - if I had seen these earlier, I would have considered staying a second night in Livermore. But, boy-o-boy, they do create a complex set of caches in Livermore, don't they?! This makes a second reason I will have to visit Livermore - Lumicon being the first, of course (but not for a while, ever since I had to sell my LX-200... ) You'd think there was a place nearby where lots of people who needed to use math worked - people who had to know how to find specific places on the planet precisely and quickly... Let's say a person wanted to work at that place. If they said on their resume "no college, didn't finish high school, but I've completed Fizzy's, Lamneth's and Hotfooot's caches!", would that be considered equivalent educational experience to get a job? Anyhow, hotfoot's great caches await, but for another day when we can get out there - perhaps in February (I hope...) But all these great caches give me an idea for dealing with another issue in this thread. Quote Link to comment
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