124 days to go! Happy New Year!

Hi folks,
 
Well, the solstice has come and gone.  You know what that means.  Truly 
it is the new year.  The days will now grow longer and we can 
legitimately start to count the days till planting time.  (Hurray!)  On 
the other hand, of course, a few more moments and another year of our 
lives have ticked by.  How have we spent them?  It is a perfect time to 
reflect on the past year and on what we want for the future.  I truly 
wish each of you a sense of purpose, fulfillment, and peace.
 
When I think about this year, my greatest emotion is thanks.  I'm 
thankful for my family and health and those sorts of things, naturally.  
But here, in the context of this list and this pumpkin cult, I am 
grateful that I discovered pumpkin growing in the first place.  I'm 
grateful for the list and each one of you and for every single post.  
Many posts were informative, others entertaining; some were wrenchingly 
raw, others vacuous, still others snippy.  Each day's mail reiterated 
that this is a very human endeavor with the full, full range of all the 
usual human elements.   Every single post contributed to this magical 
community that is woven together around the pumpkins.  For that, my 
friends, I am deeply grateful.
 
When I think about the list and the archives, I am astounded.  It's just 
here.  Poof.  No subscription fee.  No cost.  No effort.  Just boundless 
information and fun and camaraderie with likeminded pumpkinheads, here 
for the taking.  There is no book, there is no 
newsletter that can come close to the list for personalized information, 
moral support and encouragement.  That's no slight at all to Don or any 
of the newsletter folks who make great, and very tangible contributions 
to the pumpkin community.  But only the list is interactive.  Only the 
list can respond to what's happening in our patches NOW.
 
There are a few anchors on the list who we all depend on and love, and 
who we all know, because we see their names when they post.
 
Less obvious perhaps, is Mallorn.  Without Chris Lindsey, we probably 
wouldn't be here at all.  Duncan has asked us to click on the  
advertising banners to generate revenue now and again, but how many of 
us follow up on our good intentions to continue doing that?  (Besides!  
Reading the mail takes up all our time!)
 
I told Chris recently how much I appreciate Mallorn's services.   I am 
just one person with a horticultural hobby, and I haven't won any 
lotteries lately, so my means are fairly limited, but I would be 
delighted if I could support Mallorn somehow.  Chris told me that 
Mallorn's original goal was to help horticultural businesses 
technologically and asked if I could recommend Mallorn to any companies 
I know that might need their services.   Well, sure, I'd be glad to, but 
like I said, I am just one person with a.....    hey, wait a minute...
 
Right, you all know where this is going.  So many of you have posted 
phone numbers of out-of-the-way, off-beat, or regional HORTICULTURAL 
companies specializing in this or that.  If every one of us jotted down 
Mallorn's addresses and phone number and taped them on our phone for a 
few months, then just asked the companies we are talking with along the 
way if they might be interested in web stuff and if we passed along the 
contact info, well then we might begin to repay Mallorn for underwriting 
our magical PUMPKINS list.
 
It's not so hard, really.  Mallorn has been doing a lot for us for a 
long time.  Why not tap into our community-mindedness a little and help 
support the platform we are all standing on.  Now that would be a nice 
gift for the new year to Mallorn and to everyone on the list.
 
Thanks.  I hope you all had a warm, wonderful Solstice.  Happy New Year.  
124 days  (more or less) to go!!!!
 
 Beth
 
 P.S.  Here's the scoop:       Mallorn can help companies
         a) set up an Internet presence
         b) convert a catalog into an online store
         c) set up plant databases
         d) information kiosks
         e) ... etc ...
 
There's no commitment required on their part, and Mallorn can help them 
flesh out their ideas...
 
 Mallorn Computing, Inc.
 702 W Vermont Ave
 Urbana IL 61801    
 USA
 
 General:     217/239.3200
 Fax:         217/239.3250
 
 Advertising:             advertising@mallorn.com
 General Information:     info@mallorn.com





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