The only things I like to see end are bad movies and boring meetings. I’ve never liked endings…or good byes. I can’t watch a movie (even a bad one) and not find myself in tears when one character leaves another. The first time I read Lord of the Rings, I sobbed for hours when Frodo said good-bye to Sam, Pippin and Merry and sailed away with Gandalf and Bilbo…in other words, I’m a sap.
I’ve known this was coming for some time. I’ve talked to Laura and Lisa about it. But I’ve been in denial (oh, I am SO good at denial). This place has been a second home to me. I was here from the very first…and since I’m a saver (my Dad would call me a Pack Rat…and if I remember, that was one of my early monikers – so I’ve gone from Pack Rat to Monkey), I’ve saved a lot of emails…I received this one on September 24, 2003.
~~~Neophyte is graciously helping me set up the website and message board.
Right now I'm working on our "mission statement"...lol and other things I'd like said on this site.
I do have to go meet with a client for an hour or so. Will be back later to give you further updates, but so far, everything seems to be moving smoothly and quickly in the direction we want it to go.
Laura~~~
It doesn’t seem so very long ago. It was exciting and full of possibilities. As much as I hate endings, I love beginnings…I’m forever STARTING things (but rarely finishing them…it’s that ending thingee…)
Others found us, joined us. Each new name on the forum was a delight. Somehow we all became fast friends. As different as we all are – our life experiences, our situations, our backgrounds – we still found common ground, still found something in each other that called to us – like cursed Aztec Gold. I have laughed with you, wept with you, prayed for you…I’ve crisscrossed this continent and have been on amazing adventures…it never would have happened without one wobbly-legged, rum-soaked Pirate…
...and the extraordinary vision of Laura and the savvy and dedication of Lisa.
Lisa has always, always been busy. The fact that she has spent as much time on this site and done so much for us as she has, so that we could come together, despite the overwhelming demands on her time, is phenomenal. Laura, who worked just as hard to get things started and keep things going, is sailing off into a couple of fabulous new adventures (one of them the biggest, ever!!), she’s been so busy, with so much pulling at her…as much as I’ve grown to love those two amazing women, how can I begrudge them their decision? I can’t, as much as it saddens me…
I owe them both so much. I’ve done things I never imagined I’d do, I’ve met people I never, ever would have met any other way. If you think about it, it is really quite incredible.
In 2004 I went to Oregon…flew into Portland and then drove to Coos Bay to sail on The Lady Washington, dressed as a pirate (!). I bought a dagger (!), then a pistol (!!). Who knew?
Then Mississippi…flew into Nashville, drove through pounding rainstorms to New Orleans (where I spent a far-too-brief visit – I’m coming back one day Gretch & Tugger!). Slept (like a sardine) in a camper in Biloxi, then on a couch in a hotel penthouse, saw the Gulf, felt the humidity (ack!).
Then Toronto…where I drove through Ontario and ended up on the shores of Lake Huron. Then back to Toronto to see The Libertine (twice).
Then Tampa…again via Nashville. Sardines in a hotel room, flying trip to Orlando. I probably never would have gotten to see so much of the South any other way...
Then Hollywood…and ten thousand hopeful extras (sardines in a theater)...
In 2005 I went to Ontario (again)…for a DeppFest…
And then a month later, I went AGAIN (I remember getting off the plane in Buffalo and following the crowds out to the main terminal…and there, cutting a swath in the sea of travelers was Jack – a big, full-length poster of Jack…being held up by Savvvy…(I can’t think of a better way to be greeted after a perfectly HORRIBLE cross-country flight – where I was nearly massacred by an Indian family for accidentally falling over and dropping my (very heavy) carry-on on top of their poor, sari-clad mother. The entire visit all my “good” friends kept saying, “I’m so sorry about your sari, I’m so sorry about your sari.” Well, what are friends for then, aye, if not to rub your nose in it???)
In 2006 I went to Los Angeles…
In 2007 I went to Salt Lake (okay, okay, so it wasn't Toronto....) to the Ultimate Fan Event...
Then again to Los Angeles (hmmm…seeing a pattern here). And here, as my Asst. Director put it, I ascended the Mt. Everest of Johnny Depp-dom…*sigh*
I’ve been welcome in the homes of MLML, Laura, Lorien, Bri, SW (okay it was a camper, not a house), Savvvy, LadyWriter, Windswept…I’ve been enveloped in hugs, shared meals, stood in lines, roasted, frozen, stayed up nearly all night laughing and talking and enjoying just being together. I’ve stood on beaches, on wooden decks, sat on bleachers, gone on rides, driven thousands of miles, taken hundreds of pictures, all because you are the best pirates in all of the Seven Seas…and you will continue to be, for me.
I will not let this fade. I have journal entries and emails and hundreds of pictures – but my heart has a photographic memory…and while paper disintegrates and hard drives crash…my heart will hold on to every shred of memory.
George Eliot said: “Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person; having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but to pour them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then, with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away.”
And that’s what we’ve found here…the chaff has blown away and we are left with the good, sustaining heart of the grain…the abiding friendships, the shared memories and experiences. Those kinds of friendships don’t die…they may change, they may move away, but they don’t die.
Elizabeth Foley said: “The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.” And that’s what I want for us.
I never say never…because we don’t know what the future holds. I’m still keeping my fingers crossed for a Pirates IV (don’t care what anyone else thinks…I could never get enough of Jack!) so there are always possibilities…opportunities… new adventures…remember that The Captain never looked back, he always looked forward to that Horizon…the Horizon is just the limit of our sight, there is more beyond it. One of the things I also learned from Jack Sparrow is that we make our own chances, we have to be willing to do that. And we have to be willing to do whatever it takes to keep our friendships alive.
