Three Ring Medical Circus

Well, it's more official. We've been told the baby isn't developing and that we should get rid of it using a D & C procedure. We told many of you about this on the New York boxing boards at AQ and Yahoo, but the part we haven't talked about has been the insane doctor we've been dealing with.

The man has been an insensitive lout from the beginning, blowing off my questions when I ask them (as in "what should I be eating?" and he gives me one news article on not eating soft cheeses), minimizing any pain or discomfort I've told him about (I told him I thought I had a hernia, which to this DAY still looks like a Super Ball sitting up under my skin near my pelvic join, and he told me we "can't worry about that right now, hon"), completely downplaying any hope that we get ("oh, those pregnancy tests can read false positives quite a bit...don't read too much into that, honey") and, finally, telling us we needed this D & C ("Yeah, I don't see a heartbeat today, so let's try again on Friday and schedule a D & C for next Tuesday."). Oh, and CALLING ME HONEY! He lives WAY too far above the Mason Dixon line to get away with that!

The first day of all this recent trauma, it took 3 people to find the baby, my ovaries were so swollen and sore, and when they did find it, I was crying openly in pain. He suggested a second ultrasound and the D & C in the same breath. The second day (when we had the ultrasound and could see that the yolk sac had gotten smaller and KNEW we were in trouble) we decided we'd had enough of his treating me like a thing and decided to talk to him about it. At first, we were just going to go to another doctor for the D & C, but the nurses suggested we talk to him about how we felt instead. "He needs to know he can't treat people this way!" one of them said. "And you're not the first to say it about him, either!"

So, when we sat in his office Friday and tried telling him that we really needed him to be a little less blunt and abrupt with us (after all, we've tried for 5 years and he knows how hard this must be), we weren't attacking him. We didn't have it IN us to attack him with all that we knew about the baby. Even still, he jumped to the defensive and said, "Well, I can't change my personality and if you two decide to quit, then shame on you for not continuing this process."

No, really, he actually SAID that! We hadn't decided to quit at ALL, we just wanted him to understand our discomfort and were asking him to be gentle with us.

I flared up and said, "Or maybe GOOD for us that we'd go and find a doctor who'd treat me like a human being with feelings instead of a defective machine!" He basically blew that off, too and acted like our problem was with the D & C, not his ever-so-delightful bedside manner.

Well, after that, we went to our regular OB/Gyn and after the office staff said she wasn't in, they called her at home to tell her about what was going on. She actually met with us on her day off at her office! She did what he should have done...she told us that 40% of the first pregnancies are lost and that most women don't even know it, told us about chromosomes and how things really had to be JUST right to make sure the baby would turn out right, and most importantly, that we did NOTHING wrong. Honestly, you guys, I thought I had killed the baby myself with pizza the weekend before and by lifting heavy bags. Kevin thought he should have been more vigilant about my diet and what I was carrying.

"If it were that easy to get rid of a baby," our OB/GYN smiled, "don't you think there'd be a run on junk food and heavy bags right now and a considerable lack of abortions?" And, just like that, we knew she was right and we actually both smiled. All that confusion with the doctor and what we really needed was a minor therapy session! I cried and she hugged us both and told us to change doctors right away. "He's getting paid enough to at least be nice to you," she growled.

So that led to yesterday (Monday). Kevin called and asked to change doctors in a polite way. The office person said she couldn't do that and directed us to (horror!) the SAME doctor. Kinda like having a rape victim talk to the rapist about their difficulties, really! Anyway, Kevin let him know that it was not a personal matter, we just understood what he said about not being able to change his personality. We couldn't do that, either, and we just wanted to find the least stressful way to handle all this. We thought we'd be doing him a favor by asking to switch to one of the other doctors in the office.

