Posts by Taylor Johnson37

I have a deep love for literature and poetry; sometimes I even trick myself into thinking I have a knack for both, though I haven't quite found the courage to fully commit to the craft of writing yet. Classical music is another passion, especially when I find myself overanalyzing specific tones or those subtle shifts in melody. My playlist is a mix of everything from Taylor Swift and various rock artists to Leo Cohen, Arsen, Svemirko, Valentinot Bošković, and Boy Harsher. I enjoy diving into history—specifically the Middle Ages, though lately, I've been captivated by prehistory. I also like chewing on big political ideas, like universal basic income, making healthcare and education accessible to everyone, and the influence of big banking. I can spend a lot of time pondering global geopolitical issues. There’s something about watching a sunset that hits right; if I were an early riser, I’d probably be out enjoying them more often. I tend to like deconstructing social constructs to see what’s actually driving them. Sometimes I’m a quiet person; I think there’s value in silence when you're with people you're close to. Maybe I value conciseness a bit too much. Perhaps I should have studied comparative literature, but life had other plans. Looking back, I realize I haven't explored many of my interests as deeply as I'd like, so there’s plenty of room for growth—both intellectually and personally. Don't let my old posts deter you; they were just experimental attempts at expression, and honestly, most of them missed the mark.

Matthew Anderson said:Exactly. A PPDF USA that focuses solely on advertisements makes zero sense to me. Good luck hunting down those PDFs. 🙂

You know there's hardly any chance for that happening; if anything, Anderlon would likely be the one making the call.

Honestly, I was mostly concerned about that one "Looking/Offering Dates" thread—the one that got closed and deleted just about a week ago. I get why they did it, though; some people were clearly abusing it because they didn't have the 100-post minimum required for the Classifieds section.

Still, once you implement clear rules for it—like setting a limit of 100 posts and... The necessity of being precise. Any advertisement for a concert, show, or local event would have a really bright outlook.

Here is why I believe certain users on American forums find this topic so appealing:

Taylor Johnson37 said:It’s much easier for an extremely shy person or a true introvert to commit to a specific activity or event when they have one single person to meet up with—someone they’ve already had a chance to get to know via private message before meeting IRL. Showing up to a massive meetup filled with a crowd of people is intimidating, especially when you aren't comfortable in groups larger than two or three, most of whom you don't even know. Besides, those types of people usually gravitate toward structured plans rather than being open to "sandbox" style social interactions in real life.😁

The bolded section also explains why people hesitate to post that specific type of Advertisement within the existing Advertisement thread:

Joseph Sullivan10 said:I honestly don't see that getting approved. They might let you run a single Advertisement thread, but even then, there was zero interest in setting that up—even though the food enthusiast had a decent idea for it. Now, those same people are just quietly drifting over to the other two threads instead.
It really should, though let's be honest—everyone checks out the Classifieds section even if they won't admit it. You notice those social ads popping up there too; I’m sure I’ve run into at least a dozen of them myself while browsing through different locations. Word on the street is they're nothing more than a bunch of phonies.

A PPDF would be incredible—having a dedicated advertisement thread along with specific spaces for discussions and making plans. But let's be real, the chances of that actually getting approved are basically zero. 😁

Look, I know you guys have already made up your minds, but I just wanted to get one last word in and spark a little debate. Feel free to keep the discussion going—just please don't delete this. I might end up hunting down that PDF later, and I'd love to have this here for reference.

Matthew Anderson said:I'm not feeling this. Feel free to pitch it on the PZK—request a whole new PPDF section, and if luck is on your side, maybe it happens. 🙂

Are you talking about launching an entirely new PPDF category right on the main forum page?

Emily Patel70 said:Even without an attack, please 😉

I wasn't attacking you; I was simply attempting to prompt some self-reflection regarding the situation.😉

Ultimately, I know I've wasted a few hours here, but that's just my personality—when I feel like something is right, I can't just stay silent, so I had to respond.

Emily Patel70 said:Prejudice against what?

Hmm...

Emily Patel70 said:Most people in America are introverts who struggle to find their tribe. At least, that’s the excuse people always throw around when they start complaining about those power-tripping moderators deleting Advertisements on random threads.

I honestly can't tell if most people in the States are introverts. There’s just no way to get an objective read on it. From what I see, most people are actually ambiverts.

