John Ratite's Custodia Islands Getaway [Qaqaq declared champ

[Tahnan]

Ahh--I didn't even realize one could buy a ticket for another teammate. That is to say, I thought that a button would only work for the person whose name was on it. Otherwise I'd've bought him a ticket myself.

[mole]

Kitchhiker?

[referee]

OK, I assume I'm at machine 10, even if unnoted. I'll press ENTER-B button and collect ticket. Then move to Harbor and board my ferry.

I've taken laser eye surgeon, and thus I can't be as active as I'd like for a while.

[Tablesaw]

Grf. Missed another round. No buttons to press, even. This may be against the letter of the law, but I'm going to head to Harbor now, as my action.

Also, can we confirm where mole and referee are this round? There's some confusion in the text.

------------------
(It's the saw of the table!)

[T McAy]

Round 13: Movement

The following updates are flashed on video monitors on news kiosks:

referee: Your name and mole’s name were erroneously switched in the last report. Thank you for seeing through the error, recognizing your true position, and purchasing a ticket.

Tablesaw: Movement intentions are not acknowledged during the action phases. Therefore, you must repost your intention to head for the harbor.

Visitors: All ferry tickets have been purchased. The ferries will depart for Groons-Cape Orwilia as soon as all arrive at the harbor and board. Visitors not currently aboard a ferry must post their intention to go to the harbor in a subsequent post. The tour group that votes to send someone home will be the one whose member is the last to arrive at the harbor.

The ENTER-A and ENTER-B Buttons are pressed on Ticket Machine 9. Visitors Agamemnon, Corsato, Hitchhiker and mikegoo watch as ferry tickets are dispensed. Agamemnon and Corsato collect the tickets and five coins each are deducted from the Lano-Catru and Ocagru accounts. The touch screen goes blank.

The ENTER-A and ENTER-B Buttons are pressed on Ticket Machine 10. Visitors Duphrates, referee and Tablesaw watch as as ferry tickets are dispensed. Duphrates and referee collect the tickets and five coins each are deducted from the Lano-Catru and Ocagru accounts. The touch screen goes blank.

The ENTER Button is pressed on Ticket Machine 11. Visitor jesternl watches as a ferry ticket is dispensed. jesternl collects the ticket and five coins are deducted from the Lano-Catru account. The touch screen goes blank.

The ENTER Button is pressed on Ticket Machine 12. Visitor jadesmar watches as a ferry ticket is dispensed. jadesmar collects the ticket and five coins are deducted from Ocagru account. The touch screen goes blank.

Visitors mikeamok, mole, PuzzleProdigy, Qaqaq, RequiemEternam, Saxifrage and Tahnan are aboard ferries. Dragon Phoenix is at the Swepia Harbor. All other visitors should select a location to move to.

Lano-Catru Balance: $18
Ocagru Balance: $18

[Duphrates]

I would like to make my way to the harbour, and if possible get on a ferry

[Tahnan]

Run! Run like the wind! Hurry, before Qaqaq throws any more ice at me!

[mole]

-tags Duphrates-

Only five more!

[jadesmar]

board the boat

[Qaqaq]

*grabs Instamatic from overnight bag and takes photos of all the lovely people running hurry-scurry toward the harbor*

[jesternl]

Onwards to the harbor, at long last

[mikegoo]

head to the harbor andget on the boat hope i can do all of that.

[Hitchhiker]

head to harbor, get on boat (if I can)

I kinda like "Kitchhiker." It works if I'm only hiking as far as the kitchen.

[Corsato]

I'll Go to the harbour as well.

[Tahnan]

"Harbour" [sic]? You'll have better luck on the next island, I think; it sounds like it was settled by Scotsmen.

[Tablesaw]

Harbout.

------------------
(It's the saw of the table!)

