We could all send him e-cards. For those of us that are broke, they are free!

What happened to bill? Is it serious?

Go to the survey subscription page...subscribe if you haven't already.
See the address at the bottom?
Mail a monkeeeeee and a speedy recovery card to Bill at that address.

Having a card where everyone pitches in would be cool. I don't know whether or not I would participate though. I might with enough prodding. I'm one of those types that likes to do stuff like that (cards, get well notes etc) as an individual. A web site would be neat because we could all leave messages.

I forgot to mention that!. If a bunch of the unsubscribed would subscribe, that would cheer him up. I sent a little message with my subscription check.

Click on Survey Central's banner ads & chant:

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We should post a cool message here:

Get well soon, Bill!!

I think a "get well" site would be really cool, but I'm hoping that by the time we get our act together, he will be well again!!

What a cool survey to be number 9000!

Anyone who is not curently subscribed should do so

is he ok?? GET WELL SOON BILL!!!!

He had surgery a short while back. Go to Feedback & read the messages from his wife Jen. He is expected to recover nicely.

I didn't know he was sick.
Hey, bill, get better real soon, ya hear?

Duhya think we can rig his monitoring equipment to link up to SC?
That way he can watch his vitals and keep up with all the insanity at the same time.

I would love to subscribe, but can't afford any extra expenses right now. I'm just squeeking by on paying the bills.

Do all of the above,except the option for "do nothing".
Each person should do what their heart says to do.& if they can't do something at this time,at least post something either HERE or at FEEDBACK that he can read for the time being.A little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing.

Bill,I wish you a Speedy Gonzales recovery.How's the hospital food?? I don't know about you but,I love hospital FOOD!! I just plain love food......any kind of food.

Oh, thank you! I hope he is doing okay now......

Get your noses out of his ass. That's always a good place to start.

I'm sure he is.

Send Magbast to give him a kiss.

Does Bill pay you per subscription or by the hour?

HEY!!! we would have money if I had a second income

I considered this before the survey was created, but I still don't have a good answer.
We could send a chain e-mail, each appending some sort of graphic or poem or something.

Ohhhh,well tell him that,I was thinking of him at the time & when I eat something sweet it'll be for him.

Create a get well website for him, where each of us can post a little message, post pictures, or whatever

Why don't you make Bill a styrofoam name like mine?

Only too happy to.Great idea!!Where's his address? I'll have to do it over the weekend.

I'm not sure, but I think his e-mail address is on the feedback page, or you could just post a message on forum or feedback, and someone (jen, perhps) might give you the address.

huh? If you are nice to the person that created the site, that's somehow kissing butt, but it's ok to be nice to anyone else? The reason I ask is because I noticed that attitude in the workplace, and elsewhere. It's ok to be nice, but better not be nice to the boss/teacher or that's 'sucking up' I don't see anyone here being any nicer to Bill than they are to everyone else.

But his ass smells so delicious...we cannot help ourselves.......

Nice is one thing...kissing it is another.
There's nothing wrong with being nice to him, but treating him like "god"?

Oh. Maybe people were doing that. I didn't notice.

You mean.........Bill *isn't* God???!!! And I had him up there on that little pedestal with jms (J. Michael Straczynski) as well.....I suppose it *was* only a little pedestal. I'm still upset one of them had to fall off You didn't have to push him though Oscar, it's a bit mean pushing a guy when he's standing on one leg becaue that's the only way he fits!

Never heard of him.

He's not exactly feeling too great. Maybe it's best for him not to be standing up on one leg like that anyway.

Awwww,that's mean.....Yours was the only negative comment made.
The guy is sick & in the hospital for God sake....
Be nice........Oh,never mind.

Oscar: several things I wonder if you've considered:
1) Bill is a personal friend to many people here. On an e-mail basis if not physically present.
2) More people probably know Bill than anyone else at SC.
3) Anyone else here might also have been subject to a 'Get Well' survey.
4) Bill's a regular guy, scraping along with his hobbies and professions like anyone else. He's not at Disney public stature or something (not that that should make anything different either). You realize he's far from profiting for all the time he's spent creating SC.
5) No one here is kissing his ass.
6) 'God' is common slang for affectionate reverence that might be applied to someone in your sculpture class, just as 'Monster' might be applied to someone who's really good at a music instrument.
7) It actually wouldn't hurt to grant the guy some respect solely by virtue of his creating SC in much the same way as it wouldn't be too cool for some kid to play day after day on slides and swings in the yard of some spinster woman, then tell the other kids that their appreciation of the woman is misplaced.
8) Most of us can't afford $20, bolstering his ego is cheap.
9) From what I can tell, the guy is actually pretty humble. He does a lot of cool stuff and doesn't even mention it on SC.

