July 06, 2004

• Wow, the amazon copy of Dreamweaver is insane. I don't suppose she's eligible for an academic version?
• What kind of person would it make me if I just bought: The Well-Educated Mind: A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had for myself? On the other hand, someone who wants a book with the title: X-Treme Latin: Unleash Your Inner Gladiator may not deserve to read. Just kidding of course. Seems like a well-deserved idea.
• Mebbe totally overwhelm her with Buffy stuff?
• If we all pitched in, we could get her that Ipod on the list.
• Yeah, I like the ipod idea...! But someone would have to do some organizing, and open a pay pal account and deal with their bullshit. Otherwise, I'm going to need her address, as I have the perfect gift in mind (I CALL THE DS MONKEY SHIRT!! NO ONE ELSE CAN GIVE THAT TO HER!)
• Dukes of Hazzard Complete First Season! Or "Primates: The Amazing World of Lemurs, Monkeys and Apes" by Art Wolfe would be appropriate. Seriously, I'm up for anything. Maybe we can send her a pony.
• She better delete this post before she finds out any plan.
• I got her snail mail address. I won't post it here. Those who want it email me :)
• If it's in her wishlist, doesn't buying it mean that it gets sent directly to her? I don't understand Amazon. I'm a dumb monkey.
• I'd like it if we could get her something special, like the ipod. Can we get a show of hands so we can figure out how much we have to spend and what we'd like to give her? I've never tried paypal,either, but I'll sign up for it and do the ordering if there's way to coordinate contributions.
• I second the ipod idea.
• If it's in her wishlist, doesn't buying it mean that it gets sent directly to her? Oh. Sorry. I thought the Amazon wishlist was just a reference. I wasn't sure if we were going to order directly from the site. And also for the benefit of anyone who wants to send her card/personal gift/masseue/money on their own. Ipod. anybody taking notes? We might need to link to another site where we can set up a list of contributors and divvy the price up between us? Or am I complicating a simple situation here?
• I'm game for the iPod. Let me know how much
• Some of us might not be overburdened with disposable income. Perhaps we could also cover the front page with subjects dear to Monkeybashi's heart on the Day? First, we need a master list of Things That Are Dear To... Heck, we could use this old barn and get all the kids together and put on a show!
• kooky idea: we could all sign or write something, scan it. And somebody gathers all these signatures and messages, photoshops them into one card and sends it to Monkeybashi? Good for monkeys with less than disposable income (I'm gonna be one real soon).
• Good for monkeys with less than disposable income (I'm gonna be one real soon). That doesn't sound good...
• Let's send her money.
• Okay, okay. Here's what I think. I can order the Ipod and send it to her from all of us (though nothing I saw in her list said "ipod", so you need to tell me which thing to order.) And youse guys can figure out how to split the cost. Or,each of us can pick other things from her list on an individual basis so she'd get a bunch of presents, which might be really fun for her.
• It's good, cos I'm gonna be a stooo-dent soon! Yeah! *does the Happy Dance* Woah, path. That will really burn a hole in your pocket! And I think we'd feel really bad if it ended up with you paying the lion's share of the cost. How about we make separate lists, one for those chipping in for the ipod, one for those who want to buy something else?
• My brain is empty of constructive ideas, but my credit card is at the ready.
• Well, but, not TOTALLY separate! I mean, you buy an IPOD, mebbe WE can figger out some unique and remarkable tunez to go w/it? Like, say, most of the soundtrack to "priscilla, queen of the desert"
• For those thinking about the iPod: bear in mind New Zealand is a 240V country, so an iPod bought through Amazon US may have a useless charger. Also, Apple New Zealand have, an absolue bastard of a warranty policy and will disown any hardware purchased overseas (or at least, this is true for their computers). May be worth ponying up to a New Zealand retailer if you're serious, to make sure she gets one that works.
• A postcard from the far flung reaches of the world is always nice, easpcially with something mildly warped words of well wishing on the back. Doesn't break the bank either. Don't worry about Apple, their warranties, and chargers. All of our Apple stuff is from the US and it hasn't been a problem so far. Oh, and postcard is always nice. Oh! Or one of those cards that chimes 'Happy Birthday' when opened and then doesn't stop for 48 hours! Oh! Or one of those cards with a built in candle that catches on fire when you first open it. That would really light up the mailmans day. Signed, user #2
• Signed, user #2 posted by michaelh at 10:13AM UTC on July 06 Aha, husband of tracicle speaks. At last.
• So what is happening? I am confused.
• We send one BIG postcard, right, but we send it to each other first, signing it in turn, then resending it to the next monkey, to finally reach the dearly beloved with thousands of monkey signatures on it. <:o
• I want to help, but starting this Saturday I will be away from the internet for a month. I would be willing to help chip in for the I-pod though, or whatever else the consensus is.
• cincin, where the heck you going? re: pay pal, that's silly. somebody buy the thing and give us your snailmail and we can send checks.
• Count me in. Ipod is a great idea. Also think the Postcard from everyone's home town is a great idea as well - would be amazing to suddenly get so much post that's not bills and the like.
• Cincin -- are you going Off the Grid? Hibernating? Checking in to Betty Ford? I, too, am up for the iPod. Let me know when/where and I will send a check. Or cheque. Or Czech. Whichever is appropriate.
