TBAY: Amanda's visit

[Amanda Geist]

No: HPFGUIDX 44838

Amanda woke from her doze and looked up from her folding lounge chair in the
shade of the palm trees. Cindy was back! About time. If she had to spend any
more time lolling about on the beach with nothing new to read, she'd go
nuts.

She got up, and, shaking the sand out of her shoes as she walked, headed
down to the beach. She walked out to the ship Cindy had headed for, arriving
just in time to hear a splash as Dicentra dove from the side into the water
and swam off.

"Hey! Ahoy! Whatever! Throw down a ladder or something!" she yelled at the
ship. Cindy's startled face appeared above her. "You're standing on the
water!" Cindy gasped.

"Of course I am," Amanda replied, shortly. "All L.O.O.N.s walk on water. I
thought you knew that. Even here, though Theory Bay *can* get a bit
unpredictable at times. Throw down a ladder already." Cindy's face
disappeared and there were sounds of rummaging and thudding. A ladder rolled
down the side of the ship, and Amanda climbed up. "I've come to see you
about L.O.O.N.," she said to Cindy. Cindy got a couple of chairs and they
settled down to talk.

"As you know, L.O.O.N.s are sort of like pure scientists," Amanda said. "We
specialize in canon detail. A few of us have branched out into interview
detail, and some of us have researched details of the Celluloid Creation,
but these other avenues are purely for comparison purposes to canon. I'm
afraid TBAY is more along the lines of Carl Sagan or NOVA, popularizing and
diluting for entertainment value. This is why you have not been named a
L.O.O.N."

Cindy's face fell and she visibly drooped. Amanda reached over and patted
her hand. "No, no, dear, don't be depressed. I've come with *good* news. I
was explaining why it had not happened *yet.* You see, we've been talking
about you."

"You see," Amanda continued, "your grasp of canon is inarguable, but that
had not traditionally been the strength of your presence on the list. Canon
detail, for you, was simply a support to your main skill, which is keeping
track of the zillions of details, events, theories, and permutations of
characters that populate this cove, and building on them to make more. I
remember when it was just a couple of boats and me in my inner tube. Now
look at it," and Amanda gestured out at the crowded bay, and the museum and
other buildings clustered on the shore. "I don't know what half these things
are, but you do."

"More importantly, TBAY is a diversion in our time of need, and like Carl
Sagan or NOVA, your fluffy little bay has inspired listmembers to seek out
canon and research fine points in order to write their own TBAY episodes. We
decided this contribution could no longer be ignored." Amanda paused
importantly.

"I'm here to announce the creation of a new subdiscipline in our ranks, and
to invite you to be the first to bear the title. You shall be the first
League Of Obsessive Nitpickers, Extracanonical Expert." Cindy gasped; her
eyes shone. "Really? Is this official?" she asked faintly.

Amanda said, "I'm still waiting on the formal memo from Anal, but you know
how he is. He probably had some crisis come up in the Snape
department--somebody quoting the Perseus Evans or vampire garbage as
canon--but it'll be along any time now. I'd think you can go ahead and use
the title." She smiled. "I'm certain there are several people who qualify
for this subdiscipline, but you topped the list. Welcome to the ranks."

Amanda got to her feet, climbed back down the ladder, and walked off toward
shore. Cindy watched her go. L.O.O.N.E.E. It had a nice ring to it. She eyed
the water speculatively....

**************
Amanda