"Poptop" saying good-bye... (1 Viewer)

Dear Friends and Forum Members,

Thank you for having me on this mostly excellent newsgroup. I trust that I haven't made too much of a nuisance of myself, but if I have, I apologize for any transgressions and hurt feelings. I do have my share of strong opinions. What I tried to show overall was how much substance I got out of the man Bukowski. He has been an inspiration beyond words, and I tried to give something back of that appreciation and help build this newsgroup. And it was a delight getting to know some of you and hearing from you privately.

If I were to have one primary wish for Bukowski.net, it's that it should be funded or subsidized by the Bukowski estate itself. If it has any concerns about Bukowski's legacy beyond a project such as a Bukowski museum, this forum is on the front line of preserving that legacy with the public. For every one forum member here, there's between 5 and 10 non-members lurking shyly in the background, and when someone buys one Bukowski book, they often end up buying a complete set of his works. I know I did. And so the interest in knowing the inside story of Bukowski's life, in addition of course to what he has written himself, sells books, and those residuals end up back in the savings account of the Bukowski estate. I believe that the pressure to generate funds for the forum should be lessened, so everyone can have the fundamental editing rights reserved for Premiere members only, making for a more even playing field for students and for those who may lack funds, and a funding or subsidy of between $500 and $1000 a month would not be out of line, for sales will naturally come from readers the more they find out about the inside story from the knowledgeable people here. I'm not one of the most knowledgeable ones; my posts are not always factually correct, but I do feel that I sometimes get to the heart of what the man has meant to me, and perhaps how he may have looked at life in LA, because I lived fairly close to the junction of Hollywood and Western for almost 20 years and knew the area well.

So there you have it, and may the forum someday be supported financially by those who benefit the most"”the member readership, but primarily the Bukowski estate. I feel complete here and look forward to the unfolding of the next chapter of my life. It's been quite a ride so far, and thanks for sharing part of it. Take care.

Haizen aka Poptop
 
i believe i can speak for the rest of us here when i say you've added to this forum immensely. personally i've been awed by the sheer lucidity and wit of your posts. you are going to be missed!

see you down at Norms...
 
Alright Poptop, it's been a pleasure...wherever, whatever Don't Try! I think my first post on this site was in response to one of your eloquent ramblings :) I was one of those 10 shy lurkers before that...

Come back and see us, and bring a six-pack..

Bobby D
 
:confused: What's happening, poptop? Why are you leaving the forum all of a sudden? You contribute so much to the forum and I for one will be sorry to see you leave! I don't know what your reasons are but please reconsider!...
 
Hi,
It is strange to get onto a forum, post so much and then sign off forever. Did he grow tired of the forum? It is all very curious...

Bill
 
Yes it is. I expect an answer of mjp, somehow...

Bill: Did you shut off your private messages box? ;)
 
Hi,
Nope, I did not. Just trying to get caught up. It is crazy busy here. I will get you a scan (and upload it to the internet, where you can see it).

Sorry for the delay.

Best,
.Bill
 
No problem at all, Bill. It's a very good sign you're so busy, right?

Now, let's hope everything is ok with poptop.
 
It is strange to get onto a forum, post so much and then sign off forever. Did he grow tired of the forum? It is all very curious...
Very curious indeed! Did he have a conflict of sorts with someone in the forum or did he just grow tired? If you're really into Buk then it's hard to imagine someone growing tired of discussing his works. Strange that he gave no reason at all...
 
Did he have a conflict of sorts with someone in the forum...?
Yes, with me.

Long story, but in a nutshell, he was asking for changes to the way the forum works. I explained to him why I could not do what he wanted, and I figured that would be that. But he continued to push. Which is fine, really - argue for what you want, but his last reply to me came complete with insults and reminders that he was a paying member that was beginning to feel "unwelcome" and deserved (his word) to be accommodated.

I thought to myself, "Self, do you need this shit?" I guess the answer was no, because I said, "If you feel unwelcome because I won't configure the forum software to your personal liking, then go away." My intention was to get him out of my private message box, not the forum.

I realize that I'm a crank, but I think I've demonstrated that I'm reasonable when it comes to this forum. I don't feel like - or treat it like - it is my forum, it's yours. I just keep the lawn trimmed and roll the occasional vagrant out to the curb.