Emily Patel70 said:If someone is already struggling to connect with people they actually know, what are the odds that a conversation with a complete stranger will actually go smoothly?

I wouldn't go assuming that most people in the US struggle with communication issues; there's really no reason for us to believe that's the case.

It’s logically pointless to bother making acquaintances with people you already know.

People who actually meet up in person because of this Forum have a much better chance of getting a real preview of who they're meeting than they would IRL. Also, as the exception that proves the rule, I’m an ultra-introvert, yet I haven't had any trouble meeting total strangers from the community—and that’s specifically thanks to going to organized outings. It allows you to not be entirely dependent on how compatible you are with the person you're meeting, since you can easily split your attention between them and the actual event or activity. I personally had a great time with it (and honestly, you shouldn't have closed this thread so abruptly just because you agreed with the other moderators).

Emily Patel70 said:How much sense does it actually make to go out with someone you know absolutely nothing about?

I just replied to you.

Emily Patel70 said:Trying to find friends through an Advertisement is even more of a mystery to me. I can wrap my head around using ads to find a date or something similar, but friendships very, very rarely blossom that way.

That is entirely your own subjective opinion, and as such, it’s completely irrelevant to your role as a moderator. People are different, you know?

Emily Patel70 said:If there were a dedicated PPDF for advertisements, the forum would lose all the unique qualities it has as a social network for users posting on the PPDF USA. Everyone would just drop ads and sit around hoping someone reaches out.

I spent ten minutes trying to make sense of that, and I couldn't. People who want to post on the PPDF USA could still do so, but they would also have an extra opportunity to meet someone via the PPDF upon the explicit request of the poster—which is much more approachable than a random, intrusive PM. There’s no reason to believe that activity on the PPDF USA itself would decrease because of the PPDF. As for the social network aspect, that's simply incorrect; it could actually gain new depth since the level of acquaintance and friendship would increase while maintaining the existing connections.

Emily Patel70 said:What people should be doing on the forum is writing and participating in discussions (and by that, I don't mean superficial chatting filled with a hundred emojis).

People should do whatever suits them. Maybe someone doesn't want to participate in discussions. Maybe someone just wants to send PMs and respond to advertisements. Why not utilize all the technical features the forum offers to their absolute limit?

Emily Patel70 said:It's only through discussions that you can see who you click with and who you frequently run into on various threads. From there, you can move the discussion to PM. Or maybe eventually arrange a Coffee and Chat if you live nearby.

That is your personal subjective impression, which makes it irrelevant to your function as a moderator. In my subjective view, it's better to reach out or post a quality advertisement and then let the interaction continue from there. Keep in mind that a user's subjective opinion matters when developing a platform, and a moderator's job is simply to find the best way to ensure user satisfaction.

Emily Patel70
Alternatively, if you’re incredibly shy and would rather not reach out via private message, you could always show up to a US-style Coffee and Chat to meet the forum members you’ve grown fond of online.

It is much easier for an extremely shy person or an ultra-introvert to attend a clearly defined activity or event with just one (1) specific person they can get to know slowly through PMs before meeting in person. Showing up to a massive forum meetup with a huge crowd is daunting, especially since introverts generally dislike groups larger than two or three people—people they barely even know—whereas everyone else there already knows one another. Beyond that, those types of people usually gravitate toward structured activities rather than being open to "sandbox IRL" scenarios.😁

I actually discussed this recently with a girl I went to a concert with here from the forum, and she agreed; she said she would never attend a large gathering like that without a specific cultural event to anchor it.

Emily Patel70 said:You should post Advertisements on sites specifically designed for that. This forum can certainly be used in much smarter ways.

Whether meeting people through ads is a "less smart" way to use the site compared to other functions (like public discussions) is purely your own subjective opinion, so it isn't really relevant to your role as a moderator.
If you had actually looked at the threads regarding dating sites, you might have noticed they aren't nearly as good as this forum, so imagine what else we could achieve.

Emily Patel70 said:I have already stated my reasons why I think threads looking for friends don't make sense.

The reasons you provided are merely your personal subjective opinions, not actual arguments, which makes them irrelevant to your duties as a moderator.

Emily Patel70 said:Now you can see just how much interest those threads generated. And for good reason.

