I was looking at the IM list this morning and saw a lot of names I didn't recognize. That's a good thing because I think our movement should always be expanding and including more and more signmakers. The bad part is if you're only lurking, you're missing out on the best part of Letterheads.
To a newcomer, it probably is somewhat intimidating to just jump in because it seems so many of us are already close friends. I'll never forget going to a restaurant at one of the first meets I attended and seeing a group of 'heads at a table laughing and talking, and then turning around and leaving because I didn't know anyone and wasn't comfortable just going over and joining them. In hindsight, that's exactly what I should have done, knowing now that I would have been welcomed with open arms.
All of us are at different levels in our signmaking journey, but there's always more to learn and people eager to teach. That's really what it's all about, so please don't be shy - just pop in and say hello. A live meet would really put you in the groove, but this is surely the next best thing.
COME ON IN, THE WATER'S FINE......
Posted by Bernie Lohmeyer (Member # 2076) on :
I lurk and learn.....But I make up fer it at meets.....he he he he.... Sign Painter's fer sale or rent......
Posted by W. R. Pickett (Member # 3842) on :
...Letterville is ONLY valid if people contribute!!! ...I lurked here for two years before I felt compelled to post. What got me revved up was seeing OP get attacked for being a vegetarian. ...I had been going to Letterhead meets every year since 1983, and since I started attending this one I (too) have been dissed by many 'regular' posters. All of them people who in all the years I have traveling around the country, I had NEVER met (or encountered) at an actual Letterhead meet. Funny how that works out...
Posted by Michael Gene Adkins (Member # 882) on :
I was leary for awhile, but Steve encouraged me to get on here and talk about fonts.
The moral??? POST, don't LURK. You couldn't say anything dumber than the rest of us on here have.
Posted by Joey Madden (Member # 1192) on :
Though most of my replies seem to be controversial to some, I have learned from my experiences in this trade rather than from others. As an outlaw I rarely go to meets other than ones which actually have something of interest to me at any time of my life. Being located in southern Oregon where water has always flowed generally faster then money entering my pockets, I am in constant need of updating my living quarters and therefore not being able to just pick up and go for short periods and although on occasion I do travel, it is only to continue what it is that I have done for over fifty years. I am not computer literate when it comes to design or plotting so I am left to the tape pencil method which has always taken priority over new technology on my end. Saving this craft from disaster is something I contribute to and have been for many years as my website has helped many from what I've heard since its been up for thirteen years. I believe the Internet is the future in many ways including leaving your ego at the door and that seems great for persons like me who live on the edge.
Billy, talking about a vegetarian lifestyle is different then being a pseudo vegetarian because at one time OP was eating ice cream daily while not including meat and dairy from his menu.
Posted by jack wills (Member # 521) on :
I lurk, therefore I am...
Posted by Si Allen (Member # 420) on :
Hey!
We don't pick on Old paint because he is a vegetarian...we pick on him because he is Old Paint!
Posted by Dave Sherby (Member # 698) on :
Si, you beat me to it. I was going to say that OP makes it so easy to pick on him, we just can't help it.
W.R. I get dissed and I'm a regular poster. All I have to say is that I like a Big Mac.
Sonny, well said. We need more people to chime in. I have lot's of answers to give, but not many questions being asked lately.
Posted by stein Saether (Member # 430) on :
Dont mind the meateaters Joe, probably just bowel problems
Posted by Len Mort (Member # 7030) on :
We don't pick on the exiled Yankee, the flatlander is our close friend! Posted by Bill Diaz (Member # 2549) on :
With 7366 posts, Si might be the biggest poster of them all. Just who in this community has posted more? We need to know.
Posted by Bill Diaz (Member # 2549) on :
Nope, lookin' around Glenn Taylor's got you beat, Si with 8200+.
Posted by Steve Luck (Member # 5292) on :
Watch out Steve, Sonny sounds like he's running for Mayor of Letterville!
I have to say that it was a pleasure meeting Sonny at Pontiac and getting to talk a little bit about signs. We even swapped business cards. I hope we get to work together at the next meet. Hopefully it will be in Danville, IL!
