Not content with our new website, is somebody being too enthusiastic?
Ttaken from the HJ site
Honest John – have you seen another?
We have recently been made aware that there is someone out there claiming to be ‘Honest John’ at events / car shows, offering to answer questions and charging for this service.
Last seen at The Bromley Car Pageant, this certainly was not Honest John. We need your help to track this man down. If you have seen this man can you tell us where and when, and if you see him – take a photo. Please send any details to webmaster@honestjohn.co.uk
Many thanks.
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Even worse...
There are folks claiming to be Honest John working as racing tipsters, club comedians, rock and roll singers, cricketers & car parts dealers. Likewise the USA had the cheek to pinch the name for a nuclear missile... as did someone for a a pub in the Fen a few miles from me.
These all need investigating.... unless of course he has more fingers in more pies than we realise.
Last edited by: Fenlander on Tue 6 Jul 10 at 18:38
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I wonder if he protected the use of the name Honest John. I doubt it therefore everyone could use it.
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P.S. He's not even called John ;-)
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Never saw him at the Festival of Speed at Goodwood on Friday - the imposter or the real one.
Saw Jason Plato and a couple of other celebs though.
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 6 Jul 10 at 19:19
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Paranoia. Famous people plagued by inner self-doubt often imagine they have a doppelganger, haunting their footsteps throughout life. Graham Greene was the best known example.
I often used to argue tongue in cheek that HJ never really existed, he was just an imaginery creation by the DT of a sort of idealised honest car dealer who obviously could never survive in reality.
It's ironic that the image has now become real.
10 I-Spy points for the first "HJ Lives !" graffiti seen.
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Didn't HJ turn up at one of the London get-togthers a few years back?
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Yes, at the Ace cafe IIRC.
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...Yes, at the Ace cafe IIRC...
There were some pics which were posted on one of the pic hosting sites.
It was linked to the BR, but I didn't understand how.
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>> ...Yes, at the Ace cafe IIRC...
>>
tinyurl.com/3y5bv9w
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Wasn't that The Growler with him on a flying visit from the Phillipines before his sad and untimely demise?
His posts were always interesting and informative..
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>> Wasn't that The Growler with him on a flying visit from the Phillipines before his sad and untimely demise?
>> His posts were always interesting and informative..
>>
Yes it was The Growler.
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>> Didn't HJ turn up at one of the London get-togthers a few years back?
>>
>>
Yes he turned up at the meet in Barnet at The Old Red Lion pub.
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>> Didn't HJ turn up at one of the London get-togthers a few years back?
Or was it his doppelganger?
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>> Never saw him at the Festival of Speed at Goodwood on Friday - the imposter
>> or the real one.
>>
I didn't see you!
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I've actaully seen the real HJ at Blackbushe. With the said hat on and all. So he does exist, though I don't admit to knowing his real name.
But surely the only people who know who he is are those that use his forum. Thus the ones that see an imposter would know. So why the hullaballo. If you go to some car show and someone you see doesn't match the mug on his website then take all with a pinch of salt. I can't see why they are making such an issue over there.
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Cameron Diaz's double - thats of note, Barak Obama maybe. A double of an old guy with a silly hat - come now, has someone got an ego bigger than their website? Nobody cares, except the aforementioned ego. Let it go.
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And he's not even a John is he... but if someone is making money then that should be stopped. Could they just ask the police? Or is this a problem of using a pseudonym like Honest John? Nobody is pretending to be the real person are they.
Not that it's my business. If someone passed themselves off as me for commercial gain I would be peeved.
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Could be an obtaining services by deception.
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>> Could be an obtaining services by deception.
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That's what I was thinking. I assume HJ and co have informed the over-stretched police.
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...could be obtaining services by deception...
What services?
HJ in this instance is similar to Mickey Mouse.
Disney will take steps in the civil courts to protect the character and image.
HJ could possibly do the same.
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Money for advice ad pretending to be an expert..
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>> Money for advice ad pretending to be an expert..
>>
Ar you referring to HJ or the imposters?
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Honest John wasn't coined by the one we know though, it is an old nickname. He has no more right to it than the others.
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Exactly. Which is why we can all go to car shows wearing a hat. Some of us will have to explain weight gain though ;-)
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If someone can pass themselves off as me for commercial gain - they are clever than me :-)
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>> I didn't see you!
I was in disguise.
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>> P.S. He's not even called John ;-)
>>
Would a guy called John, have more rights than HJ to use the name 'Honest John'?
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PU>> Obtaining services by deception for money for advice ad pretending to be an expert..