I agree that there is a reason. In my view, there are two main ones: the poor placement of the PPDF Tulumara section and the lack of enough predefined "seeking/offering" topics. Instead, users were opening them arbitrarily. Predefined "regional" threads on the same PPDF tend to be more successful, unlike certain areas like NYC or LA.

Emily Patel70 said:You don't find friends through classified ads.

That’s just your personal opinion, not an actual argument, so it doesn't really carry weight in your role as a moderator.

Emily Patel70 said:I have nothing against threads where users might seek advice on improving their social skills (if they feel they need it), or threads where new members can introduce themselves and things like that.

It's unlikely anyone does.

Emily Patel70 said:I honestly don't see how I was being shady.

Let's see...

Emily Patel70 said:But as for a new PPDF for classifieds, you have my categorical no.

Emily Patel70 said:I am completely against the idea of attaching that PPDF to the US-style one, and frankly, I doubt any of our colleagues would support it either.

Emily Patel70 said:I don't know what the other colleagues will say, but I am absolutely against it.

Emily Patel70 said:Honestly, I don't see the point in opening even one more thread for advertisements, let alone an entire PPDF.
It’s not even a matter of me being unwilling to moderate; I handle more PDFs than anyone else here, so I haven't exactly decided to be selectively lazy.

Since we already cleared out those irrelevant ones, what’s the reasoning here?

From a purely logical standpoint, we have established that... It makes sense.Actually, your claim about dodging the hundred-post rule by just replying to other relevant threads doesn't really hold water, considering you said the following:

Emily Patel70 said:I’ve been thinking about how the Coffee and Chat threads on PPDF USA never really took off. It seems pretty straightforward why everyone ended up gravitating toward other topics instead—most people just don't hit the post count required to participate in the Advertisements section. And honestly, there’s a very good reason that rule is in place.

How can you possibly think that an Advertisement on the US site carries the same weight as one on Tulumara? You're missing the main point. The reason your argument about people avoiding the 100-post rule doesn't hold water is because there are zero post limits when you're posting an Advertisement on Tulumara. It’s simple: users have absolutely no incentive to follow the 100-post requirement here when they can just head over to Tulumara and drop their ad there instead.

If this sounds a bit too forced to you, let's consider that some users on the Forum actually do bypass the hundred-post rule. However, there isn't any concrete evidence to suggest that everyone is doing it, or even that it's a widespread practice. At the end of the day, that's just your subjective impression.

At the end of the day, it’s all irrelevant. On the new threads I’ve proposed—not fixed ones, but those where there's actually a consensus—we can just implement a rule for a hundred posts, or whatever number we decide is necessary.

Emily Patel70 said:I’ve already mentioned that I’m open to other suggestions. Now it's your turn to step outside the box you built for yourself and really start thinking.

I really hope you don't realize just how cynical what you wrote actually is—it’s honestly as toxic as botulism.

In this context, "thinking outside the box" basically boils down to two options: either you shut up, stay under the radar, and stop making waves, or you go track down Anderlon to get that Personal Contacts PDF opened.

The "guidelines" I laid out aren't actually rules, nor was that my intention, and this thread isn't some attempt at vigilante justice. I put together a few suggestions with the hope they’d be studied constructively, discarded if unnecessary, or perhaps even built upon. My core idea was simply to add two sub-sections to the existing Classifieds section: one for "Looking/Offering outings for specific concerts, shows, or movies," and another for "Looking/Offering friendship." Once I understood why you handled other threads the way you did—specifically regarding the difficulty of moderation—it made sense to me to just start a new PPDF. It costs nothing to try; we could move these three topics there and add a sticky thread for things that drive more actual engagement on the Forum. After someone mentioned Tulumara and her life on life support, it felt like a good opportunity to create a hybrid space, especially since those "regional" sticky threads on Tulumara make total sense within this new context. Instead, I just got hammered by the mods, acting like some small-town Alabama sheriffs charging into Compton. Air Canada practically shoved their policy in my face, basically telling me everything is set in stone and non-negotiable, making any discussion pointless. I only kept talking to you because I remember some of your posts being incredibly rational, but now I'm starting to wonder if that still holds true.