• I like Nostril's idea. We could tour each continent with the card until it is filled with monkeyprints. Last stop, NZ.
• Don't think one country's cheques (checks)will work in another country's banks, will they?
• I like Nostril's idea, but after sending a card around to 1300 monkeys, we might not be done in time for next year's birthday. I vote 1300 individual postcards. If I got that much mail, I'd swoon.
• Sidedish, certainsome: I am going to be at Ft. Lewis, WA doing training for ROTC. I'm just hoping I will get time to use a phone to call my wife occasionally. I'm sure I will be going through internet withdrawal though.
• I like the postcard + iPod idea. I think it would be cool to get tons of postcards from everyone's home towns, and that shouldn't strain a Monkey's budget. And I will happily chip in towards the iPod.
• International Reply Coupons and other larger bank and postal certificates can be cashed without much fuss in foreign countries. Most large banks also give current exchange rates for other countries. Seems snail-mail addresses are a must for anyone wishing to contribute either of/both the postacard thing and/or the gift. Alnedra will give Tracy's info, but what about the other?
• I like the ipod idea too...and i have a postcard waiting...just tell me when and where...!
• Woah. I wouldn't even have noticed this thread if tracy hadn't mentioned not seeing it in her blog... Anyway, I'm well up for it, and my debit card/cheque book (no evil credit card for me, ooooh no) is poised and throbbing. The iPod sounds like a zip-zap-zoodly good idea. If only there was some way we could get it for her, but wangle it so that when she opens it up on her special morning, there's one song chosen by each monkey who contributed already on it... Also, a postcard from every monkey-corner of the earth is brilliant. Well done. Now - what the heck do I get my brother for his birthday on Friday?...
• Oh wOw! I heart the postcard idea. Very do-able for everyone, and what a KICK. Imagine getting all that mail. Good times for the postman, the birthday girl, AND the trashman. How will we get the addy without publishing it for all the intarweb to see?
• Good point, BlueHorse. For the address, I recommend we just have someone email it to interested parties (I volunteer Alnedra. Ha!). I take it no consensus has been reached on the iPod issue and how we will go about it yet?
• I also like the iPod + postcard plan. If path is willing to be the Official Orderer Of The iPod and take his chances on getting paid back, I see no reason not to take him up on it. If he comes up short then pleas can be sent to those who pledged here to help, if he has any extra cash left over he can include an iTunes gift certificate. I like flashboy's idea about each of us choosing a song for her, but I don't see how we can get them on her iPod. How about we write what special tune we'd choose for her on our postcard? Then she could buy/DL it if she chooses.
• ...do iTunes allow, like, collaborative playlists, or something like that?... /scratching head over how to make unworkable idea work
• We could make a list and attach it with a gift certificate. She could follow through on the downloading and transferring.
• Or I could just write basically exactly what Cali already suggested. That sounds like a good idea. My next pony is gonna be a Preview button that doesn't stop flashing til you use it...
• I'll contribute - just tell me what, when and where! eagerly awaiting further instruction...
• I think that there are several monkey musicbloggers here... perhaps they would host a the Mofi Member suggested birthday songs after she gets the ipod and then she could download the ones she wants? (Ignore all the potential legal ramifications of that plan). Anyway, count me in.
• I'm game. I already gave her a Gmail account (when they did 100 US) but that didn't cost me anything. Hey, we can sent all our favourite tune to her Gmail account. That will fill up her 1 Gb of Gmail storage really fast. Oh f*ck, that's illegal in most parts of the world. But not in Canada, because we already pay. Postcard is waiting, if I only had an address.
• (1) Send Alnedra email to get address... check (2) Pick out postcard... check (3) Pick out song... check (4) Check bank account to see how much I can afford to give to ipod... check (5) Send dough for ipod... [who's handling that again?]
• I'm in for a card, pod and song.
• All right! We need to concentrate here, folks. I'm willing to front the money to purchase the ipod since that seemed to get a lot of votes. Your mission is to tell me where to buy it, linking to the thingie. If we us a US source, will it get there by her birthday? If not, can you point me to a more local local source? It's my impression that paypal was voted down, so I have visions of getting 100 $2.00 checks to deal with. So, is there a way to coordinate this where people who feel able to contribute and who don't mind representing other less plush Monkeys can make a pledge just to shut Jerry Lewis Up? (Sorry for the US meme, but I think you all know what I mean.) Anyway, if there were only 10 sponsers for this glorious project, each of us would only be out 20 bucks. On the other hand, Monkeybashi's efforts have meant enough to me that I'd do it by myself if the rest of you want to find something else on her wish list that you can afford and send it from all the Monkeys. So, just tell me where to buy it and the specific thing I should buy. And, the postcards and tunes are great ideas. I always hated trying to split up bills when a bunch of from work went out to lunch.
• The link to the iPod on Amazon.com is here. I'll make that pledge-drive pledge, path, and chip in extra if needed. About the shipping stuff, I have no answers. Can our NZ monkeys advise? Member #2, paging Member #2....