The guy LOST it! "Well, we doctors have rights, too! We don't need to be stressed out, either!" I wasn't on the phone, but my husband said he couldn't believe his ears. I mean, WHO CARES what he was feeling about this? He has pictures of his 4 beautiful children all over his office and we've tried for 5 years to get ONE, only to run into him and his "feelings". Plus, when we first talked to him on Friday, that would have been a GREAT time to fix everyone's hurt feelings, but he wasn't willing to do that...couldn't change his personality (something I KNOW was a lie because I've seen him be nice and personable to other patients, even to me, as long as the intern is in the room). I've never in my life had a professional act in such a way. I, as a teacher, would never act this way. I wouldn't tell a parent "Well, your kid makes me mad, too, so there!" even if the kid really DID drive me crazy. It's...well, childish and whiny and I'm the adult, right?

So, Kevin said what I was thinking, which was "I guess I don't see how our leaving would upset you, since you're saying this causes you stress." The doctor changed the subject and demanded to know wo was doing our D & C. Kevin said that our doctor had suggested someone and before he could say more, the doctor said, "Well, call me back when that's over and we'll talk...I have to go now, goodbye!" and HUNG UP!

So, this has been one of those weird things that's so messed up, it's actually funny. I know we'll get through this and we'll get another doctor, but I figured I blog about it so people in the same situation know you DO have rights. You do NOT have to see the same doctor. You can choose any other in the same office. We're planning on asking one of the other specialists to take our case, but if they feel strongly about it because of the jerk we're dealing with, I won't put them in that position. We'll just go to another office entirely (which is also our choice and right).

No matter what, though...do NOT let some professional make you feel like you don't matter. A fertility specialist SHOULD care about your needs and should be able to counsel you a little we you need it. It's a stressful time and a hard enough situation without you having to fight for fair treatment. Take it from us...you DON'T have to put up with it and there ARE nicer, more caring doctors in this world!

General Gathering Update

For those of you new to the boxing circles, I thought I'd go ahead and post a list of events in and around New York State that you can definitely make it to. You just missed Desperately Seeking Sun (http://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=106) and its evening counterpart, Desperately Seeking Suds (http://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=117), but you can still join us the rest of this year for some more serious boxing fun.

An event/gathering is basically a potluck lunch/dinner where peoplemeet other boxers, exchange other stamps and find the boxes set up specially for the gathering. There's always a stamp that you can only get by going to the event, plus other people's personal boxes and travellers from around the country that you'll finally get to see. You can find these events and more at Atlas Quest(http://www.atlasquest.com), so if you plan on travelling, check out the general events page at http://www.atlasquest.com/events/:

Rocks, Docks and Locks Gathering in Kingston, ON: This one is beingheld by our neighbors to the north, Norasta and the Jigss clan. A lotof us are going AND it's on a BOAT for Memorial Day weekend!http://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=78

3rd Somewhat Annual Finger Lakes Gathering: Despite the name, these aregetting to be a pretty regular occurence at the beginning of the summerthat we all enjoy! :-) Usually held right in/around the Ithaca area,which is only about 3 hours or sohttp://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=73

OOSA Cookout: This event in Columbus, OH is actually only 6 hours fromMedina, NY, so Buffalonians can shave off an hour and be there, whileRochesterians would need to tack on an hour. Either way, it's withinreach for a summer trip! http://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=136

4th Annual Western New York Gathering in the Southern Tier region: Ourown area gathering at summer's end. We're hoping to make this one acamping trip in Allegheny State Park for those interested, so if youcan stay longer, there'll be evening activities the Friday before andthat Saturday night. http://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=102

Wonders of the World in Albany, NY: Right in the middle of NYS, Tamsynand friends are planning this themed event in October. More details asthey get fleshed out! http://www.atlasquest.com/events/event.html?gEventId=119

That's it for now...more bulletins as warranted!

The Sprite & the Highlander

Bun packin'!

Well, it's official. After 5 years of trying, we're finally pregnant (apparently, sleeping with one's mother helps!). My boobs hurt, my abdomen feels like I'm going to start my period every five seconds, but I'm honestly and truly pregnant (plus Celtic Quinn & Sweet Heart made a Little Terror cootie with a baby carving just for us, so now we're having a boxer, too!). I took a blood test back on the 16th of February (2 weeks after my insemination on the 2nd) and it has me very clearly over the HCG levels needed.

