We knew a bizarre thread title would grab your attention! So now that we got you here.......

The New Year is fast approaching and we all tend to find ourselves reflecting on the days that have passed, while we look forward to what the new year has in store. Many people take this time to make New Year's resolutions and promise ourselves to live healthier lives blah, blah, blah!
Well we won't be having any of that dull healthy stuff here! No siree!

This year, The Distillery is planning a different sort of New Year's event. Oh, there'll be plenty of food, drink, good music and entertainment all right, but this year we wanted to kick off the new year with a party involving a unique theme.

How unique, you ask?

Well, let me set the stage..............


Our very own Ron was feeling rather bored the other day and decided to fire off some of his explosives to pass the time. He accidentally (or maybe intentionally as we may never know) packed a little too much gun powder in one of his home-made "noise-makers", and when the dust finally settled, there stood a crater the size of Texas.

Well, there just had to be something creative we could do with this big old hole in the ground. We already have a mud pit, so we put on our thinking caps and filled our Mason jars three or seven times and set out to make good use of the new addition (or would that be subtraction?) to the Distillery.

So we thought.....and we thought....and we thought (which is why this thread is so late in the making as we are old and very slow people, but boy can we think! ) Someone in the crowd hollered out; "Let's bury a time capsule! We already got the hole and plenty of time. Wouldn't it be something if family members years from now stumbled upon our memories long after we were gone?"

Hmmmmmmm......we momentarily stopped sipping from our Mason jars as this was an interesting idea and required more input.( well Galatea was gulping, but we won't go there )

Now, since we ain't planning on going anywhere for a very very long time, this capsule would have to remain buried for at least 60 years before its contents are considered "relicts from the past".
I'll be in charge of its re-opening in the year 2065, since I do intend to live forever and therefor would still be here.

We appointed Andrew as the construction engineer since he has a tool belt. We figured any one who owned a tool belt surely could build one of these things, right? Besides the rest of us were too drunk to be working with power tools.

So, our "Time in a Bottle" party will start as soon as Andrew finishes building the time caps.....oh, he's done. Must be the metric tools he uses.

Well, I guess the party starts now!

Every member who attends must contribute something that they will be most remembered by. They can contribute as many things as they wish and it can be anything at all......even some poetry. Along with the item(s), a detailed explanation must be provided as to why the item(s) were chosen, and why that person would best be remembered by said item(s).

Of course the usual party festivities will be going on around us, and most likely for days and days. so feel free to make new memories that we can also place inside the time capsule.

Well, I have tons of things to do to get ready. I've got plenty of skeletons in my closet that I need to sort through before I make my final time capsule selection. Maybe everyone can help by giving each other suggestions???????



Let the fun begin!


I have prepared one of my own timecapsules. I have placed some rather large samples of dynamite, gunpowder, and nitroglycerin. My time capsule is set to go off in the year 3000. It will show them what we are really like.
~Alfred Hitchcock

This post has been edited at member's request.La Juliette,

I gladly contribute my dog-eared third ed. of Perrine's Sound and Sense so that people then will know that there once was an art called poetry. And also that I was the hopeless pedant of this group.

I also hand over a 750 ml bottle of Remy Martin, which LaJ will probably be the first to get to in 60 years, along with my special Bavarian cut crystal snifter. Oh, and a straw of course.

Hmmmmm......oh my dear.....let me see. What a terrible self-revelation....I have never felt like a less memorable character in my life. I have searched my brain (what is left of it) and can't seem to think of one thing that would be symbolic of any personal uniqueness.... I am indeed at a loss.

Now as far as others are concerned -- I'll start with jr because he is the only one who has posted besides my Sister LaJ. In addition to jr's voluntary legacy, I think he should include something that indicates his inner nature....perhaps one of those warm poems that hints at his underlying passion. Of course that's just my opinion.....I could be....you know....wrong.

Then there's LaJ -- my dear younger sister. I think she should leave her dog-eared first edition signed copy of The Art of Flirtation, Etc., and her tolerance for great quantities of sandslips. I just hope she doesn't mix jr's Remy with sandslips sixty years from now when she opens the capsule...... In addition, I think future generations would benefit from her sunny disposition (etiology sandslips?) and her loving warmth....but she'll be there to spread them herself. You go, Sis!

letswriteandshare should leave a symbol of her penchant for honorable behaviour and her pursuit of justice. Of course her legacy would be incomplete without some indication of her flibbertygibbety nature that we all love.

