Countdown to our 4000th member! Or, Déjà Vu... all over again.

It's been almost two years since we were here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/305981

Apparently a bunch of accounts on LT have been purged, for whatever reason. We get to to do it all over again.

Wheee! That 68 has to be cooler than '68 could have imagined itself being.

Somebody else join, please, because I want to post 67.

We could place ads in other groups offering free personal reading threads in The Green Dragon.

And banter. Banter than any other group. The bantest, in fact.

Bant. Bant. Bant.

As long as we're not banting. I get really cranky if I'm obliged to do that..

So, it's like the party that never ends!

(It just goes on and on, my friends.)

>8 reconditereader: Where is Lambchop when we need her?

>9 clamairy: Oops, that might have been my dinner the other night.

Missed 67, but hoping that approximate cheese will approximately make up for it:

I sense a beatle-related number approaching.

>13 MrAndrew: I reached that number last month. I can no longer sing that song and be referring to the future.

Will you still need me, will you still feed me
Now?

It does not scan so well. It loses something.

>15 clamairy: Is that a home-grown image?

>16 pgmcc: No, I didn't think of it. Found this one online.

>17 clamairy: Something for a future number. The challenge will be to get the angle right so as not to have your footprints in the image.

>18 pgmcc: Perhaps I'll use a long stick. I don't want to lean over so far that I end up with my face indented in the sand next to the number...

>19 clamairy: We would not want you to injure yourself or end up flat on your face on the sand. Of course, an imprint of your face beside the number could add interest to the image.

>20 pgmcc: Or as part of the number, even. A novel zero?

>21 -pilgrim-: LOL, now we HAVE to see this!

Yeah... I'm not willing to do this, even for the artistic value. 😑

>25 Meredy: Love it!

I am recalling one of my fondest and most treasured memories: the moment I became member number 2000

https://www.librarything.com/topic/68867#1662619

>29 stellarexplorer: How does one find out one's number? I have no idea what my GD ID number might be, (I am not a number.... I. Am a free. Man!!)

>30 ScoLgo: I suspect your number is lost in the ocean of time. Mine, as a very round number, was preserved in the thread linked above. Although if this troubles you, you could resign and rejoin, taking note of your new number....

>29 stellarexplorer: A pleasant little jaunt down memory lane. And that post is so old that JPB was still posting!

>32 clamairy: So true!

>31 stellarexplorer: Oh, I'm not that worried about it. Was just wondering if there was an easy place to look it up. Thank you for the reply.

A little early, but I'd rather that than be late:



A certain amount of deliberate confusion here: This Algeria is a nature reserve near Clanwilliam in the Western Cape. It was formerly a forest reserve, and reminded the Cape Colony's first forest officer, the resoundingly named Count Médéric de Vasselot de Regné, of the place where he did his degree -- in North Africa (c. 1870).

>37 Meredy: Lovely!

>39 clamairy: Getting close!

I guess not many are interested in this game, but I think it's moderately thrilling.

>40 Meredy: No one else seems to get excited until we get down into the single digits. That could take a while.

>40 Meredy:, >41 clamairy: I enjoy seeing the images you all come up with, but I’m too lazy to spend time searching for any myself. :)

>40 Meredy: & >41 clamairy: . What >42 YouKneeK: said.

>42 YouKneeK: & >43 pgmcc: Well it's nice to know someone else is looking! :o)

>44 clamairy: I not only look, I admire the creativity shown by the different formats of the numbers used.

I am now regretting not having done something for 42.

>45 pgmcc: I don't think the T&Cs allow the uploading of life, the universe and everything...

>46 Maddz: Just the towels.

>46 Maddz: That is what they want you to think.

shhh! Don't let Meredy and clam know we are lurking!

>48 pgmcc: Somewhere around I have a tin... Think it ended up in the attic when we cleared out the spare room.

We are always watching.

Oh yeah? How many fingers am I holding up?

>52 WholeHouseLibrary: Two. Facing backwards. ;)

Wow! You totally nailed it.
I swear I'll never doubt you again.

