On Yahoo Groups

More to the point, on the Yahoo Groups to which I am a member. 

If you haven't yet found the joy that is a well-run Yahoo Group, then you are missing something.  They  can be full of information and insight.  They can lead you to new internet friends and experiences.  They certainly bring us all together under a cost free, relatively well-organized umbrella that is pretty regulation free (unless you want to call your group a Stitch 'n Bitch, but that's another story).  I'm on Digest (which means I only get email from the group after a certain period of time elapses or 25 people post to the group -- whichever comes first I think) for most of my groups and I must say the one group I get each post as an email annoys me the most... rant later about that.

I'm a member of the following Yahoo Groups (can't seem to link these up without you being a member -- you'll have to search 'em yourself):

• Aranknit: a yahoo group organized around Big Sky knitting magazines and one that has pretty regular updates concerning Aran Sweaters and one knitalong, which, in a fit of orgiastic optimism, I joined because I thought I could knit along with this group and come up with a lovely cabled sweater.  Um, yeah.
• BigSkyKnittingNews: is just a 'notice group' concerning new magazines, etc. from this group.  I do have to say that their magazines are chock full of lovely patterns, well written and more pamphlet than slick publication.  Everytime I get one out, I get that can-do spirit going again and the desire to pick up and knit seed stitch and cables overcomes me. 
• Compton Heights:  this yahoo group will become the focus of the rant later in this post, and is in fact the reason for this post.  It is also the one group from which I receive each post as an email for reasons to come.
• EZasPi: Elizabeth Zimmerman's group is lovely, if often off the topic of lace knitting.  If that bugs you, don't join.  But she comments on most of the FO's posted to the group and gives great lace-knitting nuggets to the group at large.
• FlyLadyMentors:  if you're not a type A personality and are not particularly inclined toward keeping a super clean house, and if you're not married to such a person, this is the site for you.  Do not, however, sign up as anything but a digest member -- those FlyLadies are a prolific bunch and write a ton of posts a day.  The great thing about them is you can click delete any time you're not interested in shining your sink or putting on your shoes.  Go check them out.  My favorite is the 27 Fling Boogie -- I make my kids do one on their closets once a season...or in the case of Dear Son I try.
• frostflowersandleaves:  This was  a knitalong that took place starting November 1 of 2005.  Dude, 16  words:  It's holiday knitting season and I don't have time to knit this huge honking piece of lace.  Truly, the shawl Frost, Flowers and Leaves in Knitters Shawls book is, I think, my favorite shawl of all time.  To look at.  I have the yarn.  Does that count? There are still stragglers finishing and there's a ton of great info in the posts that flew fast and furious while the participants were knitting the thing, so I'm keeping my membership.  With God as my witness, I'll knit that shawl someday. (Um, for proper effect, you need to hear that spoken by Vivien Leigh in her best British/Southern accent, 'k?)
• IITCSIRALOBAM:  my book club's little perfect Yahoo Group.  Updates about meetings and offers to lend the book at hand.  That's all.   
• knittyreader:  same as above, but for Knitty.  Short and sweet.  Forget I'm in it most times.
• maryknittingandcrochetcorner:  saw this one on either Cara's blog or somewhere else.  There was quite a donnybrook here a few weeks ago about posting proprietary patterns from other blogland and internet authors.  Should have just posted links, eh?  I get the digests and I'm still deciding if the patterns and the fellowship is something I need to be a part of.  Meh.  We'll see.
• The mysteryalongs - shawl, shawl2, and stole:  Fun while they lasted and the patterns are still posted in the files of the groups.  I should print them out and get them off of their lists but I'm too lazy.
• sivia-announce:  only for new patterns, and I need to know when Sivia Harding has a new pattern out there!
• SOCKSFORSOLDIERS:  this one makes me feel good.   I'm knitting ginormous black socks and the list-mom sends them overseas.  You can also make leisure socks if you wish.  I like this because, as a mom, I do in point of fact support the soldiers.  Just not the military action.  If you have sock-knitting time, check this one out... some off topic posts, but I just delete them.
• TownsendSocksKnitALong:  another good sock group with tons of Jeanie Townsend sock patterns available as well as knitalongs. 
• yarncoop:  just about to jettison this one over a fraud debacle that took place this summer.  Lots of negativity and anger -- much of it justified.  It's a yarn cooperative where you get yarn and notions for anywhere from 20 to maybe 50 percent off.  I did order once -- some Henry's Attic, but right now I'm deciding whether it's worth the trouble as I usually just delete the digests and I don't really know what's going on anymore.  Like a car wreck, I do keep looking now and again.  And really, isn't it interesting that when folks are paying full price, they're charming and accommodating.  But offer them a deal?  Wheeooo.  Nasty and demanding. 

