Emanuela's not gone - I've heard from her in PM recently. I'm guessing that either she mostly reads and doesn't post often, or else is too busy to read every single message (unlike some of us addicts!), but she is definitely still around. No worries! (Maybe she will answer your post herself, too.)

I am here!
I am almost every day here, even if I don't post a lot
Glad that you noticed this!
Emanuela

Geoff, what a sweetie you are. Well, your post has found one of are absentee friends....hi emanuela

I do know Ted is still around. I may be misremembering but I think he is very busy planning a wedding (not his) so that may take up some of his time.

I know we all go through periods where we have so much on our plate out of the Board that we don't always have time to peek in. Not even for our messages. i went through about 6 months of that. I'm telling you, I was in withdrawal.

Unfortunately though, you'll find that some people will wander in for a while and then wander off again. If you look in Main index you'll see we have 3086 registered members. There are maybe 50 of us that pop in so there are some 3000 that have come and gone. Like Shona (Fishonabike) who was a prolific poster at one point - I miss him.

And Geoff, everybody is welcome. It is a good idea to speak to the person yourself, anything else is just conjecture, and retold stories of retold stories.

My Mom always compared it to that kiddy game - "telepone line" where a slew of kids would line up in a row one beside each other, one person would whisper something in a kid's ear at one end of the line and by the time it got to the other end it was so far away from the original it was laughable.

And speaking of absentee souls...I'm glad *you're* back

However, I heard from PM's that, well, let us say she wasn't very welcomed and leave it at that.

As someone who had e-mailed her directly and often, and was in touch with her on many different *fronts, I refuse to "leave it at that" when *that is incorrect. ewein, whomever PM'd you was misinformed and leaving *it at *that promotes a misrepresentation.

She was welcomed for all the same reasons everyone else is welcomed. She stopped posting cause she got a new job and the situation where she was (Jerusalem, ISRAEL) had become quite frightening for her (and has since gotten worse).

There would be a large void if emanuela left us, just as there was when Soshanna left.

I wanna know what happened to Marty!

... and where's Waldo?

It's true eh, I think we all have people whom we were fond of who have faded away. I think I'll write Shona a little note to see how he's doing and see if he can drop in.

Salut

Marty, that rat, has actually let real life intervene...stales' and my wiles notwithstanding. I think Father Steve has, too.

Ooo and we havent heard from Shanks in aeons either.

Dear bel,

A long way off the topic, but "telepone line" is interesting. We always knew it as "Chinese Whispers"; I wonder what other names there are for it?

dxb

We called it "operator." My son (who is 4) apparently plays something similar in preschool, and calls it something-unintelligible-with-"secrets"-in-it.

>something-unintelligible-with-"secrets"-in-it

Kiddy mondegreens

We called it "Gossip."

Shoshanna was posting quite regularly awhile ago when she was out of work as a tour guide in Israel ... then she got a couple tours almost back-to-back then she disappeared.
Musick, I'm delighted to learn you have heard from her ... I did send her a PM but I guess her new (full time?) job kept her away from the board. Do send her my aloha.
And thank you for letting us in her whereabouts. Hope she is safe and happy.

Glad to see you're still around! Wasn't it you who had the good idea to add some descriptive information to one's profile? Few have followed your lead, so perhaps you could repeat it for the new ones.

And BelM, how's the hand doing?

I, too, have been curoius about Father Steve. He used to be a regular.

Thanks to all for getting me current on who's where!

Father Steve went and got married-- and seems to have found a happy married life! he went away on a honeymoon six months ago.. and still hasn't come back..

we all miss him, too, and are, i think, a bit envious!

I wonder what other names there are for it?

We called it "Whisper Down the Line" or "Whisper Down the Lane." I don't know which version was the "correct" or original one, but both were used, I think.

> We called it "Whisper Down the Line" or "Whisper Down the Lane." I don't know which version was the "correct" or original one, but both were used, I think.

The confusion only speaks to the game's efficiency.

Father Steve went and got married-- ... we all miss him, too, and are, i think, a bit envious!

Being a wordplay lover, I'd be especially envious if she has really cute puns!