Fair Winds and Following Seas:

A relatively long time ago, when I bid farewell--as a regular poster--to one of the most active Y2k forums on the Internet, someone--obviously familiar with prayers associated with United States Coast Guard or its predecessors --wished me Fair Winds and Following Seas.

In accordance with same, I wish you all, Fair Winds and Following Seas.

To elaborate:

This is my last post to this forum.

To paraphrase the United States Coast Guard prayer further:

God, I thank you for the privilege and opportunity to have been associated with so many intelligent people from so many walks of life, during a critical time in the development of one of the most powerful means of mass communications that has ever existed on this planet Earth. Many of them have dedicated their writings honorably in service to you. For this, I ask you, God, in keeping with the tender words of this great tradition, to grant them and their families Fair winds and Following Seas.

Y2k was painful for many people, in large part because it was the first true test of the Internet and its future role in the process of disseminating critical information on a global basis.

People were hurt in the process. People made money in the process. When the first history of this first global computer crisis is finally written, we may finally begin to understand its mystery. I may play a small part in that process, or none at all. May God's will be done, regardless.

God bless all of you in your future endeavors.

FM/MM

FM a.k.a. vidprof@aol.com

Marianne Michaels@scipublic@aol.com

Website address:

The Toilet Paper Chronicles: Gallows Humor from the Y2k Underground

:)

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 19, 2000

Answers

This is my last post to this forum.

Promise?

-- (Go @way. forever), April 19, 2000.

Yes dear. (a.k.a. -- (Go @way. forever), )

It's my last post.

A promise.

If you knew me, you wouldn't be compelled to post such a rude question.

God bless, regardless.

:)

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 19, 2000.

I know you and I'll also ask, 'Promise'?

-- Ra (tion@l.1), April 19, 2000.

Oh, the inhumanity.

-- (nemesis@awol.com), April 19, 2000.

FM,

First post, last post, whatever.

I've enjoyed your company and your prose, best wishes to you.

Unk

-- Uncle Deedah (unkeed@yahoo.com), April 19, 2000.

Well, Gee, Ration@l.1, (or whoever you are).

The answer to your question is "Yes."

Good night, Good-bye and God bless.

:)

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 19, 2000.

Uncle Deedah,

I believe you already know that you are a "Y2k Underground" legend. If you don't know that--you SHOULD.

Peace be with you my friend, and thanks.

:)

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 19, 2000.

Legend??? Isn't that a Bob Marley CD?

-- Uncle Deedah (unkeed@yahoo.com), April 19, 2000.

Both Decker and Flint returned to the Y2k discussion after having called it quits. Here's hoping that FM posts again sometime if she has something to share.

-- (Y2k@nd.journalism), April 19, 2000.

She's already posted three more posts since her "last post to this forum".

I hate long goodbyes.

-- pull (the@other.one), April 19, 2000.

Uncle Deedah,

And I thought you were only a legend in Hawk's mind.

-- Monkey Spanker (stillspanking@way.com), April 19, 2000.

First things first... I wish you well, Marianne. As you know, I do not expect much from your epic work of literature... but please keep my email if you receive a Pulitzer. I'll will pen a humble apology.

As for my good-bye, I kept my word and never posted again on the old TB 2000 forum. I didn't even try to apply for a password to EZB. Had this forum not popped up, I would have most likely dropped completely out of sight. Flint, Cooke and a few others make this interesting... not to mention the occasional "doomer" who chooses to throw themselves on the lances. Oh, I'll probably wander off again... particularly as the weather warms. C'est la vie.

-- Ken Decker (kcdecker@worldnet.att.net), April 19, 2000.

Thanks to all of you (above) who contributed kind words. May God bless all of you.

To clarify the subject of this thread for the critics, my initiation of this thread was my last "initiation of ANY thread to this forum. This, of course, does not mean I cannot respond to same.

Regardless,

Best wishes to you all.

P.S. I ran across an Emerson quote the other day that may be of value to many who have frequented Y2k forums over the past year. Here 'tis.

"The wise man in the storm prays to God, not for safety from danger, but for deliverance from fear. It is the storm within that endangers him, not the storm without."

Peace.

:)

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 20, 2000.

Another "P.S." (Hey! I'm allowed! It's MY thread!) [grin]

To Ken Decker:

Thank you for wishing me well. You are most likely correct in assuming I will not win a Pulitzer for this endeavor. Does that bother me? Not in the slightest.

I would much rather be a recipient/nominee of one of the very first awards for Investigative Journalism utilizing the Worldwide Web.

Does this award exist yet? No. But it will. It's just a matter of time.

Documentation is the key to everything. That's why my book has footnotes--many more than have ever been posted in the online version of my book--and certainly more than any human would ever want to read.

Y2k was a huge story. Watch for it to resurface toward the end of the year.

Best of luck to you Ken. Thanks for your support.

:)

First things first... I wish you well, Marianne. As you know, I do not expect much from your epic work of literature... but please keep my email if you receive a Pulitzer. I'll will pen a humble apology.

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 20, 2000.

I repeated Ken with the last line of my post:

"First things first... I wish you well, Marianne. As you know, I do not expect much from your epic work of literature... but please keep my email if you receive a Pulitzer. I'll will pen a humble apology."

As we used to say in the news business, "It was a 'technical difficulty."

Apologies.

:(

-- FM (vidprof@aol.com), April 20, 2000.