💾 Archived View for gemini.spam.works › mirrors › textfiles › messages › BACKWATER › bw850403.txt captured on 2022-07-17 at 09:09:43.

View Raw

More Information

⬅️ Previous capture (2022-06-12)

-=-=-=-=-=-=-


1 If you are in need of help, you need but ask...
2 ************************* INSTALLED: 3 APR 85 ************************************
3 Welcome to BWMS (BackWater Message System)  Mike Day System operator
4 ************************************************************
5 GENERAL DISCLAIMER: BWMS IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INFORMATION
6                     PLACED ON THIS SYSTEM.
7 BWMS was created as an electronic bill board. BWMS is a privately owned
8 and operated system which is currently open for use by the general public.
9 No restrictions are placed on the use of the system. As the system is
10 privately owned, I retain the right to remove any and all messages which
11 I may find offensive. Because of the limited size of the system, it will be
12 periodically purged of messages. (only 629 lines of data can be saved)
13 To leave a message, type 'ENTER' and use ctrl/C or break to get out of the
14 ENTER mode. The message is automatically stored. If after entering the
15 message you find you made a mistake, use the replace command to replace
16 the line. To exit from the system, type 'OFF' then hang up.
17 Type 'HELP' to see other commands that are available on the system.
18 *****************************************************************
19 
20 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^     (the striking blow)
21         Just as I was unable to halt the flight of the arrow as it passed over-
22 head, nor was I able to withstand the pain I felt as it's counterpart struck 
23 home to my bossom.  What was there to be done now that all things have made for
24 this final encounter?  I could see that my time with mortals was short and very
25 near an end.
26         Two figures fell to the ground as cries from their companions filled
27 the air, disbelief in the actions of the present.  As I raised my head to look
28 into the faces of our visitors txeir features were now clear.  How is it that I
29 was unable to recognize the face of the one I had watched grow from its 
30 infancy?  Extreme grief came over me as I knew that the visitors were of the 
31 House which I guarded.  The irony of it all, I the castellan of House West to
32 be struck down in a struggle with my own Family...  Master West and his
33 guardian of the Sound, Castle by the Lake, wounded by the people they trusted
34 as friends.  Friends in this instance could not be blamed for what they had
35 done for it had been done for the 
36 safety of their groups as a whole against what could have been who-knows-what 
37 sort of evil.
38 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^/     --->the wounded Guardian...     93?:11
39 
40 Waiting for the sound of a knock at the door. When it is heard, the minutes will stop
41 and heaven will be open to the two that will remain. All alone. Two people. Heaven.
42 
43 Heab
44 Heaven at the hands of the Cosmic Messanger.
45 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
46 
47 <+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+>
48  Zippy:  So, by your absnsce tooday, I will assume that you got YOUR drives 
49 yesterday.Now all you need is something that will work with them...
50 
      	I got my account on the honeywell tooday(thelegitaccount.shhhhhhh).
51 
I was also informed that i can use $5000 of time on the system.With only 3 months
52 
to go, I dont think that i will have a problem keeping the tab below that...
53 

54 
                                                              Asp
55 
<+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+><+>
56 Cistop Mikey:  Thanks!  I thought I was safe with the one second delay but I
57 guess I haven't tried when the disk was nearly full...I'll fix it.  But I am
58 confused!  If BWMS can accept characters without delay, and my cheapy modem
59 (really cheap--$59.95) is what causes the need for it here, then how come I can
60 upload messages reliably to CBBS, CompuServe, etc. without any intercharacter
61 delay, using the same modem??                   --PUZZLED PROGRAMMER
62 
63 :*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*just lurking;not much thyme;be by again real soon*=*=*=*=*
64 LAZANDODNEZALAZENDO............................................................
65      Reli and Denap had headed into town that morniong to pick up a hydraulic
66 pump bearing for Loraine, a human female with whom she and her 'father' had 
67 been living.
68      On thair way to hytronix GK., Denap had stoped off at a human drinking
69 establishment tor refreshment, and a hushed backroom conversation (from which
70 Reli had been curtly excluded.  She had
71 seen the same shafpenz who had been trying to subdue her moments before in the
72 alley, emerge from the room in question moments before her 'father's' return.