[T McAy]

Round 13: Action

The following visitors have been randomly assigned to locations.
Agamenon (Swepia Harbor)
referee (Swepia Harbor)

Dragon Phoenix watches the other visitors pass him on their way to board the ferries. Some of the harbor personnel approach Dragon Phoenix and suggest that he board a boat heading back to Fedda Dusta. Dragon Phoenix realizes that it’s time for him to return home and consents. Dragon Phoenix boards a special return boat and is surprised to find Betty White on the deck standing next to one of the ticket dispensing machines from the museum. The screen on the machine prompting potential ticket buyers by blinking "ENTER." "Why don’t you have the honors," Betty says to Dragon Phoenix. The visitor from Rouen lifts the machine and hurls it toward the harbor pavement. The ticket machine explodes on impact in a beautiful shower of metal keypad elements, broken glass, and printing ink. "Good job," Betty remarks, "and thanks you for not hurting any animals." The boat heads back for Fedda Dusta while Dragon Phoenix and Betty White settle down to watch some of their favorite episodes of The Golden Girls.

The remaining visitors all arrive at Swepia Harbor with tickets in hand. They arrive in this order:
Duphrates
jadesmar
jesternl
mikegoo
Hitchhiker
Corsato
Tablesaw

Then Agamemenon and referee, due to random selection, arrive simultaneously. In order to break this tie, Islands Management reviews the order in which these two visitors purchased tickets. Agamemnon purchased a ticket before refereee, and so Agamemnon’s tour group, Ocagru, will be considered the first of the two groups to leave port.

Corsato, jesternl and referee board the Lano-Catru ferry and Agamemnon, Duphrates, Hitchhiker, jadesmar, mikegoo and Tablesaw board the Ocagru ferry.

"All tour group members are accounted for," cries the ensign of the Ocagru ferry. "All right," says the captain, "next stop, Groons-Cape Orwilia!" The ferry leaves port and the tour group members take some time to read some of the literature on Groons-Cape Orwilia while cutting through the Nonspacific Ocean. A brochure contains this information.

Groons is the third largest island in the Custodia chain. When it was colonized 150 years ago, the westernmost point of the island was named Cape Orwilia by the colonists. Groons and Cape Orwilia, located on opposite shores, are the two chief harbors on this island.

Satellite television was introduced to Groons-Cape Orwilia about a decade ago. The native islanders, usually quite conservative and traditional, took an instant liking to the animated television series "The Simpsons." Such was their obsession with the series that the Groons-Cape Orwilia residents redesigned the island to resemble the fictional town of Springfield. The islanders even dress as the characters on the show.

Don’t have a cow, man, if you are not familiar with "The Simpsons." Groons-Cape Orwilia promises intriguing adventures for OFF fans and non-fans alike.

"All tour group members are accounted for," cries the ensign of the Lano-Catru ferry. "All right," says the captain, "next stop, Groons-Cape Orwilia! During the trip we need to take care of some business. Because you were the second tour group to have all your members board the ferry, you have to vote one member out of your tour group. The voting process is as follows:

1) Please send the vote to the e-mail address tmcclar@qwest.com.

2) Only e-mail votes that include one name from the Lano-Catru tour group members and that are received within the next 24 hours will be considered for tabulation. A message along the lines of <Screen name> votes for <screen name> will be sufficient.

3) If no valid votes are received within the deadline then the entire Lano-Catru tour group will be recalled and detained at Groons Harbor one round for a revote. If at least one valid vote is received then the results will be tabulated.

4) The visitor who receives the most votes will be sent home. If there is a tie for the most votes then the tied visitor who receives the first vote will be sent home.

The visitors cast their votes, and then study the literature on Groons-Cape Orwilia as the ferry cuts through the Nonspacific Ocean.

Round 14: Movement

The ferries arrive in Groons Harbor. The visitors note as they disembark that there are no additional ferries at this harbor. A nearby sign explains their absence: "Ferries bound for the fourth island, Scrubuppia, can be found at Cape Orwilia Harbor on the other side of the island. The fare is ten Struthio coins per person." There are no specific directions to the other harbor, so the visitors figure that they will have to look for it while earning coins at the various attractions.

