The Autoshite Love-In

[RoadworkUK]

Hello.

 

If this reads as if I've had a few, I apologise, but I feel moved to get it off my chest.

 

On Sunday we had a shiters meet on the North-East Essex Riviera, and it was a splendid thing. A group of like-minded folk, united in a love of non image-driven machinery. Of the assembled throng, I was the only person there who wasn't a serial buyer of old, hopeless / excellent "vintage" machinery. And yet I felt like I belonged. My presence and my opinions seemed equally valued as everyone elses. We were merrily discussing varied shite-related topics, each using our own brand of humour with confidence, and in the knowledge that we were in this together.

 

I was also, probably, the least knowledgeable person in attendance, bar my Girlfriend. With friends, at work and at home I can always be sure of myself and the level of automotive knowledge I posess. My obsession with cars has motivated me since toddling age; but there were a lot of people in Jaywick on Sunday, and here on Autoshite, who were toddling a good few years before me, and there are those who are younger than me yet seem to have concentrated more knowledge and experience into thir lives in a short time-span.

 

I love being among knowledgable people. I enjoy the warm feeling in my brain when I can feel myself learning. I loved, on Sunday, the feeling that I had to stay quiet to protect myself from exposing any lack of knowledge. It felt good, it felt, somehow, like I was mixing with the elite. Autoshite has, and has had for a long while, the greatest concentration of knowledgable, experienced, useful people I've encountered on a non brand-specific British Forum.

 

But why can't the virtual, on-line iteration feel more like the real, 3D, live-action version I experienced on Sunday?

 

Valued members of our society are indicating that they've had enough. A good few members have toddled off for good. And these are people who have been around here a damn sight longer than me, who've presumably been here when the site was even better than how it was when I joined, only a year or so ago. I had been a lurker for donkeys months, but I was drawn in by Trigger and Outlaws eBay Tat thread exploits that had me verily lubricating my slacks with merriment.

 

Today, Autoshite is still gr63, but has become prone to sudden peaks and troughs. Threads seem to suddenly become the responsibility of one member to defend. Varied opinions don't seem to be allowed any more. Focus is being lost. The love, it seems, is thinner on the ground these days.

 

In my weary, Adnams-influenced pre-kip state tonight, if I may be indulged an opportunity to be a preachy bastard for a moment, may I ask that we all pull ourselves together and look after this place the way we really ought to? If this place collapses around its ears totally, and all those people who brought me here in the first place bugger off, I'll have nowhere else to go. I'll be homeless, with nobody to lend me a shoulder to cry on. There'll be nobody to lend any of us a sympathetic ear for our tragic Lucas-related tales of woe.

 

I'll happily delete this post if it's deemed inappropriate, but I feel we all need to simmer down, take stock of what we've got, learn our places in the great scheme of things, and learn when our opinions should be kept to ourselves. I know we can do it, the recent religion-probing thread was actually slightly miraculous in terms of restraint when it could easily have gone apocalyptically awry. I just hope we can stop the rot now before we all run out of patience. I don't want to go anywhere. I like it here.

 

Thanks, and goodnight.

[eddyramrod]

+1 Earl, and it's a big one. Well said. I've met precisely one 'shiter in the flesh (which was a pleasure), when he came over here last year, but I'm enough of a classic-car-club veteran to recognise the feelings you describe.

 

Threads do drift, it happens, it's a fact of forum life. Nothing wrong with that, but! My heart sinks when I see a slanging match developing, as I just know that some reasonable, sensible chap is going to pick up his marbles and leave, and the noisy, opinionated bully is just going to carry on as before. Just like real life. Isn't the internet a place to escape from reality for an hour or two?

 

Oh, just me then? Ok....