Anyway, his problem was with me, not the rest of you. If what he wanted was workable I would have done it. I've made plenty of changes based on what contributors and non-contributors have requested. Poptop wasn't kicked out, banished, harassed or called out publicly. In fact, if our correspondence would have been public I probably would have taken it with a grain of salt, "Oh, that's just forum posturing and bullshit," but it was private, so I had to assume he was serious. And if someone is seriously going to bust my balls over $10, I'll just give it back. My balls are worth more than that.

To me, anyway.

So, sorry, I guess I popped the top. Maybe he'll come back.
 
ah, man, your little, precious balls :D

Just kidding, huh?

anyway, I remember Poptop suggesting some changes in an old thread, probably before he began to bombard you. I can't recall as to whether his suggestions were feasible or not, but I think he made them public. maybe someone not as lazy as I am when I comes to finding old threads can dig them up... just for kicks ;)
 
I'm amazed.
He always came off as such a reasonable and mature individual.
Not someone given to dictating to the bar owner how to best serve the beer.

Oh well... He will be missed.
 
ah, man, your little, precious balls :D

Just kidding, huh?

anyway, I remember Poptop suggesting some changes in an old thread, probably before he began to bombard you. I can't recall as to whether his suggestions were feasible or not, but I think he made them public. maybe someone not as lazy as I am when I comes to finding old threads can dig them up... just for kicks ;)

Do you mean this one, cirerita?

Quote:
Originally Posted by mjp
Lots of fan mail in the inbox these days. I tell you, this success is going to go to my head! The last one is from a guy who registered to post spam.

. . . .

Barry Cross
[email protected]

I found Buk.net registed just to have a look then recieved a message saying why have'nt i posted anything yet, so i did .

this morning i logg on to find that i've been banned for life. what a fucking joke. you people must think you really are something special Fuck you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

. . . .

Hi mjp,

No fuck you from me, but I did feel a little hung out to dry when I responded to an auto-mailer (or what appeared to be an auto-mailer) I thought came from a real person after I'd been away for a couple of weeks. And I wrote a reply not realizing that at the time. I felt a little foolish. I caught on after I saw the same exact auto-reply sent to someone else except for the robot substitution of another name. I was disappointed because I felt that something as artificial as that was contrary to the spirit of Bukowski and this generally excellent newsgroup. If someone doesn't reply for awhile, I feel there is something going on and they'll turn up again if they have more to say, without any need to stimulate postings through such artificial, mechanical means. Speaking just for myself, I'd like to see the plug pulled on these robot responders and receive a personal note of interest from you, or some other real human being, to say your posts are welcomed here or you've been missed"”if that's actually the case. If not, the group is probably better off without these participants anyway. In any event, best wishes and thanks for an overall fine newsgroup.

Sincerely, Poptop

PS. Well, I'm sticking my neck out again. . . but I wouldn't mind seeing the B forum introduction revised, expanded, or updated, because I feel it's perhaps not the best reflection of your true talent as a writer or curator of Bukowski's amazing legacy. I've read some tremendous things you've done"”such as your excellent write-up of Bukowski at the Huntington"”and the current intro is lighthearted with some flashes of humor, but it doesn't reflect your depth of appreciation that might be of interest to both the novice and expert reader of the B. (If you proceed on this, I'm sure others would be glad to give you some feedback before you make it official.)

Anyway, I hope there's no hard feelings about any of this, because I hold your efforts in high regard and have enjoyed making a genuine ass of myself, even without being prompted by Mr. Robot. At least there I didn't have to worry about stepping on all the sensitive feelings in the world and mine.


Luck.
 
Well, there you go. As far as the public part is concerned, anyway.

For the record, there is not an email that goes out nagging anyone to post, just the text at the top of the forum. I did send out an email (in the early days of the forum) to people who hadn't logged in for a while inviting them to come back and see what was new. I only did that once though, and it wasn't a robot email, I wrote it.

Other email that goes out from the forum:

Daily Digest (user scheduled)
Weekly Digest (user scheduled)
Activation reminder email (to new accounts that require email activation)
Birthday email

You can opt out of receiving any mail from the forum using the preferences in your control panel. https://bukowskiforum.com/usercp.php
 

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