Well this presupposes that:
1. The "real" HJ is an expert at anything at all - so much of the stuff written in the Telegraph is downright untrue or just plain wrong. He's a second hand car dealer, not an expert.
2. The "fake" HJ isn't an expert.
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I presupposed number 1 - sorry should have typed obtaining money by deception (although that's changed now as well) - Might be some very vague intellectual property rights or whatever.
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Who on earth would pay money to have HJ answer a question for them anyway?
Last edited by: Bazzabear on Thu 8 Jul 10 at 11:26
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>> Who on earth would pay money to have HJ answer a question for them anyway?
I've seen him giving an 'expert opinion' on local (IIRC) TV news - would he (or his doppleganager) have been paid for that?
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He's a second hand car dealer, not an expert.
>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> i thought he was an EX second hand car dealer
i know a fireman who used to do this job,doesnt do it anymore ,why not i ask? well i couldnt make it pay he said .but come the day they are looking for a car with their niece you would think they were the best car knowledgeable people in the world after milkmen and chippies........
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I thought the 'guy in the pub' knew all there was to know.
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weirdly the guy in the pub has gone very quiet these last 12 months
i reckon because he lost his job hes drinking white strike at home while he reads last years car mechanics (3 for a £1 on the market (tuesdays)
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I thought he'd a background in journalism before going into the motor trade.
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>>The "real" HJ is an expert at anything at all - so much of the stuff written in the Telegraph is downright untrue or just plain wrong. He's a second hand car dealer, not an expert.
I wouldn't argue with that, but one way or another the HJ website is pretty impressive. Its not had the prettiest of upbringings, and much of the stuff has happened in spite of HJ rather than because of him, equally a fair amount is the brainchild of other people.
Nonethless, it is now an impressive and successful site; bearing in mind that its not really aimed at users like the Backroom, its aimed at people who come in looking for a deal. HJ is not a mechanic, or a design expert, he is [was] a secondhand car salesman who could see a deal, and that's the asset he's had to build on.
[although I am shocked how the Backroom traffic has dropped]
If one's aim was to make a living rather than run a loss making pub, one might think that one way of doing it was to be known for having money saving information and the best deals in the market - to have a reputation such that anybody thinking of investing heavily in a car is going to go to the site and see what HJ shows as the best deals. That way people would come to look, and companies would pay to be present.
I had that conversation with HJ years ago in a pub - perhaps 9 years ago.
And that's what he's achieved. Pretty much what he said over a beer all that time ago is pretty much what he's got. - and that is to be admired, even if some feel that various parts could have been done differently or better.
And considering the wish to be a valuable market place, a recurring group of Backroomers who represent a ton of traffic and storage, not to mention management overhead, who are not really looking for a new deal are not the ideal audience. Ulitmately advertising was brought in to take advantage of that huge group of users, since they represented little in the way of revenue on the car deals.
Ironically websites normally judge their success by repeat traffic. I imagine that has little additional value on HJ.co.uk and the value is better represented by people who show up for a couple of weeks every couple of years looking to buy a car.
Consequently keeping the backroom happy, or for that matter keeping the backroom at all, was not a priority and if it hadn't been for a group of moderators willing to do it for free, it probably wouldn't have ever happened.
As it happens I do believe that the Backroom was an important part of the growth of the website, but really an indirect contributor which is more difficult to grasp. And I migh tbe wrong.
Obviously these are my opinions, not HJs and in any case hj.co.uk must have changed a lot in the 5 or 6 years I've not been there.
What I do think is that C4P will become a fun place, or it won't. HJ.co.uk will continue to be successful or it won't. But neither will benefit from an excessive level of concern about the other.
It may be that C4P is a better pub, and that hj.co.uk is a better marketplace. But each needs to be what it wants/needs to be and to be concerned about the other no more than one always keeps an eye on active organisations in the industry.
From what I can see after a brief look is that C4P would like to be a pub, and hj.co.uk wants/needs to be a market place. It may be that the users will sort themselves out into groups who have similar desires.
What I do know for sure, was that HJ's Backroom, irrespective of the rest of his site, was succesful because of the quality of its contributors and their contributions. The breadth of knowledge and the time and effort that people would put in was breath-taking. There were very few contributors who were ever a complete waste of time, although Vlad has his moments, as did the nutter with the pink skoda or whatever it was. And such a strength and breadth will be the cause of the success or failure of C4P.
You need strong people, with strong and varied opinions and the time and willingness to share them. You then need guidelines and structure for those people to interact within, and some level of police force to keep it that way and offer guidance.
A military flame thrower such as I had may be a bit OTT, but some control is/will be needed. Anarchy is usually unattractive to new visitors or considered thinkers. So support your moderators, and help where you can, because you need them to be successful.