73      Considering the shafpenz' demonstrated reluctance to leave living witness-
74 ess, Laz's prognostication for Denap's continued good health was mot optom,istic
75      As they talked, they continued down the 'street' in the direction of Laz's
76 company owned transport: a human manufactured grav-sled the size and shape of a
77 Lananaran single-ship but with out space drives.
78      Sorting out his own feelings; it seamed to Laz that ther was nothing for it
79 but to look up this Loraine.  By human law he would probably have to leave her
80 (reli) thair.  He was not, at this thought, entirely without trepidation.
81            ELSEWARE---
82 LAZENDODNEZALAZENDO...........................................................
83 Programmer: Your modem IS a factor, but I suspect that BW's hard/software
84 may have something to do with it too. My M3 never had any trouble with BW
85 but the M100 occasionally has trouble when I type fast (I can type fast
86 enought to partially fill my keyboard buffer, thus causing MAX send rate). 
87 Mikey: Since BW is the ONLY system that this shows up on, maybe we need
88 to compare notes. The most common errors are substituting 'x' for 'h'
89 (I think this only happens with l/c...) and substituting <DEL> for 's'
90 Any ideas? I wonder if either bw is slightly 'out-of-tune' or maybe it
91 just echoes faster txan other systems....
92 ____________________________Leonard_____________________________________
93 ps the h-to-x bug struck again. Also that should be 'o' to <DEL> (ie
94 'person' became 'pern'....
95 ___________________________________________________________________________
96 No more space, huh?*:*:*:*:bye*:*:
97 *_)$*!@)_^*#$)_^*#$)_*^#$)_*^)_#@!*^)_#!*^)_!#*^)_#$*^)_#$*^_)#&$)_&#)_^#&^#^^
98         "In here!", yelled L'homme. He and the others had been perusing the
99 computer data banks for information regarding the former NET agent now known
100 as Kosta. Farley was busy with the data banks on Kosta's Eastern European
101 experiences, Fellows was checking in to past NET activities, and L'homme sans
102 Parity was searching through all information relating too past acquaintances
103 and associates. Parity was the first to find anything of more than mild
104 interest. He had called in the other two to show them what he found. He could
105 have sent them the text via inter-office window/mail system, but he preferred
106 the flesh/blood communication system better.
107         "Dig up any old skeletons Parity?", Fellows, as always, joked.
108         "Skeletons no, leads yes. Take a look at this interesting bit of
109 trivia about one Miss Mary Lamb. It turns out that Kosta spent some time
110 in the beautiful Queen of the Pacific, San Francisco, before he left for
111 Europe on that last mission. Most of said time was spent in the company of
112 Miss Lamb. She was quite the social butterfly, and for her to stay with Kosta
113 for such an extended period of time was big news for the local gadflys and
114 mouths-about-town. When Kosta left on his mission, Lamb disappeared for a
115 couple weeks, but then she resurfaced, and returned to her normal busy
116 social schedule. I ran a cross-tab on her, and found out that although she
117 has calmed down a bit from her heyday, she still manages to make the society
118 page from time to time."
119         Farley cut in. "And you think Kosta may have gone to San Fran to re-
120 kindle an old flame?"
121         "Perhaps. It's our best lead yet. We really have nothing else to go
122 on. Kosta is an experienced agent, and he hid his trail from the cabin
123 perfectly. No airline traces, no rented cars. You should take notes from this
124 man Farley."
125         Farley nodded. He realized he had much to learn. He was still only
126 a junior agent, but already Parity and Fellows were paying much more attention
127 to what he said, and their critical comments were coming less and less.
128 	"Then it is off to California we go!" Fellows sang. "My fav-or-rite
129 state in the union." He pronounced each part of the word very carefully, so to
130 get the maximum reaction from his two fellow agents. "I wish they all could
131 be Cal-if-for-nia girlssssss!"
132 	"Enough already. Fellows, if you weren't such a good agent in the
133 field, I would have you sent to Ada for retraining. Your lack of any decorum
134 does not befit even the loose standards of code we have here." It was hard to
135 tell if Parity was serious or joking.
136 	"La Home", he started, deliberately mispronouncing the name, "you take
137 things too seriously. Lighten up old man. We NET agents gots to have a little
138 fun once in a while. Heavens knows Ian doesn't give us a helluva chance to
139 have any."