Wonderful. How are they supposed to thrive if you just delete them!? Just look at those two threads—"I Have No Friends" and "I Have No One to Go Out With"—where you mods were forced to add "this is not an Advertisement thread" because people keep posting specific ads related to the topic name. On the "I Have No Friends" thread, this happens constantly ever since "even the oldest can't remember" (it’s basically where Andrew Jarak would show up IRL😁). Then there's that other thread, "Looking/Offering Outings," which you closed just a week ago (and even deleted).

Don't you think forum members would just post an ad for friendship or a specific outing to a concert, a play, or some other activity on a general Advertisements thread if that's what they actually wanted to do? On the flip side, threads with specific names for these two things have absolutely exploded with ads.

I've had experience with this myself; I once posted an ad for a specific concert outing, including a brief description of the kind of people I'd get along with, and someone reached out to me months later. Conversely, on that thread you closed, I received several responses within just a few hours—also for a specific concert, also with a short description.

It's obvious that people don't feel comfortable posting about friendship, let alone immediate outings, on a general thread.

Ultimately, I'm surprised by how stubborn you're being here (without even getting into the other mods' views), because you come across to me as a rational and open-minded person based on what I've read of your posts. I especially remember one post where you wrote about the injustice of any kind of prejudice, after another, otherwise very cool female forum member wrote that prejudices exist for a reason because they are most often accurate.
Isn't this stance of yours a prejudice in itself? There is no basis to claim that a slightly modified advertising system would be worse, especially when there are indications it would actually be better.

Tulumara is a pretty interesting corner of this forum, especially considering my specific situation because... PPDF Regarding Coffee and Chat—I honestly think his main issue is just being in the wrong section. This part of the forum is meant for getting together IRL, but it hasn't really taken off because people here mostly just swap lines on the Floating Theme threads. They aren't actually looking to meet up in person.

It’s interesting how there are these regional sticky threads popping up here and there. It’s actually a pretty solid idea, though I honestly have no clue how many people are actually responding to those Advertisements.

I know the mods might argue that Tulumara already covers everything I’m proposing regarding this PPDF idea, but that’s just not the case. My suggestion is specifically about restructuring the titles of several sticky threads to clearly define the type of interaction—whether someone is looking for something or offering it. Right now, these regional stickies are a bit of a catch-all; there’s a mix of everything, which isn't necessarily bad, but adding those specific categories I mentioned (like those five bolded ones) would create new niches and drive even more engagement. Maybe a good compromise would be moving Tulumara under the US section and updating its name to include "Looking/Offering," alongside dedicated forum meetups and a few other relevant sticky topics. It wouldn't result in thirty new threads like Harold Taylor6 suggests; we're talking maybe ten at most. If we clean up the titles and improve the overall organization, I think we'd have a much better system.

And yeah, this isn't quite the full response I'm planning to write yet.

Joseph Sullivan10 said:Look, I’m not an introvert or anything US-style, but even though I mostly just drop by the Forum when I can, I’ve made some genuinely great friends here. And yeah, that was just after I posted an Advertisement saying I was bored. 😁
It’s certainly not hopeless just because five or six people—who basically just cycle through nicknames and whine about the same old thing—can't even hold a conversation with a brick wall in real life.

That said, Taylor Johnson37 did make things unnecessarily complicated.

Maybe I overcomplicated things a bit, but I think I was just being unclear. The outline I provided is just that—an outline. It covers the fundamental steps for opening a new PPDF, but everything else is totally flexible depending on what the interested users and mods decide on.

But hey, hold on—don't go rushing to close and delete this thread just yet. You guys gave me plenty to work with in response to Harold Taylor6 and Emily Patel70, but since my reply is going to be pretty detailed, I need some time to put it together.

silvertiger11 said:What happened to the Coffee and Chat threads?

Don't be a troll; you know this is strictly online, just a way to kill some time.

I’d like to hear from those who were posting in the "Looking/Offering Dates" thread last week, as well as anyone posting Advertisements in the "No Friends" section, or those who used to start threads for local meetups. If you're interested, please don't just stay silent—speak up and let us know what you think about all of this.

Joseph Sullivan10 said:I don't think they'll go for it. Maybe they'll allow a single Advertisement thread, but there wasn't even any appetite for that, even though the culinary enthusiast had a decent idea for it—so now those same people are just quietly drifting through two other threads.
...