I’m paraphrasing from the Wonder Years…
“The years, 2003-2008, are a memory, like it or not. The funny thing is, looking back now, what I remember most is how it ends. So maybe this thing didn't work out exactly like we had planned. There was heartbreak we didn't anticipate and events we couldn't have imagined. Still, it wasn't all bad. So maybe there is a message in it all. The future is calling us and no matter what, there is no turning back now.”
May our futures be bright ones, may we travel together toward that Horizon if we can. This is not the end, this is just the opportunity for new adventures…
(You have my email address…USE IT! Some of you have my IM (I’ll change it back to Jans for the present)…and if you DON’T use IM…why the bloody heck not?? It’s free, it’s easy…Movement!!! I want Movement!!!)
Dr. Suess said, “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.”
So raise a bottle with me, mates…sing with me, “Drink up, me Hearties, Yo Ho!”
And for always…SMILE…
Much, much love (and a thousand hugs, and more than a few tears...)
The Monkey
Location: Monkeying Around with Jack!!!
Monkey - as usual your words are hard to match and impossible to improve upon - so I won't say much (well - not THAT much).
Laura's news was something I had seen coming - but had anticipated with sadness.
We have become friends - all of us in the crew of the Pearl. And I hope that we have formed friendships that will stand the test of time. It will, perhaps, be harder to do without the forums - but if we want to keep those flames of friendship going, we will.
Recalling the memories of what the crew has been through since we started this voyage - the good and the bad - is emotional to be sure - but the moments in life most worth experiencing often are. My fondest memories will be of meeting so many members of the crew in person - and what memorable times we have had!!!
And to those mates that I have only "met" through the boards - one can only hope that, if the seafaring gods allow it, there will indeed be another POTC movie and we will be drawn together yet again by that certain pirate who started all this!!
I can't imagine how much work it has taken to keep the site up and running - much less monitor the forums on a consistent basis. Laura and Lisa have done that thankless job so very well over these last 5 years (almost) that we in the crew took it very much for granted that the site would be well-run.
This is clearly the opportune moment to thank you, Laura and Lisa, for everything!
SO - HERE'S TOO ALL THE MATES ON THE PEARL - PAST CREW AND PRESENT - THE BEST PIRATES ON THE ENTIRE OCEAN - IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!!!!
Location: Looziana swamps
Wow, Jans, what a wonderful post!
Although I have not been lucky enough to meet any of the crew in person, with the exception of Cutthroat Kate, I feel that I do know you all in some small way. Hard to believe that it's been almost five years that we've been here on this forum.
Thank you, Laura and Neo, for doing such a wonderful job on this site and its forums...and to all the mates on board for making the interactive Pearl the most enjoyable ship to sail on!
This is Jack Sparrow's doing!
Location: somewhere over the rainbow
Just goes to show how upset I am...posting before I write something... 
Sis - you put it better than I ever could have. It's been a wonderful voyage, one that I wish could have gone on forever. BUT, as you say, we'll all still keep in touch. It's just that we won't have this particular tavern to meet in... and do incredibly crazy things in. I think, like Helen, that's what I'm going to miss the most, because we can still email, but the picture stories and the captions games that kept us laughing... Where on earth are they going to let us do that? I don't think anyone has the patience with us crazy wenches & sailors that Laura & Lisa have!!!!
And Alyx...I'm with ya, mate. Lots of changes going on over here, too. The main one being that I'm going to have to close the bookstore and that's not only a bittersweet task, but a monumental one as well!
In Italian "caio" means hello as well as good-bye, so I will just say, "Caio, cari" - "Until we meet again, luvs!"
Location: Sinking into the black oblivion of Davy Jones' Locker
I TOLD you Jansy!!!!!
Lest I give everyone a BAD lesson in Italian... Please note it is spelled C-I-A-O (and pronounced "chow", of course).
Sorry.
*psst* Don't tell Maria, okay?
Location: Sinking into the black oblivion of Davy Jones\' Locker
I can't add much more...... I am sitting here crying and laughing at the same time. This too, was my anchor, and the rope by which I pulled myself out of a horrible illness that was crushing me.
If it wasn't for Laura welcoming me into the forum in an email, I would probably just have lurked forever. She made me feel comfortable and at home here..... and I have made so many close and loving friends. Adventures I NEVER would have gone on! My goodness, travel on my own????
We will keep in touch and we will keep having piratey adventures....... swearing an oath on Jack Sparrow's head...... Now.... bring me that horizon.
Saved by Jack...... as always...
Love always
Elizabeth (OYIWHWJ)
Location: Who knows
Nervy, I agree with you on every point. 
I love you all and I can't say goodbye.
Stay tuned!
Location: here
I hope you've got the most spectabulous idea, and that it works out Nervy!
I went to the auction, but couldn't even get interested in it. Went to the library and wandered around for an hour, couldn't seem to find anything interesting. All I could think about was losing everyone from the forum, even if we all have good intentions of staying in touch. I'm still so depressed I bought Chocolate.......something I've been avoiding for almost 5 months.
Sorry, I'm having a private pity party. And I don't want Neo and Laura to think I'm ungrateful. H&LL, I wouldn't know any of you (personally or via this place) if it hadn't been for them. But I can't come to grips with all the losses I've had since the beginning of the year, and this just seems to crush my spirit into an unrecoverable state. Can't even bring myself to put on POTC 1,2,or 3. I think I'd start to cry.
Location: The Zoo aka Ark
I've been trying to be strong...positive...forward-looking...grateful and appreciative...and then I saw that "Oh Jans" and now I'm hiccp-sobbing...I miss you so much, Lanie...I miss freaking everybody...it's so weird how deeply I've learned to love this SO diverse group of ladies and gents...SO MUCH...
Why is the Kleenex always gone?
Oh...that's why...
Location: Monkeying Around with Jack!
