Hernando's Hideaway. Another Thread "almost certainly not for you."

a reply to: SourGrapes
I don't think it's censorship.
There's a well-known problem that some characters or combinations simply won't get displayed.
The word "windows" followed by a full stop simply displays as windows.
[Edit- Hey, they fixed that one. But it used to display as _ ]
If a [ quote ] is followed by another [ quote ] without an intervening [/ quote ], everything that follows is invisible (this is deliberate, to stop "nesting" of quotations).
I think you accidentally threw in a character which (probably accidentally) has a similar effect. The most likely culprit is the first character in the missing portion, which you can check by doing a "quote" on the post.

Well, there it is! Thank you, Disraeli!!! I know that I wasn't censored, it was more TIC (tongue in cheek - where's that emoticon?)

Sorry, to add so much extra fluff to your thread, Charles. Being as how it is already 50 something pages and all.

originally posted by: SourGrapes
a reply to: Bassago

Hi Bassago! Thank you, for the warm welcome. I haven't really been hiding in any other threads, just been doing drive-by readings lately.

I didn't want to be a thread crasher, so I began reading at page one of this great thread and got to page five before I realized I may be better off to start at the end and work backwards.

like you, Charles, I have problems finding the 'right' emoticons. Does this mean 'monkey'? or, is it 'mmmm k'?

Well, I got to page 50 (going backwards from 54) and have taken a few notes of things I'd like to comment on; however, I think I've come to one conclusion on this thread (whether reading forwards or backwards) that I may wait until I can grab a glass of wine and really snuggle into the conversations. Speaking of wine, Guohua (how ya doing, btw?), I love cold rice wine and would drink it with sushi, back in 'the day'. I'd often get very giddy, if the sushi didn't come fast enough. How do they get so much alcohol in those itty bitty cups?

(Scrawls a quick note and tacks it on the door to Hernando's Hideaway)

Hey Charles, are you going to be on the show tonight? It's after noon, and we've not seen you post a topic!

Love,
Your ever-suffering show host

a reply to: SourGrapes
Hi, Hi, Hi,,, It's another Friend,,,, SourGrapes, How are you doing, it's So good to see you.
Yes it has been awhile.
I've been in refugee mode from the Political threads and Hate for a brief time, I do still Dabble though.

Have you tried the Rice Wine yet,,,, shall I get you a small Cold Tumbler to sip on?

a reply to: Bassago
Yes, I understand the strange location and sleeping problems.
I'm glad to see your with us today, I hope you scheduled your Shots for all that Rusty Steel
you drank yesterday!

I hope every one enjoy the Chefs coffee special this morning, there was just a touch of Honey & Coco mixed into the grounds.
The Honey was brushed across the bottom of the filter screen with a light coat of Coco dusted on top.

a reply to: adjensen
HI adjensen, Did I Thank You for all you help with my Religion questions?
I meant to.
Thank you,,,,,

a reply to: DISRAELI
Hi ya DISRAELI, How are you doing?

Have you started any more threads for me to look at yet? Not much Help,,,

How's every one?

a reply to: guohua
Hi there.
No, my thread routine at the moment is once a week on Friday nights. The choice of night is accidental- the forum was suspended at the beginning of the year, and I was first across the threshold on the night we were allowed back in.
I'll do a few more on the "sacrifice" theme, and then I'll move on to politics. That is, the politics of the reign of King David. Full of intrigue and back-stabbing. All good fun.

a reply to: charles1952

I've defended Bill Maher once or twice over the years myself.

He's the sort of opponent I can respect in that he stakes his views and sticks to them even when they aren't politically correct. In this instance, if I am guessing correctly, you are talking about his recent shots at Islam. Maher dislikes all religions, not just the ones it's politically correct to dislike, so he does indeed call it like he sees it when it comes to Islam.

So, this is one of those times when I would defend him - he's being true to himself and his worldview. That doesn't mean I like the man or he's my friend. At best, the enemy of my enemy is in this case a temporary ally.

@ Sour Grapes,

I don't think it's censorship, either. I know I tend to write out my thoughts and then go poking around for links to stick in it, and lately the html coding that gets inserted will eat whole sections of text or scramble stuff that's already been written instead of simply inserting if I don't pay attention. So there are some definite glitches.

I was 10 the last time this happened!

So, Go, Royals! That game didn't end until midnight, either, and they had to come from behind twice. There was at least one website that had a story published with the other team as winners, they were so far behind once.

a reply to: guohua

You're very welcome

And it turns out that Charles did post his topic, I just misunderstood him.

(Removes hastily written note tacked on door.)

Dale, you got me so worked up that I double posted. I'll probably have a serious attack of stage fright tonight.

a reply to: SourGrapes

This is GREAT! I walk back in after helping adjensen putt out a small fire, and I see SourGrapes walking around saying "Hi!" to everybody.

Say, SourGrapes, may I give you a little version of my welcome talk tailored especially to you?

Hernando's Hideaway is not, contrary to appearances, a thread. It is a place, created by the likes of Expat888, guohua, ketsuko, Bassago, DISRAELI, and all the rest. It is a place far removed from ATS. Here, we are concerned for each other, we offer encouragement, advice, sympathy, and congratulations to all those within the walls.

