This is the rudest bunch of people I have ever met!
I hope that no one thinks of accusing me of being involved because
that store was sure gone before I stepped on the scene.

My first exposure to this list was an absurd overblown fairy tale about
lost PZ cut. Heck I didn't even know what PZ cut was, and this
supposedly friendly list of people were going on and on and on about it.

I introduced myself, and while a few people snarled their hello, most of
them just continued on, having more fun spinning a tale than welcoming a
newbie. I had to retreat to the newboxer's list for awhile, among that
purported villain Mark Pepe. I can assure you, the only thing he's
guilty about is writing a boring blog!

In fact, I have a suspect at the top of my list, and it is "Lady"
Prisspot nee Hedge. She is so hoity toity all the time, looking down
her nose at us letterboxing apparachiks, I think she has an
overabundance of Good Manners, and they have turned on her.

I've had my say on this matter, and leave it to the so called experts.

Dale End Farm

PS: has anyone checked with the elusive ephemeral letterboxer?



Investigator Francis Bacon wrote:
>
>
> Footwork? Of course, I have done my footwork. Do you
> have any idea how slippery some of these letterboxers
> are? What do you think the real purpose behind all
> those strange names are? Shady - I am telling you they
> are all shady characters!
>
> And speaking of fancy footwork, there is one that has
> a barefoot thing going on. Ya, talking about you
> Barefoot Lucy. What are the bare feet really for? Is
> it easier to sneak around that way?
>
> Would a person who wraps Christmas presents in duct
> tape really care about manners? In her own words, this
> Barefoot Lucy has admitted that her home, as well as
> her manners, are a hopeless cause.
>
> Then there was that whole Martha Stewart mess up.
> Trying to take over the neighbors house on the
> pretext of jet lag. Perhaps a little too much wine is
> more like it! How did that court case turn out anyway?
>
> Should I go on to mention trying to lose the kids in
> the woods? Just what kind of home education are you
> promoting?
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Investigator Francis Bacon
>
>

Boring blog, eh, Dale End Farm?
What are you - Doctor of Literature?

Lady Prisspot's response shall not be boring.
Have at her, Priss.
Time to teach this woman a lesson . . .

Mark


-----Original Message-----
From: letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com [mailto:letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of Diana Newton Wood, MD
Sent: Monday, June 04, 2007 9:57 PM
To: letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [LbNA] Shady

I had to retreat to the newboxer's list for awhile, among that
purported villain Mark Pepe. I can assure you, the only thing he's
guilty about is writing a boring blog!

Inspector,



I must first say my patience with you wears thin. I mind my own business
and keep to myself sort of and yet I again find myself on the wrong end
of your long, skinny, pointy finger. I seriously question your abilities
if your sleuthwork again lands you at MY doorstep! In fact, I find it
interesting that as you cast around looking for the possessor of the Store
of Good Manners, you repeatedly land on someone who doesn't possess the
store, but who each demonstrate the character of one who has visited it
often. I have to think you might be so confused about your mission that it
is possible YOU hold the Store yourself and don't even realize it.



And speaking of the Store of Good Manners, I notice that you haven't yet
answered Der Mad Stamper's question regarding when the Store went missing.
I have another question for you still WHERE was it last seen? I find it
very difficult to defend myself without knowing when I shouldn't have been
where it was, and I'm sure the other fine folk you have fingered firmly
follow suit in that feeling.



Anyway, I'm just a country girl from Texas, not a thief and certainly not a
thief of something as noble as the Store of Good Manners. When I breathe
the sweet clean air of East Texas, I breathe in manners and civility at the
same time and you know the saying what goes in must come out. That anyone
would suppose that a good Texan would dare to steal the Store of Good
Manners is silly and I am embarrassed that I have been asked to defend
myself. I may not have the pickled brain it would take to share worms and
wear red high-heeled pumps and I may not creep around in the woods following
beer-swilling bottle hiders around, but I am not a thief. And I may not
hide behind anything as high-brow as educating the uninitiated or curating a
museum, but I respect the property of others. And I may not be able to use
big words like antimassacre and ostricheperousness or gallantly escort
ladies about, but I recognize and applaud social niceties. And I may not
have a suspicious dog with a story or a friend who doesn't "remember" a lot
of things that I've done, but I still have good manners!