Sign-cerely, Steve
Posted by Randy Campbell (Member # 2675) on :
Joey your an old softie Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
Steve, you're an honorary Dixie Dawg and entitled to all that entails......
which is pretty much nuthin'.
but I hope we can sling some paint together in Danville........
Posted by Preston McCall (Member # 351) on :
It is just a fine place to share the wealth of what we have learned...and in my case. forgotten.
Posted by Susan Banasky (Member # 1164) on :
Sonny, Your words ring soooo true. I have been attending meets since 1998. I still feel shy and intimidated about asking stuff.... but I am working on attending more live meets this year and intend to jump in with both feet and ask way more questions of all you caring, sharing gurus.
To the newcomers...if you don't ask...it is your loss. Don't waste this opportunity that is right here for you. Start with simple questions, you will be amazed at all who will help you. The inspiration you receive is addicting. Looking forward to meeting more of you real soon.
Posted by Jon Jantz (Member # 6137) on :
Bill, OP will be at 10,000 posts soon....
Posted by Marge Cameron (Member # 11336) on :
I have stopped lurking & only recently started posting, & the answers to the questions I so nervously asked have saved me tons of headaches already. Thanks, you guys. Hope others can do the same.
(Hey looky! A whopping 22 posts! LOL!)
[ January 05, 2010, 06:51 AM: Message edited by: Marge Cameron ]
Posted by Deri Russell (Member # 119) on :
I have attended lots of meets. And you can tell by my resident # that I have belonged to this here Letterville for quite a while. But I just don't get on here just too often, or as often as I'd like. But I have learned tons from this site. And I have gone on numerous times not to chat but to look up answers that I have possibly seen but can't remember. (Partzimers kicked in about 10 years ago now)So my lurking isn't necessarily that I'm shy or anything, as quite a few of you who have met me know, but that I am getting answers to frequently asked questions. Lurking is learning too. Sticking up for the lurkers here lol.
Posted by Joey Madden (Member # 1192) on :
Deri, this is my second # as my first # was alot lower but changed to my HotLines name of Joey Madden some years back after using my first pseudo name of Hassle Fiasco for the first 2 or so years. Steve wanted me to change my name to something more or less realistic and since my real name is synonymous to goings on of investigations through the authorities and other lifelong scenarios, Joey Madden was chosen and now seems to fit with any controversial post
[ January 05, 2010, 01:11 PM: Message edited by: Joey Madden ]
Posted by Dana Stanley (Member # 6786) on :
I don't post a lot for a few reasons. #1-I don't usually talk unless I have something important to say. #2-I haven't been doing much sign work lately so I haven't had much to say about it. #3- I have been busy with school, which is now finished and I have an associates degree in graphic art, and a certificate in photography. I an now building a studio for photography above my shop. #4- The most paranoid of reasons is that it seems like 9 out of 10 times when I post the thread dies. It's like I have the touch of death. I do admit there are some who will always respond when I ask a question, and I suspect this is ,just as I said, my own paranoia! So everyone congratulate me on finishing school and I will post more. Or let this thread die and I'll go away.
Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
the plot thickens........
Posted by David Wright (Member # 111) on :
Dana, it's those sunglasses, we don't trust people who hide behind them. Maybe that will help or....hey wait a minute , Sonny is wearing them too. Hmmm.
Congrats on finishing school, now lets see some of your photo work.
Posted by Sam Staffan (Member # 4552) on :
A Degree in Graphic Arts, Hey you should open a sign shop!
Just kidding. Dana Congrats on the degree and yes show us some photos. I love seeing the Iceburgs put on here and all the other scenic areas from around the world.
[ January 05, 2010, 04:45 PM: Message edited by: Sam Staffan ]
Posted by Joey Madden (Member # 1192) on :
Dana, congratulations on finishing school and if I would known sooner you were building a photography studio I would have saved all the Bessler tools including a stand up enlarger and given them to you. However, I still do have the complete sets of the encyclopedia of Photography and Life library of photography in like new condition and if you'll pay the shipping, I will send them to you.
