People who are passionate enough about any topic to be on an email list
about it are often also passionate about related topics. The Digital Eve
list, to which many people subscribe to get technical information on
computer issues, often strays off that topic. That list solved it by
requiring a topic in parenthesis in front of the subject -- (tech),
(discuss), (jobs offered), etc. Members can use the topics as keyword in
order to divert unwanted messages to their trash mailboxes. Even so,
occasionally the moderator finds it necessary to terminate certain topics.

Apparently there are those on this list who enjoy seeing people's long
lists of birds viewed every day. Others are really into bird
behavior. Since I work about 14 hours/day on my business and what is
essentially a full-time volunteer job, I focus on reports of unusual birds
and those I never saw much in my previous birding, which was mostly in
Texas and the Southwest. I can see that a topic tag might be useful on
this list as well. But meanwhile, as with all the other 200-400 messages
that pass my eyeballs each day, I just employ instant subject evaluation
and Ctrl-D.

Then there are the odd times that my own passions and my 80 wpm typing
speed get me into real trouble! >:-} On that subject, I would like to
thank Richard Rowlett (pterodroma) for his gracious acceptance of what
apparently some perceived as an attack on him, and a subsequent delightful
off-list exchange. In the process, another member and I also managed to
finally excise hurt feelings remaining from a chance encounter decades ago
and thousands of miles from here.

Ah, the wonders of the Internet and the six degrees (often far fewer) of
separation. There are some who think the Internet has removed much of the
richness of life's social interactions. But I find that what it taketh
away, it also giveth. Who would have ever thought that this gentleman and
I would find each other again on a birding list in Seattle and put our
differences to rest?

Mary Ann Chapman


At 11:59 PM 2/26/2006, Cliff Drake wrote:

>Is there a birding list that's more about birds and less about politics?
>I humbly apologize for being a troglodyte who still enjoys looking at
>birds without feeling guilty for our great transgressions against them.
>
>====================
>Cliff Drake
>Seattle WA (Ballard)
>cliff at cliffdrake.net
>
>
>
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