As you can well imagine, I found delight in connecting with people and the fun diversion of it all on #40plus. What a wonderful playground, and when I changed my nick at times to IRCJUNKY, it was for good reason. =) My heart expanded to include incredible new friends and many wonderful acquaintances. I feel that my life has truly been blessed as a result.
Now, my IRCJUNKY tendancies seem to be tempered just a bit by the real life demands of w*rking 5 part-time jobs, raising a 4 y/o, a happy marriage of 20 years and an active NON virtual social life. In addition to on-line friends, I also get some of my computer *fix* by building an on-line business and being a part of this newsletter.
While we each have our visions for this newsletter, a big hope is that this will become a unifying forum for all of us in the 40something channels. The goal is to create something from all of us that will reflect our diversity and also strongly build on our strengths and humor. I want it to be something each one of us can feel like we are an important part and something of which we can all be proud! I heard that one well-known nick recently made a wonderfully funny comment to the effect of "why does it take 4 people to put together a newsletter about nothing going on?!" LOL!!! In partial response, hopefully we will be able to capture MORE of all the things that *DO* go on to learn and enjoy here. Also, DANG if we all don't have more lots more fun doing such a big task together instead of placing a burden just on one person.
So, enjoy and please stretch your comfort zone a bit and send us those poems, letters to the editors, recipes, and great resources that are LURKING around.
A regular of #41plus undernet told me of a story that seemed to make quite a point. She was on that channel when a person was kicked and banned because he was also on a sex channel. Apparently he was not saying much (probably a bit preoccupied =). Well, this nick questioned the kick and ban. She "stood up" and made a point that he was NOT causing a bit of trouble to anyone. She asked what would happen to her if she were also on a sex channel; would she be kicked and banned as well? The kickER told her that she would never be on such a channel so she would never have to worry about it. Apparently she felt soooo strongly about it that she asked the kickER to do a /whois on her and sure enough she was on a MADE UP sex channel, but on one nonetheless! She was not kicked and she made her point. While I wasn't there when it happened...I was told that the channel went wild with fun and laughter (a reason many people are here) and at no one's expense really (how refreshing)!
This apparently has been happening more and more. One woman was recently kicked and banned because she was on #bdsm and #submission. even though she had caused NO problems on channel at all. The people on channel had to do a /whois on her to find this out. While it is not MY thing to go to those kinds of channels,(although I do remember a bunch of us going there once as a group on a lark to tease another nick when rumor cop wasn't around ), some people enjoy these channels. There is a huge continuum of opinions about sexuality on the net. For some, it seems to be a moral issue and they would NEVER even flirt. Others enjoy the spicy innuendoes that abound at times. Still others fall madly in love with each other and it is a way of *touching* when distance separates. Some people even seem to have IRC as their only or at least their primary outlet.
As for not speaking on channel, there are lots of people who regularly lurk (sometimes even by accident) and message others. Sometimes those messages might even have some sexual content to them. It seems to me that lurking is lurking. and people's choice of channels is their own business. I am not sure what is gained by *saving* the channel from people who may be sexual but are not disturbing anyone. Again, it might just be my 60's values speaking, but it seems like channel might be better saved from what seems like cruelty and "group think" used in the name of *saving* the channel.
I value the fact that we are an incredibly diverse group and we have a whole variety of opinions. Get any two of some of us together and you are likely to have 3 opinions.
