Maira

Sally--- you're a doll! So gracious of you in taking on this extra task so it can be enjoyed by many. Thank you.

Dr. Betty

Dear Sally,

Please help me out here as I have become seriously confused. Why is it that we need an "unofficial Fodor site" when we have an official one?

Secondly, how did a picture of me end up on your unofficial site without my permission?

Just Curious,
Dr. Betty

Diane

Thanks, Sally. I enjoyed your site with photos of fellow Fodorites. I'm sure someone took photos of us at the Long Beach CA gathering. Anyone out there?

s.fowler

Dr. Betty is right. I should not have added the pictures of her to the site I have been maintaining without her [or Fodor's] permission. I mistook the purpose of her posting to this thread. The links and pictures have been removed.

To answer the second issue: a number
of years ago [before Dr. Betty's advent on this board] people mentioned that they had pictures, but no idea how to get them on the web. I offered to take the time and provide the space. Since then several [including Monica, Teri and Diane] have developed their own sites. Then people started sharing their site addresses and that seemed a good thing to add. Then, of course, the famous "Paris 8." Monica's example as our "social secretary" has spawned a number of regional meetings and then the wish to have those pictures posted in a central location. The name "fodorite" was coined in those dark days of the forum's history.

The trackers that I have on the site show that there is a sustained interest in the page. However, if you believe that the time has passed for the service I have provided [and have tried to provide without axes to grind] and/or that Fodor's should add a a page of our links someplace, that is for you to pursue. I suppose I could retitle the page to "Some People who Love Travel and Just happen to hang out at..." if that would address your concern.

Folks I do NOT mean this as a solicitation for testimonials. Please don't. But if the time has come to take down the page, or rename it in such a way to downplay the Fodor's link between us all, then please let me know, preferably privately.

kk

Dear s.fowler, I tried and tried, but I simply could not abide by your desire not to have testimonials.
PLEASE KEEP your wonderful site. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Let sleeping dogs lie....and all that jazz.
Many thanks for you wonderful work. kk

Jack

MEOW! SCRATCH! SCRATCH!
While I think Dr. Betty's point is well-taken, I sense a little tension...
Would all those in favor of Sally's site remaining as is raise your hand?
And, I always thought of Dr. Betty as so elegant...

Irving

Jack, I fear you are dead on about the meow stuff.
So, consider my hand raised in order to keep Sally's site just as is.

sorry to say

Aye, aye, Jack! Consider me in!

really

Really "Dr. Betty"!!!

Are you a "real" dr.? Are you one of those pretentious PHD's?

You make me sick!!!

Dr. Betty

Dear really:

I am UNreal. Feel better now?

really

Let me guess; a "doctor" of literature?

church lady

Now Dr. Betty, Were we trying to get away with our "superior dance" again? Now apologize and we'll all be friends again.

xx

I had always thought of Dr. Betty as a woman with a great sarcastic sense of humour, I think I just found out that it wasn't sarcasm. I would probably have emailed Sally directly asking her to take my picture off her site if it was bothering me, I guess we just got a taste of the real Dr. Betty

Keep up the great work Sally!!!!!!

s.fowler

Folks. STOP IT!!!
Enough is enough.
Dr. Betty has lightened our day many a time.

A[nd, in case anyone thought of it. I do NOT post anonomously -- well once to the thread on which nationality provided the best lovers.]

Diane

Another vote to keep the site, Sally. It's important to remember why we do this in the first place, and that is our love for travel and to share with others.

Dr. Betty

I love you Sally. Please return your site to what it was and what you think it should be. Having my pictures up didn't bother me, it's just that I din't know what it is to be "unofficial." If I had wanted to send you pictures to post, I wouldn't know how to do that.

At the risk of this thread becoming a nasty thing, let me give you a little background on what had me ticked off. Mr. Flamingo up above wants to contribute and is unceremoniously told to fly away, to the echoes of derisive laughter. He is a Fodorite and has posted on the Travel Talk Section of Special Interest/Tours. I guess he has forum jumped or flown over to Europe, only to have his twig yanked. This is not the first time someone, particularly someone who does any level of travel tours, has been given the boot from the Europe Fodorites. This brought me to the Age Old Question: Who is this Fodorite Community Anyway? Are there really "Official Fodorites" and "Unofficial Fodorites?" Is this an inclusive community or not? What kind of a Fodorite am I? I form impressions of groups or communities on how it welcomes visitors, or newcomers, like Mr. Flamingo. He just lives down the block on the Travel Talk Page.

s.fowler

Mr. Flamingo was unwelcome because he is a commercial travel planner. His url leads to his commerical site, not to his photos. Fodor's to the best of my knowledge has an "no-commerical" policy. I wold not have responded if the url had lead to the pictures he listed, but it doesn't.

As to the rest of your post: well I think you are playing with words. Since you do that so much better than I, I will not attempt to respond.

Gloria

Whew! All I asked was that you share your world with me! And, I guess you did.

I still think of Dr. Betty as quite "elegant" (wasn't that Jack's word?), and Sally as a true travel soulmate.

It is wonderful how we are able to share opinions on vitually everything (yes, the male lover thing here too, Sally...), and agree or disagree, yet, all the while returning to the same theme...
we love to travel.

Thank you to all who sent the photos in, and if more of you would care to, I'd love to hear from you.
Ciao,
Gloria

kjhgkjh

Hardly think of her as elegant.

However, I must admit that she has a point about people feeling unwelcome here. I have visited this site often in the past year and a half. However, I have been forced to post anonomously because I'm not in the "in" crowd.

I must admit that seeing pictures of some of these "in" people makes me feel better. I will take my 26yr old with less travel experience to your old fogey be in bed by 9 "in" crowd.

s.fowler

Ohforgoodnesssakes.... I'm sorry you feel that way. But it's not totally fair. Yes sometimes we get testy. Yes, sometimes we descend inappropriately -- othertimes appropriately. But this is a very generous group of people. [And compared to other boards the level of good will is incredible.]An enormous amount of time is spent here sharing a wealth of knowledge. I know I have learned a LOT here that has helped the quality of my travel experiences. And I've laughed myself silly. While some of you "anons" have a recognizable style we always hope you'll join those of us who aren't. We've all been *stung* from time to time, but we just get back up and keep going

Oh -- the best post-Clinton cartoon I saw was in a New Yorker magazine. It was a couple sitting in front of the television. One said to the other something close to this: "Well I guess we'll have to go back to feeling our own pain now."