• All right! We need to concentrate here, folks. I'm willing to front the money to purchase the ipod since that seemed to get a lot of votes. Your mission is to tell me where to buy it, linking to the thingie. If we use a US source, will it get there by her birthday? If not, can you point me to a more local source? It's my impression that paypal was voted down, so I have visions of getting 100 $2.00 checks to deal with. So, is there a way to coordinate this where people who feel able to contribute and who don't mind representing other less plush Monkeys can make a pledge just to shut Jerry Lewis Up? (Sorry for the US meme, but I think you all know what I mean.) Anyway, if there were only 10 sponsers for this glorious project, each of us would only be out 20 bucks. On the other hand, Monkeybashi's efforts have meant enough to me that I'd do it by myself if the rest of you want to find something else on her wish list that you can afford and send it from all the Monkeys. So, just tell me where to buy it and the specific thing I should buy. And, the postcards and tunes are great ideas. I always hated trying to split up bills when a bunch of from work went out to lunch.
• Ok, I've sent out emails to almost everyone who's posted here, giving out Tracicle's snail mail addy. Please, if you haven't received it, write to me asap. Here's the list of monkeys I've written to: BlueHorse Flashboy The Bone Cali path Klepton_The_Sacred shinything ramix Mickey Plegmund middleclasstool certainsome1 lloyder Nostrildamus jb rodgerd surlyboi drzira forksclovetofu freethought Daniel amphiboly And also a cc to RXR with the post code (thanks RXR!). If anyone else wants the addy, or if I've left anyone out inadvertantly, (dont't kill me, please!) please write to me also. Will be keeping my gmail inbox open and will check back as often as I can. When was tracicle's b-day exactly again?
• I am a little short on cash, but I have a postcard to send. You guys are good monkeys, with great ideas.:)
• 27th
• path: here's one New Zealand based source. I'm sure there are others. NZD is about 0.6 USD.
• Boy, am I naive! Can't imagine that it's worth $600, but that's ok. My credit card companies love me. The NZ price is the equivalent of the US one, so I'll go with the one I'm relatively sure can get it there on time - which would be NZ, unless someone tells me that they're back ordered for eternity. And #2, can I assume the compatibility thing is ok? My inclination is to order it within the next day or two, so if anyone has any advice, belly up to the bar.
• So is the iPod splitting a "pay what you're comfortable with" or a "split evenly between all who sign up"? Because honestly, I would prefer giving $5 or $10 rather than nada, but really could not afford $20+. On the flip side, wouldn't be fair to the bigger contributers to get equal "from" billing for unequal donations. And it'd be far to tacky to post a donor roster... "Happy Birthday Tracy, this is 30% from path..."
• Hmm... InfraMonkey's got a point. But perhaps a confidential roster? The only people who have to know how much each one contributed are the contributer and the one holding the list? That way path won't have to calculate how many people are paying and how much each contributes, and nobody has to feel pressured into paying a "fair" share.
• I think that a sliding scale would be fine- I have no problem, personally, with paying a little bit more, if others need to limit their contribution. (And even a handful of $5 or $10 shares lessens the load a little bit for others, right?) Personally, I don't think "equal billing for unequal donations" is much of an issue. Some of us have more time than money, others of us have more money than time. If you can't afford to give a lot financially, that's cool. Assuage whatever guilt you may have by making more good posts- tracicle always appreciates 'em, methinks.
• I'm willing to participate... just let me know where to send the money. Does it really matter who contributed how much?? Isn't it more important that you contributed?
• I agree with ambrosia, everyone will contribute differently but I don't think there should be resentment among contributors about equal billing. I say a list of all contributors will be fine. And I know the postcards are going to mean as much if not more to her than the ipod, so no worries there. Have we decided yet on if or how we are going to get songs to her? You know I had an idea. Doesn't an Itunes gift certificate come with a code you punch in to give the credit? What if those who chose to do that include the code on the end of the postcard but not say outright what it is. Then we could include in the letter with the ipod that codes on some postcards are redeemable in Itunes for songs. Just an idea. Thoughts?
• Does NZ have an itunes store?? On apples website it looks like the US, UK, France and Germany only. Am I wrong or do we have to come up with another way of getting her songs?
• I'm certainly not looking for equal contributions, and my plan is to say it's from all of us Monkeys, no matter what the contributions are. I also don't want to wind up with pledges that are more than the cost of the thing less my contribution. And if any of you want to send her something else from her wish list, or songs, instead of supporting the ipod thing, that's great by me. We'll figure this out, folks.
• Suomynona, don't worry about iTunes and US vs New Zealand. I have a solution to that. If you guys do decide on the iPod route, Magnum Mac http://www.magnummac.co.nz/ are the local Apple dealers and they seem to have the best price. I could pick it up if someone wanted to ring the shop and pay for it. Any artists in the house? Draw up a happy birthday card / paper / etc and I'll get it printed at work. Alternative also for those who are as disorganised like me and leave things late. It takes about 10 calendar days for a letter to get from the East Coast to NZ. Also, I'll gaurntee (or how ever you spell it) the iPod. If who ever buys it comes up short at the end of the day contact me and I'll reimburse you.
• I might just regret this... How about everyone who wants to contribute to the Ipod, write an email to me? For ease of sorting, make the email a standard format: Subject: Ipod for Tracy Text: I am [Mofi nick]. Put me down for [amount]. Please make the amount either USD or NZD, if at all possible. A good conversion site would be XE.com. Once the amount reaches an agreed target, I'll yell "STOP!" right here in this thread. 500 USD? 550? What say you, path? The only person other than me to see this list would be path.
