# WR Contest Winners 2004



## mkellogg

This was posted as an announcement on Jan 12, 2005.  Here it is for future reference.
-Mike*
WR Contest Winners 2004​*_

For those of you who were living in anticipation of the coming of this day, we finally have our list of winners of the “Best of 2004” contest! Thanks to all who participated, and especially to the winners, with their great threads, posts, signatures and avatars!

Here they are:

*1. Funniest Thread*

Spanish-English: "Knock knock jokes" by Masood
Italian-English: "Italian-o" by Marc1
Cultural Issues: "Tongue Twisters" by Sharon
English Only: any thread by badger

*2. Starter of the Most Clicked Thread of 2004*

Spanish-English: Dbk (4627 views)
Italian-English: magoanubi (2636 views)
Cultural Issues: Magg 1769 (views)
French-English: Dorian (1472 views)
English Only: Antonio (1292 views)
Comments and Suggestions: joce (1182 views)
Other languages: lynnesteffi (972 views)
French-Spanish: aurayfrance (619 views)
Portuguese-English: Richie (453 views)
German: temujin (436 views)

*3. Most Useful Thread*

Italian-English: mikeo
French-English: benjy
English Only: Garry Knight
Comments and Suggestions: alfry
Portuguese-English: Morgana
German: temujin

*4. Most Poetic Post*

Italian-English: post #5 in "wuthering words" by Tormenta
Cultural Issues: Rogelio's post in "Mixed Couples"
English Only: badger and all his posts
Portuguese-English: post # 2 in "sing" by badger

*5. Most Helpful Member*

Spanish-English: Artrella
Italian-English: walnut
French-English: Fetchezlavache & Focalist
English Only: Artrella
Other languages: QueHong
Portuguese-English: araceli
German: gatoviejo

*6. Most Improvement Shown by a Language Learner*

Spanish-English: Artrella
Italian-English: lsp
English Only: Artrella
Portuguese-English: araceli
German: Artrella

*7. & 8. Best Signature & Coolest Avatar*
Artrella

Winners will receive customized User Titles as well as an enlarged PM box, in addition to our admiration!

Enjoy!_

P.S. A special thanks goes to the moderators who have done the hard work of running this contest, especially SilviaP.


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## Benjy

thx alot mike


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## Sharon

mkellogg said:
			
		

> *3. Most Useful Thread*
> 
> Italian-English: mikeo
> French-English: benjy
> English Only: Garry Knight
> Comments and Suggestions: alfry
> Portuguese-English: Morgana
> German: temujin


Mike,

 Thank you for posting this, and I hate to be a bother, but would you please add the titles?  
Funniest thread and Most poetic post have titles...

Sharon.


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## mkellogg

Yes, these were my concerns as well.  I think the voting even went without access to this information.

SilviaP? Do you have anything to help us?

Mike


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## cuchuflete

Although as a Moderator he was excuded from the contest, DDT's Pickle thread is still hilarious.  Have a look in English Only!

Cuchu


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## abc

Why were moderators excluded from the contest?


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## Sharon

abc,

The main reason was that if any of them should have won, they didn't want anyone saying, "Well, of course so-and-so won, probably counted the votes themself!"  

Sharon.


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## niña

I just wanna say congratulations to the winners. I really enjoyed reading your topics and comments, and also learnt a lot from each and every one of them.

 Keep it up!


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## cuchuflete

Sharon said:
			
		

> abc,
> 
> The main reason was that if any of them should have won, they didn't want anyone saying, "Well, of course so-and-so won, probably counted the votes themself!"
> 
> Sharon.



Thanks Sharon,
You are correct.  In fact, we even excluded some magnificent threads started by Moderators long before they became members of the ModSquad, to avoid any shadow of impropriety.

Cuchu


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## Silvia

Sharon, here you are!



			
				mkellogg said:
			
		

> *3. Most Useful Thread*
> 
> Italian-English: mikeo "alcuni" vs. "qualche"
> French-English: benjy French accents tips
> English Only: Garry Knight The Very Best of British
> Comments and Suggestions: alfry Idiomatic Expressions
> Portuguese-English: Morgana Italian needs help
> German: temujin Lernen / studieren


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## abc

Sharon and Cuchu,

Some of the posts composed by the moderators are excellent and, yes, magnificent! If we could trust the moderators to act accordingly (during the boring days), then how could we or somebody question their integrity in this matter?  I'm an optimistic, but sometimes I wonder if we, human beings, have grown to distrust each other more and more...

I know that the contest was a fun activity for WR members, and I shouldn't and don't want to make a big deal out of it...but thoughts came and it was hard not to ponder...


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## cuchuflete

Abc...here's the 'behind the scenes' story of the contest.
Late last year, Mike and I were talking about who knows what, and he mentioned something I choose not to recall about the possibility of a contest.  Mike has the capacity to think very clearly about 137 things at the same time, but not 138.  Thus, when I raised some other issue for his attention, he temporarily deleted #137, the contest, from his mental equivalent of RAM, and parked it, compressed by a magical WR algorithm, in his cranial storage unit.

Having nothing in particular going on in my own rather vacuous RAM counterpart, I immediately wrote the first announcement of the contest, with special emphasis on the number seven, which as the message stated, had no particular importance.