You make a good devil's advocate (presenting people an alternative viewpoint to consider), but this is not the place for it. I recall going to a family reunion and was going to ask about about one of my cousins who put the family's ranch up as collatoral for a business venture and lost most of it; My uncle (not his dad) stopped me instantly from bringing the topic up on the sidelines to satisfy my curiousity. Years later I finally saw the wisdom of creating positive group energy at the expense of hiding skeletons.

I guess not. Pity, jms is looking a little bored up there on his own. I'm going to have to stick someone up there with him.

Do you want to volunteer?

Not really. I don't think I would feel comfortable up on a pedestal, unless it's my kids that put me there.

Sweet

You said exactly what I was thinking in such a respectful and wise way....I tend to get passionate and scream and name call and then my point is lost or not even communicated at all....how do you do that?
Oh and Thank you. You are an angel.....

Ditto what jen and mandy said. Do you ever get angry?

Disappointed or frustrated, often; angry, almost never.
The city of LA has just asked for 18% of my gross on some far below minimum wage software contracting work which I spent on a computer and flight to see my kids. Researching them led me to find about the church harassment for which I posted the 'feed homeless' survey. I read many laws that disturbed me, for instance transients are subject to a 35% tax on all service or product transactions as well as a hotel room tax. I've painted swastikas on the forms they send if that gives you an idea how I feel. Getting angry at individuals is different though. Leonard at the tax office, speaking through his coke-bottle glasses, doesn't have a clue how to understand my situation. He sees a gross above $0 and hears a subject of business interest, checks the appropriate boxes for business licenses and he's done with his area of understanding. The city of LA does not have laws and procedures that understand my behavior. It's hard to be easy going when you're actually being crippled by others ignorance and inflexibility. I just have to keep in mind that my anger has never helped anything.

Sorry to hear you're having such a rough time. Bureaucrats manage to cause all of us frustration at one time or another. I hope you get it all worked out okay. *BIG HUG*

Somehow I will. I've gotten as far as recalling that I've made it out of every difficulty in the past, and whatever the answer will turn out to be, there's no point in experiencing negative emotions along the way. The only reason I would in the first place is to see it as a curse or indication of losing grace. If I segregate it from my spiritual life (call it a purely external) I can handle it far easier.

Yes, the trick is to allow the logical mind to stay in control over the emotions. Easier said than done. It does help me to realize I've been through difficulties before and survived. It's just a matter of getting past it.

I'm in no way wishing him ill health. I hope he recovers quickly, but what's with everyone having to make such a big deal out of it.

Hey that was a positive..... Yay!!!!

**hug**

oh my god! good luck! get well!

whatever
If SC is your lifeline, then I think you need to get out more. There really is life beyond your monitor and keyboard.

are you serious??? Is there really life beyond this beast?

Yes, and you too can be released from your guilded cage and set free to roam about God's green earth!

Earth?? Green??
Those only exist on the Internet! Are you trying to tell me that they are real?
What is real...the Internet, or....oh!!!!!! I am so confused and lost.... and scared...

You are a cold cold dog.........

and what is so cold about that?

I know. I'm sure I will be until I help rescue all this internet captive creatures!

Does that make you feel like a better person?

Well, thanks for the crapty advice.
Maybe you should reconsider your career. FYI, I am not lashing out at intimacy, I am simply brutally honest.

Do you believe there to be a virtue in being "brutally honest" rather than "compassionately honest?"

If you cannot see it...there is no use my pointing it out, for you obviously have very little heart....

You say there is life beyond one's monitor and keyboard, but I still see you hanging around here bringing people down. Why don't you keep your ugly negativity to yourself?

I guess I could try to be compassionately honest, but for some reason, no one here at SC seems to like honesty of any kind.
Let me try again:
"I think that some people can be too obsessed with the Internet. It isn't a lifeline. You honestly have no way of knowing who you are talking. That's the beauty of the Internet...you can be anyone you want to be. All you have to do is type out whoever it is that you want to be. Pictures mean nothing. If, by chance, you know the person in real life, then in that instance, you know them...otherwise, you could be living a lie.
Is that better?

I get paid to sit in front of my monitor and keyboard.

If you can choose to be anyone you want on the internet...why have you chosen to be such a chicken?
Just curious.
Do you want people not to like you?

You owe me a keyboard.

Hi Oscar. I agree with jen (no big surprise there). What you're saying about the Internet is a popular cliche, but I don't think it's accurate. One often doesn't really know people one meets face to face. While, it may seem possible to create a fake identity on-line, the reality is that it's very hard to maintain it. I think most people on-line are being themselves. It's just yet another way that people can connect and interact, not inferior, just different.