• Member #2, you're a good man. I'm glad tracicle's got you. *HUG* Have you got any single brothers? *hopeful gleam*
• Alnedra, why, yes, I do Honest.
• I'd go at least $100 US. More if needed. So, any reason why I shouldn't order from the NZ place?
• Which is the actual day BTW?
• And, if I haven't made it clear before, my intent is to not give billing to those who contribute when the gift is given. It truly is from all of us.
• 7/27.
• path, I know whatchu mean, but I think a list might make it easier for all of us, not because we can document who gave how much, but if the whole jimgang of us started sending you checks, you might even end up with more cash than was needed to buy the ipod. The list might be useful to announce a stop to additional funds being added, or to channel said funds to other gifts, accessories, etc.... To michaelh: Uh... thank you. *tiptoes away*
• The guy who would vrilly know how to get this organised is rodgerd. Where you, guy?
• Have duly sent out an SOS to rodgerd.
• Sorry, I've been at work and cooking dinner. I don't believe we have an iTunes store. What do y'all need me to do?
• Wow. That was fast.
• How would we be sending the money, again? I'm not clear on this. I won't be able to contribute much, but I'd like to throw a bit in with the rest.
• I'm also not clear on methodology. I'm new, and thus not inclined to do anything personal, but I would gladly chip in a bit for the big gift. I'll watch for more instructions.
• I say we keep it simple and just send $$$ to path. If he's under, user #2 has kindly offered to chip in. If he's over, Amazon does gift certificates. Okay? Just tell me where to send my money and it's on its way.
• awaiting further instructions.......
• What happens if we send too much to path? should we have a plan on what to do with the excess cash /over-optimism
• I say if we go over just start choosing things from the wishlist. Thoughts? Also, are we doing strictly snailmail checks to path for payment or is it possible to setup paypal for those that want to go that route (not trying to add more work, just thought it opens up an easier way for people to donate as opposed to writing a check for a small amount).
• The best plan sounds like michaelh picking it up locally (locally is always best). If path is okay using her credit card, then we can reimburse her. We need some way for a lot of people to get her address without having to post it online, or have several hundred people email path. Alnedra has many people's emails already - what if we joined the two lists? How is this for a plan? If you want to contribute and/or send something to tracicle, email Alnedra. path can send her mailing address to Alnedra, who can then respond in one go to all of the emails (bulk email will save time) with both Path's address and tracicle's. If that is not easy for Alnedra to do with gmail/webmail, I would volunteer to recieve emails at my primary email, which I have just added to my profile. And if there is excess, we give it to endangered monkeys.
• *receive. I should have known that flame war over in daisy_mayville would mix up my spelling.
• In the event that path gets more money than is needed, why not just spend it on misc. items from the amazon wish list? That said, count me in for a donation. It would be easiest for me to paypal, but I can do a check or whatever as well.
• Wait, why is a doner list "tacky"? What if the only person that sees it is Tracy? Basically, I don't want Path to spend $100, and everyone else throw in $5, and have Path not get special recognition, etc. Am I alone in this sentiment? So we're e-mailing Alnedra with our amounts then? We need a definitive plan...
• So, how are we going to get Tracicle addy? Oh btw, I got $5 dollars I can spare towards an iPod, just let me know how to get the check to whoever is collecting the cash.
• Ok - I placed the order through Ascent (the NZ firm someone linked to above.) I ordered earlyl because they were back-ordered the first time I checked the site. Didn't notice that they were in stock today until after I'd checked out. SOO, if #2 could intercept the package and hide it for a while it would be nice. And, Ascent didn't allow having different ship-to and bill-to names, so the package will have my name above Monkeybashi's. Total price 977.62 NZ, or about 590.00 US. I don't think a donor list is tacky, it just seems nice to have it be a gift from all the monkeys.
• I agree it's nice to have it from everyone. Also, I think worrying about having too much money is overly optimistic. If path doesn't have to pay more than her fair share I'll be pleasantly surprised.
• major bananas to path for taking the plunge and ordering it. Thank you! I'm firing off an email to Path and Alnedra telling them how much I'll contribute, and asking for path's address. I suggest either path or Alnedra compile a list and fire off a giant email to those of us who indicated an interest in contributing with Path's snail mail addy for checks. (So far, I count 26 Monkeys) I'm not sure what non-US Monkeys should do- international postal money orders or something?
• P.S. Better mail your postcards soon! If delivery service between other continents and Down Under is anything like it was between Europe and the US the last time I jaunted there, it could take a month for a postcard to get to Tracy's house.
• Last time I sent a letter to Tracy (during the CD swap) it only took three days to get from the UK to New Zealand. I have no idea how that happened.
• Also, how do I get money to you, path, exactly. Do you have a paypal account? That would be easiest. If I send a cheque from the UK, can you pay it into your account? Have these things already been discussed?
• michaelh - I tried to buy the ipod from Magnummac, but they didn't have a separate "ship-to" option. I guess folks don't order presents for others over the internet in your neck of the woods.
• path: Let me know how to get money to you.
• Alnedra has been documenting the volunteers and amounts. So any who want to contribute should email her. I think the plan is for her send out a message to the list with my snailmail address. I'm not sure what my banks reaction to foreign checks would be. Maybe I should do the paypal thing afterall?