Jack -- let's see.....I think the world would benefit now and at any time in the future from Jack's eternal optimism. In addition, through his poetry, the world could learn to love less conditionally and more selflessly.

Le'ssee........EC! Certainly the preamble to every new thread he opens should be included:

"One little point I feel must be made though. From previous experience elsewhere, I have seen this kind of thread quickly devolve into the exclusive stomping ground of the lacrimose teenybopper bemoning the loss of the love of the century whom they have been dating for the past week and a half and with whom they have just broken up and who's special song has just now been played on the radio/MTV or whatever and they just have to share the pain, yadda yadda yadda.......(shudder), so some very basic rules."

The world may have forgotten in sixty years how to handle such creatures. He should also bequeath his propensity for succinctness. (Choke, gasp, wheeze! )

My Sister Lady flutter? Hmmmmm.....she definitely needs to leave that Victorian brooch that holds her pristine shirtwaist so tightly at the neck....and she needs to leave it pinned to whatever part of her leopard thong that will accommodate it. That will be our puzzler for future generations.....

Nick you say? Oh my.....now there's a problem, huh? I think the problem here is not a lack of material but so much material that it will be difficult to choose just a few. Perhaps a copy of his reference book, How to be a Philodox for Fun While Irritating Others I would think would be a necessity along with his book How to Get Banned from Multiple Internet Sites. Certainly a precautionary statement should be enclosed as these books should not be read by the faint of heart. Included in the precautionary statement should be,

quote:

---

---

Of course that's just my opinion....I could be wrong.

quote:

---

---

An addendum of some of his poetry which reveals emotion(s) should also be included.

And the Lionhearted one? Hmmm....a lock of his beard for certain......and also symbols of his irrepressible humour and sincerity as well....not to mention the leopard thong he carried around and an explanation of that mystery!

I'm out of time right now......but I may have some thoughts later. I certainly hope that others participate in this urgently important project. Why we may be credited with saving civilization when this time capsule is opened. Think how happy LaJ will be......

Sheesh! this was a hard assignment. Who ever it was who thought of this idea should be hung by their eyelashes for two weeks while being forced to listen to Barry Manilow eight tracks!

No offense to those who like Barry! ( Becks )

It took me a while, but I think I have come up with some items that I would like to place inside the time capsule for others to remember me by. If course, since I will be present at the unveiling, I could verbally tell them! Ah, what the heck....might as well join in on the fun.

I will be placing my tattered (actually in two pieces) thesaurus along with all the trips I have taken through it. A gallon jug of mudslides, which I will then pour in to the special Bavarian cut crystal snifter that JR is leaving when the time capsule is opened. (Thanks for including the straw too, JR! After all I am a woman who enjoys the finer things in life you know, plus my neck won't straighten out so a straw is helpful. )

I will also include my collection of trouble tickets sent to info pop. This could be used as a year's worth of kindling for the still fires, or in case someone forgets to replenish the outhouse with TP. It's bad enough the boys are always leaving the damn seat up, but even with all of Becky's noodging, they can't seem to get the; "You use the last sheet on the roll, you replace it with a new one" rule.

I will also donate my Get Smiles program, so the site can continue to have "cool" smilies. Along with the smilies, I will add my HTML Code For Dummies handbook, with a dog-eared page 57. This is the page that teaches you how to create a scrolling marquee. I worked on that for months and never knew it was as simple as typing:

Happy New Year!

Oops! I guess if you type it, it displays the actual scrolling marquee. Thus the "for Dummies" portion of the book title.


.......And last but not least, I shall leave my signature yellow rose that looks vaguely familiar to a liquor bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag, but is not. I *hic* swear! *hic*


I shall be back later with my suggestions for what others should contribute, but I need to place a trouble ticket to Info pop!


Next?

La J...what a challenge, and I have to say I join Galatea in her perplexity...this is certainly a quest of biblical proportions.

As I sit neck deep amid the mountain of “things” that constitute the Lionhearted One, I am hard pressed to pick just one item that might encapsulate the essence of just who I think I might be. I’m still tossing around Galatea’s idea of a whisker and the leopard skin thong...but somehow I think the combination of a whisker in a thong might not be fully comprehended by enlighten future generations, and the meaning...lost as some practical joke! Now I suppose by chance... if that should bring a smile to the face of someone...then perhaps I have indeed past along part of who I am, sad as that may be.

