m'mates

Hmmm...does this sound suspiciously like a Brit affectation in a self-proclaimed Canadian to anyone else? Now I'm a-wonderin' again...mates!

Dear Vixy,
I sincerely hope you are a very gifted young lady who, as such, would be a treasure and an asset to have around here! So please don't take any of this jovial banter personally...a thousand welcomes! However, as Dr. Bill says, we have been suckered-in to phantom arrivals before, so that's why we joke about it!
and if this is some gargantuan hoax, whoever came up with it has waaaaaaayyyyy too much time on their hands!
"Mav-Arch, Mav-Arch, O wherefore art thou, Mav-Arch?"