Thanks for the nice thoughts everyone. I'm recovering well, almost 100% now.

I think it's much better. I'm not sure where you get that people aren't into honesty here, it may just have to do with how the honesty is presented. Why not give it a month and see if you see a difference in how people respond to honest things you say when you say them with compassion?

LOL What'd you spill?

Yay!! It's nice to hear from you!

The internet is a really big place. Maybe you should go check out the rest of it...

Orange juice.

I do have to agree with you on that one. People tend to have more facades in day to day life then they do on the internet.
What about the people here (myself included lol)that use/used two identities? Or the people that say, "I'm 5'4" 89lbs"? What the hell?! Those people are either anorexic or lying! Who's gonna know the difference.
See my point?
SC is kinda like a big interactive chat room in some ways. Someone asks you a question, you can answer it. Honestly or dishonestly is up to you.

I really don't care if anyone here likes me. I have friends where I live and to me, that's all that matters.

I'm hurt. Are you inviting me to leave?

fair enough... I don't think that kind of dishonesty is common, but I'll admit it happens. I'm not even sure why people do it. Seems pointless to me. And, I can make the point again that people in person also lie sometimes. Though, I'll admit, it's harder to lie about your physical characteristics in-person. I still think that most people are honest. I think it's just hard to maintain the "web of lies" over time. You have to remember what you lied about otherwise people will call you on it.

All the more reason not to do it, but some people tend to lie regardeless of the consequences.

Nice cliche. I'd rather piss in your cheerios.

sorry

If I were you I would just filter Oscar she is one of a kind that is for sure and everything you say to her she will come back and say something that makes you more mad. I filter her because of her biggoted views on gays. She made me so mad that I did not feel like fighting everytime I logged onto SC.

Uh oh...sounds sticky.

#2 -- I filtered her because of that, too, and the fact that there is no reasoning with her. It's been rather pleasant until now. She seems to enjoy stirring things up and getting lots of attention. I think it's really immature and pathetic.

Bingo!

Your projecting your problems on others. It clouds your vision of what's actually out there. If you need to run your toes through the grass, you probably should. Don't blame SC for holding you captive. If other people weren't getting somenting out of their net experiences, perhaps your preaching would be helpful, but they are. Christ teaches to teach by example. If you lived honestly and sweetly on the net, you would see that others follow suit. (they already do, but you'd get to see it too.) I told you months ago to stop feeding off negative attention. These are real people you lash out at with your pain. You still owe them all an apology. They were always here to help you, and for the most part, by some grace, still patiently do in spite of your continuing attitude. Are you asking people to lash back and justify your behavior? Are you waiting to be punished to relieve your guilt? Only you can make those sort of amends, and not by self-punishment, but rather self-love and self-acceptance, and a resolve to make improvements. 30 people have to tell you this and you're still waiting for someone to be honest?
It's your turn to be honest. Why do you do this? Do you even know?

I truly love you..............you can feel that....right?

I'm glad you chimed in. I just got a word I 'lost' someone, and I was hoping it wasn't you. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm getting lost myself. One of my classes is Philosophy of religion taught by a bearded woman who does everything she says she wont do. On one level it's about Nietsczhe. On another, life happens inbetween the space of the disolution of her critical thought. It's old hat for me of course, but I intend to have an entirely awake class by the end of the semester. Just one class, and already all the students are a riot. There watching interactions between me and another awake kaballist and wondering 'what the hell's going on here?'.
I'm doing a website for a captain of a pirate ship. I posted my first pirate chapter (thanks for the comment) there for the moment. I wish I had time to write more. My child psychology class is inspiring too. I think I can be a teacher by next fall in spite of the lack of a BA. Did you hear some state made gay adoption illegal? Next it will be gay parenting. All around me I see the rise of a Nazi state. I prayed some bad stuff out of commission (declined to state), but there's more springing up all the time. You're a quick learner; I can use all the help I can get.
and I do love you too. I'm spread quite thin lately, but you'll always be there with me.

I wish Mr. Marrs, a speedy recovery.

*kiss*
and with each billboard...U R in me

sweet. one is obligated to use their gifts or lose them and life's purpose. i only set out to learn.

What child psychology class are you in? What level? I took that in college.

Child Growth and Development, Also known as psych 11; No prereq but psych 1 hoped for. If there's a way for me to teach by fall, she'll be the one to help me do it. As in most classes, I'm half the total student dialogue.

I'm not sure, but that might be the class I was in. The numbers are different though.