User:Avnative
Welcome to my user page! My contributions to the Wiki date back to June 2004 give or take. My signed contributions date back to July, 2004.
Knowledge fields of interest include:
- U. S., western U. S., and California history/geography
- People, places and things (as they come to mind)
- Christianity/associated topics
Disclaimer: my own POV comes from me being a Christ follower.
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What I've worked on[edit]
A Sampling
Written with a straight face[edit]
- Desert rat - its factual data about a term real people in the Mojave Desert colloquially use didn't stop the article from becoming a WP:BJAODN submission. (And I weep. . .) It lasted for almost a day as a regular listed article! Don't know a Desert rat from a Jackalope? Well, click this one on for loads of fun. . . and be sure to read about the storied Jackalope as well!
New[edit]
- The Door Magazine - why would Beavis and Butt-head get this rag into trouble? And what's a "Green Weenie" anyway? Another trivia question: what do Garrison Keillor and Rush Limbaugh have in common? Have I piqued your curiosity yet? Then check it out!
- Wanamaker's Department Store - believed to be the first department store in the United States. Boring, eh? Don't you believe it! Can you name some of the "firsts" it began found in stores today? (Uh, on second thought, make that used to be in stores today. . .) If not, click it on for a very entertaining read!
- Edward Fitzgerald Beale - camel rider extraordinaire. Can't believe it was a dead link for so long. Significant personality in California history. How is his legacy still a factor in California real estate development? Dunno? Read about it here!
- Gorman, California - Southern Californians have heard of it, bought gasoline there, even used its restrooms. Did you know it's for sale - and can you name the famous SoCal family that is selling it? If you can't, it's time to click it on!
- Wikipedia talk:Palmdale, California/archive1 OK, so it's an archive. Want to see my reasoning skills at work? Read on! Warning: It's a long tome.
Major contributions[edit]
- Antelope Valley - my home, sweet home. Do you know where I live? Folks 65 miles away from me don't even have a clue. Do you?
- Tehachapi - did you know about its world famous Loop? What does the word Tehachapi mean, anyway? Read the article!
- Ben Stein - I liked him better in Win Ben Stein's Money than as the Ferris Bueller high school teacher. But did you know what he did before he became famous?
- Rick Warren - he's written a bestselling book, but few can name the title. Can you?
- Gospel Music Hall of Fame - take a trip down memory lane. Includes newer artists, too.
- WKRP in Cincinnati - disco era US TV sitcom no longer in syndication. I contributed the theme song lyrics, which were retrieved from that trivia storehouse I have between my ears. If you're old enough to remember the tune, you're my kind of people!
- Dr. Johnny Fever - of course! Feverphiles unite. . . you have nothing to lose but your brains by checking out this article. (OK, bad joke :-D ) The WKRP DJ who enjoyed letting his emotions flow. . . and let the rock and roll hits roll on.
- State funeral - When Ronald Reagan died, I contributed details of his state funeral as it happened for future readers to remember how Americans and Californians remembered this great man. We shall not see his kind again.
- William Jackson Palmer - who was he, and why is he significant to the history of the US Rocky Mountains and Great Plains regions? Read on to find out more about this little-known person!
- Johnny Hart - an ordinary guy who became a comic strip writer with a nudge or two from his coworkers. Can you name one of his strips - or explain why the Los Angeles Times moves some of his daily submissions from the regular comics page from time to time?
- Ridge Route - its opening helped mollify Californians who wanted to turn the state into two separate states. But do you know where it is, and what well used transportation artery is used in its place instead? Featured article!
- Willow Creek Community Church - you thought church was boring? These folks sought to dispel that thought. . . and still do. What activities in its work has it innovated that go far beyond its immediate geographic location, and why won't they use church jargon like the Church Lady?
- Pancho Barnes and her Happy Bottom Riding Club - oh, Pancho. . . she would have been right at home at Willow Creek on Sunday morning had she lived that long! Then again. . . she played a highly unusual practical joke on her church that today would probably get folks to contact Homeland Security. Confused? Wanna know more? Read the articles!
Lesser contributions[edit]
- Skunk works Who remembers how Kelly Johnson started it? I do! Interesting story here.
- Edsel - my trivia oriented mind remembered a few salient facts.
My wish list of to do articles[edit]
- Palmdale, California - the longstanding puffery making it look like Mexico City or Tokyo - that is to say, inflated population, importance, amenities - has to be toned down. I look forward to it becoming a stable, fact-based article.
- Lancaster, California - needs appropriate expansion of article.
- Bill Hybels - for someone who is so significant to American and worldwide Christ followers - not to mention his impact on the North American cultural scene, little seems to be out there attributed to his name. That can be changed, eh?
- First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood - historically influential LA area church, home to entertainment types, the homeless, and those in between.
I could name more articles, but I've got a life outside the Wiki. . . (smile)
Quotations of note[edit]
From USC president Steven Sample[edit]
- "Think gray." - meaning give room for what you don't know
- "Think free." - think unconventionally
- "Leaders need to be readers." (according to Sample, especially of the classics of literature and not so much current newspapers and magazines)
- "A man has to shoot his own horse. He owes it to the horse." (on the topic of firing employees)
- Source: Willow Creek Association's annual Leadership Summit for church - and other - leaders, August 13, 2004 while at Willow Creek Community Church
My Editor/Contributor Bytes of Honor[edit]
- Lucky 6.9 - for his passion (which I share) for California history, especially desert area history, which tends to be neglected. He's easy to work with when growing Wikipedia articles, and fun to boot! His humor quotient is amazingly high, too.
To all who visit this page, I say - as my heroes Roy Rogers and Dale Evans did - Happy Trails! --Avnative 14:45, 7 Jul 2004 (UTC)
Helpful Wiki links[edit]
I've done these protocols once, and if need be, can do them again (because I'm lazy and stored the links here for my - and your - easy reference). What a deal. . .
- How to start a new page Somehow during my lurkdom the top tab for "new page" disappeared, and now this appears to be the replacement item. . . Ahh, those busy beaver developers have been at it again!
Useful non-protocol links include: