Ovid continues walking. He watches Seekers of Perl Wisdom struggle with their questions. He wanders through the Code Catacombs to seek solitude in the pure joy of Perl. He nods with approval as other monks meditate or share their wisdom. Truly, the monastery is a place of wisdom, contemplation, and learning.

Then he wanders too close to the chatterbox. This great hall, where monks should be able to relax and enjoy themselves, is alternately chaos and harmony. Ovid thinks back to many of the great conversations he has enjoyed there with jcwren, kudra, and many others. He smiles when he thinks of all of the uproar that maleteen2000 has created, but he appreciates and admires the youngster's dedication in the face of adversity. But then Ovid's face darkens. The chatterbox is changing.

More and more frequently, Ovid has been disturbed in his thoughts by the vicious arguments heard in the chatterbox. He has even (gasp) heard profanity. He has watched in dismay, while the monastery has grown in popularity, as more and more "disrespectful" monks join. Some are powerful and obviously feel that Perl wisdom excuses poor manners. Others clearly have no remorse about simply being rude. Ovid realizes that if the rumor of Saint vroom eliminating the chatterbox is true, it may not be a bad idea. How sad that a few malcontents have to ruin things for others.

Ovid climbs to the top of the monastery walls and looks out at the unwashed heathens in the surrounding countryside. Perhaps, just perhaps, it's time to go exploring.

Well, that was a melodramatic way of talking about this, but the point is this: if you have a problem with another monk, /tell or /msg them or keep quiet. While I understand the desire to get things off your chest, please don't ruin the harmony of the monastery by turning us into another cesspool like /.

I had noticed that nasty comments seemed to slow down after Chip (on the shoulder) Monks was posted. I don't feel that my post necessarily had anything to do with that, but rather we were riding the crest of a bad wave that BBQ referred to in a response to that post. Unfortunately, either that wave is cresting again, or we're getting a lot of bad fish (if you'll pardon my beating that metaphor to death).

Here's a tip for monks that want to mouth off in the chatterbox about other monks: while you will sometimes get other monks to join in, most of the time (IMHO) you offend. Don't get me wrong, I also have opinions and I have often agreed with some harsh comments made in the chatterbox, but that didn't stop me from chastising the monk in question because the monastery is not an appropriate place to pick a fight!!! Respectfully disagreeing with another monk is one thing; pissing contests are offensive.

For those monks who did not quite understand the preceding comments, let me get out the big crayons: if you want to bash another monk, be quite or be gone.

I honestly can't recall where I saw the rumor of the removal of the chatterbox, but I can certainly understand if it's true. I think it would be a shame to have one of the charms of this site removed because some monks have no self-discipline.

Please, out of sheer decency: be respectful.

Cheers,
Ovid