I have come to appreciate over the years that I mean different things to different people. What one person may hate about my character, another person will love. Long ago I stopped striving to be all things to all people. Now I try to be true to myself, resistant to some degree, against a world that would desire to change me into its own version of the status quo. And yet it is only in such a world, and in such a situation that an artist finds his/her own emotions driven to the point of critical mass...and the inevitable spilling of ink upon pages to reproduce those emotions in the form of art, poetry, prose etc.

In sixty five years, few will remember the shenanigans of Lionheart...most of the people I know will be long gone (with the exception of La J), and the only thing that may be remembered is what I have in this present moment to leave.

Therefore, there are three things I shall throw into the pit: My faith, my art, and my words.

1. My faith:
My worn out, dog eared version of the New King James Bible. The words between the covers of this old book have been an inspiration to me and have guided me through many a storm. In the end, the only thing I will have is my faith in God...and for me it is the only thing that will last.

My faith is what I have; my faith is what I leave.

2. My art;
It is difficult for me to pick one piece that is truly reflective of my character. Although I have been painting for years, it is only recently that I have begun to follow my own heart and try to capture some of my soul on the canvas. As a rule I don’t like to interpret my own art...but for the sake of this capsule I will give some insight into this one.

Stone Fence

There are some key elements in this piece that open a window into the heart of this Lion. I painted this one in watercolour, which in essence symbolises something that can easily be destroyed. There is a stone wall and a closed gate, showing a separation between the larger world outside and the person behind the gate. The gate is not solid however, and is open enough for things to slip through, and the possibility for me to slip out of my safe retreat. Outside the gates are giants, symbolized by tall trees...their branches are high and although the trees are approachable, I cannot climb them. These trees are people in my life who were close to me (friends, would be mentors, authority figures etc.), but I was never able to get close. The stormy sky is a reflection of my emotions and life in general...not clear, undefined and sometimes in turmoil. The overall ambience of the painting is meant to have a mild haunting effect, a sense of barrenness...thus the absence of any wildlife or human figure. It is meant to be a looked at from inside the heart rather than an observation from the outside. The light coming through the clouds is a symbol of God above...and for his own reasons sees all; he sheds light on everything yet at times seems distant and doesn’t always respond.
I gave this painting to my mother-in-law without the benefit of the explanation you have enjoyed, and her response was...”it’s really good!” So much for my depth of character and my ability to spark emotion in others through my art...ha!

My art is part of my heart; my heart is what I leave.

3. My words:
I have chosen “The Endless Voyage“, because I think it best describes my present frame of mind and situation in life. Having said that I realise everything could change tomorrow and I might feel compelled to leave a much different poem. I know FB would agree that my poem “Flavius Flatus,” covers a whole gamut of emotions and opens up all kinds of speculation and intrigue...and perhaps might be better suited for this esteemed memorial.

Dreaming aside, The Endless Voyage describes aspects of my life journey compared to that of a sea voyage...the ups and downs, tossing to and fro...circumstances preventing me form going where I want to go etc., and of course the memories of a calmer past...where love ruled the day and I was not even aware of things of importance...more particularly, my own self interests. By the way, I am not by any means saying that my present situation is ideal...it’s just where I find myself right now. The essence of the poem is to remember the past in the presence of turmoil, so that hope may be ignited for the future.

The Endless Voyage

This voyage shall never end
Forever tossed to and fro
Upon countless raging billows
While tempest sea winds blow

Full sheets to the north wind
Strained ropes on yardarms twist
My mind in steady turmoil
Reminiscing when last we kissed

The salty spray of a stormy sea
Crests the portside and the helm
I cling to thoughts of summer days
Of picnics under the elm

While in this moment we are one
My true love I embrace
Gazing upon eyes of purest jade
As I beheld thy lovely face

Walking along the rolling seashore
A sandpiper flees thy hand
Waves crashing round our feet
Displacing snow white sand

Longing to be by thy side again
But this damn war commands my trek
Hark, the ship bell beckons
The captain yells, “All hands on deck”

Whole gale and wind whipped sail
Cutting through this liquid hell
Will this voyage never end?
Only the raging sea will tell


My words are all I have; my words are all I leave.