The juke box is the best I've ever seen. Expat888 and Mrs. guohua have teamed up to make the most complete wine and liquor selection imaginable, the food is as good as anything in France, Asia, or anywhere in between, the chairs are plush and comfortable, and the bar stools are perfectly proportioned to your body.

But what sets this place apart from anywhere in the world is the conversation and the people. We talk about anything that's meaningful to any of the members. The conversation might be long or short, but we are safe here, so we can express our true thoughts without fear of being ridiculed or attacked. It's a model for what ATS could have been.

So why does Hernando's work so well? You've got me. But it does work. It's the third most replied to thread in the members forum in the history of, well, forever. It depends upon attracting the right sort of people, no matter what their opinions are. In some way, we have been protected from posters who are constantly attacking and tearing things down.

OK, enough of that. You are not adding any "fluff" to the thread, in time you'll learn that. You're adding "you" to the thread, and that's invaluable. We have made some progress towards various truths in the earlier history of Hernando's, and that remains one of its two goals. However, we have built Hernando's, we've come to know and trust each other, and we've shown that this is a good place to have available.

So, Hooray for SourGrapes! Hip-Hip, Hooray, Hip-Hip, Hooray, Hip-Hip, Hooray.

Now, if you haven't already had your fill, let me buy you something. A late lunch? A warming beverage?

a reply to: ketsuko

Good to see your smiling face as well, this fine day.

I admit that I found Maher's material to be something I was pleased to see, but I also defended him because I couldn't stand the smirk and condescending triumpalism on the host of the "rebuttal" show. I also get upset when I realize that people aren't being honest with the information, ala Aslan the rebutter.

Of course, I wasn't comfortable when Maher showcased the photo of the teen-aged boy posing in an "improper" manner with a statue of Jesus praying. Still, he's right that our system allows that to happen without execution. He said he was proud of our country for that, and I have to agree.

Oh, as was posted earlier, tonight's show should be a "hoot." More craziness than even I can offer, after all there are six panelists.

originally posted by: charles1952
It's the third most replied to thread in the members forum in the history of, well, forever.

When I first joined ATS, a thread of this size (I think) would have a message over the top of each page saying that it was an official "big thread" and therefore subject to extra scrutiny from the Mods.
Presumably that policy has now been dropped.
Or has it?

a reply to: DISRAELI

You've got to remember that I know very little about anything. I always thought that ATS policy was dictated by whichever Super Mod, Owner, or Administrator was in the worst, crankiest, most sensitive mood that day. I don't know and can't remember anything about those page headings.

You know, I hope that the Mods are giving this extra scrutiny. It might lure some of them in.

I think I'm going to go out and buy a couple of cold cans of the Tsingtao guohua is recommending. We've got that show tonight in four hours and I still don't understand the thread I have, nor do I have any idea of what I'm going to say.

DISRAELI, have you come up with any ideas on how to approach ATS posters with serious, religious topics? I wouldn't mind a few ideas, I tend to simply respond.

Do you think this place needs some plants? What kind are you partial to in a bar?

a reply to: charles1952

You are not adding any "fluff" to the thread, in time you'll learn that. You're adding "you" to the thread

.. and that my friend is what I like about this place the best, all the people who are "un-tense" with each other.

So I must of missed it but what is your topic on the show about tonight? You know topping last weeks microphone meltdown rant is going to be tough but I'm sure you're up to it. That was truly great, I loved it.

originally posted by: charles1952
DISRAELI, have you come up with any ideas on how to approach ATS posters with serious, religious topics? I wouldn't mind a few ideas, I tend to simply respond.

Well, some people think I cheat. I like to fight battles on ground of my own choosing. Instead of asking open-ended questions, I tend to offer a teaching or present a case, so that the discussion would have to be for and against whatever argument I'm putting forward.
I keep the topic to a specific point or issue,the exact opposite of the people I've seen offering to answer any objection or Biblical criticism that anyone cares to put forward. That just plays into the hands of the anti-religious trolls who want to drag the discussion all over the place; "Yes, but what about..."
I deal with "Yes, but what about..." by refusing to talk outside the defined topic.
Within that topic, I can defend the position I've taken up.

I don't know how much of that would translate into asking genuine open questions, which would probably be your own approach, but "have a topic with well-defined boundaries" might still be relevant.

a reply to: Bassago

thanks, Bassago, I'm really glad you enjoyed it. This week is going to be different, because I was told that it would be. All of the panelists were asked to locate a silly or ridiculous thread so that the whole show would be one peace of insanity after another. Not my cup of tea, but I'll go along.

Here's the thread I'm looking at, but I still don't know what to say about it. It seems to achieve a new dimension in either creative writing or insanity.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

As a second choice to Harbin beer, guohua suggested Tsingtao beer. I have two bottles in the refrigerator now, but I think I'll put in one or two more. It's going to be a strange night.

a reply to: charles1952

Man oh man, just read the OP for the thread you linked. Sheesh I can see from the huge numbers of S&F's it got that everyone else was impressed too (not.) Reads like some of the other mental threads I've looked at on ATS with a bit better grammar but just as whacked.

I suspect the author may have been in need of meds, out of meds or on new ones. Or maybe he was part of an alien breeding project as he seemed to wonder about that. Anyway good luck with it.