• I was meaning more tacky in a not-leaving-the-pricetag-on-the-gift sort of way. I certainly think that top priority would be to avoid path getting shafted with the lion's share (monkey's share?) of the bill, and should things end up that way I don't think anyone would argue that comensurate credit should be given to path (and other mega-donors) as well. As far as excess funds (*fingers crossed*), I think that both the iTunes gift certificates or other items of Tracy's wishlist are both great ideas (especially the iTunes + our playlist suggestions above), however, I think that putting the codes on the postcards, while clever, is ill advised, as that would be a rather expensive postcard to fail to make the round-the-world mail hop. Or else we could just save the excess fundage for future investment in the monkeyfilter.com IPO ;)
• For the record, I'm down with paypal. Easier for me to pay, easier for path to collect.
• path: Check with your bank, because cashing foreign cheques can cost an absolute *fortune*. As in, substantially more than the cheque. Unless your bank is a lot better that NZ/UK ones, I'd rather send you cash and let you take it to a Bureau d'Change. The downsides to PayPal are the ones found by stav, though.
• Well, we may have a glitch, here. The store I bought it from couldn't find me in their telephone book and wanted me to give them info which would allow me to find them on NZ electoral rolls. I sent back what I hope was a well crafted response, suggesting that there were other ways to check me out. If it doesn't work, I'll order from Amazon-US and hope that it gets there in time.
• I think it would be great if someone could worl out the paypal bizzo. Last time I cashed a European cheque here in Oz, they slugged me $15 for the privege.
• I'm in the process of setting up a paypal account. I have to wait for them to make small deposits to my bank account and report the amounts back to them. Anyway, this will work! I'm determined.
• There's a small problem with paypal, I think. If you want to receive cash, you'll have to register a credit card with them. And some other stuff I forgot. But hopefully that'll work out. The total has hit more than 250 USD. The figure is a tad bit fuzzy cos a) some have agreed to contribute more if need be, b)some have agreed to contribute, but without a set amount and c)I haven't decided how much I wanna give yet. So far, so good :) Apologies to those who have written to me and I haven't replied. Really gotta go!
• /enters late. (as usual) *gasp* i'm gonna email the two respective organisers. what a wonderful thing to be doing. a true group/web consciousness. i hope #2 is keeping #1 out of here.
• path: I'll vouch for you with them if that will help. They're just down the road from me and I've bought much goodies from them in the past. Otherwise I'll have a look for other retailers in NZ who may be more... reasonable.
• Alnedra - the choice was either a credit card or a bank account.
• rodgerd : thank you. I emailed the order confirmation to michaelh (#2), so maybe he can do the same. I can send you a copy if you think it would help. And, in my reply to the "we can't find you" message, I asked them to check switchboard.com, which lists data from US phone directories and where I am locatable, even with a map to my house. I also directed them to this thread, and pointed out that the email address in my profile is the same that I gave them. Oh, and Josh from Ascent, if you are reading this, help me buy from your company! Do a little marketing for me if your management shies off. Convince them this a global market, and I may not be the last to try to order a pretty expensive bauble from them.
• Oh, and Josh, if you want to see my email address you'll have to sign up as a memeber. Come for the commerce, stay for the bananas!
• Well, Josh tells me that it's too big a risk for Ascent, but suggested that I try to buy from Apple NZ - which is somewhat cheaper (569 USD.) So, I'll give them until tomorrow to cancel the order for my credit card company. and try again.
• Go path! I'm still more-or-less on the ball here, in keeping track. Any way of dragging more monkeys into this thread? Not necessarily for the iPod, but I'm sure most of us can send her a postcard. The more the merrier!
• I can safely say we are over the halfway mark for the iPod. Good going, monkeys! Anyone who wants both path and tracicle's addresses can email me as well, I'll send both along in one email.
• I've been lurking here for a while, and I'd like to contribute, both to the iPod and the postcard thing. I'll get in touch with the organizers.
• Latest update: we have exceeded 300 USD, and approaching 400. Come on monkeys, I know we can do this!
• We have hit 400 dollars. Less than 200 bucks to go!
• Has anyone got any advice about actually getting cash from the UK to the US? All the options I can find seem to cost a hefty percentage of the cash involved.
• I've been surfing some sites. Not too sure about how reliable they are though. The Western Union site almost gave me aploplexy - I simply cannot find any mention of how much the fee is! Ikobo (limited time offer of free service) Western Union. Gah. Bananas to anyone who can find the fee. Will add more if I find any.
• Thanks, Alnedra. If Path is content, I'll give Ikobo a try.
• Here are more options: Moneybrokers (FAQ page) sounds pretty good. Maximum fee of 0.50 Euros. PPPay.com (FAQ page) isn't too bad either. 49p charge for immediate transfers under 50 GBP. But their membership scheme seems a trifle complicated.
• At PayPal there's no charge if you're drawing from a bank account. They'll trasfer in US & Canadian dollars, Euros, pounds sterling and yen.
• And, Alnedra, not forget to leave some room for my contribution.
• Your helpfulness (and skill at finding these places) is truly awesome, Alnedra. May I humbly effect the international transfer of an electronic banana?