Of course, the minute I finally let loose the news at Desperately Seeking Suds (of which I had NONE of, of course!), I start a little spotting and some cramping (sharper than the original stuff I was feeling). Plus the doctor says the HCG levels in my last blood workup didn't have the numbers doubling the way they're supposed to, so now they want me to take another test tomorrow. Apparently being pregnant does not necessarily mean STAYING pregnant.

Worried? Yep.

But, like my mom said, "If it's meant to be, it's meant to be." And Kevin keeps reminding me he loves me, no matter what. So I figure I got THAT goin' fer me (watch, now the kid'll turn out to be Bill Murray!)

Kinda weird finally thinking about having a baby, though. Suddenly NOTHING in the house looked like it was suitable to me and EVERYTHING seemed expensive to Kevin ("you know how much these things cost to RAISE???"). I want to do a good job, I want to make sure the kid is happy, healthy, can read well, doesn't get picked on about the interracial thing, smart, good at...everything, especially the stuff that pays well, loves everything, but only gets attached to the things that treat him/her well...so much to demand and so little time...

Plus, you feel like you should be MUCH less demanding of God when he finally grants your fondest wish, but still...oh, human greed and need is a rough taskmaster!

Wish us luck, 'cause we SURE don't need more misfortune! ;-)

Some other boxing blogs

Found some boxing blogs! This one belongs to Bulldawg, one of the carvers in our Kevin Smith PLB Ring. http://bulldawgandboxers.blogspot.com/

Dixiekin also has one of her own: http://dixiekin.blogspot.com/

Western New York Travel Log Series

Okay, we finally took a break from the attempts at babymaking (which has involved too many doctors and nurses to be as enjoyable as it sounds!) to box a little again today. We actually DID head to Studio Arena and found the Man in Black, then went off to find CQ's hostel, which has apparently disappeared! I hope for his sake it's still around, but that hole looked MIGHTY empty at last check... :-(

Anyway, as we drove around town and I started noticing all thehistorical and other such places I really love (Teddy Roosevelt Inaugural site, Shea's, Forest Lawn, St. Louis Church, the Naval Park, etc), I was suddenly struck with a desire to start a new series. I was thinking of calling it Sights and Sounds of Buffalo until I realized that a few of the places are outside Buffalo proper (and even outside Erie County!). Also, I have no sounds of the area except the Highlander's flatulence...so, as soon as I make my Kevin Smith PLB stamp, the WNY Travel Log series kicks off! I'm not sure what stampI'll make first, but it'll be something urban, I'm sure (boxes out in the wild are really nice, but urban boxes give you the REAL cloak and dagger feel!).

Also, the Highlander has FINALLY taken up the carving tool again and is doing his own dragon series. Both of us are sitting fireside and carving tonight...honestly, you can't put a price on finding a commoninterest with your loved ones!Anyway, back to the Speedycut and tracings...!

The (gazing adoringly at the hubby) Sprite & the ("What? What'd I DO?")Highlander

Deep in the Heart of Boxing Country for Thanksgiving!

Well, our little jaunt down to Texas to see my (Sprite's) familydidn't turn out quite the way I planned as far as boxing, but westill accomplished some things! We went down on Thanksgiving day andcam back on Saturday, so we really had only Friday to box at all.When we got there, I was so glad to see my family again that Icouldn't bring myself to zip out of the house early in the morning toget boxes. My dad made a huge breakfast on Friday morning after he got up around 11, so we didn't even get going until 1pm.Our plan was to hit the Highlander's favorite Mexican joint (UncleJulio's) after visiting one of the kids I practically raised, so weheaded out to McKinney, which strangely enough had NO letterboxes init! The girl I raised has grown in a beautiful, confident young womanwith a terrific husband (whom I also used to take care of) and a newhouse that's she very proud of. So, needless to say, I turned themBOTH into letterboxers (Flutter Puppy and the Stealth Wookie, forthose keeping track of newbie names!) and we decided to go find someboxes.

