h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

A home page is a place to be yourself. If that means no flashy stuff
so be it. Also as you learn more you may want to try new things on your page. My page this year is nothing like the simple page I had last year. So relax. This is not a competition.

Thanks Shagbark. I know to come now when I need a confidence boost

Actually, my page used to be more colourful than it is now. The wonderful Amy the Ant did me a picture of myself and there was the Natural History Museum logo. Unfortunately, after h2g2's return from (I can't remember its official description) oblivion at the beginning of the year, all non-h2g2, non-blobbed pictures were slung out so my page is very plain again. Sigh.

there are lots of pictures available in the help pages that will add a little colr just to A426601,426610,A426421, or A426403. They may not be quite what you had, but they will add color.
and here-have a hickory flavored to munch on.
Funny thing about these burgers. They disappear like .

That's nice of you. Are they vegetarian? If so, I'm feeling a bit peckish (it being almost lunch time).

I'll check out those pages and see if I can find something I like. I can't do it just at the moment though. I've been here for over a year and hadn't attempted a guide entry (which is, I suppose how people pay for the privilege of having a page on h2g2) up to now. Just haven't had the time. Anyway, I've just had a go at my first and taken it over to peer review where I hope to get good advice on how to improve it. So here I am spending time I haven't really got to try to get it about right so that a scout will come along and pick it. When that's out of the way and I've caught up on my real-life commitments, I'll see about making my page look nicer. Perhaps you'll come and tell me what you think of the pics I pick, when I've finished redecorating

I didn't realize that you were a vegetarian. I'd offer you some cracked hickory nuts(shagbark being a hickory tree)
but h2g2 doesn't have a smiley for that and the image generator doesn't work in posts. What's the name of your new article?
I've got two articles sitting in the files of sub-editors myself and have been thinking about another but decided to wait until October to do it, as I am doing other things.(Like playing chess at the h2g2 chessclub)
and then as you mention there are real life commitments that keep puilling me out of cyberspace .

That's ok, cracked hickory nuts will do nicely. Don't trees, after all, produce their fruits and nuts specifically to get the likes of birds to distribute the next generation? We don't have to assume all the h2g2 burgers are made of cow and onion though - some could be vegeburgers, couldn't they? This one definitely is!

The article is "Wild birds and domesticated cats" and it explains how cat owners can help wild birds.

What are your articles about? Are there any in peer review at the moment?

It's a pain the way real life interferes with all the stuff that's actually interesting, like chatting to people at h2g2 and reading the guide entries. Some of them are really interesting and written so well, you can't help wondering if their writers write for a living. My little effort is very humble by comparison!

athing. I did this post once already this morning but must have gone elsewhere befoe it was updated and so it was lost
. One more time(hope you don't mind a long rambling post, I promise more cracked hickory nuts at the end)
I wish to apologise for being so long to respond. actually it was your article in peer review that first called you to my attention.
My wife has a backyard habitat(National Wildlife federation 19995)
which is a greenspace in a city of about 120,000 residents where
about a hundred sparrows, half a dozen cardinals, a few blue jays, and a pair of chickadees find cover, food, and a birdbath in suummer. It is visited by several squirrels and an occassional stray cat (not owned by us). Also in winter there is a hawk which migrates into the area and terrorizes the flock. they can avoid the cats by just staying off the ground for a couple hours but how do you avoid a hawk?As to my articles I have one on my home city of Lansing MI and another about a place we visited on vacation (Sedgwick Geological Trail) Both have been recommended by scouts and were removed from peer review in July. There are links to them on my home page. Just click on the word Shagbark above if you want to see my home page
as promised here's something to munch on .

It's a relief to know I'm not the only one who loses messages to the ether

I read your entries. They're grand - just what the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy is all about! I'm sure lots of hitchhikers will be glad of those.

The greenspace backyard habitat sounds wonderful. All those fabulous birds. Wow. Is it part of your garden, a collection of people's gardens or a completely separate piece of land? How does it work? What's the National Wildlife Federation 19995?

It's a shame the hawk takes some of the birds but I guess it's all part of the natural order. They have to live too and that's how they live. Speaking as a vegetarian, I can't pretend I like it but hawks are beautiful and I don't know about your neck of the woods, but their numbers certainly aren't spiralling out of control in Britain. They've been persecuted by farmers and hunters for hundreds of years here and that still goes on today with species they're trying to reintroduce after they were wiped out.

I appreciated your message over at peer review. I think I might take out that quote paragraph. The neutering doesn't really fit in with the article and the quote doesn't fit in with the style. It's too aggressive and I'm not really comfortable with it. I'll see how I feel about it tomorrow. It's too late to start fiddling around with it now (midnight) and I'm so full of nuts and vegiburger I think I need a lie down

Here is more about out "greenspace" actually that is not the official
designation. It is called a backyard habitat. When My wife's first husband bought the place fourty years ago, it was just two city lots
(the lower one with no street access). Trees and abor-vitae planted by him have taken over the space so now there is no longer enough sunny space to have a garden. This backyard habitat is roughly 60 feet wide by 180 feet deep( that invcludes the house facing on a residential street. There is an organization in the USA called the "National Wildlife Federation" They encourage people to make their city lots more bird friendly. To do this they set up a program where you could register your backyard if you provided the three elements: food, water, and cover. My wife did so and got a plaque for the picket fence and a certificate which hangs proudly in the kitchen.
She probably uses a twenty pound sack of bird seed every three days.