The path from Groons Harbor leads directly to the downtown area in the island’s replica of Springfield. Visitors marvel at the statue of Jebediah Obediah Zacharia Jenadiah Springfield. The plaque at the base of the statue bears this quotation from the fictional town founder: "A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man."

"Hmm," remarks one visitor, "I’m not familiar with the word ‘embiggens’"
"I don’t know why," another visitor says, "It’s a perfectly cr…"
"Hey, I found the map!" interrupts a third visitor. The tour groups huddle around the map and decide upon a new location. The map indicates that King Toot’s Music Store, Krusty Burger, Moe’s Tavern and Springfield City Hall are all nearby.

[Duphrates]

I've always wanted to go to Moe's Tavern

[mole]

To Springfield City Hall.

[Tahnan]

I'm just glad we don't get those Weakest Link interviews after we vote...

Anne Robinson Impersonator: "Tahnan."
Me: "Yes, ma'am."
ARI: "You voted for Qaqaq. Don't like weasels?"
Me: "He came up with the Qaqaq Maneuver, ma'am."
ARI: "Don't make me throw ice at you."

That sort of thing. Anyway, looking forward--we (Lano-Catru) need to try to get someone at each location. To that end, I'll head to Moe's Tavern. I won't even phone ahead to see if there's a Ms. Hugandkiss there, first name Amanda.

[RequiemEternam]

Methinks there might be some window shopping to be done at King Toot's Music Store.

[Qaqaq]

Hmm. I notice that it doesn't specifically say that there are *two* ferries waiting at the other Harbor, so perhaps this turns from being a team competition to an individual one soon. (Or perhaps it already has and we don't know it yet.) If it is still a team thing, Ocagru is likely to lose a player soon: with (soon-to-be) 6 members on the bad team and 9 on ours, they're likely to get the money they need and have all their members at the other Harbor first.

Since I don't see the Gilded Truffle anywhere nearby, and all those banana daiquiris on the ferry have whetted my appetite, I'll head to Krusty Burger. Mmmm... Krusty Burger.

[jesternl]

I'll be waiting at King Toot’s Music Store

[Saxifrage]

Can't let the weasel sit there by himself, who knows what trouble he'll get into. I'll go to Krusty Burger.

[Corsato]

I'll head for the Krusty Burger

[Agamemnon®]

Springfield City Hall please.

[Tablesaw]

I'll staple a flag to my butt and mail myself to Moe's Tavern.

------------------
(It's the saw of the table!)

[jadesmar]

**sits back and waits for randomness to place him**

[mikeamok]

clearly Springfield City Hall is the place to be.

[Hitchhiker]

*flips coin* Krusty Burger.

[T McAy]

Round 14: Action

The results of the Lano-Catru vote are as follows:
Referee – 3
PuzzleProdig – 2
No vote - 2

Having received the majority of the votes, referee wishes the other visitors lucks and prepares to return home. The Groons-Cape Orwilia islanders inform referee that a plane in Fedda Dusta Harbor is ready to transport the voted visitor back to the mainland. "So do you have some watercraft to take me back to Fedda Dusta," referee asks. The islanders mention that they are anxious to try "a little something they've cooked up after seeing the episode "Home vs. The Eighteenth Amendment." referee is taken to a large catapult and place on the launching platform. "Wait," referee protests, "has this catpult been tes..." With a loud "thwop", referee is on the way back to Fedda Dusta with many fond memories of the Custodia Islands Getaway.

The following visitors have been randomly assigned to locations.

jadesmar (King Toot’s Music Store)
mikegoo (King Toot’s Music Store)
PuzzleProdigy (Springfield City Hall)

This update flashes on the video screen news kiosks.

As of now, the random placement rule will change from three in a row to two in a row for removal from the islands.