• More: ToShip is a parcel sending service, but they do help send out money orders within the US. Nochex seems to be strictly for UK accounts to send, but can be internationally received. That's all I can find right now. Other options, such as Easyexchange and PayDirect by Yahoo charge pretty high fees, ranging from 8 USD to 15 USD for small amounts. That's all, folks. Gotta go catch some shuteye now.
• path: Okie. How much before I yell stop? It's up to 470 USD now, definite; might be more once I get confirmed amounts from some monkeys. *Does Happy Dance* Plegmund: Can't take the credit, but I'll take the banana :) have to thank Google, Metacrawler, Yahoo, Lycos and Mamma.
• path, if you're not keen on posting how much, just email me, quiet-like. Ook.
• Thanks again to path and Alnedra for taking the reins, and the rest of the Monkeys for stepping up. You guys all rock. *group hug*
• Alnedra - $100 for me. I think we're there! I'm waiting to hear from Apple NZ as to whether they'll take any of the on line funds transfers. If they won't, is there anyone from NZ who would let me transfer to your account and go by the iPod from wherever? Amazon will ship only books, tapes and CD to NZ, so I can't order from them. Plus, it would probably be subject to customs duties.
• Thank you to both path and Alnedra for organising all this.
• path: I'm happy to do that.
• rodgerd: thank you! I still haven't heard from Apple NZ, but I'll email you if I need your help. I'm also still waiting for mini-deposits from PayPal to verify my account. And, if any of you want to use other transfer sources, let me know what I need to sign up for. It strikes me that the rest of the world hasn't caught up with the internet.
• Ok. I'm gonna do a quick email to everyone who's offered to contribute, to confirm amounts. We are now at 497! Yeah! Shall we have one more monkey give 3 dollars? Or even 3 monkeys at a dollar each :)
• Alendra, be calm, ma chere. We've more than done what's necessary for the major gift. And, I think other monkeys will send things directly, or the essential postcards. But, WE DID IT GUYS! Hurray for all of you. (Alendra, does the 497 include my $100?)
• Why do I always misspell "Alnedra?" What a bummer!
• Alnedra - you got may mail? path: If you need me to buy it, I'll just chuck my contribution in when I order, rather than sending it to you to send it back to me 8).
• Cool, rogerd! It might wear out if we keep sending it back and forth.
• path: Sorry, couldn't get to a PC till now. No, the 497 does not include your contribution. So we're actually a little over.
• Dudes, she has _no idea_. She thinks that something is going on involving Dreamweaver through 'accidentally' clicking in then clicking out. I've told her that you're talking about getting her a lump of coal, and that I've said that it's the thought that counts and a plain old stick is just as good. I've got the package re-directed to my brothers so I can de-tag it before the day. Don't forget the timezone differences - the 27th in NZ is the 26th in the US-of-A.
• Dudes, she has _no idea_. **Yippee!!** I love happy surprises. Thanks for running interference for us, User #2.
• Oh man, I feel so happy. Coal? Stick? She fell for it??
• That's wonderful. I shouldn't be so surprised, you monkeys are a great group and I'm proud to be one of you. Now if you'll excuse me I think I have a postcard to send.
• But, Michaelh, they turned down my offer. I'm still trying to figure out how to get this to her. It will happen, though But, michaelh, Ascent turned me down because I'm not listed on the NZ electoral rolls. If Apple NZ doesn't take electronic transfers (still waiting to hear), rodgerd agreed to let me wire him the money and go buy the iPod somewhere and get it to you. This is still a work in progress, but I'm confident that we'll get it there in time!
• Now that was truly weird!!! I'm going to bed.
• Not much luck with Ikobo. They let me go through the usual merry dance Oh? didn't we mention anywhere that your password must include at least one digit? and at the last possible moment told me my 'account' was blocked. If I wanted to know why, I could write to them. Or fill in a form and send it with a government issued picture identity document (uh - you can see what I look like, Ikobo?) and a household utility bill or similar. No promises, mind. Ikobo, ikobo - I'm not asking to marry your daughter. I'll try someone else, but if the Paypal comes on stream that might make things a lot easier. If you have been, thank you for listening.
• Bureaucracy is fun. I've been informed that, in order to have the electricity turned on in my new house, I have to prove to them that I actually own it. Evidently this is to stem the tide of terrorist organizations that pay the electric bills of random strangers.
• For those of you who want to use paypal, my account is now set up. My user name is the same as my email address shown in my profile.
• Right, I sent the money to you via paypal, path. Unfortunately, once I sent it it said this: Your payment was funded with a credit card. The ability to accept credit card-funded payments is reserved for Premier and Business accounts. Since the recipient of your payment has a Personal account, he will be asked to upgrade to a Premier account in order to accept your payment. I've never recieved that message before. If it causes you any problems, just reject it, and I'll try something different. Stupid paypal.
• I've "upgraded" my account, so credit card payments will now work.
• Cheers, path.
• Hello monkeys! In case you're not sure about path's instructions, I've also sent out an email to all concerned. Thanks again! *relaxes*
• I had the same experience as dng, but I think you are also going to be charged a fee - if so let us know how much. And it says 'he' will be asked to upgrade! what sexism! *Suddenly remembers 'Monkeyfather' and shuts up*
• Plegmund - yes, there is a small fee so that paypal can offset the fees credit card companies charge them. I'll just take the fees out of my contribution. rodgerd - I sent you an email.