These days I don't have the time to be around chatrooms very much, but I wish you the very best of success and no doubt I will be here sometimes just for fun (mine, not yours). And I hope you have the unlimited, hilarious, trying, challenging and hysterical fun that we had in the early days of HJ's Backroom.
Good luck,
Mark.
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One thing the Backroomers bring is footfall/visits. The value of advertising is based on how many people visit. The Backroomers kept up the traffic and therefore how much they get/got for adverts.
I agree the extent of the information available there is impressive. And this site I believe is taking a different direction to that.
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>>, as did the nutter with the pink skoda or whatever it was<<
That was possibly Lud, we don't see his ilk around here these days, alas.
:)
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Actually his name was Chris Watson. And I always wondered what was the truth behind him, I'm sure we never saw it.
Vlad, on the other hand, was more the name of a group than an indiviudal and he once implemented an edit button without telling Martyn (then the webmaster).
I guess you had to be there, but fond memories.
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>> Chris Watson
This was wayyy before my time, just had a google. This is *gold*. Just read two threads, one about supercharging a lada riva and one about some minders demanding £1000 not to smash up Chris's garage.
I'll read through them all, seems like a really entertaining read!
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Hmm it became just too entertaining after a while but fair play to the CW *character* there were some cracking threads. The perpetual motion car remains my favourite...
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=1644
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That is comic gold Fenlander. Whoever you were CW (i'll follow everyone else's lead, would feel rude to ask you to let on who you are) can you dust off your old account and get writing again, you have great talent! I'd definitely enjoy more threads like those!
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Nice to see you again, Mark - still from RLBS I wonder? (Old HJ hands will know what that means!)
And thank you for your very fair assessment of both forums. They've developed as I thought they would - this one as more of a chatroom and the Backroom more of a place where people ask for advice about cars and motoring (although the amount of discussion is on the increase).
I like to think that the easygoing moderation on both forums has helped them to develop naturally. I have limited time but enjoy posting on both, and I'm sure that both will continue to flourish.
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>> Nice to see you again, Mark - still from RLBS I wonder? (Old HJ hands
>> will know what that means!)
>>
Here's an unexpected blast from the past. Chris watson and Mr Really Loves Bacon Sandwiches himself.
Greetings to you, Mark.
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>> Mark - still from RLBS I wonder?...................Really Loves Bacon Sandwiches
>> himself.
>>
Royal Leamington b***** Spa
Last edited by: Duncan on Thu 8 Jul 10 at 23:48
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Good to see the boy from Brazil back with us, all we need now is Bogush and it will be just like the old days!
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>> all we need now is Bogush ....
Who will be one of the first members banned if he does join.
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>> >> all we need now is Bogush ....
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>> Who will be one of the first members banned if he does join.
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>>>>>>> never heard of him so did a googly
www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=index.htm
and
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=5160
that one makes no sense to me but obviously does to someone
Last edited by: Bellboy on Fri 9 Jul 10 at 10:41
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He did go on a bit but I could usually tolerate him... and he had a Xantia at one time so he couldn't be all bad. As far as I remember he was a bit left wing, anti car and pro the trains/bus.
Amazed he is responsible for an entry in the urban dictionary but it does sum up his detailled and lengthy posts with lots of re-quoting and many Ermmmmmmmmmmms and Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmms added in for good measure.
The HJ link you give bb is not an easy example to follow as by that time he was banned (or unwelcome) as Bogush and posting as *The* in that thread.
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Private eye run a column "From the Forums" usually bizzare ramblings from bloggers - I assume it's a fiction but they always include a contributor calling himself "bogbrush" - which always gives me a sneaky feeling they may be real.
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I often wonder what became of some of the original Backroomers.
There was another poster called Idris(?) who had a long running legal battle over his refusal to disclose the identity of the driver when his car was Gatso'd. I think it made the nationals and he eventually lost his case, but after getting initial sympathy on the BR he seriously got on everyones nerves and I think he was banned
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aaah, a blsst from the past - Mark, the landrover Freelander's greatest ever fan!
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I always found Dalglish's style a bit wearing, and it was one to be repeated later, funnily enough, by jbif.
I'd link to some posts, but hey, the irony.
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I miss Toad of Toad hall, Parrrrrrp.
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I've missed the missives from Manila.
RIP THe Growler.
Kevin...
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>>>I miss Toad of Toad hall, Parrrrrrp.
Indeed... I still have some of his writing saved on the PC.
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Paul Mykatz tinks. Wonder where he is now?
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>> I always found Dalglish's style a bit wearing, and it was one to be repeated
>> later, funnily enough, by jbif.