A PPDF would be great, featuring an Advertisement section alongside dedicated spaces for discussion and coordination, but the odds of that getting approved are basically zero.😁

Why so pessimistic? From what I've gathered, all the mods are rational people. If we aren't proactive, they won't be either. As I see it, the issue isn't the number of Advertisement threads; it's that they're being opened haphazardly without clear rules. They’re scattered all over the PPDF, cluttering everything up and making the whole thing impossible to navigate. They lack conciseness, which makes them a nightmare to moderate. That's why they're trying to cram everything into one thread. From a moderation standpoint, it's perfectly understandable, and I'd probably do the same, but it's not in the best interest of the users or the site's engagement (which ultimately affects the owner too). Here is why it hurts the community:

Taylor Johnson37 said:I've noticed that creating "niche" Advertisement threads actually boosts activity among users looking to buy or sell things—people who, for some reason, don't feel comfortable posting in the general "Classifieds - Wanted/For Sale" thread.

Besides, I'm not just dreaming here; increasing activity by opening new "niches" is just a natural phenomenon. A textbook example would be Darwin's finches on the Galapagos Islands (where 14 different species evolved from one due to food availability—just Google it😛)(though damn it, biology😁, we need someone from Information Science to give a better analogy). We aren't separate from these natural trends, and our forum activity is no different. If this new activity needs to be organized and supervised, then a new sub-PPDF is the best solution. If they need extra mods to handle it—I'm available. My only fear is how the moderator screening process looks for an American forum😁—I'd hate for some SOA to barge into my house and wreck the place. Or does the forum rely on a network of neighborhood busybodies?😁

Joseph Sullivan10 said:...
It really should, even if everyone actually checks the Classifieds thread despite rarely admitting it—plus, social posts show up there too (I've definitely posted about a dozen myself when I was moving locations).Word on the street is they're nothing more than a front. ;-)

Honestly, people can be so untrustworthy. I really think we could eliminate that issue entirely if we just set up dedicated threads with some solid, high-quality rules in place.

Here’s a quick sketch of what that PPDF sub could look like:

The permanent sticky themes. What kind of rules would you mods set up right from the jump to keep things orderly?

• Looking for/offering strictly virtual correspondence only.
  
  
• Looking for/offering real-life friendship.
• Looking for some light texting or casual dates.
  
  
• Looking for correspondence and dating (seeking a serious relationship).
  
  
• I’m looking for a gradual connection—starting with friendship and seeing where the path leads us.
  
  
• I'm looking to head out—specifically for things like concerts, plays, or art exhibits—so let me know where the night takes us.
• Looking for or offering a night out at a club.
• Looking for a hobby partner.
• Looking for a partner for some recreation.

I think we should definitely add the ones I've bolded; they pop up on the Forum all the time.

Occasional pinned threads.:

Forum meetups, group outings, and stuff like that.

Floating Theme (The forum members have officially opened the Forum in coordination with the moderators.)

I’m pretty sure most of you would agree that a lack of meaningful community—loneliness, isolation, or just feeling disconnected—is one of the biggest, yet most overlooked, struggles in modern society. There are endless reasons why people feel isolated or out of sync with those around them; there are far too many to list here, and that isn't really the point of this thread.

What I really want to talk about is that fundamental human drive to find someone or a group of people with whom you can better enjoy life—whether that means going out, sharing a niche interest, hanging out over a hobby, building a deep connection, or any other level of interaction, regardless of the scale.

Even though we can interact with more people in a single day than our grandmothers back in their days in Small Town, USA, could meet in an entire lifetime, it still doesn't feel like enough to find people who truly share our specific interests, hopes, or feelings. That need often just hangs in the air. Of course, some people satisfy those needs easily because they connect with everyone, while others are on the opposite end of the spectrum, struggling to find even one person they vibe with IRL. Regardless, it seems like almost everyone eventually tries to bridge that gap through the internet.

There’s a good reason for that. A single Advertisement can reach more people in minutes than you might encounter in a lifetime (though I haven't managed to convince my grandma of that yet😁). Plus, if you clearly state a single interest or request, you get an instant filter.

About a week ago, someone started a thread titled, if I remember correctly, "Looking/Offering Outings." Within hours, the thread was buzzing exactly as intended, despite a bit of the usual trolling and grumbling from the skeptics.

