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2024 Story Contest Leaderboard Update

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Leaderboard Update

As we enter the homestretch the field is narrowing a little, but here are my picks. You're making it difficult because the quality is improving all the time. So, keep it up, folks!

First, a special accolade to Dorothy Colleen.

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Comments Leaderboard


Comments Leaderboard
By Joannebarbarella

First let me restate that this is in no way an endorsement of any of the stories submitted for the 2024 New Year’s Contest. That ain’t my job.

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What's Wrong?

Why are readers so mean in giving kudos? I'm not talking about comments, which actually require engagement and effort, but those little things which need just a push of a button. Even excellent stories like Jenny Walker's.

What's so hard about letting an author know you appreciated the effort they put into entertaining you?

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Joanne’s Take

Comments are oxygen to authors, lifeblood. They show that somebody has read their story and cared enough to respond with some encouragement, or not, as the case may be, but at least appreciated the effort that went into posting.

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An Aussie Girl

My name is Joanne Askew
I am an Aussie girl
A glass of wine with you sir
And the ladies I will swirl
All New South Wales and Queensland
Is measured up by my own hand
It was my fate from birth
To make my mark upon the earth

Apologies to Mark Knopfler for mangling his beautiful
“Sailing To Philadelphia”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtxuWycNgfo

And apologies to Andrea Lena for giving me the idea which I have stolen.

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Judge Joanne

Now that I have been Press-Ganged by Emma and Jill into making the ultimate comment on Comments, it's probably reasonable to give you all some very rough hints as to how I will go about it. The two kind ladies have given me total discretion and I will try to use it benevolently.

The first criterion is that a comment MUST relate to a competition entry. That should be obvious.

It doesn't matter if the story to which it relates is not one of the winners. I am judging the comment, not the story.

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Last Night

I watched Love Actually on Netflix. Yes I'd seen it before but it's back at No.8 in the top10 Australian shows, and my memories of it were a bit fuzzy. It is, after all, 20 years old.

What a lovely movie it is, fantastic cast, heartwarming stuff for the season, and some good songs in the soundtrack. Also some poignancy for me, like Alan Rickman, who died fairly recently, playing one of his rare nice roles.

Well worth another watch.

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Maybe A Touch Early

It's already December 23 over here, so I wish all you adherents to Big Closet a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and, of course special thanks to Erin and our Admin staff.

I'm sure you will all join me in a huge round of appreciation for all their hard work in making sure that this site is the best place on the internet for folks like us. It's what they do behind the scenes that counts. Thankyou. May you enjoy next year as much as I think we, the audience,will.

Joanne

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Thank You Maddy Bell

Many of Maddy's blogs IMHO don't get the attention they deserve, maybe because they are about bits of Britain that the majority of readers and adherents to this site are American or Canadian and their interests are understandably closer to home.

But Maddy's latest blog (as of 22 November) draws attention to the plight of those who might fall through the cracks in our society and are ignored, even when it comes to charitable causes. I could have appended this to her blog but thought it could get a bit more attention if posted as a stand-alone, particularly at this time of year.

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Murdoch Media "Balanced" Reporting

An article in today's Australian newspaper (Newscorp's description, not mine) claims that "new evidence" supports limiting childrens' access to blockers. The article claims that 34% of children in a survey reported deterioration in their mental health one year after using blockers, while 29% said they felt better and 37% felt no difference.

The article then quoted "a leading child psychiatrist" as urging restraint in prescribing blockers for trans children on the grounds that they could be deleterious to their mental health.

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Every Now And Again

I occasionally check "My Stories" to see if anyone has been masochistic enough to read one or at least registered a hit or very rarely a new comment. I don't claim they have any literary value but obviously they have a sentimental value for me. I sometimes think of something that might improve what I wrote and today was one of those days.

However I was surprised to find that the text of each story that I checked had vanished. All the comments seem to have survived but the story itself has disappeared. Please, Admin people, can you restore them?

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Lahaina

I have spent five holidays in Hawaii and every time I have spent most of the time on Maui, and each time I have been in close proximity to Lahaina. I never stayed in the town itself but always in Ka'anapali, a couple of miles north and Lahaina was where we would go to dine and just walk around for enjoyment. The banyan tree was a favourite sitting spot and Front Street was where all the good cafes and restaurants were located, so it is with a heavy heart that I see the devastation which has befallen the town.

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Cancel Culture

The "Right" is always accusing those of us who are not of their persuasion of using "cancel culture" to silence criticism.

Isn't it strange that the Republican "law makers" in Montana have banned Zooey Zephyr from participating in legislative debates because she criticised moves to introduce restrictive laws to prevent TG treatments for juveniles. She is an elected representative to the legislature. It just happens that she is transgender.

It seems that Republicans cannot abide anybody objecting to their Nazi objectives.

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We're All Too Comfortable

It's only a matter of time before we join the list of books banned in many states of the USA. When the Right-Wingers have finished going after the children and their parents and the doctors who treat them, then they are going to come after what they see as those who encourage and/or educate them.

That's US, folks. They can't burn our books but they can ban us from the internet and restrict us in many ways. Do you think we'll get any help from the tech giants?

Think again.

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Am I Naive?

I am not American, but does not the preamble to your Constitution guarantee, among other things, the right to the pursuit of happiness to all citizens?

This being the case, how can a section of your political classes deny that right to another section of your citizenry?

Why hasn't someone lodged a case to protest this abrogation of rights to the Supreme Court?

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Internet Bullies

I post this as a warning to other users. A couple of weeks ago I decided not to renew my subscriptions to McAfee and Norton for protecting my computer from malware and viruses. I did this because another provider was offering the same services for less than half the price that the two former outfits were offering.

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Charlie Watts

I just heard that Charlie Watts, the drummer of The Rolling Stones, died.

I met him back in 1963, when The Stones were just getting started, and he was a lovely guy, the only one of them who wasn't either so far up himself or high on something, who gave a fan a little facetime and some conversation, without being in any way condescending.

Apart from that, he was one of those mostly unsung brilliant drummers who anchored the group for over fifty years. It makes me feel very sad and very much mortal to hear of his death as he was only a few months older than me.

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TG And Sports

In all the hoo-hah about transgender individuals playing sports in their chosen gender the focus has only been on male-to-female. Nobody has ever mentioned female-to-male. There is evidently no perception of a problem if a born female athlete (for instance) plays American football or runs in male races.

Here is a very brief list of sports where size and strength make no difference. Please feel free to add any sport you like to this very brief list. Or challenge this list.

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"Predestination"

I just watched a movie named Predestination (on Netflix). I won't give too much away or I will be spoiling.

It is a time travel story but its interest to many of us is that one of the central characters is born and grows up female and then becomes male. The part is played by the same actress, who received an award for her performance and, in my opinion, deservedly so.

It may not be to everybody's taste but I found it intriguing.

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Dr. Seuss NOT Banned

There seems to be a misconception that some Dr. Seuss books have been banned and that the US Government is responsible.

THIS IS NOT TRUE.

The books are not banned and it has nothing to do with the US Government despite attempts to make it appear so by some so-called conservative politicians.

The books in question are still available but the family company that controls the publishing has decided that in today's society some of the characterisations may appear racist and so they have decided not to sell any more of those particular books.

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