Been posting to the food group. At first I got some decent responses from people. They were in the minority. That was fine, but even they got tired of
responding to me. The people in that group have one thing in common beyond food - they are all into electric cars and e bikes and other new and improved bullshit that I wouldn't want even if I could afford it. They think mostly in black and white terms, not much abstract thinking, no hypothetical situations and so forth. They also get into politics a lot. This place has been restored just in the nick of time.

However, I wonder if our readership has suffered from months of idleness. They are a loyal group of people. But how much can we expect them to take? Some may have bolted early with others holding on loyally. But who knows, maybe in time they all went looking elsewhere for the entertainment AND wisdom we provided them on a daily basis. Even the most loyal clients will go elsewhere if things get bad enough. So there is an empty feeling now posting into this group. It may leave. It may leave quickly. In the meantimes I feel off balance, out of whack, disoriented. It may take a while to get my sea legs back, Swabbie.

I'm going to start giving people the address to our newsgroup. Not just anybody though. I just feel that maybe our readership is gone. I love responding to you. But to be honest, if it weren't for our readership I don't think I'd post nearly as often. I have to know that someone other than just you is reading my/our stuff. Otherwise we'd be emailing each other, right? We post here because we feel there is a chance someone else might see our 'work' and fall in love with it as did our original readership. Some may return, but how can we let them know we're back? We may need to build a completely new readership - a new and improved readership - a readership for the future.

On Saturday, June 11, 2022 at 2:18:58 AM UTC-4, jazee...@gmail.com wrote:
> I'm going to start giving people the address to our newsgroup. Not just anybody though. I just feel that maybe our readership is gone. I love responding to you. But to be honest, if it weren't for our readership I don't think I'd post nearly as often. I have to know that someone other than just you is reading my/our stuff. Otherwise we'd be emailing each other, right? We post here because we feel there is a chance someone else might see our 'work' and fall in love with it as did our original readership. Some may return, but how can we let them know we're back? We may need to build a completely new readership - a new and improved readership - a readership for the future.

It is being read. By the guy getting beat up by cops. By hungry children smelling food cooking and by the Joad himself!

OllieN...@aol.com wrote:

> It is being read. By the guy getting beat up by cops. By hungry children smelling food cooking and by the Joad himself!

So you're saying the road people are still with us, traveling all the way
to the end of the line, Ma Joad behind the wheel, and if she can't hack
it there's plenty other Joad's can take her place and I'm one of them.
I remember one time at the poolroom a bunch of us were discussing
our heritages, and of course a bunch of exotic shit was tossed in as
usual, mostly American Indian of some kind. Cherokee was popular then.
They asked how about me, what have I got in me. I told them I was half
arab and half Irish and Austrian along with a touch, maybe a tenth of
Joad in me. "What the fuck is a Joad?" one of them asked.

"Hey, if you gotta ask you ain't never gonna know", I told him.

It's the Joad Way

On Saturday, June 11, 2022 at 2:12:33 AM UTC-4, jazee...@gmail.com wrote:
> Been posting to the food group. At first I got some decent responses from people. They were in the minority. That was fine, but even they got tired of
> responding to me. The people in that group have one thing in common beyond food - they are all into electric cars and e bikes and other new and improved bullshit that I wouldn't want even if I could afford it. They think mostly in black and white terms, not much abstract thinking, no hypothetical situations and so forth. They also get into politics a lot. This place has been restored just in the nick of time.
>
> However, I wonder if our readership has suffered from months of idleness. They are a loyal group of people. But how much can we expect them to take? Some may have bolted early with others holding on loyally. But who knows, maybe in time they all went looking elsewhere for the entertainment AND wisdom we provided them on a daily basis. Even the most loyal clients will go elsewhere if things get bad enough. So there is an empty feeling now posting into this group. It may leave. It may leave quickly. In the meantimes I feel off balance, out of whack, disoriented. It may take a while to get my sea legs back, Swabbie.

I only discovered 2 days ago that you were back. Thank G_d you are! I don't like the food group much. Too many anti-Semites there.

Judith Latham wrote:

> I only discovered 2 days ago that you were back. Thank G_d you are! I don't like the food group much. Too many anti-Semites there.

It's you Judith. It's you. Wherever you go you drag it out of people. Even those without an
anti semitic bone in their body, by the time you're done forcing your Jewishness on them,
who knows what you might be able to turn them into? So for once I am asking you to look
in the mirror. Like me. I do it all the time. I monitor myself. Not for myself either. I do it
for other people. I want to present to them the best person I can possible be. Anyway, maybe
there are some anti semites on the group, I never noticed much beyond too many mathematical
debate-oriented types who like to talk about all the new stuff they own or plan to get - but I
haven't see the anti semitic thing from them much. Not saying it doesn't exist - or even if it
does, so what? - just want you think that whether it's there or not is not the issue, the issue is
"When does it come up?", and "Are you usually around when it happens?" Maybe the group
is anti semitic, Judith. But you made it that way.

"YOU MADE ME MADE WHAT I AM!"