140 	"Ian..." Farley straightened up at the mention of the name of the head 
141 of NET. "Shouldn't we tell him about our plans. He said he wanted to keep
142 a tighter reign on things. Ever since the... attempt, he has been... well
143 different. Have you noticed too?"
144 	"Sure he's acting different. It has been awhile since Ian has been in
145 the field. I don't think he's used to the climate out there. Someone brought
146 the weather in to him, and it has indeed changed him. Don't worry though. He'll
147 get better. He's just a bit touchy." L'homme seemed sure of what he was saying,
148 but Farley was unconvinced.
149 	"I guess so, but I still wonder."
150 	"OK boys. Let's tell Ian our plans, and have Ada book us on the next
151 flight to the bay. I noticed on the check-out display that someone else has 
152 the Lear. Darn I hate PDX, and those tasteless snacks the airlines hoist on
153 people, but I guess we have no choice. The days of Atomic cars are over."
154 	"Yes." sighed Parity and Farley in perfect unison. They laughed, 
155 turned off the displays, and made their arrangements.
156 
157 	After cursing up a storm that would make a sailor blush, the cabbie
158 guided his yellow decker up Mission street to 6th. "That's fine. Let us off
159 here." L'homme paid the driver a handsome tip, and the three NET agents
160 exited the cab into the sunny 70 degree weather. "Off this way. And watch
161 the cars. These people are crazy down here." L'homme warned.
162 	"I know..." Fellows smiled. "I know."
163 *)%#@_%*#@_)^*#_$)^*@#)_^*@#)_^* L'homme sans Parity %*#_)%*@#)_%*@#_)%*@)_#%*@
164 ch /too/to/ duh!
165 Mikey : I get out of class at 9:20pm. I'll try to make it there by 10:00.
166 Voyeur: Ditto. Try to stick around of at all possible.
167 Farley: Let's get that Spanish polished up. I think we are going to need it.
168 Beuno!
169 *%_)#@*%_)@#*%)_@#*%)#@*%)_#{body}amp;*^)_#*^_#)*^#)_*^#)_^*#)_*^#_)*^_@)*^)_#$*^@^@_^
170 
171 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
172 El espanol?  Ay de mi!  No hablo el espanol bien.  Tuve dos anos de espanol,
173 pero no penso que esta basante.
174 (Whew, thank goodness for Spanish dictionaries...)
175 #$##$##$#
176 A year is a long time.  Not nearly so long as a lifetime, or a decade, but
177 even so, it may seem long.  I know this past year has seemed to expand into
178 four years.  Still, as long as it may seem, a year is only a year.
179 A year ago, I bought a modem.  A year ago, I discovered the number of Backwater
180 and decided to give it a try.  Today marks exactly 1 year that I have been on
181 Backwater.
182 My deepest admiration and most heartfelt praise are yours; thank you, everyone,
183 for helping to make this last year the best one of my life.
184 #$##$##$##$# Farley #$# (18 YEARS OLD TODAY!) #$##$##$##$# 00:07 - 4/4/85 #$#
185 THORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHORTHOR
186 THOR wishes Farley a happy birthday and many more to come. Be thy happiness 
187 be tripled by ten score your years on 
188 this earth.
189 TTTTTTTHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRR
190 
191 /=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/
192         As night began to settle, the brilliance of the evenings calm rang
193 clear. Night's lack of city noise can sound just as loud as day but never so
194 sweet. This isi the time when all others go about turning off their lights and
195 stagger off into blissful slumber. This is the time when I start to unwind.
196         Taking up the habit I had allowed to lapse in recent months was that of
197 reading for relaxation. A good book, on occasion, could be more relaxing than
198 some attepmts at inteligent conversation with a drowsy friend. As I started
199 reading the third chapter for the evening the words began to flow effortlessly
200 towards my mind. The pages were like sheets fluttering in the wind and my hands
201 the breeze that caused their unfolding. As the pages turned to hours I barely
202 noted that my eyes were now reading through closed lids, only savoring the
203 final words that had been read rather than continuing on in delight of the new
204 ones.
205         When I begin to feel so content I no longer care that I am holding the
206 pages open. I just hold on lest it fall to the ground, away from my grasp.
