What About TBAY is mystifying?

[lucky_kari at lucky_kari.yahoo.invalid]

--- In HPFGU-Feedback at yahoogroups.com, northbysouthwest50 at y... wrote:
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> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> Erin was pondering Jenny's question and Jenny was still
> wondering where she could get some decent eggs when
> George came over bearing a silver tray on which rested two
> elegant black-bordered engraved invitations:
> 
> ~~ Breakfast at The Safe House~~
> 
> Erin picked hers up and examined it closely. "Er--" said George,
> "I wouldn't do that if -- oops!"
> 
> In a few moments the two women had left a congealing plate of
> runny eggs and two little heaps of ash behind them and were
> strolling up the garden path to The Safe House, where those
> who ponder the doings of spies and the interweaving nets of
> conspiracy can always find a dish of eclairs, a change of clothes,
> or, in this case, a hot breakfast.
> 
> Sneaky the House Elf ushered them into the kitchen, where a
> roaring fire blazed, not quite drowing out the soft hum of the
> newly refurbished MAGIC DISHWASHER. A colorful string of
> get-well cards festooned the mantlepiece.
> 
> Seated at the table, sipping from a cup of red liquid, was a
> dark-haired woman wearing a cape and dark glasses.
> 
> <. . . >
> 
>  
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> This is all English.  I know that because I can read it.  But it is 
> code, or I think it might be, anyway.  I don't understand who Sneaky 
> is, what the egg references are, the get well cards, the change of 
> clothes, the silver tray, the eclairs . . .   TBAY posts really 
> aren't all that easy to understand, even though they are written in 
> English.  And I'd feel silly writing to the author and asking about 
> this sort of thing.  Can't we all work together to find a solution to 
> this?


Err... what exactly isn't understandable in that post above? It says
clearly that Sneaky is the "House Elf" who lives at the Safe House,
which Erin has *clearly* explained is where "where those who ponder
the doings of spies and the interweaving nets of conspiracy" hang out
i.e. "can always find a dish of eclairs, a change of clothes, or, in
this case, a hot breakfast." "Not quite drowing out the soft hum of
the newly refurbished MAGIC DISHWASHER. A colorful string of get-well
cards festooned the mantlepiece." I assume, not having read the post
in question, the get-well cards were for the newly-refurbished MAGIC
DISHWASHER. The newly-refurbished seems to lead to that logical
conclusion. 

I didn't read this exchange or probably most ahead of it, so I'm not
sure if there's anything else in there that I'm missing, but it seems
pretty simple to me. The only difficulty due to previous information
not explained might be someone not knowing what MAGIC DISHWASHER is.
But they would know that it is a theory and it's been newly
refurbished. You don't have to get *every* reference someone makes to
follow them. 

What may be the other problem is that it *does* refer to the general
cliches you'll find in spy movies and novels, with disintegrating
messages and all. But again, not a problem due to previous information
or code.

Yep, I still think that people's problems with understanding TBAY
don't lie in the fact that it's a foreign language, but a foreign way
of thinking.

Eileen.