You cite my barefootedness as a point of uncivil behavior but would YOU
wear red high-heeled shoes that mysteriously disappeared and then reappeared
wreaking of sweaty man feet? You might, but I wouldn't!



And you mention as evidence that I wrap Christmas presents in duct tape? Well
did you KNOW that I have a cousin who is a rep for the duct tape company and
he gladly provides me with free duct tape in festive yule designs? I doubt
you knew that, and that point only indicates my frugalness. Is frugality
impolite? I answer with a resounding NO!



It is true, and you are right that I have admitted, that my manners are in
disarray, but when I admitted to messy manners I was referring to the sort
of manners that indicate where the butter knife goes and what wine to serve
with which type of meat (and for that matter, anyone who attended the third
Annual Texas Gathering and visited the Maydelle Winery knows that any wine
goes with anything as long as it is fruity and sweet). It's true, I
don't know how long I have to write thank you notes after receiving a gift,
but I do always offer a hearty thank you at some point. So please, don't
confuse Ms. Post type etiquette with a lack of down home good manners that
many of my fellow Texans share with me. I may not know what to do with all
5 forks in my place setting, but I DO know better than to stab my neighbor
with any of them!



Well my home is another matter. It is truly a mess, but it was oh so
freeing to admit that fact openly and to find that I share that plight with
many other letterboxing women, and to find that I am not alone in thinking
that there are things more important than a clean home. Clearly, we who
have messy homes find it much more important to just get out there and box
and in so doing, we find boxes that help us answer those infernally frequent
TOTW questions by Mr. "I-teach-newbies" Pepe.



And yet your accusations go on Yes, I did take over a neighbor's house,
but they weren't using it at the time, and they would've never known if they
hadn't found the bottles DMS hid in their potted palm tree. And I fully
intended on leaving it better than I had found it, and in my opinion I did
just that, complete with flamingos in the front yard and little dangly palm
tree lights around the barbeque deck. And I painted their house besides,
and again demonstrated my frugality in that matter by buying the lovely
magenta paint that Sherwin Williams had on half price, and then I used my
Marvy Markers to add some artistic embellishments that any home owner could
love. Can I help it if my neighbor envisions herself to be Ms. Post
herself?



And I am getting a little tired of defending my educational techniques with
respect to my kids. Texas kids have to be tough. They have to be able to
wrangle rattlesnakes and wrestle gators, but they have to be exposed to them
first. I can think of no better way to help them understand what they are
up against than to leave them in the woods where those critters live and let
them fend for themselves. SJZ managed to find her way home most days, and
only a couple of times did I have to call the sheriff to help me find
her. Don't
think I went easy on her though if she didn't make it home by dinnertime
and bringing the meat for dinner, she got nothing to eat. With Lightning
I've eased up a bit and I give him until dark to get home. And an added
benefit is that they have learned superb navigational skills which have
served them well as letterboxers. Can you please point to the downside of
losing them in the woods once or twice a week?



I suppose mere words, however heartfelt, will not convince you that I am not
the holder of the Store of Good Manners. May I point to my personal use of
good manners in letterboxing by mentioning that I am diligent about keeping
my boxes maintained and my clues updated? Far be it from me to cause some
poor letterboxer to unproductively search for one of my boxes because I had
failed to accurately state the status of one of my boxes. And I would
certainly hate for someone to come up on a broken container and have to
replace it on my behalf, so I check all 84 of my boxes once a week each to
make sure they are equipped well.



And since I am sure you are not yet convinced of my innocence, I suppose I
am going to have to embarrass myself further and ask my letterboxing mentor
to speak on my behalf. Certainly if you can't believe me when I say I am
innocent, you will believe Silver Eagle a true gentleman of letterboxing
and an example to us all and the one who, along with his brother Baby Bear,
has taught me everything I know about genteel letterboxing. I apologize,
Silver Eagle, for putting you in this position, but this relentless
Inspector Gadget will not believe that I hold dear good letterboxing manners
unless someone of your caliber speaks on my behalf.



Sincerely,

BarefootLucy

"It's not about footwear, it's about not having stinky feet"


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