207 /=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/
208         This is more the intent I had of a story when I first decided to put
209 my entries here. It botherd me a whole bunch to know that I had lost the first
210 two contracts that day and I couldn't help but let loose in story form. It's
211 something I have just recently started doing again. Now where's that book?
212                                         Piner
213 /=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/=/
214 
215 
216 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^     (hidden in my words...)
217      It seems that I have picked the right time and the right place.  "At the 
218 top" does allow for a bit more recognition I suppose.  Life brings about many
219 changes, and how can I avoid placing my deep down thoughts in my writing?
220 Do not attempt to read too much into my words, none of you know me that way.
221 At least, I do not believe so... yet.     Thank you for the letters, m'ladies.
222 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^     --->the fallen Guardian     94?:04
223 
224 
225 
226 
227 pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
228   The piper sat nursing another ale.  His clothing repaired or replaced, he
229 showed little effects of his recent adventure save some slight burns along
230 one side of his jaw.  His appearance, however, was somewhat different -- 
231 several bolts had seared large parts of his full beard into a tangled mess.
232 Giving up the salvage effort, the piper had exposed his chin (contrary to
233 popular rumor, he does posess at least one of those accessories) to the
234 cruel atmosphere of the outside world.  Listening with only half of his
235 attention, he heard Farley announce his 18th birthday.  With a smile,
236 the piper stood and winded his pipes.  Soon the patrons were singing (and
237 refusing to pay the copyright holder any royalties) "Happy birrthdayy
238 deeaar Faaarleeey    happy birth day to yoouu."
239 pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
240 ************************************************************************
241 Leonard: It's a combination of factors really, I send to BW without delays
242 all the time. I have been in situations where the phone line was so terible
243 that I had to do the character wait thing though. The modem on BW has a 
244 crystal controled transmiter, so it isn't off tune. However, there is no
245 filter on the transmitter, so it puts out a bit more spectral garbage then
246 some of the better modems. Its carrier is digitally generated waveform.
247 (It uses the motoral 41211 modem chip.) It also only has 8 poles of filtering,
248 compared to the 12 or more in the better modems. Thus some of the problems
249 that are encountered. When the two characters are transmitted at the same
250 time they affect the overall signal, sometimes canceling each other out,
251 other time adding to each other. it is up to the filters to try to figure
252 this mess out. The more and better filtering you have the better it is
253 able to figure it out, the trade off is the more filtering you have, the
254 more difficult it is to get them to respond quickly enough to the signal
255 changes. Like a bigger car that takes longer to stop because of the increased
256 inertia, more filters offer more inertia to the signal change, they want
257 to keep on ringing at the previous frequency. So they have to be very
258 carfully tuned to be as responsive as possible. The big problem that I
259 had with the PCS modem that is on BW is when I designed it, it was to be
260 a 'kit' which means no tuning allowed since most builders wouldn't have
261 the means or knowledge to do so, so I had to compromise. So it isn't the
262 perfect modem, but out of 85 kits that were built, I only know of 3 that
263 didn't work, and those were due to the usual assembly errors.
264 ************************** CISTOP MIKEY *******************************
265 -*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-
266   I wish I had something beautiful so I could destroy it. The most beautif-
267 ul part of my life was destroyed today.
268 -*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*Alice Brand*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-
269 I don't suppose it would help to say I'm sorry, even if I am. But, I am
270 as much as I could be...
271 000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
272 
273      Rhian pressed on, watching with    trepidation as the ferocity of the 
274 storm increased.  Pulling the ragged    hood of his cloak over his wet,
275 snow soaked head, he sighed tiredly.  
276 He had been caught in one of these      Northmountian squalls once before, 
277 and, decidedly, one such encounter 
278 with the particular phenomena was
279 quite enough for any man.  The "White   devils" he had heard them called; 
280 came swiftly, dropped the temperature   with startling rapidity and were
281 known to linger for a notoriously long  time. As he shook the annoying 
282 accumulation of snow from himself, he   grunted scornfully. Longer than he 
283 cared to wait. And yet he could remember a timewhen he had thought this 
284         self same storms "Beautiful". When he
285 
286 had first arrived, they had been
287 "Tranquil and soothing to watch" Hah!