>53 MrsLee: Well, that is not ominous - at all... o_O

>51 MrsLee: I had my mp3 on shuffle. As I read your post the next track started. It was , “Somebody’s Watching Me!” by Rockwell.

>58 clamairy: Nice. I looked earlier but didn't spot that one. Nothing else grabbed me.

>59 Meredy: There was an awful lot of mediocre to wade through to find a few good ones.

>60 clamairy: What was this one supposed to be or intended to signify? It's pretty unusual.

>61 Meredy: No clue. I found it with a collection of other 28s on someone's Pinterest page.

28th pair of severed hands that someone's collected.

>63 MrAndrew: Eeww. Doesn't look so nice now.

>66 Meredy: Or as my sister would say, quarter of a century!

Will someone please push those two together! It's killing me!

>70 Meredy: I love it!

>70 Meredy: Ducks in a row.

>70 Meredy: Very clever!

Alas, a polar bear in a snowdrift for me. Just a blank rectangle.

That's it exactly! A zen 22. The sound of two sets of hands clapping, in the forest, with no-one to hear.

>76 clamairy:
I love the timber and the aged appearance of the numbers. Black and white really enhances the feel of the image.

>77 pgmcc: Thank you. :o) It was either this or one that I thought looked too similar to the 48.

>78 clamairy: The 48 is nice too, but I think the diversity is better. The more styles the better.

>80 clamairy: Cool. I couldn't find a single interesting 19 (although there sure are a lot of cutaway models showing what your baby looks like at 19 weeks). There was one I almost went for at 18, but--nah. I have a standard to uphold.

So happy you found something fresh for 18. Things are bound to get more exciting about now, right?

>81 Meredy: Thank you. Possibly things will get more exciting! (There's always a lot more crap to wade through picture-wise when the numbers get lower, though.)

Gonna start looking for the next one.

Ok, I got one. It's not brilliant, but a little less humdrum than the rest, maybe.

Maybe we should prompt some of our own graphically clever folks to dress up some numerals for these celebratory occasions.

>85 Meredy: Excellent!
(LOL Did we really need the translation? I realize you couldn't remove it.)

With all possible sympathy to Canadian Dragoneers (been there, done that, didn't enjoy the T-shirt either).

>88 clamairy: Nice!

>89 pgmcc: Thank you!

>88 clamairy: I like it.

The challenge is getting tougher.

>91 Meredy: Thank you. Yes. Lots of birthday balloons and such...

>92 clamairy: ...and cutaway images of gestation...

The competition is heating up here as we enter the closing hours of this event. Only thirteen more members to 4,000 and the style, artistic quality and showpersonship is rising to heights not seen before. Spectators and commentators are on the edge of their seats waiting to see what the competitors will produce for the final few numbers.

>94 Meredy: Very nice!

>95 pgmcc: Very funny! I noticed there aren't a lot of you contributing here.

>96 clamairy: I am admiring the artistry of the participants. I could not reach the heights exhibited to date.

>94 Meredy: Well played Meredy! That is lovely.

Thanks.

>1 clamairy: Do we (i.e., you) make sure that when the jackpot winner arrives, s/he is shown this thread to see how breathlessly and artistically we anticipated h/h coming?

13! Quick, somebody, do something!

Oh, lovely, >101 MrAndrew:! I had a mediocre pic saved on my PC, but I was sound asleep.

>103 Meredy: Nice one!

>101 MrAndrew:, >103 Meredy: You two are upping the game!

Wow!

The gloves are off now!

>106 clamairy: That is beautiful.

>106 clamairy: That's gorgeous!

Thank you, all. :o)

>112 Meredy: I love the creativity on display.

>112 Meredy: & >113 pgmcc: Definitely outside the box!

(Wonder if anyone will complain about US-centricity.)

>115 Meredy: You are very kind to post the Irish florin.

Oops, now we've lost one! We were at 3990 before I went to bed last night, and when I got up nobody had marked it yet, so I did. But now we're back to 3989 again. What do we do, Clammy? Just hold our breath?

