One upon a time, there was a BIG guestbook on a popular site that was designed for people who were easily amused and wanted to have fun. This guestbook was VERY popular, and most everyone who visited the site, signed the guestbook because they thought it was "cool". Then one day (actually, it was the wee hours of the morning), someone who was not very nice or considerate to other people, decided to put a VERY obscene photograph in the guestbook of a man and a woman, nude, and in a VERY compromising pose, doing a VERY explicit thing (get my "drift"?). That person also added many words of profanity to the photograph. For shame! Tsk! Tsk! This was NOT cool!
Unfortunately, shortly after this "entry" into the guestbook was made, my dear friend, Susan, decided to sign the guestbook (gasp!). Unknowingly, she entered the guestbook to view its contents, before signing. What she "viewed" was NOT for children to see, and apparently, NOT for Susan to see, either.
A frantic and confusing e-mail was sent to me. At first, all I could get out of Susan was the word "guestbook", and "Oh, my!", and "I can't believe it!". But, I couldn't seem to figure out WHICH guestbook, or WHAT had happened. I went to my guestbook. I went to Susan's guestbook. I went to Linda's guestbook. Nothing. Finally, after a few e-mails, I was able to get the URL out of her (she said that she sent it to me three times, but I never got it!). I went to where the URL led me, and there it was--that photo of...well,....you know....like it says above, accompanied by alot of profanity.
Although it was rather startling to see when I first came upon it, not knowing what to expect, I wasn't as shocked about it as Susan seemed to be. When I e-mailed Susan again, her response was:
"Did you see it? Did you see it?
Can they do THAT?
I don't want to sign a guestbook like THAT."
Now, I must take a moment to tell you that Susan and I BOTH were using WEBTV at that time (you know, surfing the Net with our television sets), and the picture being viewed on a 27 inch television is alot bigger than on a much smaller computer monitor (which Linda was using). So, you can understand how startling it was for us to see such an "interesting" photo leap out at us.
I reassured her that it probably had JUST happened, and since it was around 3:00 in the morning, the owners of the site and guestbook probably were not aware that it was there, yet. It would probably disappear when it was discovered by them (and it WAS deleted VERY quickly, too!). Poor Susan was pretty rattled, and the next day showed me just how rattled she really was.
While Linda and I were e-mailing back and forth the next afternoon, at the end of one of her e-mails to me was this:
"Hey, can you explain what Susan was all weirded out about with the guestbook? I got one of her msgs, and I don't understand what the problem is/was/will be. I did respond to it, but I'd like YOUR perspective on the situation."
My reply was this:
"Hehehehe!!!! AHEM!! Well, I saw it myself, and its probably gone now, but there was a HUGE picture of a guy and gal during intercourse--you could see EVERYTHING! Accompanying the pic was a bunch of pornographic profanity. Of course, I HAD to ask Susan if she was interested (my warped sense of humor)! And if your site is linked to THAT site, well....you know."
The e-mail conversation continued as follows...
Linda:
"It sure is.....gone, that is!!!!!! Doncha know that you have NO CONTROL over what folks put in your guestbook? I mean, unless you have pergatory/paradise, like I do... (Their server lets you install an image and badword filter!) The fact that it's gone means that it was purged when the entry was discovered... But that IS funny. LOL Sorry I missed it... D'ya think Susan will recover?"
Me:
"Hehehe!!! I'm STILL laughing about that. I can edit out unwanted stuff, too, VERY easily in my guestbook. I think poor Susan and "Ozzie and Harriet" had quite a shock last night! (giggle) At first I didn't know what she was talking about either. She kept saying "guestbook", but not WHICH or WHOSE (WHO'S?). I REALLY had to pry it out of her! She was REALLY shaken over it! Poor thing (grin)...."
Linda:
"Well, then you will just LOVE the message I sent to her inquiring as to the problem.. let me forward it to you for you to giggle some more."
Linda then proceeded to forward two e-mails that she had received the night before from Susan to me, along with her replies to Susan. Apparently, these were the "mysterious" e-mails that I was suppose to get. Of course, Linda had NO idea what Susan had seen in the guestbook when she replied back to Susan, which made it all the more humorous from my viewpoint. Linda answers "throughout" her e-mails to people. In both of the e-mails, it will appear as a conversation because of Linda's "technique". Remember, in each instance, Susan THINKS that she is talking to ME, when in reality, Linda has received it. And Linda has NO idea what Susan is talking about. Need I say more? This was e-mail #1:
Susan:
"She sent me this."
Linda:
"I must be the "she" huh?"
Susan:
"Click the URL then go to Guestbook. I didn't sign it.... there was a well, you see for yourself."
Linda:
"Boy, I'm really really curious NOW. What was there? Just the hugest danged stupid guestbook in the world? What? Am I retarded? What am I missing that obviously is a problem for you, Susan?
====puzzled====
Linda"
Think about it. Susan has just seen a shocking, obscene photo, in a guestbook, and Linda is talking "huge"... E-mail #2 continues on...
Susan:
"Do they always have THIS ? Not sure if I want to join!"
Linda:
"What, the huge guestbook? The total huge group of easily amused folks? Some folks are inveterate guestbook surfers; there's something for everyone here! LOL
You got some time to waste, you can waste it in the guestbook if you wish. I, on the other hand, prefer checking the various sites. :)
Linda"
Yes.... "Something for everyone" (ahem!)....
Linda prefers to check out "the various 'sites'", while Susan has just seen a "sight" in the guestbook.... Hmmmmm..... And now Susan must be thinking that people who surf that guestbook, are looking for porn, and are not only "easily amused", but probably are "sick", too.
Eventually, I discovered that Linda had recommended the site to Susan, as she thought that it would be a nice, "wholesome" site to be listed on. And, evidentally, Susan wanted her site to be added to that site's list of links, or something. But she had second thoughts after seeing the guestbook. And Linda, STILL had no idea what had happened....
Yes, guestbooks ARE nice to have when controlled properly. Thus, the moral of the story is that one must have an open mind and a good sense of humor when preparing to sign a guestbook--especially a "huge" one.....
I would like to thank my dear friends Susan and Linda for allowing me to share that wonderfully humorous story. Thanks, Gals!