Despite its huge potential, the mods (who I think are doing a good job) had Emily Patel70 lock it down, and then it was deleted entirely. Just like the Romans wiped out Cartage, that thread vanished as if it were cursed. I assume it was done because all requests and offers should be funneled into the Advertisements thread; it makes sense, as it's much easier to moderate one central hub than several scattered ones.

However, here is the crux of my argument😁: I’ve noticed that creating "niche" advertisement threads actually drives engagement from users who want to find or offer something but feel uncomfortable doing so in the general "Advertisements - Looking/Offering" thread. Personally, I think the Forum would reach a whole new level if there were a sub-PPDF with sticky threads for things like "looking/offering / chatting / pen pals / specific outings (concerts, clubs, parks, theaters, movies, whatever) / meeting a guy or girl / dating / grabbing drinks / gaming / roleplay" and
maybe even dedicated threads for US-style meetups, or perhaps a speed dating thread down the road once the demand is there.

So, on one hand, you have the mods wanting to keep things organized, which is easier with one thread, but on the other, you have the users on the Lonely Heart sub-forum—which is literally meant to combat isolation—trying to achieve the connections they couldn't make in person.

Anyway, I've rambled on, but only to try and soften the hearts of the moderators. Be a little more daring, like Reddit, where sub-forums are quickly opened up for any good initiative. Besides, this sub-forum doesn't even have its own dedicated PPDF yet; it’s about time.

P.S. If you're short on mods to handle this, I'm happy to volunteer.

Brandon Mitchell said:If I’d actually done that, I probably would've lost it myself 🙂, seriously... is it really that hard to find one single normal person out there?

👏

Teeth

Vagina_dentata

I’m noting this down—it’s easily one of the three most irritating things about my personality.

stormycrane6 said:this forum, the best forum on the internet

It’s decent; I managed to skim through it pretty quickly by mixing my Italian with some Google Translate. From what I can tell, it doesn't seem much bigger than US news sites.

Does anyone know of any massive forums where you actually feel like things are happening in real time? Aside from Reddit, obviously.

Terry Reed13 said:There’s plenty going on over at Pizza, especially if you enjoy a bit of trolling, so go ahead and dive in.😁
http://forum.burek.com/

Yeah, Pizza is definitely one of the main subforums. In the US, CNN's forum is just as active in that area.

It’s good, thanks, but I definitely experienced some culture shock😁. A forum with a horizontal menu? Those crazy Britons really must drive on the right side of the road.

I’m curious to know which major general-interest forums exist in other countries, particularly in neighboring ones. Please suggest only general forums where the subforums and their most active threads see engagement at least once an hour (not necessarily through the night, though that would be ideal).

The forums I’ve stumbled upon so far seem to have about a tenth of the posts, users, and overall activity found here on Reddit. It feels like you have to wait anywhere from seven or eight hours—or even five or six days in less active subforums—just to see a single reply or a new post in the most popular threads.

The closest thing might be forum.burrito.com, but even that doesn't quite reach the scale of this place.

Thanks in advance

Carl Rivera43 said:The Botanical gardens sound like a killer idea, and maybe we can hit up a local park right after.

Just a little chat about everything under the sun, you know? Just trying to keep the vibes high. It’ll be the big debut for the Psychic Couch, so hopefully, it's going to be pretty interesting.

The botanical garden closes early, sometimes around 4 PM or even sooner.

Richard Taylor8 said:Anyone else deal with this where your face just doesn't match how you actually feel? Like, it’s totally misrepresenting what you're trying to project to people.

For instance, if I'm feeling down, I just end up looking spaced out and vacant. Or if I try to give someone a friendly smile, it comes off as sarcastic or mocking. It's frustrating because I can't seem to figure out how to move my face to show what's actually going on inside—or even just to look the way I want to look. People constantly misread me, and half the time, it just ends up being awkward or funny in a bad way.

Is anyone else stuck with this issue? How do you handle it? Did you eventually learn how to actually control your expressions over time?

No offense intended, but this would make for some killer sketches by Ricky Gervais.

Hanging out with me over some honey mead.😁🙂

I’d give your avatar a 3.2, purely for practical reasons.