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

Fantastic post. However, I 'd like to note that, in my opinion at least, the important thing is the reaction to an inappropriate comment. We have to realise that nobody is perfect and that everyone WILL sooner or later say something they shouldn't have said or phrase something in a way that may offend others. The key is to just ignore the fucking thing as opposed to picking it up, taking it personally, and making it into a slanging match. Now, of course, that doesn't help with sociopaths who are intentionally mean/offensive to people, but it's not like we have a lot of them...

[dollywobbler]

Despite the fact that I'm a long haired hippy with a 2CV, I probably share a bit of blame for sniping lately - albeit only at one person. However, your impassioned plea will make me attempt to put that behind me!

 

I think any forum goes through its spells. Whether it's the state of the world, air pressure or some scary force controlling us all, there will be grumpy times. It's a credit to this place that there's so little moderation yet generally we do all get along nicely. Also, so much of what is posted is genuinely interesting too!

[Rod/b]

CONGRATULATIONS on escaping alive from the SHITHOLE that is the JAYWICK BADLANDS.

 

Did anyone manage to swap a very tired old car for a bunt-out bungalow?

[Cavcraft]

'All of the above', especially what RWUK said. Chill out folks!

[Shep Shepherd]

Everyone should be nicer to each other, both online and in real life

[barefoot]

It's a bit of a bugger,

I never seem to see the grumpy argumentative threads. I must be too picky with what I choose to read.

[RedSparrow]

Well said.

God forbid a troll finds this site, as some people here would fall for anything they said to wind people up.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

It's a bit of a bugger,

I never seem to see the grumpy argumentative threads. I must be too picky with what I choose to read.

I spend all damn day on here (and another board also prone to this sort of thing) yet I never seem to catch any of this internet drama either. I think most of these barbs go over my head.

[504GL]

It's a bit of a bugger,

I never seem to see the grumpy argumentative threads. I must be too picky with what I choose to read.

I spend all damn day on here (and another board also prone to this sort of thing) yet I never seem to catch any of this internet drama either. I think most of these barbs go over my head.

 

Well perhaps you and I can have a fight? What's your name so I can carry our rivalry through to every thread you post in?

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

It's a bit of a bugger,

I never seem to see the grumpy argumentative threads. I must be too picky with what I choose to read.

I spend all damn day on here (and another board also prone to this sort of thing) yet I never seem to catch any of this internet drama either. I think most of these barbs go over my head.

 

Well perhaps you and I can have a fight? What's your name so I can carry our rivalry through to every thread you post in?

 

What's my name?

 

 

Idiot.

 

 

 

 

[504GL]

I spend all damn day on here (and another board also prone to this sort of thing) yet I never seem to catch any of this internet drama either. I think most of these barbs go over my head.

 

Well perhaps you and I can have a fight? What's your name so I can carry our rivalry through to every thread you post in?

 

What's my name?

 

 

Idiot.

 

 

 

 

 

Are you call ME an idiot? Just because I can't read your usename doesn't give you the right to call me an idiot!!!! Cnut!!!!

[barefoot]

Is this one of the offensive tussles I've read so much about?

 

Have I started one?

 

Apologies in advance before it all gets out of hand.

[504GL]

Is this one of the offensive tussles I've read so much about?

 

Have I started one?

 

Apologies in advance before it all gets out of hand.

 

It's a mock one

 

Anyway, I'll show you apologies!!!!!!

[Rusty Pelican]

Well said , Im the first to admit I dont post much but im on here every day and will post if its of interest to others , no one wants boring or argumentative posts ,

Ive only met one person on here and that was Dollywobbler , top bloke .

[RENOMAD]

Oh wELL, APPrANTLY MY cAPital letters R aLL oVER THE pLACE

[Pete-M]

Aww, I like posting boring things on here. Meanies.

[outlaw118]

You're all a load of bastards.

 

I have to say, having been part of the Jaywick MASSIV on Sunday, it reinforced what this place is all about.

Earl, OldFord, Mr Spotted Laurel, Sir Wuvvum, Lord Seth and Andrew "nice shirt" E and myself managed to spend a very pleasant few hours on Sunday, and GUESS WHAT?!?!?! There were no arguments or fighting.