SilviaP was the unwitting test market.  She questioned the magic number, and I replied in some typically elusive, meaningless manner.  She is tenacious, and persisted in a deep metaphysical examination of the contest announcement.  I tired of the conversation, probably because lunch seemed to be a more compelling topic, so I told her that if she cared so much, she could run the contest---which she did with both admirable skill and dedication, with help from Zebedee, and none from me.  

If my flawless memory is correct, a dubious proposition, as I entrusted my colleague with the reins, I mentioned that moderators could not be candidates for any awards, as the moderator position had but recently been created, and the fearmongers among us were predicting--some in favor, some against-- a palace coup, the imposition of a dress code, dietary restrictions, and who knows what other infringements on the ancient and honoured sporting traditions of WR, which was by that time almost four months old.  

One hirsute forero even accused me of forcing other foreros to eat broccoli as a precondition for continued posting in the Kultur forum!   Under the circumstances, I felt it best to restrict the role of moderators to administration.  What no one could have predicted was the amazing creativity with which SilviaP and Zeb executed their duties.

Now you may close your eyes, take seven deep breaths, and decide whether it behooves you to believe a single word of this.

saludos,
Cuchuflete


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## lauranazario

Ah, the contest... a source of _joy_ and _pain_.

I have no problem 'confessing' the fact that at one point, one of my own threads was semi-nominated to compete in a given category (_that's the 'joy' part!_), only to be immediately 'disqualified' (_now the 'pain' part!_) because I had accepted the Peggy Lipton role in The ModSquad. I'm no golfer... but talk about a MAJOR handicap!!!! Oh well... life goes on, and indeed it has. 

LN


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## little sarah

I read in an 'intro to moderators' post that they would rotate every few months, which means the time is coming around quite soon, and then you can all participate in the 2005 contests like the rest of us 'little people'!


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## cuchuflete

lauranazario said:
			
		

> Ah, the contest... a source of _joy_ and _pain_.
> 
> I have no problem 'confessing' the fact that at one point, one of my own threads was semi-nominated to compete in a given category (_that's the 'joy' part!_), only to be immediately 'disqualified' (_now the 'pain' part!_) because I had accepted the Peggy Lipton role in The ModSquad. I'm no golfer... but talk about a MAJOR handicap!!!! Oh well... life goes on, and indeed it has.
> 
> LN



Here's a not too subtle hint as to the semi-secret identity of the semi-nominated thread...It had hundreds of views, and dealt with l_ve.

C.


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## cuchuflete

little sarah said:
			
		

> I read in an 'intro to moderators' post that they would rotate every few months, which means the time is coming around quite soon, and then you can all participate in the 2005 contests like the rest of us 'little people'!



Dear Little Sarah,

You are right, and I must tell you that as the first forero honored to be allowed to be concurrently both a little person and a ModSquad member, my *rotation* time is coming.  Maybe that's why Mike left this in my mailbox recently:








Cheers,
Cuchu


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## Sharon

abc said:
			
		

> Sharon and Cuchu,
> 
> Some of the posts composed by the moderators are excellent and, yes, magnificent! If we could trust the moderators to act accordingly (during the boring days), then how could we or somebody question their integrity in this matter?  I'm an optimistic, but sometimes I wonder if we, human beings, have grown to distrust each other more and more...
> 
> I know that the contest was a fun activity for WR members, and I shouldn't and don't want to make a big deal out of it...but thoughts came and it was hard not to ponder...


abc,

Yes, I agree with you wholeheartedly. Some of the posts/threads made by moderators are truly superb, and in my opinion, should have been included. I do not think it was fair to them to be excluded, and in the spirit of highlighting the best of the best - I'm not sure it was fair to us, either. I never said that I would suspect them, I was merely explaining the reason the decision was made.

Regarding how could somebody think that, think of "Fox and Grapes." The moral of the story - "I didn't get what I wanted, so they must be bad."  Sadly, the fox had a human nature. 

Sharon.


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## rob

Saludos!!!..hey whats up for valentines mike....

got any events?


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## abc

Cuchu,

Thanks for the delicious post.  You're quite a fine wine!

Sharon,



			
				Sharon said:
			
		

> I never said that I would suspect them, I was merely explaining the reason the decision was made.



I knew that you were giving an explanation to my question.  I never thought you were suspecting them.

Thanks for taking me back to the story of "The Fox and the Grapes".


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## Sharon

HEY!!!

*Silviap !!!*











Thank you!
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Thank you!
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Thank you!
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	






			
				Silviap said:
			
		

> Sharon, here you are!
> 
> Quote:
> Originally Posted by mkellogg
> 3. Most Useful Thread
> 
> Italian-English: mikeo "alcuni" vs. "qualche"
> French-English: benjy French accents tips
> English Only: Garry Knight The Very Best of British
> Comments and Suggestions: alfry Idiomatic Expressions
> Portuguese-English: Morgana Italian needs help
> German: temujin Lernen / studieren


Complete with links!! Marvelous! Wonderful! Somehow I missed it at the end of page one, and I kept checking page two, waiting, thinking you were busy doing other things!!    Sorry!

Sharon.


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