Visitors jadesmar, jesternl, mikegoo and RequiemEternam head for King Toot’s Music store. The islander posing as the proprietor of the store jokingly shows the visitors the various instruments in the store, pronounced with homer Simpson’s traditional extra syllable. "See," the proprietor says, "it’s a saxo-ma-phone!" The visitors quickly grow weary of the joke and are anxious to see the question. The proprietor points out that the question is printed on the cash register, and if they key in the right answer the till will open and reveal eight coins for the taking. The visitors got to the register and read this question.

What wind instrument is informally referred to as a "licorice stick"?

At Krusty Burger, visitors Corsato, Hitchhiker, Qaqaq and Saxifrage consider getting a bite to eat before continuing the quest for coins. An islander imitating the pimple-faced teenager informs the group that the daily lunch special features a Krusty Ribwich and partially gelatined non-dairy gum-based beverage. As the visitors sit to enjoy their food, one notices that a question is printed on the paper place mat, and that a correct answer may be redeemed at the counter for eight coins.

What was the name of the short-lived McDonald’s hamburger served in a dual-compartment Styrofoam container so that "the hot stayed hot" and "the cool stayed cool"?

Visitors Duphrates, Tablesaw and Tahnan can’t help but be impressed with all of the details used in the island’s recreation of Moe’s Tavern—the diamond-patterned window, the pickled egg jar, the love tester. The visitors shuffle past the barflies in reach a row of empty barstools. "Maybe we could order a Flaming Moe," one visitor proposes. The islander made up to be bartender Moe Szyslak is on the phone, and then announces that he has a call for "I. Land Visitors." The group takes the receiver from Moe and hears a voice on the other end mention that the following question is worth eight coins.

Who was the proprietress of the Longbranch Saloon on the long-running television western "Gunsmoke"?

As they climb the steps of Springfield City Hall, visitors Agamemnon, mikeamok, mole and PuzzleProdigy wonder if they will see an islander dressed as Mayor Quimby. "He might be leading a town meeting," one visitor comments. "More likely he will be trysting with some Dolores Del Rio type," replies another. Inside City Hall the group finds no one around, but one sharp-eyed visitor spots a copy of the town charter in a glass display case. Among the unusual statutes featured on the charter, this handwritten text has been recently added: "Answer this question correctly and ye shall receive two comely lasses of virtue true (if comely lasses are not available, ye shall receive eight Struthio coins)"

What ancient city was beset by a sphinx and later ruled by Oedipus after he successfully answered the sphinx’s riddle?

Lano-Catru Balance: $18
Ocagru Balance: $18

Next update: Tuesday, April 15



[This message has been edited by T McAy (edited 04-11-2003 09:09 PM).]

[RequiemEternam]

I'm pretty sure it's a clarinet, but I'll wait for confirmation from teammates before bolding. What say you, mikegoo, jadesmar, jesternl?

[Werebear]

[echo from the mainland]
The fact I know the McDonalds one actually depresses me.
[/echo]

[Qaqaq]

I'm fairly certain that the McDonald's one is "McDLT". If the others agree, go ahead and bold it.

[jadesmar]

Clari-ma-net sounds alright.

I automatically thought of an obo-ma-boe but, it's not a popular jazz instrument. Go with it RE.

You're right this extra syllable joke does get old quickly

[RequiemEternam]

Very well, then, Clarinet it is.

[Tahnan]

OK, which of you people just voted off the guy with the Tern Stile? Hey, um, islander? Has the Tern Stile now been lost?

[Tahnan]

...oh hell, I just read the question. Gunsmoke?! Hey, um, how old are you, Duphrates? 'cause I don't think Tablesaw's old enough to have seen this show either.

So I have no guess whatsoever. If I haven't heard from y'all by, say, Monday night, I'll post something desperate.

[Corsato]

Qaqaq: your answer is as fine as any other, I'm clueless

[Agamemnon®]

I'm not too sure, but I Know it's either Corinth or Thebes. Someone back me up here please......oh go on.....have a cup of tea.....go on....oh go on, go on, go on, go on.
~wanders off to Craggy Island~