Hi Shagbark. It's been a strange and horrible couple of days, hasn't it? I read your message yesterday afternoon and tried to reply then but h2g2 was going slower than a sleepy slug. Made several attempts to log on with equally little success. Then, in the evening, I turned on the tv and caught the news. I think my jaw must've dropped with a thud because when I regained my wits, some hours later, I practically had to lift it from the ground and hold it in place. After that I just seemed to be glued to the news for the rest of the evening. Don't know what to say about it. It's just too horrible for words. I hope you and all your family and friends were nowhere near those terrible events.

I was going to say, re your "greenspace", I don't know who to envy most, you and your wife or the birds. My garden birds also get through a fair amount of bird seed and peanuts but nowhere near the amount your birds put away. I want to say how wonderful, but perhaps things don't seem ever so wonderful from where you're standing at the moment. I feel guilty about feeling good about your birds when all those people (the victims and their families) must be so frightened and miserable. Well .... my heart goes out to them but there's still a bright corner in my mind where I'm imagining your garden with so many birds that they can consume 40 + pounds of seed a week.

Due to the current situation half the time I get a screen that says no server. The NYC disaster was about 850 miles from where I sit. Yesterday there were long lines at gas stations because somehow a rumor got started that this disaster would raise gasoline prices. Today our State Attorney General broadcast on the radio that she is prepared to investigate price gouging.
Meanwhile it is peaceful here and the birds are flying from tree to tree and stopping to feed. We had a turtledove on our birdbath this noon. If you want to read what h2g2 researchers are saying about the disaster or add your name to the h2g2 condolence book go to F76594

I've had a few probs getting onto h2g2 as well. Don't know why. I thought it might have something to do with all the new researchers that have been signing up. I wonder why so may new researchers have suddenly started signing up.

I found the book of condolence (with your help) and went over to read and leave a message. Now the USA knows it has lots and lots of friends

At last, I've heard from one of my cousins who lives in NY. She said the building she was working in had to be evacuated. Her husband had been working at the WTC up until 2 weeks ago and some of his colleagues were still there. They know of 4 lost in the buildings and, by some awful coincidence, one was lost in one of the hijacked planes that crashed. They're doing some voluntary work, collecting for victims' families now. They've been badly shaken.

Has your Attorney General managed to stamp on the gasoline price hikes? Honestly! Some people ah?

I believe turtle doves are seasonal visitors to Britain, but I've never seen one in real life. How lovely to have them in your garden. They look beautiful in the bird book pictures. I was trying to work out how much the birds in my tiny little garden get through. It must be about 2 - 3 pounds per day at the moment. This is a season of plenty though. The hedgerows are full of berries and the acorns are ripening. I know they're eating plenty of berries just now because there're purple bird droppings all around the feeders. Still, the farmers are hedge mangling at the moment and I shall have a moan about that over on the article thread later. Lunch break's over. Speak to you later.

It's a good thing home pages are not a competition. I just checked out aka's page and it is way beyond my ability. I can do without the
animation on my page. Just a few simple photos to brighten up the place is enough for me. don't you agree?

That sure was a busy page! I've just put some pics on my page. One of my friends might be coming over to have a look at it later so I thought I'd better 'tart' it up a bit otherwise I might be thought lazy ... which could be true.

I do agree with you though. Trouble is, too many animations slow down the loading time of your page and I, for one, haven't got anything interesting enough to say, to make the wait worthwhile

The pictures do improve your homepage. I wonder however if you really need a header and subheader together at the top.
something between them would be nice.(or just get rid of the subheader). then again it is your page. You do what looks good to you.
Talking about things you didn't intend to sign up for, I have a funny story for you. In 1996 I got married and while honeymooning
in NYC we decided to take in a recital of Brahms Requim.
We didn't realise until they handed us the sheet music that it
was a sing along. Whats more the lyrics were in German and neither my wife nor I are fluent in that language. We stood in the middle and one ladie came up wondering where the section line was and asked my wife "are you singing Soprano or Alto." This really happened.
My wife explained the situation to her. We stayed and mouthed the words. I haven't been back to New York since and they have a much worse nightmare to deal with right now. matter of fact, we all do

Ok Shagbark. I've changed my page some more - just to try to impress you. I've found out how to change fonts and put in smileys and turn that moose blob into a link to the natural history museum. See what you think now.

I noticed that you're one of the smiley researcher and I'm impressed. Well done that tree!

Your Brahms Requiem experience is an absolute classic nightmare of the unprepared exam type. I'll probably have one just like it now you've told me about it

your home page is looking great

And again: Thank you so much. You're too kind

talk about my wanting things perfect...I added a poem to my home page and I have changed the verse three times. Take a loo sometime and tell me what you think.

I am going to be more careful with my typing. I did not mean to suggest you take a loo
Anyway I wanted to let you know the editors finally took my last article out of recommended status and they are now edited articles
Also I am joining the Central US Researchers Group and put a link to them on my home page. Come November the poem will leave my home page
and that bare baobob tree will be added.