288 He smiled at the irony. Of course, that had been behind windows of glass, 
289 before a roaring fire. He flexed his    rapidly numbing fingers, wishing
290 vainly for that fire, for that room,    even for the cheap leather gloves 
291 he had sold weeks ago for a few pennies.Tucking them under his arms, he 
292 carefully utilized the warmth he found  there. No, this life wasn't for him
293 Never had been. See the world. Rhian    spat scornfully, his saliva freezin
294 before it even hit the ground.
295      He looked upward. It really was    getting cold now.  But the sky
296 showed no signs of slowing; if anything it was speeding up. Well, it was 
297 now down to two choices, Rhian thought. Stay on the main road, or what he 
298 could still see of it, and die of 
299 exposure, or leave the road, and die in the endless myriad of rolling hills
300 Rhian felt a distinct tinge of dislike  at each. He shivered, wishing for a
301 coin to flip.
302      Suddenly, from the east there was a biting gust of icy wind, slicing 
303 through all Rhian's attempts at warmth.
304  Moving quickly into the shelter of some trees near the road, he made a 
305 quick descision. Why not? At leadst the
306 trees could offer some windbreak. He    always had liked trees.
307 
308 
309 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Ahlannah \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
310 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
311   FINALLY DECIDED TO FIND ME OUT, EH???   WELL, MAYBE WE CAN TALK.
312 FEEL FREE TO LEAVE A MESSAGE HERE TO "SUPER-USER".
313 
314                                                  SU
315 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
316 iCan anyone help me learn how to use thi
317 
318 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
319 THOR, piper, Thank you.
320 #$##$##$#
321 	PDX, Farley thought, must certainly be one of the oddest places in the state.
322 Groups of ex-Dangerfield followers gathered near the terminals, waiting to
323 pester unsuspecting travellers to buy their daisies.  A punk rocker lurked
324 at every door, or so it seemed.  One group in particular had a sign reading
325 "Frisco JAM '85" in large violet colors.
326 	Despite the weirdness, Fellows seemed right at home.  "Hey, great group of
327 people we've got here.  La Home, aren't you travelling with that group there?",
328 he said, pointing at the sign.
329 	"No, but I'm sure that group is just chuck full of subversive elements.
330 Fellows, you've always wanted to go undercover for an indefinite period...",
331 L'homme began, obviously annoyed at being reminded of his previous disguise.
332 	"Now waaaaait a minute.  Just stop thinking that, as of now" Fellows said.
333 "What?  Did you hear what I heard, Farley?  There *IS* a limit to how far
334 Fellows will go?"
335 "Stop picking on him, L'homme.  Personally, I think that last suggestion was
336 punishment enough for his continual wise-cracks."
337 "All right, Farley.  Ah, there's the gate for our flight."
338 Farley and L'homme, carrying their small but completely-stocked suitcases,
339 moved off towards the gate.  Fellows, a bit miffed at having his game played
340 back on him, hesitated a moment, then quickly caught up.
341 	After an uneventful boarding of the plane, the three agents found their seats.
342 To avoid suspicion, their seats were scattered randomly throughout the first-
343 class section.  To communicate, the NET labs had supplied small transceivers
344 to the agents that fit in the ear.  Nothing had been overlooked, all details
345 accounted for, except....
346 <Hey, La Home> Fellows whispered through his transceiver.
347 <What now, Fellows?>
348 <I've checked everywhere.  NET labs didn't supply one.>
349 <Supply one of what?>, I broke in.
350 <They forgot my toothbrush.  You know how I hate to travel without a
351 toothbrush, don't you, La Home?>
352 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$# Farley #$##$##$##$##$# 22:25 - 04/04/85 
353 .,.,.,.,.,.,.,..,.,.,,.,..,.,.,,,.,,..,,.,..,,..,,..,,.,.,.,..,,..,.,.,,..,
354 HOWS EVERBODY DOIN. ? IM JUST TESTING A NEW SETUP HERE SO COULD
355 SOMEONE TELL ME HOW THIS MESSAGE TUURN OUT 
356 THANKS 
357 STUDENT
358 ...,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,,..,,.,.,.,,.,..,.,.,.,,..,.,.,.,.,,.,.
359 
360 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
361 l'homme,Leonard,somebody?
362 could someone tell me what each of those little dip switches inside the front
363 of a Hays modem do?
