[Estelyn Telcontar]

I enjoy reading threads that give me an opportunity to get to know forum members better, so I hope you’ll pardon a non-teen for barging in here! I would like to add a couple of comments about the Barrow-Downs that seem relevant to what some of you have been discussing.

First, the forum is big – too big for any one person to be able to read everything here (though I do try to catch as much as I possibly can, while still living a life away from the computer). That means that members have to choose what interests them most, and ignore the rest. Whether they choose Books, RPGs, Movies, or Mirth is more a matter of personality than of age. I know many adult members, including myself, who post on the Mirth forum – but not on every thread; if you read the Walk to Rivendell or the homophone thread, you’re likely to find my posts there, for example. On the other hand, there are teen members who post well and interestingly on the Books forum – you might not realize their age from their posts, since they write in quite a mature fashion. I just happen to know a lot of their ages, since I read so many different threads.

Secondly, this is a place to be without putting up barriers of age and/or gender, etc. One of the big advantages of the internet is the fact that those can be overcome simply because we do not know that about the persons we encounter, unless they choose to tell us – and are honest about it! [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] I’m sure we’ve gotten to know people we never would have talked to if we had met them in real life – and some of them have become friends.

Thirdly, this is a place to learn! When I came here, I read more than I posted (and I still do), especially on topics about the Silmarillion etc. which I had not yet read then. There are still discussions from which I benefit by reading what others, often younger than myself, know – and I make a point not to post unless I have something worthwhile to say.

May I add one comment about the ‘personal title’ discussion – there are threads that have discussed this in the past. Please use the search to find them, so that this thread doesn’t turn into another “Why don’t I have one yet?” topic. Oh, and a tip for all who have commented on their spelling problems – it helps to use your PC’s word processor to write posts and to spellcheck them before copying and pasting them into the posting box – I did that with this one and almost always do so to be sure. The preview function helps to double-check as well.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled posts...