In the ~35 years I have used the Internet, I have been blessed with friends and acquaintances from all over the world. I am grateful for that. For all of you here I think of as my AAC friends, and for the others from other communities I am part of.

But, Internet friends are often very tenuous insofar as I only know and can communicate with them on a single platform. I don’t know who they are in “meatspace”, which is fine as far as it goes but can be very sad when one disappears, suddenly, and without warning or explanation.

So many times I have regretted not trying to get to know people better, to set up an out of band method of staying in touch, of at least telling them I admire and respect them, and that I enjoy their online companionship.

So, without calling out names for fear of leaving people out, I want you to know there is almost no one here who regularly posts that I don’t look forward to “seeing” and don’t enjoy interacting with. Each of you has a personality I have come to know, and knowledge and skill I have come to admire. Each of you with strengths in different areas and though we all have weaknesses, yours just make you, well you to me.

Thank you all for being an important part of my life. I look forward to checking AAC each day and seeing what my friends have to say.

 

I know exactly what you mean... There was a member on ETO ( I think he was here as well...) I just remember he was called Burt.. But he didn't punctuate well and reading his posts was a bit of a chore, But I haven't seen a post for like ages...

 

Each of you has a personality I have come to know

I honor my personality flaws, for without them I would have no personality at all.
Today I will treat myself as I would my online friends - with sarcasm and neglect.
If that doesn't work, I can get in touch with my inner Sociopath.

 

Each of you with strengths in different areas and though we all have weaknesses, yours just make you, well you to me.

Yeah, I know what you mean, I used to be called conceited, but now I'm perfect.

 

That's the pros and cons of Internet relationships.
pro: You get to connect to persons from around the globe instantly at a click of a button.
con: Long distance makes it impractical for in-person meetup.

I have had the opportunity to meetup with four other members through AAC, both from local areas as well as long distance (farthest was 2300km = 1400 miles).

AAC has a map showing where members are located. Unfortunately it is not updated on a regular basis.

If you would like to appear on the map, post your city and country here: Where are you from?

 

Is the map being updated by anyone?
Seems closed right now?

 

Is the map being updated by anyone?
Seems closed right now?

If a member wishes to be placed on the map, give the location and I can see what I can do.

 

I see one member from the Maldives, Shouldn't that be under water now?

 

One of the things that becomes evident when you do a DNA search, is to find just how many people you are linked to by a common long gone relative.
i.e. those that show up as 3rd to 5th cousins from all over the world.
It has certainly been an asset to those that are involved in solving old cold case police files.
"You can run but cannot hide these days"!

 

AAC has a map showing where members are located. Unfortunately it is not updated on a regular basis.

If you would like to appear on the map, post your city and country here: Where are you from?

I just put "Melbourne, Australia" on that thread

I have been on a few forums and there are posters that I regularly think of that have moved on.

One that comes to mind was "Nominal Animal" from the cprogramming.com forum - He was amazingly detailed with the problem solving skills that could not be matched. Unfortunately that was also his downfall as it rubbed a few egos the wrong way...

 

I see one member from the Maldives, Shouldn't that be under water now?

That's @R!f@@ . Is your home submerged yet?

 

I have had the opportunity to meetup with four other members through AAC, both from local areas as well as long distance (farthest was 2300km = 1400 miles).

I've only ever met one, and it was about that same distance!

 

I've only ever met one, and it was about that same distance!

What a coincidence!

 

I know exactly what you mean... There was a member on ETO ( I think he was here as well...) I just remember he was called Burt.. But he didn't punctuate well and reading his posts was a bit of a chore, But I haven't seen a post for like ages...

One of my neighbors had "typing problems". You could spot his posts from a mile away because of the misplaced keystrokes. Even his email address had a typo in it!

At one point he made a comment about the Monarchy (was meant to be a compliment) and was soon called into the local police station where he was reminded that he could be told to leave at any time. The next day he had another user name, but it was painfully who was behind the keyboard.