364 seams that one has turned up here but the carrier detect dont (or dosnt seam to)
365 ALL suggestions will probably be considered!
366 on another thought; has anybody seen mig?  lately?
367 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*Themnax of Lananara*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
368 will somebody maby tell me saturday what this situation the Gaurdian is in is
369 all about?
370 seams the phones have been down for a week (long story) and ive missed a few
371 discs.
372 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
373    
374 Yes, wouldn't we all like to know?
375 .............       .............       .............       .............
376      Slowly but surely he made his way through the cold of the mountains. (A
377 ot of them around lately.)  It was a hard thing for him to hide from so many
378 others that he had almost assumed that he would have been followed and caught
379 with no hesitation, but wasn't.  Why hadn't they followed?  Ha d he convinced
380 them all too cleverly with his deceit and cunning?  Or was the pursuit of the
381 other more important to them?  As he continued in his quest for some small
382 piece of shelter, a place where che could spend a few tiring moments in rest,
383 one thing came back to his mind.  Although not prepared for the coming night,
384 he had remembered a reason for hope, a reason for living just one more day in
385 order that he may soon be reunited with that hope.
386      Stumbling on in vain, fleeing just for fleeing's sake, fatigue soon over-
387 came this man of adventure and his legs began to slow due to the elements 
388 unending assault on his body.  With a slowed reaction time, his foot caught on
389 a stump limb that his eye had missed in the early dusk. His body came to the
390 ground with a shallow thud and there he stayed.  Body inert but mind racing
391 like a grayhound after a rabbit, he soon came up with a way to remove the 
392 restraints at his wrists behind his back.  Had he been able use his arm for
393 balance as he ran, he might not have taken so many falls, so much pain, so many
394 new scars.  But as a man with training and experience behind him he did not cry
395 out when his nerves demanded he should.  No, although human, he forced himself
396 to play the professional.  With his arms now freed, he brought his hands out 
397 from behind his back and rolled over into a sitting position so that he may
398 survey the bruises left by the bands that had once held them... dark they were.
399 Bruises that should be red, but turned blue from the chill were covered by only
400 one thing other than the cuffs of his thin shirt and jacket.  And that one
401 thing reminded him more of his goal to stay alive, to struggle the one who had
402 given him this token of her affection.  It was a simple man's bracelet with an
403 inscription on it that could hardly be read due to the abuse it had suffered 
404 along with its owner, and on it were five simple words, and they were
405                  TO  LEWIS,  WITH  LOVE.    MARY.
406      His eyes closed slowly as the memories came rushing back to him.  The few
407 hours they were able to spend with each other on those days that were so far 
408 apart, and now so long ago flooded his mind.  Her almost believed that he could
409 see her face before him once again, the touch of her hand, the feel of her hair
410 as it would pass across his face and along his shoulders - ecstacy...
411      "In all my days, I promise to thee, *I* shall return to our 'square one'."
412 His eyes came back open and now had the glazed look of a desperate man.  There
413 was no stopping this one any longer, he had a new mission.  And a date with his
414 new destiny.
415 KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA KOSTA ? KOSTA
416 
417 
418 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
419    The evening was still early.  A stack of plates covered one corner of the 
420 glowing wooden bartop where the innkeeper was discussing some arcane abstraction
421 with a small group of patrons.  The hum of conversation, which never stopped
422 at the inn, had reached a still-low level.
423    The piper, having finished a satisfying dinner that most assuredly would
424 increase his already respectable girth, was making his way between several
425 tables, planning to engage someone new in conversation.  He nearly did not
426 see the black-robed figure sitting in the shadows.  The fustian robe rustled
427 slightly as the figure reached out an arm to tug at the piper's sleeve.
428   Politely the piper paused.
429   "Ahh...  "  The voice was a hoarse whisper, not betraying whether the speaker
430 was male or female.
431 "Sit, good sir," the voice continued.  "Would you not like to glimpse the 
432 future?"