• path, sorry about that. If I'd have known, I would've transferred some money out of my bank account.
• No biggie, dng.
• Apparently I'm a dumbass. How do I contribute?
• Never mind... it's paypal, I have an account, and I've emailed path to get the skinny on how to go about it.
• I have an account but I've never used it. This will be interesting.
• path: Haven't seen it yet - I fear I've deleted it along with spam or something silly.
• rodgerd - resending in a moment. It doesn't seem possible to buy from the US from the US, or order from NZ since I'm not on your election rolls, so I need to take you up on your offer. The biggest problem is how I should get the money to you.
• Here's another useful site, although I didn't have time to look through all the pages. It's got a page with a list of sites that handling money sending and receiving.
• I have an idea about the moneybookers site (I always type "monkeybookers" first). What if rodgerd opens an account with them, or even use my account? 1. Everybody logs in one at a time, register their bank account/credit card. 2. Upload the amount they want to contribute. (free for bank account; 3% for credit card) 3. Delete their bank account/credit card from moneybrokers. Log out. 4. Rinse and repeat. 5. Rodgerd logs in, registers his bank account, withdraws the cash. 6. ??? 7. Profit! What do y'all think? (I read through their user agreement, and there's no rule against different people using the login. It only states that the user "should not reveal" the userid and password to a "third party".
• I'd be kinda twitchy unless the service is known-good. There seem to be waaaaasy to many money exchange tools around that have lots of nasty stories associated with them...
• The only potential problem i see with everyone logging into the same account and uploading money, would be someone towards the end logging in and downloading all the money. Now I'm not saying the monkeys here aren't trustworthy, but you are kind of asking for trouble taking a risk like that.
• make uploading/downloading into depositing/withdrawing
• path, rogerd: I've done cashiers cheques from the US to NZ before and it's straight forward. rogerd can deposit and the money will clear around three weeks later. You can also do international transfer via bank account numbers, but the originating bank takes around $25-$40US and you still get a reasonably poor spread. Quicker though. I don't know what the bank's spread is but I don't think it's more than a couple of percentage points. Again, I'll guarantee whoever makes the purchase if you're worried about money not coming through.
• Oh, don't forget though: get it sent to my brothers so that I can sex it up beforehand.
• I was afraid that with cashier's check, the mail time might make it difficult for rogerd to get it purchased, wrapped and mailed in time for the big day. It's "quicker" that I'm looking for. Wiring it will get it to him by the end of next week, which will give him a week to do the legwork. And, PAGING RODGERD! I sent you an email with the info I'll need. Even had the nerve to ask if you could wrap it and include a birthday card.
• Is anyone having trouble finding a way to send their contribution? I agree that we might not want to sign up with an unknown transfer agent. PayPal has been fine, for those of you able to use it. And US$ checks are also ok, for those who don't want to do it electronically. Someone suggested that international money orders would also work.
• Michael - I'll need your brother's address, since Alnedra has given me yours. Path: got the email while I was sleeping. Time differences and all that...
• rodgerd - I wasn't worrying about an answer, just didn't want you to think it was spam.
• Incidentally, the Post Office tell me a postcard takes about a week to get from the UK to NZ, and you need a 43p stamp.
• The money's on the way to rodgerd. And, thank heavens we started this early!
• I've ordered the iPod today. Ascent tell me they've got them in stock, and so I should be able to collect it tomorrow or Thursday. Joy!
• Erp. Is it too late to send money to someone (PayPal-wise)?
• You can send money to me, if you want. I'll spend it on blackjack and hookers.
• Yeah, I'm confused, did I miss the collection? I thought we were still figuring out how to do this. Where/how are we sending payments?
• middleclass - I suspect we're looking pretty fucking lame right now, buddy ;) dng - done! Have fun!
• You can always order something off tracicle's amazon wishlist (or why not order her one of those nice banana guards?)
• Amazon US will ship books, tapes and CD's to New Zealand, but they caution that there may be customs issues.
• Zig zog zoo. OK, thank you.
• Oog, I'm out of it. Path, once I get home to my checkbook (if I ever get home), I'll toss you over a ha-penny.
• The main two possible customs issues are: 1/ Value. You need to pay GST on anything more than $700, and customs will hold it. 2/ Censorship. Yes, we do have, like most of Europe, a state run censorship system. It's pretty unlikely anything you're likely to send would get picked up by it, though. I routinely bring in DVDs from Amazon and DVDboxoffice (*plug* free postage *plug*) and have never had any customs problems, including stuff like Bound. Perhaps if you bought her Baise Moi...
• Ah. Just caught the e-mail. Evidently hotmail thought it was junk. Well, path, I'll still pay you.
• middleclasstool, PayPal thought it was ok. I now have your money and will not give it back! Don't worry, be happy.
• *does little dance* The iPod (or rather, the box containing same) is sitting on my desk. Once path's money clears, I'll see if anything's left over, add in extra goodies if it is, and then courier the whole lot down to Christchurch in time for the 27th.