That was when I realized I had left my trail stamp at my parents's house.

By that point, we were running out of time. We had to meet up with another one of my kids at the restaurant (and replace our box that had gone missing from there), then the Highlander had promised tomake venison chili for my folks, so we had to go to the store andthen get the chili started before dinner, which was about 3 hoursaway...and we were already at least an hour from home.

So, instead of searching for boxes, we planted one of my retired PLBs that I had wanted to place in McKinney (what better place for KC and theSunshine Band than a place with LOTS of sunshine!), went to UncleJulio's and put out the new box before lunch and went home filledwith margarita swirls and good will towards men!So, not quite the boxing tour de force I had hoped for (2 boxesplanted and 0 found), but strangely enough, a very satisfying holiday weekend!

Happy holidays, all!

The (filled with holiday joy) Sprite & the (filled with Mexican cuisine) Highlander

Gathering fun back on the table!

Just when I thought I could stop looking for events to go to until the snow thawed, we're back in action! There's actually going to be a WINTER event coming up soon, long before the other 3 events for next year. Lock Wench is running Desperately Seeking Sun in Syracuse, which will not only include boxing and carving lessons, but SLEDDING! SERIOUSLY! Yay New York in the wintertime!

The other events really aren't that far away, since next year is really little more than a month from now, so let me make mention of them all. First will be Rocks, Docks and Locks in Kingston, Ontario (which for most Upstate New Yorkers is only about 3 or 4 hours drive). It'll be on Memorial Day weekend in 2006. It's being put on by Norasta and Jiggs, who're frequent border crossers for our US events in New York, so we can't wait to visit them on their home turf. The best part is the meet is being held on a SHIP! It's called the Alexander Henry and is now a bed and breakfast for visitors. We can't wait to check this one out!

Next on the list will be the 3rd Annual Finger Lakes Gathering in Ithaca, New York on June 10, 2006. Turtle McQ has done these in the past and they've been great gatherings. Last year, we even had boxing royalty in the house...Green Tortuga and Amanda From Seattle! Totally cool meeting famous people that are just nice folks after all!

The last one is our personal project, the 4th Annual Western New York Gathering on August 25-27. In honor of poor Dagonell the Pirate (who's driven all over creation for these events up from somewhere deep in Chatauqua region), we've opted to take this event closer to his home turf this year. The plan is to do a 2 day camping trip (Friday night to Sunday morning) at Allegheny State Park for those interested in staying ovenight, which would still be a day event on Saturday for those who just want to come and go. Since we have to wait and actually see what camping and boxing is like down in Alleghany, we have no real details as yet and probably won't until summer starts.

Either way, there's a TON going on next year and we are SO there already! :-)

The (completely over her gathering fatigue) Sprite & the (knows how long THAT'LL last!) Highlander

Fairy Ring PLB (and a little rant!)

Just started a new postal ring, the Fairy Ring. All you have to do to participate is create a sprite or fairy stamp carving to add. With all the problems that tend to plague these rings, I'm hoping all 20 of my participants will be responsible mailers! :-)

Hey, is it just me, or is anyone ELSE noticing that people keep posting comments to my blog that are totally other there??? I'm noticing people who have NO interest whatsoever in letterboxing are posting stuff that makes no sense in the comments sections like some sort of low budget ad campaign. This one guy told me he found my blog very "inmformative" (???) and posted something about a trading company blog, while someone else had something about Halloween costumes a while ago. Who ARE these people????

Seriously, folks, if you're reading this, feel free to post about letterboxing. Feel free to post about stamping. Feel free to post about ink, carving tools, gatherings or to say hi, I love/hate your site! You can even post to let everyone know about your personal letterboxing/stamping/inking/hiking/related to boxing blog. But DO NOT post stuff here that has NOTHING to do with what I'M posting here...to steal a snooty turn of phrase, it cheapens us both!