Our neighborhood has a Yahoo Group the intentions of which were originally to update neighbors about crime issues, to discuss rehabbing companies and techniques, and to make general neighborhood announcements.  'Originally' I said because this last week it's degenerated into a terribly annoying he-said-she said about a crocodile monitor loose in the neighborhood.  You saw it right.  Some 17-yr-old ordered one of these from Florida, built a cage for it, let it get loose and then didn't tell anyone for a few weeks that it was gone... or even here... oh whatever.  So a 4 foot lizard has been loose in the neighborhood for like 4 weeks... ok.  Scary, I guess, but probably not too interested in me -- I and my kids are definitely too large for prey.  And it's like a hundred degrees outside so my kids aren't doing a whole lot of playing in the yard anyway.   My dog's big too, so I wasn't too worried...Felt more sorry for the monitor with a St. Louis winter coming.   But when the city captured the thing, the furor started:  what came to number 24 email messages on the subject, some cogent and thoughtful, some ... well, not so much. *edited -- luckily, I can do that... Perspective is a good thing.  A Yahoo Group truly out of control.  *added:  The owner of the monitor has him back in the garage behind their lovely, turn-of-the century mansion.  He says in the paper today that he's fortified the cage.  I'm sure there'll be another volley of annoying emails about that flying about today.  But I'm above it.  I'll keep the neighborhood Yahoo Group on "individual email" just in case someone has something relevant to say -- maybe about our air conditioner theives or our copper gutter theives or perhps about a good mulch guy, cause I need one of those.

Comments

[Zarah]

That neighborhood group sounds crazy. In my experiences, yahoo groups tend to get most out of control when the people in them know each other in real life. I am part of Flylady too - I definitely need to switch to digest but I'm afraid I will just delete it. I just delete about 20 messages everytime I sit down.

[Pat K]

I was in FlyLady for a while and finally just got tired of it. I did learn some new habits from it, however. I may have to check out some of the others, if I ever find the time. ;-)

[CindyCindy]

Nope, you don't need to delete them. Your blog is your opinion stated, no more. I have actually enjoyed the crocodile monitor stories. Your neighborhood is no different than any other these days. Everyone feels entitled. I'm kinda pulling for the son on this one. I thought he had done a pretty good job of caring for the lizard, didn't you?

[Lucinda (That other Cindy)]

I saw the news article about the monitor. I'm glad it's being properly taken care of, & I hope the zoo does get custody. However, my opinion is based solely on being concerned about the poor critter & has nothing to do with property values. ;-)

[shelly]

Thanks for the info on the groups, I'll have to chekc out that Big Sky Designs one for sure, I'd really like to get some cable-y things going this fall.

BTW, I had a 4 foot West Nile monitor lizard living under the barn and it was TERRIFYING. It could jump about 3 feet in the air and slash it's tail and stab with it's head when it saw a rat. They can rotate their shoulders and hips which allows the legs to go from sprawling to upright which makes them FAST and their bites are terribly painful and septic I was told. I had twin 2 year olds at the time playing in the yard when this thing crawled out from under the barn. It ducked to walk under a radio flyer wagon. I'm a geologist/paleontologist and used to dinosaur-y reptiles and such and I grew up around bears and mountain lions, but this lizard was the scariest animal I've ever encountered. I hope they find the one in your neighborhood before anyone gets hurt or loses a pet. It's just not fair to the animal to be set loose either, but I'll save my rant on that issue. Good luck.

[Bridgett]

Come back to Jamaica, mon. Tho, I wouldn't give up your awesome house or yard for a rundown foursquare with a 30 foot wide lot....

We don't have a yahoo group. We have a monitored listserv that sometimes falls into "mee tooo" messages but usually gets its job done. And now my block and those around it are on our own little email loop. It can be useful. Or it can be bad. Who CARES about reptiles wandering around? I care about gun-toting thugs right now. :^)

[sarahkate]

I'm glad Mr. Lizard was caught, as Fox Park is located right around the corner from Compton Heights and I own cats, although Mr. Lizard might just have INCREASED my property values.
A note or two on Yahoo groups: We had one for the Arch Rival Rollergirls before our forums on our website were set up. It was the most useless piece of crap I've ever had the dospleasure of having to deal with on a daily basis, but that was because I was a moderator and spent hours a day editing out bad information.
I also belong to knittyreader and TIRCstl (a sort of "hipster's guide to what's going on in the Lou" thing that I am not cool enough to post to, but belong to for derby purposes) both of which are fabulous to read and well administered. I guess it depends on who's running the show, huh?
If the snoots in the Heights get to be too much for you, you can always come back to my side of Shenandoah.
We would welcome you with open arms!

[Michelle]

great info on all the groups.. I see were on a few together too! ;o))

[Laura]

Annie I just love you. It's so nice to find someone that doesn't get all crazy and overreact as if they are an adult with a 2nd grade education. I'm sure those people had their kids in the Emergency Room for a 100 degree temperature too. You just want to write back and ask "How do you possibly remain gainfully employed? Are you truly as stupid as you make yourself sound?" This makes me think of the stupid things that my X's family in Texas said to my children about wanting to live with me in Kansas..... My ex mother-in-law said to my son, "You don't want to move to Kansas - they teach evolution up there." My son said he just looked at her and didn't reply, he couldn't believe the stupidity of that statement. Remember Kansas being the laughing stock of the nation because they took evolution out of the curriculum?

I'm so proud of you for not having any kind of snarky responses (to the group) to their incessant emails. Feel free to vent here any time dear. :)