“ Lionheart
~

ps...I should mention that “Stone Fence” is not entirely an original (not that it should take away from any of the meaning I expressed about it). It was a piece I decided to work on in an art class with other like minded artists...and so there may be other works floating around that may look similar. Just thought I should make that clear in case I should be accused of plagiarism. Of course my interpretation of the painting and its symbolisms stand.

pps...I will be back to offer suggestions and encouragement later...it’s late and I’m still trying to recover from the holidays! I hope to be back in full swing soon...whatever that means!

I'd also like to toss a box of tissues into that capsule! If I read what you just wrote 60 years from now, I'm going to get teary-eyed just like I am now.

That was absolutely beautiful and from your heart. It truly describes the wonderful, talented and warm gentle spirit that you are.

*adds jumbo-sized box of Kleenex (with aloe vera lotion to prevent chafing) to her list!

I'm in full agreement La J! I'm still using the tissues when I think about it or read it again. Makes me feel kinda....superficial.

In all this time I've come up with only one thing to contribute to the time capsule. That's really pitiful! Hope I can think of a few more later.....

My first contribution to the time capsule is my well-worn and somewhat frayed copy of Nagging for Dummies. I know it is probably incomprehensible to some of you that I actually studied nagging because I unquestionably have a natural proclivity for it but I am my father's daughter. That means doing what you do well ~ as well as you have the capability of doing it so I sought to perfect nagging. Some think I have but I think I still have a long way to go.

And on second thought, maybe I'll surrender my body pillow for the time capsule. Oh dear me...I'll have to think about that for a bit.....

Well, Lady G has already volunteered my Victorian brooch and my leopard print "dainties", which were tops on my list, so-o...

I would also like to add my copy of "One Million and One Most Commonly Misspelled Words" which I know 2 of my dearest gentlemen friends on the site probably figure is crumbling from excessive use. (hey, you 2, if it weren't for your misspellings and my compulsion with correcting them, we would never have become friends!)

And, of course, I will leave a firm, jumbo-sized
chocolate bar , a bale of hay from the hayloft , and very last, but not least, a dried bouquet of wildflowers, which I picked for myself

~~flutter~~

Body pillow? Hay bale? If this keeps up you're gonna need an 18-wheeler to hold all the stuff.

Ok, jr, I will retract my hay bale and just include a copy of "The Farmer's Daughter" poem, which will be sufficient to explain what haylofts/hay were used for in the day! That'll save us some room!

~~flutter~~

No need to skimp on any items. You do realize that since Ron was involved, this crater is HUGE folks!

Andrew built the time capsule to fit it perfectly.

Well, let's see. I will allow the following
items of mine into the Time Capsule :

One of my 666 license plates (Likely the
Mississippi one as Distillery and Mississippi
seem somehow perfect together.

A dog-eared copy of Stephen King's "It".

My Ask Jeeves 2002 Page-A-Day Calendar.

Finally, providing I had the funds to do it,
a bottle of Laphroaig 30-Year-Old Single-Malt
Scotch Whisky so that whoever opened the
capsule could do a toast to all the beautiful
people who made Word Distillery a home.

Wow I lurv this. Two months later if there's still scope in the time capsule then I'll fling out some more souvenirs ...
I don't have in mind anything that I'd be or want to be remembered by (if I dare be frank, I just wish I'd not be remembered as the b'day girl or "the nice person!" though). I'm writing some things for some people, the ones that come to my mind, please don't think that if you don't appear to me here you're not in my heart. With words influencing me as they do, I doubt I'd forget any of you.
Note, almost all my entries below, include stuff that'd make sense specifically/only to the person concerned. After writing the entries below I see I have been as over-the-top and squishy as I usually am... I hope I haven't offended anyone below.
Here I go... not your things that I'd remember you for, rather the things that remind me of you,
(though I'm not exactly sure HOW I'd fling these inside the capsule)