Oh, yeah, so BOXING! :-) The Highlander and I are also heading to Desperately Seeking Sun in Syracuse in February, so we haven't entirely hibernated after all. I'm looking forward to boxing indoors, so I might start planting a mall series, if I can get away with it. Might have to be min-boxes, but it's a thought...

Okay, mostly babbling now, but thought I hadn't babbled in a while, so...yeah! Hey, seriously, if you have a boxing blog, post here so I can make mention of you here. I know for sure of a few blogs, but I have forgotten their web addys, so Celtic Quinn and Dixiekin...remind me again!

The (not as bitter as she sounds) Sprite & the (still thinks computers are from the devil) Highlander

Boxing clues now posted under July 2005

Oh, yeah! I finally started posting our clues to this blog (which will eventually become our new clue posting site once it's complete). Our first real blog was in August 2005, so right now, anything listed in our archives before then will be our clues list. The first ones are under January 2004 and they continue from there (btw, these are more updated than the ones on our original clues site). Any questions or mistakes, let us know!

The (industrious) Sprite & the (still thinks computers and phones are of the devil) Highlander

Boxing Updates & T-shirt shout-out

Okay, so we officially didn't come up with a night boxing event for this year...but maybe next Halloween! Sorry, folks!

Still, we (okay, I...the Highlander was up duck hunting at 3am!) had a good day boxing today. Tirolbill, the IAP and I picked up the rest of the boxes in North Tonawanda and a bunch of the Kenmore kids' Plumber's Tools series. We also dropped off everyone's gifts to Team Dakota and hooked up with a new boxing group at Cup of Joe, We Who Must Not Be Named! Hopefully we'll get them to show up at a gathering next year!

We still have t-shirts here for those of you that paid for them (or had them paid for) and haven't pick them up yet. If you want us to mail them to you, you can just Paypal us $3.85 and we'll send them out to you in a flat rate envelope. Here's the ones we still have with the sizes we had listed for you...contact us soon if you haven't already done so:

Crafymouse & Dandelion--M & XL
Dusty Strings--M
Dagonell--XL
Norasta & Guitarzan--L & XL
WINK & Tarheel--L & XL
Tirolbill--L
Songchick--M, L & 2XL
Jiggs--S & 2XL
Ninja Rob--XL
Lockwench--L & L
Joystar--L
IAP--2XL

By the way, it turns out the cost for the flat rate envelopes was only $3.85, not $3.95. If you paid the higher price, we owe you a dime! We can Paypal that or mail you the difference. Let us know!

The Sprite & the Highlander

Random Stuff

So I FINALLY found the chat room for Atlas Quest! You have to download the toolbar first, but once you do, there;s a little unlabeled button next to the "Links" button that takes you to a chat room. Who knew??? While I was there, Scarab told me there's a new Yahoo group for keeping track of your travelling event stamps. The addresss is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LBNA_EventBoxes/ I just added The Four Seasons to the database there and there's already a few listed, so it promises to be a good deal.

Team Dakota HAS returned after all! They're back and it looks like they plan to stay, but boxing is the last thing on their minds right now. Things went a little south down south, so I think they're just going to regroup and start over. Of course, nosy me is already planning to fix that deal VERY soon...people without boxing equipment count as refugees in need of FEMA assistance, as far as I'm concerned (more on that later).

Anyway, my sniffles from the cold wind on Saturday have turned into a full blown cold, darn it! It's like I'm being punished for having fun boxing. Thus, the shirts that need mailing have been sitting on the counter at our house waiting for an evening where I'm NOT under the influence of Sudafed or Actifed to go to the PO. I promise to get this done this week, seriously. On that note, though, if anyone else is interested in a shirt, now's the time to tell me. I have a few folks straggling in, but not enough to make a second order for $11 each yet (and without enough to make a order, shirts are $25 each). Holler if you want one!

Okay, head pounding...typing bad now...I'm off to snuggle into some Highlander for the night!