433 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
434 ::::::::::::::O O:::::::::08:15:::::::::::::::::::::4/05::::::::O O::::::::::::
435 Cistop Mikey: The Tandy 2000 has a 8251A Programmable Communication Interface (USART).
436 L'homme: HONYWELL displays the intitial menu, then ignores whatever I type.
437 :::::::::::::::O O:::::::::::::::::::::voyeur:::::::::::::::O O::::::::::::
438 -*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*
439     I shouldn't have broken it.It was so beautiful. But it was a choice between breaking it or letting
440 it become ugly. Breaking it worked, it grew back, shaped differently, but still beautiful. I don't 
441 think it was happy being broken. So it grew together again. I think it's even more beautiful now.
442 -*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*Alice Brand*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*-#-*
443 ...............................................................................
444 Last night
445 between kisses 
446 he told me of his coup
447 in Philosophy--a weak spot
448 in Kant's ethics--
449 and I listened,
450 grateful for
451 philosophers
452 and kisses.
453 ..........................................Entropy..............................
454 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?`? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ?
455 Themnax:around, weak,feeble,anemic, but around. If you would be so kind as too 
456 bring the keyboard docs I will have another Gray person contact you.
457 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ?
458 
459 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiiiiG/ ? ? ? ?^?
460 Other Gray Person, thanks for the short warning.  I think.
461 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?[MiiiiG/ ? ? ? ? ?
462 
463 
464 .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)
465  
466      Into the night I'd
467      Follow if I could but the 
468      Bright chains of 
469      Daylife hold me down
470      Tied to the sun 
471      Some night I shall
472      Slip the noose 
473      Lose my brightness 
474      Fade over into 
475      Your shadows
476  
477 .)   .)   .)     kml.)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)   .)
478 
479 NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET
480 	Contrary to popular belief, this office's laboratory has not as of yet
481 produced such a solution that would enable us to convert our members to 
482 the size required to fit in one's ear. So far, results have only proven minimal
483 in that some of said members have only been reduced to the size of four feet,
484 tears, and mindless complaints concerning the lack of proper results.
485 	Small electronic devices are now available; small people are not.
486 NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET NEWS NET 
487 
488 #$##$##$# Change the sentence in question to read:
489 "The NET agents had been supplied small transceivers (the ear-fit models) to
490 communicate with each other."
491 Please, don't bother me with sentence structure, it was my birthday...
492 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$# Farley #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
493 `,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,
494 Alice Brand: I liked your entry, the different meanings were ones that I have
495 	     had to see too.  You loved something so much, it hurt to see 
496 	     yourself destroy it.  But now that you see it was for the better,
497 	     do you have any questions about what you did?  It seems that 
498 	     whatever we do it brings more into the light, more for us to deal
499 	     with.    It always helps to remember the good things that have
500 	     come from things we have done.
501 `,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,`,   [Mark]
502 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
503      The main element of Lananaran society which has yet to be descouvered by
504 earth-human anthropologistys, is ther engine which drives the Lananaran economy
505      The primary driving forces of Lananaran society, seems to be the desire to create
506 beauty and to reverse entropy( which is looked upon as evil).  Perhaps these drive
507 the economy as well, though the manor in which this is done remains unclear.
508      It has been something like one hundred and forty some odd years since
509 earth-humans first encountered Lananarans.  In jthese few shory years, our own social assumptions
510 have undergone so many revisions that at least a few of us have learned to stop 
511 assuming altogather, or at least try to.  Yet, with all many points remain unclear.
512      If we have learned anything from the bloody events of 200 b.e. , let us hope
513 (however hard the lesson) that we have finaly learned not to confuse a peaceful
514 nature with weakness or vulnerability to attack, or, social stability, with technological stagn-
515 ation.
516      There is a popular misconcepation thaat Lananaran culture is some how uniform
517 or monolithic.  I must confess that my earlier triests on the subject have done little
518 to dispell this illusion, and may even have contributed to it.
519      The simple fact of the mate  is that no6t only is
520 each Lananaran a unique individual (who glories in this unipueness rather than 
521 try to hide it as we once (mistakenly) thought proper) but every village, town, 'urban' neighbor
522 hood, and rural destrict is, itself, an utterly unique cultural enclave.  Granted, the common 
523  thread of the Celo-op-Soco dominates an overwhelming majority of cases; there 
524 are , non the less, regeonal, national, and even 
525 multinational traditions.  Yet even here, individual communities interpret thyese in
526 unique and oaften unexpected ways.