~A whiff of naked ocean air, that instantly makes me think Trishshshsh.
~A tear and a wing, befit soul poet Carlos F. Onseca.
~A hearth with natural logwood that would keep fresh for 60 years. For Justawful and his wife.
~A dainty pink bedewed Columbine as luvlee Dawn.
~Anyone entering a smiley warm house with hot cocoa and coffee waiting on snowy days, would sense that Sherasi lived in that house and loved it.
~An USAn flag for Keny Jackson with embedded beneath: "And I have. And I am. And I would."
~For Me and Gizmogram, a quantum of sunlight thawing pristine snow, and mixed not-too-warm-not-too-cold weather, as they sit sipping cocoa working out a collaboration.
~A “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” track record by Porgy and Bess, for Galatea and Pete. And a silver filigree for Becksidoodle that doesn't ever ever lose its gleam!
~ Since by the time the capsule is opened we'd not be here (we all, including you and Jerry, would be in a merry whimsical paradisical neverland, where there are no September the Elevenths) we'd have to leave here something that would remind everyone of you... hm, an inflorescence lithely draped by virgin icicle in a snow-covered landscape, will be reminiscent of Nick.
~ In 60 years Flutterbug and her wildflower lover would have their own personal Wildflower garden and Blueberry orchard and snowy mountain area in heaven, so they would leave their cosy cottage with crackling fire and lots of toilet paper, nestled amid snow, in our earthy timecapsule for future wild(flower) lovers.
~Since when the time capsule is opened la Juliette would no longer be from "a tragic love story", she'd need to be reminded of her ole friends as she sings away to and with her very own special prince, so a songbird feather and a single fiber of kitty fur for her is tossed into the capsule.
~A ripple for Liquidmettle.
~For the Lionhearted, a butterfly-shaped bow... butterfly Natalie's and Richard's babygirl would wear that! Also, the snowflake that touched Jeremy's cheek... y'know it can never melt after 60 years because you my friend immortalized it in your beautiful poem.
~To remind everyone of Jack and Grace, my words:
Look thither, my love, where I once lay:
heart daggered, bed iced, home empty.
Together we gaze
beyond, above, through
the forbidding horizons now shredded.
See and smile my love,
trust that sinning Mays have faded away.
~A smidgen of rain, fragrant of the friendship (with each other and with rain) that myself, Apt and Sanya share.
~A globe. To remind the future generations that the world was once a lovely place as it had people like Harsh (Apt).
~A twinkle-twinkle li'l starshine for Sanya.
~A dream and a magic wand for Keith (backstreetdreamer)
~A collection of Juanruiz's poetry, which would constitute classics in that age.
~A copy of Alice in Wonderland open at the chapter "a mad tea party" for Colly

All these things would automatically remind the capsule-openers of me... WHO else could fill a capsule with ocean, wing, house, logwoods....

Golly gee, but a whole year has passed since the Word Distillery time capsule was filled with member's items and carefully sealed, only to be re-opened sometime in the distant future.

Well......the distant future has arrived!

I thought it would be fun if we re-opened the capsule and added more...uh...stuff!

This year I am gladly tossing all the radiation that entered my body during 2005. I figured the time capsule would be easier to locate if it was glowing. Besides, I don't need the stuff any more! Wooohoooo!

I am also contributing my cat, Miss Sassy Pants. Sixty years locked away in an airtight chamber ought to do her some good if not teach her a lesson or two. *Sticks tongue out at evil-thing-with-tail that knocked over a burning candle earlier this evening*

I will also be adding a once lovely beige carpet.

That's all I can think of at the moment, but I'll be back to add a few more items if I can stand to part with them, pack rat that I am.

Such a rejoiceable idea!
At this time of year we should of course consider the future - let’s give’em
something of real edifying value, something to marvel at.

My contribution - provided no one protests - will be an immense quantity of
ancient, merrily rusting chicken wire, approx. 5 cubic meters in all. (In case of any
protests, I can easily add another 2 or 3 cubics.) All of it none too neatly rolled up,
all of it having spikey bits & pieces sticking out everywhere, so it’s perfect for
fastening all the other items (it’s like gross-caliber velcro) in case of windy
weather on the great day. Moreover, it has been artfully mended in several
places with assorted wire, twine & whatnot, so it’s quite a sight if you have a taste
for that kind of thing; it is amply stuffed with cobwebs, dry nettles & ferns, and
with substantial scraps of an old sweater of mine that was shredded during the
disassembling struggle. I thought it might provide some comfort for that poor cat
of yours, Pam! That sweater was dearly loved by all animals, probably because it
was the raw-wool kind that’s waterproof as long as you don’t wash it. So I didn’t.
Wash it, I mean. All the beasties loved it. After the chicken-wire session I donated
the remainder of it to the hedgehogs under the shed & then the fox took it. Well.
Just digressing a bit. Where was I? Where am I? Aw yes, these precious rolls of
chicken wire. I’ll bring them along right away.

Now, how & why should I imagine being remembered by virtue of a rusting bunch
of wire, for heaven’s sake?
Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it?

Magpie Jane