Yeah, it happened a couple of times before. No worries. It might have been someone accidentally thumbing the 'leave group' icon. We have a member or two who do it somewhat regularly.

>118 clamairy: Guilty! But I, at least, am back in again. It must be somewhat wearing for clam, but since I usually operate my phone one-handed, if I get a muscle spasm and fumble it, it is potluck what gets pressed at that point. Sorry.

>112 Meredy: Not complaining about bias, just confused. The only number that I can see on the coin is 2021.

Any minute now, one more notch. Exciting! But there are many symbolic images for nine: nine baseball team members, nine ladies dancing, nine tailors . . . too bad we can't get the nine tailors in here.

>120 Meredy: I was thinking of The Nine Tailors but the best covers only show 3...

>119 -pilgrim-: It is a dime, or ten cents, in the U.S.

>119 -pilgrim-: Sorry, I missed your comment. On a dime, the ten is silent.

Come to think of it, our coins do not have handy numbers on them. They express their value explicitly or implicitly as fractions of a dollar, which is 100 cents.

>123 Meredy:
More of a metaphor than a currency, then?

>124 pgmcc: :)

Are there any other currencies that don't actually show their value on them?

>122 MrsLee:, >123 Meredy: Thank you both.

I am glad that at least I was able to recognise the face. :-p

>125 -pilgrim-: Chinese cash (from something BC to about 1910 but now obsolete). Most medieval to early-modern European coinages. I have an idea (without checking) that the Rhodesian penny and half-penny also belong here. The VOC currency used at the Cape up to 1795. So historically, many if not most.

The Griquatown currency of c. 1810 took another route to being confusing: they had numerals but no denomination. Mind you, our current fractional change does the same.

>127 hfglen: Thanks, Hugh.

Yes, most coins, historically speaking, would have no need of value (denominational) markings, because they were simply a lump of a valuable metal of agreed size and quantity. Forming them into coins was simply a method of authenticating that they were of an agreed composition and size, without needing to resort to scales and assay.

It is only when the notional value of a coin becomes divorced from its actual, physical value (as raw material), that denomination markings are needed.

It is cases where the value of a coin is symbolic, but also not explicit - thereby being doubly metaphorical - that I was thinking of.

The Griquatown coinage seems to be a fascinating example.

Ok, I know, ho-hum. I thought they were M&Ms, but they're not, I can tell from the white ones. Some kind of candy, though.

Who's got a good seven? Now's the time.

Wheee!

>134 Meredy: Nice.

>134 Meredy: Priceless

>134 Meredy: Clever. Perhaps the Pentagon for the next one?

>137 clamairy: I had been trying to put up a picture of Seven-of-Nine for seven but it did not work for me on my phone.

>138 pgmcc: Oh, that's too bad. I saw your deleted post.

Y'all realize that once we reach the goal, finding pictures of -1, -2, etc. is going to be a real challenge. I'm just sayin'.

>140 WholeHouseLibrary: Haha. Oh, then we just reset the counter to 1000 and wait a while.

>141 Meredy: Or just start counting up?

>142 Maddz: It's clammy's game, really, so she decides. I just figured we'd resume the countdowns when we get close to the next milestone number.

Well, it's all our game these days. But keep in mind it takes several years to add 1,000 members.

We could actually have countdowns any old time. Like, say, on a dull Monday when we've logged 4216 members, we could inaugurate a countdown to 4249 and pull out all the stops. Then have a party when we reach it and initiate the newcomers into what a GD party entails.

Good practice in simple arithmetic too.

Good one, clam.

>147 Meredy: Thank you. There's a lot of crap to wade through with the single digits.

We are into the final straight now, and the two leaders are way out in front of the field. They are swapping positions with every stride. As we pass the five furlong marker we are on the edge of our seats with excitement. These two contestants have thrilled us with their creativity and imagination. These final four furlongs will be tense and I would not be surprised if this ended in a photo-finish with the umpires called in to adjudicate on who wins this countdown.