Posted by David Wright (Member # 111) on :
Hey!
Posted by Glenn Taylor (Member # 162) on :
Hmmmm....who does have the most posts?
Posted by Ian Stewart-Koster (Member # 3500) on :
I've always had the attitude that the only stupid question is the one you're not game to ask...so ask away.
If a thread 'dies' after you respond, maybe yours was the final good/best/conclusive answer.
It's a two-way street, asking for help, getting it, and giving help back. This forum works really well in both directions.
(and I remember when I thought member #3500 was way out on the top of the heap looking like a shining newbie, and then 'phew' someone else joined so I wasn't the newest anymore! I think I spen maybe 18 months before I posted something, but back then, we didn't have internet at home,(didn't even have a modem on the PC), so it was a matter of using the local library 50 km away, when I could book a timeslot.)
It's still a great social and technical place- as the slogan says "an online letterheads meet that never ends".
Thanks, Steve & Barb!
Posted by Chuck Peterson (Member # 70) on :
Yes, I've been lurking a lot. Learning while I'm lurking. I just haven't been too busy with signs. I've been enjoying watercolor painting as a hobby. Hopefully some of what I learn will find its way somehow into my signwork. A few years ago I was so stressed out from too much work. I wanted to slow down but not this much. But I guess everything is the way it's supposed to be or else it would be different.
Posted by jake snow (Member # 5889) on :
Hey Sonny...BOO! there, I posted :-)
Posted by Joe Cieslowski (Member # 2429) on :
Lurker????
Who me?
I registered and probably posted 2 minutes later on 11/10/01.......a day after I got a computer and a dial-up connection. I'm not exactly what you call a shy guy.
Dialed up chat that night and was addicted for about two years.....it was a fun crew!
I did know quite a few folks already from meets and the ACC show (including Steve and Barb) so I wasn't really a stranger.
Wow, nine years, 1800+ posts and more than a few picures....FKAB, who could forget. I wasn't even making signs back then......just carving. Sorta got back into it with the house markers a few years ago ("to fill in my lower price point"....LOL)
I'm still hanging but there isn't much this old guy can help with....I've given up thinking that I could help someone get into hand carved signs profesionaly. Sooooooooooo......
I'll be posting less and lurking more than I do now.....just to see what my old friends are up to.
I'll try to get to NC, but without doing any workshops. Just lay back and say "HI" to my ole friends. (Always a joy to meet up with Sonny and all the Dixie folks).
To those who haven't introduced themselves yet, join in.......you won't make better friends or get better advise anywhere else.
Joe,
Makin Chip$ and Havin Fun!
Posted by Mark Matyjakowski (Member # 294) on :
I don't post nearly as much as long ago... but usually pop in for a quick lurk.
I probably just don't have anything to say.
Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
"I have stopped lurking & only recently started posting, & the answers to the questions I so nervously asked have saved me tons of headaches already"
Marge, that's a great example. There's so many ways to screw something up in this business, so why not jump in and reap the benefits of learning from all the mistakes we've already collectively made. And judging from my own experience, trust me, we've made a bunch......
Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
and David, that picture was taken by Steve Shortreed on my back porch when he and Barb came to visit. When I'm in the sun, you can bet I'll have my shades on, but that photo is about 10 years old - can anybody tell me how to change it? I'll Photoshop something that will make me look studly.....
Posted by Marty Happy (Member # 302) on :
Stumbled on the the original version of this site when it was in it's infancy and lurked for a long while before registering and I only did that because I needed an answer to some question I can't even remember anymore. But I have a printed copy of that exchange somewhere because it was exciting to be acknowledged in cyberworld by those I grew to respect in months of lurking.
Not long after I was convinced to go to my first meet in Banff where I again quietly lurked in the shadows!(LOL)
I've always been the quiet one in real life and on-line. Not often I have questions or answers these days and the novelty of seeing myself on-line is not nearly as exciting as it used to be. So I'll continue to lurk.