The latter at least had mastered the use of the capital letter, and I thought a rather more charming style.
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...Jbif? charming? Blimey...
Only his mother could love him.
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...Jbif?
I found him very helpfull.
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>> ...Jbif? charming? Blimey...
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>> Only his mother could love him.
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What a sensitive lot some of you must be. Sticks and stones etc, or in my case a sprinkling of salt as well.
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.....Jbif? charming? Blimey...
You'll not be startled to learn I had the odd spat with a few members of the BR.
All ultimately harmless, and it made the place a bit more interesting.
No permanent offence taken by me, and I don't believe the others.
Jbif was the only poster I could fairly describe as vindictive and nasty.
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>> Jbif was the only poster I could fairly describe as vindictive and nasty.
Or considerably brighter than most posters, and unafraid to tell it like it really is by delivering some common sense. There's another poster recently arrived on this thread who has the same skill.
If you want ((hugs)) or ((hugz)), I suggest a trip to the moneysavingexpert forum.
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...considerably brighter than most posters...
That's a whopping insult to everyone else - were it true.
Rubbing people up the wrong way does not indicate to me someone who is 'bright'.
Quite the reverse.
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>> Rubbing people up the wrong way does not indicate to me someone who is 'bright'.
www.car4play.com/forum/post/index.htm?t=1966&m=37338&v=e
etc., etc.
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...FT - LOL!...
Can't think why FT should feel rubbed up the wrong way.
I was only trying to educate him in the same way he was trying to educate me.
Perhaps the boot is not so attractive when it appears on the other foot.
I'm not keen on these internet acronyms, but I must say I'm LOL-ing, too.
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>> Perhaps the boot is not so attractive when it appears on the other foot.
This is just what I'm saying re. your spat with jbif and others. If you treat people with contempt - e.g. saying about jbif: "...Jbif? charming? Blimey... Only his mother could love him" "Jbif ... vindictive and nasty" and *then* have the gall to say that *you* don't "rub people up the wrong way", well then you really really do need to learn something. I can't say anything to explain further; indeed it should not be necessary. It's down to you to develop.
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...then* have the gall to say that *you* don't "rub people up the wrong way"...
I have never said I don't rub people up the wrong way - don't put words in my mouth.
You attempted to correct a post of mine in a high-handed and sarcastic manner.
I responded in kind, and you don't like it.
As has been remarked below - people in glass houses....
Last edited by: ifithelps on Tue 13 Jul 10 at 17:45
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Errrr, that was aimed at you IIH:)
I'll put the wooden spoon away now........
Pat
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...Errrr, that was aimed at you IIH:)...
'Ere, not you as well?
Have a pop at iffy day is it?
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>> Have a pop at iffy day is it?
I really do think that you'd be better off on the moneysavingexpert forums where they give lots of ((hugs)) to people. Often, of course, these people are victims of their own stupidity, but it's a very nice and fluffy forum with no intellectual integrity.
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Your a grumpy bear today mappy, goldie been snacking at your porrige again?
((huggggs))
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I wish Goldie WERE taking breakfast with me... don't understand what sort of a problem the bears had!
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Ear ache from mummy bear mostly
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Mapmaker,
If you think I'm after hugs on here then you've either never read any of my posts, or you are not terribly bright yourself.
Thanks for the advice about where I should go.
Your concern for my welfare is touching, and no doubt laden with intellectual integrity.
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Throwing stones and glass houses??
:)
Pat
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jbif will be along no doubt to respond - he has still got an account here.
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It's harder than most folks supposes
To make posts that smell only of roses;
It's quite a lot easier
To mimic a seizure
And get straight up most people's noses.
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Tue 13 Jul 10 at 18:11
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Excellent. Now a Haiku version?
JH
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>> Now a Haiku version?
Not a rarity:
To think you're quite clever and
End on the scaffold
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>> Jbif was the only poster I could fairly describe as vindictive and nasty.
I thought jbif was quite harmless compared with the one who had a little Altea and a big Ego. In the end I just had to ignore him.
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Ian ! Long time.
How's the family ?
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Children, will you behave and play nicely in the sandpit :-)
Huggs all round then?
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No, Iffy, don't pull Mapmaker's hair, that's not very nice.
tinyurl.com/cgw8f3
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Well done to AC for injecting a note of humour! This thread needed it.
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>> Ian ! Long time.
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>> How's the family ?
>>
>>
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All is well, this side. After a FIVE week holiday (World Cup), the schools went back yesterday, so the sprogs atre back to learning.
Massive sigh of relief from the missus!
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The other place - HJ - R.P.
