"jeff" wrote in message
...
Tom Nakashima wrote:
Geeze guys, about these wonderful claves I've been hearing about...
do you exchange xmas cards too?
-tom

it's odd...i reckon i've grown too accustomed or numbed to the anger and
icy emotion spewed by couples who once purported to love one another to be
overly troubled by the writings of folks here. despite the acrimony that
oozes about, at the various gatherings i've attended, i've been the
beneficiary of kindness, humor, wisdom, and generosity. also, i've
noticed something in each person i've met at the roff claves which i have
admired, enjoyed, and appreciated. i'm not blind to human foibles and
failings...probably because of the bottomless abyss holding my own...but,
whatever others might think about the current tone of this place, i'm
forever grateful for having stumbled into it and for the folks who have
shared a bit of themselves with (or who have patiently and quietly
tolerated) me.

...and...uh, if cards are being sent, well...no one told me.

i suspect Tom, as in most other pursuits, if you attended one of the
claves, you'd find some folks with whom you'd have common ground and some
with whom you wouldn't. so far, i've not regreted a single adventure with
and amongst folks from this newsgroup.

Ditto all that......every bit of it. But I'd like to add that there is also
a real value to be derived by observing and even participating in those
aspects of the interplay here that many find so discomfiting.....and even
repugnant. Generally speaking, people are never so revealing of themselves
as when they enjoy a certain level of anonymity and/or physical remove.
Even among those who know one another through personal contact it is, as has
often been remarked here, easier to say some things within the confines of
this medium than it is in face to face exchanges. Many people, whose long
suit is not critical analysis, (and who are frequently guilty of what they
accuse others of.....else why should we believe them?) impute the difference
to cowardice. Sometimes true, no doubt, but an occasional lucky guess need
not be taken as an indication that they should ever be taken seriously.
Meanwhile, those paying attention and capable of winnowing anything of worth
from a large load of raw information may learn something about the character
of the people with whom they interact.......even something important. It's
still easy enough (for most of us and most of the time, anyway, I presume)
to be civil in person. But it's always good to have an idea of who it is
you've been dealing with and, more importantly perhaps, who you are about
to.

Wolfgang