[ January 06, 2010, 06:27 PM: Message edited by: Marty Happy ]
Posted by Deri Russell (Member # 119) on :
Dana congratulations on finishing school. Sam- watch it with the graphic artist opening sign shop remarks! LOL. Joey- so that's what you look like! I always wondered. Yup, a lot like what I thought you would look like. Sonny, I agree whole heartedly with your comment "there are so many ways to screw up in this business". I think that's why I come on and just go off the air without talking. I come on to get the answers I need for my screw ups and then rush back to try and fix them. LOL
Posted by Dave Grundy (Member # 103) on :
After 7000+ posts I figure I have said more than most folks ever wanted to hear.
Since retiring, I still lurk here at least once a day just to see what's going on and add a comment here and there when it is something I know to be correct.
No sense in trying to catch up with Si or OP or Glenn.
Joey...Nice to see your smiling face on here!
Posted by Sheila Ferrell (Member # 3741) on :
Ha! Sonny . . . cute thread!
I have'nt tho't about 'lurkers' much . . . I mean, hey, they are by definition seemingly 'not there'.
But personalities are displayed in all ways. If we're not careful, we can have a 'they're not there' attitude with shyer, quieter, or more reserved people at a live meet. I don't wanna force people to participate, at the same time, I hope they feel a warm enough welcome to open up a little when they're ready.
I'm one of those people who shot out of the gate at full-throttle when I first came to Letterville. Ya know? (. . . duh! ya THINK? they said togther) It was kind'a like . . . 'OH! HERE they are! THIS is my real family! I was wondering why regular people did'nt seem 'right' . . . I so totally identified with things I read here, responding was as natural as breathing . . .
Meanwhile, coming out of the gate hard and developing a full-blown addiction requires a lot of energy and of course, is the leading cause of burn-out, so I kind'a fizzled out after a while . . .
These days I'm expending only slight energy developing delayed lurking tendencies . . . *schnicker*
Commenting only when I feel I can actually contribute, or I know the poster personally, or when I know I can keep my natural sarcasm subdued to a managable level . . . hahahaa
Posted by Kurt Gaber (Member # 256) on :
I feel like I have been more of a lurker the last few years myself. I have been attending Letterhead meets since 1984, and have learned a ton about signmaking from this forum alone. In the late 90's I really spent alot of time on the BB and in the Letterhead chat room waaaaaaayyyy before the green "chat button" was around.
Things change over time including work flow, work styles, the sign business itself with the constant change of technology, and of course personal habits and hobbies. If you see that I've only posted a few hundred times (It's been awhile since I've looked... I think I'm around 300?) it doesn't mean that I'm not participating, because I frequent the BB typically on my lunch hour when I'm taking a break from the daily work routine.
I'm proud to say that I grew up hand painting signs, and thanks to people like Mike Meyer and his enthusiasm for the craft and his frequent Letterhead meets on both small and large scales, it kept me in touch with the painted world. However, I found that in my business, I didn't want to lose touch with technology, and my business migrated more to computer designed / generated lettering and graphics.
I'm just a small two person sign shop and after eighteen years of being in business on my own, I had hoped to be a "top gun" in the painted world, but the reality is, my family, my work habits and my community have all had a hand in shaping my sign business, and I'm glad to still be going strong for nearly two decades.
I'm lucky enough to say I can still hand paint when I need to, yet I enjoy the technology end of the business as well. It's been an interesting journey... and maybe my lack of participation on the BB comes from my lack of participation in the painted world... maybe I'm feeling a bit left in the dust and it's my own fault.
Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
I'm basically talking about the folks who have NO posts. Occasionally, I see someone who jumps in on a thread with their first post and I want to say "Way to go, you're on the team". Looking on the IM list, I see people who, to my knowledge, have never even said hello, yet their names show up on a consistent basis.
Don't get me wrong, it's perfectly OK to hang on the outside, but it's sure more fun to open the door and come on in - just don't feel like you have to add your 2 cents to every single topic......
unless you're OP or Si......
Posted by W. R. Pickett (Member # 3842) on :
Chickens.
Posted by John Smith (Member # 1308) on :
I lurk ... therefore, I am .... Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
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