527      There is however, one planet-wide universal, whichmay well c0ontribute to the
528 maintenance of this great diversity, and that is the right of free movement of 
529 indiveduals.  This is protected and, whin necessary, enforced by the planetary government itself.
530      Lananarans have an abiding love of thair transport infrastructure, at least guided
531 ground at anu rate, wjich they m,aintain with a devotion which borders on religeos.  
532 Long distance travel is kept cheap while shorter trips arre usualy free.
533 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
534 oh yes, the kbd docs, well there laying around here sooome-plaaace...
535 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ?
536 4I's: how went the evening after I departed? Perhaps on second thought I should
537 have stayed the night, they all looked so willing to be wiped all over a risk
538 board.
539 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?`? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ?
540 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
541 heather goes to mystic dawn
542 lady raises in warm forrest
543 i will lower myself for electric guideway
544 
545 tools float in erotic computer
546 trains move through digital forrest
547 i will goto green grav-sled
548 
549 heather rises in misty forrest
550 dawn floats to mystic lady
551 i will move through warm computer
552 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
553 09090909090909090909090909090909090909090909090909090909090909090909090909090909
554 yes we have little tiny hands
555 and we have little tiny feet
556 and we have little tiny teeth for eating micro fisch
557 090909090909090909090909090909090909099090909090909090909090909090990909090909
558 which eaving went how you ask who?
559 *=*=*=*=*=*x^n*=*=*=*=*=*
560 ..............................................................................
561 kml:  I really liked your entry.
562 A tough decision:  modem price = (more or less) external drive price.  How
563 can I give up watching tales unfold on my screen?  How can I end frustration
564 with switching disks all the time?  How can I do both and still have money
565 for groceries?  HE wants a drive; I want a modem.  Crossroads...
566 ...............................................Entropy....................................
567 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^     (such hard decisions...)
568      If it were possible, the modem would be the choice.
569 But I don't know where the priorities are with you, I 
570 would dearly miss the words you give us here...
571 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^     --->the          Guardian     96:04
572 
573 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiiiiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??
574 No more pizza, late show, drunk co workers, and little patience for superiors.
575 Aside from that I'm going to compile the sads of the second game of the night.
576 The first game was a real mess. There was no such thing as real strategy. All
577 you missed was a whole lot of confusion and two more victories under your belt
578 from the young ones. P is still domineering, Z is learning, and E is still the
579 same old E we all know him to be. Then there is that new merc, K. Voice later.
580 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 4 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiiiiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
581 
582 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
583   The words slowly fill up a disk.  Here we are passing the 600 mark.
584 The story can wait.... more on a fresh disk
585 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
586 &&&& & & & & &    &  &&&&  & &  &&  & &      & & &    &   &&&&&  & &  & & &  &
587 
    Some people assume right away they can figuire everyone out. Who everyone
588 is. When they become this person. And all that nifty stuff, you NET-like ones
589 in cloaks. Some people assume a lot.
590     Well I think they may be wrong, is what I assume. Some people are wrong.
591 So whgat I am guessing ( and i may be wropng, guys, so don't itch at me. )
592 So I dares, you fellers out deres, dat I am wot it is. And you dont know whpo
593 I am.
594     If you can find me, you can have mre. And all that jazz. Oh, yes, there was
595 a distinct possiblitiy of some hints beiong scattered profusely about thisbit
596 of uploading. Nyah, nyah, nyah,nyah.
597 
598 && & & & &&& & & & &&& && &    & & &     & &  Scavengers & &   7 ^ ^ ^ % & &  &
599 
600 If there are a few lines left here I guess I'll try to find out whether my
601 ad software works when the disk is nearly full....
602 123456789-123456789-123456789         [RECENTLY ENLIGHTENED PROGRAMMER]
603 
604 Yes, it does indeed lose some characters at the beginning of some lines--more of a fix is needed....
605 
606 :(Later) It took me a while to figure out how to make use of the suggestion that I wait for the
607 
608 Well, THIS fix evidently didn't work!  Back to the drawing board....
609 ^^^^^  So here I sit (stand) once more.  Among people I call new friends...
610 ^^^^^  Things that are not right are slowly becoming correct.  But how
611 ^^^^~  long will it take?
612 ^^^^^  Some are patient, I will try to be.                           --->G

TOTAL NUMBER OF LINES = 612