As with Ian's "Burt" trying to guess what he was actually trying to say was sometimes an amusing puzzle. He was popular and prolific poster on our small local forum for foreigners and had a large following both on the internet and in real life.

 

Since the map thread is locked, for the sake of those commenting here mostly: I live in Mishawaka, Indiana on the St. Joseph River.

 

Since the map thread is locked, for the sake of those commenting here mostly: I live in Mishawaka, Indiana on the St. Joseph River.

View attachment 252736

Do you wish to be pinned on the map at this location?

 

Do you wish to be pinned on the map at this location?

Sure, that's fine. Thanks.

 

Since the map thread is locked, for the sake of those commenting here mostly: I live in Mishawaka, Indiana on the St. Joseph River.

View attachment 252736

Looks like a beautiful place you have there @Yaakov . I visited a river-side AirBnB house last year and have been curious about this ever since; maybe you can answer. I know that rivers change course over time, and I see that some who live at the edge put in retaining walls to prevent their property being eaten away by the flowing water. I assume that if you lose land to the water, then you just lose land. No way to get it back. I doubt you are allowed to bring in dirt/stone and extend your land out into the water, to the point where you think it should be (or are you? What if you think your land should extend out into the middle of the river based on some survey from 1813?). But what happens if you gain land? My cynical side suggests that things never work in favor of the average joe, and that if the river moved away from your land, your land would continue to end at where the water's edge was when you bought it. If that's the case, then who owns the new land between you and the river? Do you maintain any right of way to the water in that event? Or do you sell your no-longer-waterside property at a loss and buy a new place somewhere closer to the water (maybe the plot that actually should be yours?). If I'm wrong, and you do get to keep the land, then what determines the trajectory of the newly forming property lines? Say for example you live on the outside of a bend and your property is pie-shaped; if the property lines just extended on their previous trajectory then your neighbors properties on either side might converge at some point before the water and leave you landlocked, at which point we are back to the question of do you retain right of way to the water.

 

I see one member from the Maldives, Shouldn't that be under water now?

Mother Nature working on it with the advantage she has all the time available.

 

Looks like a beautiful place you have there @Yaakov . I visited a river-side AirBnB house last year and have been curious about this ever since; maybe you can answer. I know that rivers change course over time, and I see that some who live at the edge put in retaining walls to prevent their property being eaten away by the flowing water. I assume that if you lose land to the water, then you just lose land. No way to get it back. I doubt you are allowed to bring in dirt/stone and extend your land out into the water, to the point where you think it should be (or are you? What if you think your land should extend out into the middle of the river based on some survey from 1813?). But what happens if you gain land? My cynical side suggests that things never work in favor of the average joe, and that if the river moved away from your land, your land would continue to end at where the water's edge was when you bought it. If that's the case, then who owns the new land between you and the river? Do you maintain any right of way to the water in that event? Or do you sell your no-longer-waterside property at a loss and buy a new place somewhere closer to the water (maybe the plot that actually should be yours?). If I'm wrong, and you do get to keep the land, then what determines the trajectory of the newly forming property lines? Say for example you live on the outside of a bend and your property is pie-shaped; if the property lines just extended on their previous trajectory then your neighbors properties on either side might converge at some point before the water and leave you landlocked, at which point we are back to the question of do you retain right of way to the water.

We do love our home and the riverside location. If I understand your question, the answer is that I have a property line that extends slightly into the river. That doesn't shift. If the river rose, I could build (a larger) deck to reclaim usable property there. If the river left our bank dry, I would just have dry land. The property doesn't respect the river's edge, per se. It is a line that stays fixed relative to the survey of the dry land.

On the other hand, the river does have implications. In most states I know about, if there is a navigable river, it is not-quite-owned by the property owner. It is a state thing, and it means anyone can use it for transit, so long as they are in the water and not on the land. If the river moved away, they couldn't walk on the dry land because it was once navigable.

There are different regulations and laws in different states, so you have to look to that. But I think it is largely similar.