• rodgerd, "Yes!" And in the meantime, petition your government and mine, and everyone else's, and suppiers to make this sort of thing a bit easier. I know you can do it. And, did you just sneak a look? Just pry off the tape, since you had to wrap it in non-commercial paper before sending it? Did you just download a tune or two? I would have if I was cool and knew how it all worked.
• Nah, I'm a big one for leaving presents untouched (I don't read books I give people, for example). Besides, I'm at work and my client would react poorly to be footling with a shiny new iPod...
• Bless you, rodgerd.
• Woohoo! Now I propose we fill it with nothing but Ramones and Tom Jones tunes.
• The telegraphic transfer has arrived, so I'll get with the wrapping and the packing this weekend, and hand it to a courier on Monday.
• A word of warning - she has very little self control. I'll have to fight her off until her birthday to make sure she doesn't open it. If she insists, is it OK to open it early?
• michaelh, I can always courier it closer to the date. Although then I'd be concerned about overshooting the mark.
• The telegraphic transfer has arrived oo!!! how very Star Trekky!!!
• I'm very confused. Who can I give money to for the i-ay, od-Pay? And how? I tried to read the thread to figure it out but, really, I'm not that smart. /tried to think but nothing happened
• certainsome1 - we've got enough pledges to cover the cost of the iPod. I'm still waiting to see if everyone who offered to contribute will be able to actually pay up. If I come up short, I'll be back with a plea for substitute backing.
• path, the pay-pal payments came through OK, right?
• Yes, I got 14 payments through PayPal.
• Now, it's 15.
• how is it possible that tracicle hasn't read this? If she will be hard pressed to resist opening the present early... Well. I admire her will-power (or possibly "your will-power" if you actually weren't able to resist after all)
• *Survey's package wrapping skills, weeps*. Oh well, at least the paper is pretty.
• Oh, and the fact the wrapping isn't a complete disaster is becase a cow-orker just happened along, looked at my efforts, and helped fix the worst bits...
• Well, hm. I'm loathe to seem greedy, but about $130 US of the pledges have not come in. I can understand if it's because people found they couldn't contribute what they offered, but would like to know where that happened (i.e., is anyone on the list still planning to send $$?), since I can probably re-open donations to make up for it.
• path, did you get my check? Maybe a friendly reminder e-mail to forgetful monkeys?
• If you need help topping-up, path, please let me know.
• Check is on its way path. Sorry for the delay.
• Oh wait. I'm a dork. I'm sending you an email because I need your address.
• iPod is on the way by courier, along with a copy of "Eats, shoots, and Leaves" per Monkeybashi's wishlist. Should arrive tomorrow; now we shall learn the willpower of Monkeybashi!
• Cali, yes I got your cbeck, Thank you. And, ambrosia, your contribution was way good. And, other monkeys have asked if they could donate, so if the original donors can't come up with funds, I'll re-open the bidding. No prizes, except Monkeybashi's happiness.
• Just keeping this on the sidebar in case anyone who offered to contribute needs my email address or whatever.
• I am too broke to contribute. But I sent something. I can barely afford to pay my rent at the moment.
• Nostril, you want me to help you send a postcard? Although it won't get there in time.
• Nostrildamus - oh, now I feel really bad. Can I send it back to you? I love the fact that you wanted to help, but you don't have to make up for folks who haven't payed yet. I have confidence that they will come through. And, what message do you want on the postcard? Some got there early, and some will get there late. Tearing up.
• Well, spelling takes a back seat when I'm crying.
• We are planning an FPP, right? *adjusts party hat*
• Good idea. All I'd thought of was lurking at Bashi's place to get her reaction. (Of course she'll be at the computer on her birthday! Where else would she be? At any rate, she might be by the time her birth date gets to my time zone.) I think pete_best just volunteered to host the party.
• Good idea. All I'd thought of was lurking at Bashi's place to get her reaction. (Of course she'll be at the computer on her birthday! Where else would she be? At any rate, she might be by the time her birth date gets to my time zone.) I think pete_best just volunteered to host the party.
• *bugs out eyes, runs around cleaning furiously*
• Come clean my place when you're done there. I pay minimum wage.
• Don't do the windows!
• do windows need doing?
• Everything needs doing. I hate housework.
• Heh. Dirt happens: clean-up doesn't.[beeswacky's law]
• i only clean the dirt that i can see. being terribly far-sighted, dust and such is beneath my vision, or notice,
• Damn. Now I'm impatient for Monkeybashi's birthday to happen, so I can hear the squeals of delight.
• is it time yet? should we get inside the cake?
• Dammit, I got frosting in my beard.
• *runs in late as everyone yells SURPRISE!! only to realize it's just that guy down the street and goes back to hiding and whispering*
• Go look in the blog.
• At least for me, the blog still just thanks us for postcards.
• Try again. She's definitely opened it.
• Oh, yeah! Reading the comments is a good thing. Hurray! We did it!
• Hey Today's the day, innit?! C'mon somebody FPP-up that shizzle!
• pete_best, I thought you were bringing the beer, all I brought was napkins and plates.
• okay then, here goes.
• Bwahaha! Nostrildamus, you are particularly wonderful. Thank you all, again and again. And birthday-girl hugs to everyone that went to so much trouble to organise this! It doesn't look like it was easy. *mimes evil just for Nostrildamus* I really hope we can do this for some of our other valued monkeys. We all deserve something for making MonkeyFilter so great.