The (too sick to be creative with the parentheses) Sprite & the (making her get off the computer) Highlander

Boxing Ro-Cho-Cho

Finally, a day of boxing with just the Highlander and I! I get so caught up asking others to box with us that I had forgotten what it was like to just be out together doing what we love...walking and talking in the autumn splendor while searching for boxes. The Highlander's neck problems have abated considerably, so he finally got to enjoy a day of hiking, too.

Rochester is really a nice place (regardless of what the Buffalo snobs may say!). We LOVED the Urban Letterboxer's Eastman School of Music series, one of which was another book hidden like our Letterbook box. Unfortunately, out of the 8 boxes we tried, 3 were missing/couldn't be found, and one just got too dark (thank goodness for the Highlander in dark scary places at night! Still, it was a terrific day...not too hot, not too cold, not too long or short a walk, everything just right! I swear, we're not boxing with ANYone else for at least a month, just so we can hang out with each other all over again! I think we'll also start boxing earlier in the day...I love sleeping in, but on a boxing day, it just seems a shame to sleep away those extra hours.

Now, if I could just get my PLB going, my boxing life would be easy! :-P

The (back in the saddle again) Sprite & the (loving the ride, but glad to be back to the bunkhouse) Highlander

Snurgerblatt!

Okay, before anyone gets their feelings hurt...yes...YES, we had a mini-meet (turns her head in shame)! I feel like I cheated on someone! :-)

Actually, it wasn't even all that. Basically, the t-shirts are here so a few folks stopped by to pick theirs up. The Elba Onions and the G Team grabbed theirs early on, but the Quinn kids brought a few friends later in the day that hadn't stamped into the HH hostel with the new stamp (and I hadn't the heart to keep another woman's children in the cold with no place to sit). Plus, there were new HH's that I hadn't stamped into yet and I needed to get my book in order after the trip to Florida...

So, they came and talked and stamped in and talked and passed around PLBs they had with us and talked some MORE and the next thing we knew, 3 hours had passed and we'd just had an impromptu mini-meet. I grabbed some leftover Speedy Cut in the shape of a kinda weird looking Rhode Island and we all put a little carved something onto it and voila!...event stamp. Sweet Heart came up with the name as we were all trying to craft something clever ("Just call it something made up like snurgerblatt or something!") and we couldn't stop laughing about how silly the word sounded (and how to correctly spell it!), so that made it official.

All in all, not a bad way to break up a cold rainy weekend. I would never have planned it ('cause that takes work and effort and cleaning and FOOD), but as a spur of the moment thing, I'm all for it! :-)

The (playing like she's 17) Sprite & the (just glad to be back to the land of the living again) Highlander

T-shirts and updates...at long last!

Well, it's finally happened. After a month of herniated discs, hospital visits and cortisone shots, the Highlander was finally able to struggle into work this week and see about the shirts. They shouldbe ready by tomorrow for us and we'll start mailing out the ones to those of you who paid for it this weekend. I'm pretty sure we AREN'T going to be doing any more travel or gatherings this year, so anyone that wants to come to the hitchhiker hostel is welcome to grab your shirt when you come. I just want to take care of the hubby for awhile and enjoy the recent peace that's come from finally getting him some pain relief.

Hope the world of boxing is still spinning without us! We did get to take a trip to visit my grannies in Florida and took one letterboxing to pick up A Leaf and Wanderings (both planted by Kirbert). We even planted three new boxes in the area which Kirbert has graciously offered to adopt for us! I also took a trip alone to the the LBMA Gathering at Knoebels with my friend and her family, but the Highlander and I shall never gather separately (???) again if I can help it...after all, it's a two person stamp!

I hear Team Dakota snuck back into town under cover of night and might be staying. If anyone knows where they are, let us know...we have a PLB for them!

The S & H

Short Boxing Trip and...well, BOXES!!!