Now I will hand you over for a word from our sponsors.

Blah! Blah! Blah! Blah! The best.

Are we giving odds?

Butbutbut
...We're not competing! We're taking turns. I post one, and then I wait. Clammy posts, and then I start watching again. Anyone else can jump in, too. It's not a race--it's a dance.

The Mamushka!

>151 Meredy: ...it's a dance.

Welcome to this evening's episode of "Strictly Come Dancing", the show where our celebrity competitors dazzle us with their waltzes, foxtrots, tangos and flamencos. Watch the stars of book and library swirl and step their way to the finale of this most exciting competition.

>150 MrsLee: Are we giving odds?

This is a family event and betting is strictly prohibited.
{See Joe round the back. He'll sort you. He only takes cash.}

>151 Meredy: >153 pgmcc: It's definitely a dance. There have been times I haven't been paying close enough attention and Meredy has kindly nudged me. LOL

>153 pgmcc: "the stars of book and library"

Be still, my heart!

>155 Meredy:
A lovely four, or is it a cat showing its claws?

>158 clamairy: Splendid!

>158 clamairy: Fancy! I'm feeling a bit underdressed for this event.

Thank you both.

>158 clamairy: I love the Celtic theme.

>162 pgmcc: Thank you. I had a hard time picking from all of the choices. There were older stone carvings, but the photos weren't clear enough for my tastes.

(Also... I think I'll be buying a few replicas for my yard. 💚)

>163 clamairy:
Sure why wouldn’t ye. T’is in your blud.

>164 pgmcc: Indeed it is!

!!

>166 Meredy:
Bit of a stutter.

>167 pgmcc: Gosh, you're right.

>168 Meredy: LOL.
Brilliant!

>168 Meredy:, >169 pgmcc: Surely that's the wrong side? It's _tu not tu_

{Ducks and runs...}

it's a 1-1.

>168 Meredy: Oh my gosh, did you really half tu?

Hilarious and clever!

Oh, dear, I'm afraid Maddz is right. I mean left. Whatever.

>175 clamairy: So who got the finger?

>176 Maddz: It was a tough decision to go with the index finger instead of the one that Google seems to favor. :D

>177 clamairy: "That's weird... someone just gave me half a peace sign." ;-)

>178 ScoLgo: Of course if the arm was horizontal from right to left, one would wonder who was taking the part of Adam...

>175 clamairy: Great image!

"Look! The aliens are coming!"

Well, I was all upset because it looked like we lost a member, but I think -pilgrim- accidentally left the group again. If so, welcome back -pilgrim-!

>181 clamairy: Yes, it was me leaving. But it was deliberate this time and I have not (yet) rejoined. I have very limited Internet access currently, and have been spending so much time unable to concentrate or think clearly, for to pain, that the little access I have is mostly taken up with practical stuff. I am reading the odd post here and there, but I can't really contribute at present. So I thought it better to leave, rather than have people think I am ignoring them in my haphazard appearances. If I manage to solve any of current problems, I will return. I have enjoyed your company very much.

>182 -pilgrim-: Oh, -pilgrim-, there's no "posting requirement" for membership. Please rejoin. You are one of us whether you are able to comment or not.

>182 -pilgrim-:
What >183 Taphophile13: said.

What they said. And you're still posting more than most of the rest of us, me included.

Wait, what? 4002? We missed it!!

And still no uptick in participation.

And Pilgrim was member 4,000...

Well, maybe next time.

Anyway, here's the idea I had for the 0.



>175 clamairy: Your 1 was great.

>189 Meredy: That's perfect.

>190 clamairy: & >189 Meredy:

I am a bit concerned about the lack of social distancing in that circle.

:-)

jelly babies can't catch covid.

>192 MrAndrew: You mean they're covid-deniers?

They're joined in spirit, like us. There's no covid of the spirit (is there??).

>194 Meredy: The research to date has proven inconclusive.

Look, clammy! Only 994 to go. When can we start counting?

>196 Meredy:
You just have.