The only unpleasantness occurred when Mr tattooed Gorilla appeared when we were ripping the piss out of his fucked Cosworth, and when Wuvvum knocked the Rover-of-Doom down a cog and caused something resembling an industrial revolution standard smog.

Admittedly, I don't think any of us are particularly argumentative people, either face to face or behind a keyboard, but we share the love of cars, old, new, shiny, rusty, broken, fixed-up. Long may it continue.

[Albert Ross]

Bollocks. I don't DO people.

[RedSparrow]

Oh what happened with the Cosworth bloke? Sounds like it could be an amusing story!

[Cavcraft]

You're all a load of bastards.

 

I have to say, having been part of the Jaywick MASSIV on Sunday, it reinforced what this place is all about.

Earl, OldFord, Mr Spotted Laurel, Sir Wuvvum, Lord Seth and Andrew "nice shirt" E and myself managed to spend a very pleasant few hours on Sunday, and GUESS WHAT?!?!?! There were no arguments or fighting.

The only unpleasantness occurred when Mr tattooed Gorilla appeared when we were ripping the piss out of his fucked Cosworth, and when Wuvvum knocked the Rover-of-Doom down a cog and caused something resembling an industrial revolution standard smog.

Admittedly, I don't think any of us are particularly argumentative people, either face to face or behind a keyboard, but we share the love of cars, old, new, shiny, rusty, broken, fixed-up. Long may it continue.

 

That's fighting talk where I came from.

I bet you were all too busy washing your jellied eels down with shandy to argue anyhow

[Albert Ross]

That's fighting talk where I came from

 

I bet you're glad you moved house then.............

[RoadworkUK]

Oh what happened with the Cosworth bloke? Sounds like it could be an amusing story!

 

Aha! well.

 

Basically, we were all standing around The Worlds Most Shambolic Cosworth, a saffy rwd which was bollocksed enough to look like a replica based on a 1.8LX, even if it was a genuine one. We weren't being overtly complementary, it has to be said. Mr E was particularly forthright in his condemnation, noting loudly that it was wearing an RS Turbo wheel on one corner.

 

At that moment, not-smiley, part-evolved, semi-feral primate man's head appeared over the wall, where I assume he had awoken sharply after dozing while catching flies with his long, reptillian tongue. He clearly smelt the aroma of money hanging in the air (well, one of us does drive a 1981 Laurel...) and leapt into action.

 

And we all hid behind Outlaw and wandered sheepishly away, not looking back.

 

Never look back.

[outlaw118]

YOU FACKIN' NORTHERN MONKEY!!

 

"Come from the North do ya?

Eat babies do ya?

Rainbows in black and white round your way?

You Northern Cahnt.

You Northern fackin' Cahnt"

 

Name that tune.

 

Re: Cosworth Man.....

Whilst on our wander, we spy a matt white Saph Cosworth with a hand(?) written sign in the window. We gather round, noting that whilst the advert admits to the "geerbox needs lookin at", the vendor had neglected to mention that there was either rust of dents on all panels, which appeared to have been painted with Tipp-Ex (such was the "gleam"), the wheels were odd sizes, the interior was horrible and it looked fit for "The Bridge". Suddenly a male appeared, with mohawk, tatts and multiple ear piercings and grunted at us. Obviously I'd LIKE to say we conducted a civil conversation with him, but we ran away instead.

COZ WE IZ GANSTA INNIT.

[outlaw118]

Bugger, Earl can type faster than me.....

[RedSparrow]

Straight-up gangsta boys. Good work.

[RoadworkUK]

Bugger, Earl can type faster than me.....

 

Well, if you hadn't wasted your time being all lyrical and appropriate...

[outlaw118]

Well, I notice Cav has chickened out.....

[RoadworkUK]

Well, I notice Cav has chickened out.....

 

No, he's too busy stroking his whippet.

 

(I can haz euphemism?)