Just got back from Pennsylvania tonight after visiting our friends the Millers for the Labor Day weekend. We hadn't intended to turn it into a boxing weekend/recruitment trip, but after two pf Lightnin' Bug's boxes (Trexler's Tatanka and The Caboose of the Ironton Rail series), we've got a family of new boxers and 3 more participants for the Knoebel's Gathering at the end of September! Oh, what a demanding mistress letterboxing is, constantly demanding new sacrifices and fresh blood....! :-)

Oh, and as if to prove that the boxing gods are smiling down on us, we went into the Tops Market in Medina right before we left and found they had brought back the display of Lock and Lock boxes we all love to use! I bought a bunch on the spot and almost left the milk and stuff I CAME for behind!

School starts tomorrow, so the last major boxing events we have for this year (at least as far as I KNOW) are all coming up in the next few months. The Knoebel's Event is at the end of September in PA, the "Lake Eerie" Gathering in Ohio is in October as well as the Pink Flamingo Caper in CT and HOPEFULLY a night boxing event. We even plan to visit my grannies in Florida to box with them for a weekend. After that, though, I think the Highlander and I are due for a social calendar rest! We'll check back with everyone soon!

The Sprite & the Highlander

2005 WNY Gathering Wrap Up

And another good time was had by all! Thanks to everyone that came for making this a wonderful weekend of boxing! The Highlander and I had a ball Saturday and it seemed like everyone left happy with the amount of boxing and socializing available, which is all we ask for! We even had a great time Sunday with Jiggs (sorry we lost you after lunch, man!), Craftmouse and Dandelion. I just posted Mama Rose's pics to the AQ site and the photo folder at the Yahoo group (plus I'll add them to our wrap-up page on our website), but if anyone else has pics to share, please post them as well!

Thanks to all who donated boxes, food, raffle items and, of course, money...we actually broke even for a change on the supplies and pavillion! :-) And SUPER special thanks to my planting partners, without whom we could not have done this...the IAP, Celtic Quinn, Silver Dragon Quinn, Mama Rose, Judomon, Little Tiger and Dances With Music (hope we're not forgetting anyone!).

The majority of these boxes are out here forever, but ALL of them are here for the next month, so feel free to return to the area and box again. Keep in mind (now that you won't have a herd of folks behind you as you box waiting to stamp in!) to take the time to rehide all the boxes as well, if not better than you find them so we've have a series that people can enjoy for years to come.

Finally, we'll be sending the t-shirt money to the makers this week and will contact all of you via AQ and this group when they finally arrive. If you can still get money to us this week, we can still get you a shirt, but e-mail us ahead of time so you'll know if we've placed the order yet.
Well, that's it for now! We're gonna find a spot to night box in October, but until then, how about a camping weekend in Allegeny NEXT August? We'll check it out and hope to see you there for the 4th Annual WNY Gathering!

The (happy, but exhausted) Sprite & the (exhausted, but happy) Highlander

Atlas Quest Ceremonial Candle Affirmation

(looks up briefly from lighting incense at her Atlas Quest shrine and dusts off her ceremonial AQ acolyte robes) Yeah, some people get really into Atlas Quest, but not me. I just...hang on a second (turns to yell at the Highlander) I said FIVE ceremonial AQ candles to be lit by NOON, not FOUR! Are you TRYING to anger the boxing gods???

Well, after this post on the Premium Boards at Atlas Quest, it was apparent that we needed to put our candles where our mouths were! So, after getting candles and our Springchick from AQ headquarters, we did Ryan one stupider and draped ourselves in the ceremonial robes to proceed with our Affirmation Ceremony.
We lit the appropriate number of candles (5), knelt at the AQ shrine (okay, sat at the picnic table with it) and spoke aloud the affirmation, thereby invoking the true spirit of letterboxing. We also read from the Book of Speedball, verses 2004-2005 and sacrificed a huge horsefly that landed on Moonlightgamer's back while we were stamping. At the end, most of us signed into the event book with the official AQ pencils, too. There was even a little bloodshed as both Celtic Quinn and Moonlightgamer were both stung by yellowjackets trying to get the "What A Boy Wants" LB out of the tree (which they successfully did, I might add!)...oh, and when I reached into my backpa...er, ceremonial bag of holding for the pencils and stabbed myself with 5 of them. I think we must have done it wrong, though, since we STILL don't have a clue! (we did kinda wait until AFTER noon to light the candles...darn it!) :-)

Even though this was a sacred gathering, it WAS an official event with its own event stamp and flash photography was allowed. Celtic Quinn should be posting the pics from this once they get home from boxing and upload them to the photo album on AQ and LBNY. We posted the Book of Speedball as well for folks to laugh at (in reverance, of course!). All in all, a hilarious day at Rotary Park, but a very weird one for the folks that lived nearby and saw us in our ceremonial robes and hats (which were NOT just sheets from the closet, the hat from an old Halloween costume and a pillow on my head, no matter WHAT the investigating officer says!).

The (sitll peeling wax off the green satin sheets) Sprite and the (reluctant to put away the ceremonial purple pimp hat from last Halloween) Highlander

LBCNY & LBWNY merge into LBNY!

Well, after asking whether or not folks wanted to change our Letterboxing Western New York shirt to say Letterboxing New York, the two New York State Yahoo groups have merged into one (and the shirt is changed, too!). The new site is at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LbNY/ and we definitely encourage everyone to join. The LBWNY group will be closing down after the gathering to promote unity within the state. The t-shirt has already been changed to say LBNY, too, so all is well in NYS boxing!

In other changes, this has become our official site from now on. Having a place to post all these updates without having to update a webpage is a much nicer prospect, so expect more info to be posted on a more regular basis.

On that note, Trogdor (one of our boxes inspired by the Millenium is now selling Trogdor t-shirts and happens to also be right near where the box is currently located...fate works in mysterious ways!

Gathering proceedings continue! Currently, the Quinn clan and friends are joining us for a little irrevent fun at the expense of Atlas Quest...check out the link for the Atlas Quest Cermonial Candle Affirmation. The shrine has been made, the PZCut has been fattened, the ink has been huffed on and I'm still looking for decent robes to wear...they just don't make graduation gowns as sturdy as they used to!

Anyway, that's all that's new with us this week...check back in a few days for last minute updates. I'm going to attempt to get my sleep patterns back in order before school starts up again (good luck with THAT, seeing how it's already 2:17am and the Highlander has been out cold since10:30!)

The S & H

Ceremonial AQ Robes and Gathering Update

Well, after SERIOUS hiking yesterday with Silver Dragon, Celtic Quinn and our new boxing buddies, Dances With Music and Mama Rose and the Rosettes, all the boxes for the gathering have at LAST been planted (plus we found the last two Penefield parks boxes without a hitch!). We were able to get every single box (yes, EVERY box!) into Durand Eastman Park, so this promises to be a day of boxing euphoria beyond compare! In addition, most of these boxes are permanent plants, so anything you miss in the 60+ boxes should still be available for at least a month, if not longer.

We're still trying to come up with ways to work this t-shirt thing by August, too, but we don't see it happening unless we A) do iron on transfers or B) find another person willing to silk screen the shirts for us with our logo. If anyone knows someone who can silk screen shirts that we order for FREE, let us know! :-) Again, we'll still get shirts, just not as fast as we'd hoped.

Also, as part of a joke that was posted on the Premium Boards at Atlas Quest, Ryan (Green Tortuga) has, in fact, sent over the ceremonial AQ candles and Springchick! :-) We plan to send him a nice photo album of our AQ ceremony invoking the spirit of letterboxing this weekend. It's going to be campy and stupid (needless to say, the Quinn Clan is automatically involved), but we'll post the pics when we're done!

The (scrubbing her acolyte/graduation robes to a spotless...er, black) Sprite & the (sharpening the sacrificial Speedball cutter and fattening the PZCut) Highlander

Tips For Attending a Gathering

As promised, here's some info we've compiled on what to do if you're attending a gathering. Rather than post a big log here, we've stored it as a printable document here: http://www.geocities.com/dasprite222/gtips.doc Ryan also has it posted on Atlas Quest, so if you can't bring up our file, just go right to this link and print this instead: http://www.atlasquest.com/events/tips2.html