primitives discuss a topic first discussed in the DUmpster

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=403x3930

Oh my.

xxxxxx xxx xxxxx  (1000+ posts)        Sat May-28-11 12:12 AM
Original message
 
When did you first hear the term "picker"?

The show on History Channel seems to have popularized the term and the concept, but we all know it goes back far longer. I first heard it probably about 1980 or so, when I first started buying old fountain pens and watches. I got to know a number of antique dealers, a few of which remain my friends. Pickers were essentially the wholesalers of the trade.

When did you first hear the term? Has anyone ever been a picker?

I dunno where it is--it's here somewhere in the DUmpster--but anyway, obviously whatshisname, who acknowledges he reads the DUmpster, got the idea from here.  I think our esteemed colleagues Tucker and GOBUCKS initiated inquiries about the word "picker," after which whatshisname took their inquiry over to Skins's island.

northoftheborder  (1000+ posts)       Tue May-31-11 07:13 PM
Response to Original message
 
1. I first heard it with the TV show American Pickers, which I love.

grasswire  (1000+ posts)      Wed Jun-01-11 12:49 PM
Response to Original message
 
2. I first heard it about fifteen years ago.

I was being tutored by a friend who had been a paper picker and dealer in Western Massachusetts for a couple of decades. I spent two summers following him around to auctions and sales in that fertile area. He was a picker and dealer too. But he didn't call himself that. But he called his old friend a picker and that he was. He picked Cape Cod and New England shore regularly, mostly looking for photography images and paper and books.

In that sense -- the historical expert with broad access and identified buyers like museums and collectors -- I am not a picker. Much of what I do is serendipitous. I stumble across things, looking for anything I can make a buck on. Might be pottery, might be linens, might be paper, might be books.

I'm thinking of getting back in. I miss it.

[GOBUCKS]

grasswire  (1000+ posts)      Wed Jun-01-11 12:49 PM
Response to Original message
 
I was being tutored by a friend who had been a paper picker and dealer in Western Massachusetts for a couple of decades. I spent two summers following him around to auctions and sales in that fertile area.

DUmmy grasswire, who aspires to be the Martha Stewart of pie shops and pot, got her start as an antique dealer's groupie.
She was fascinated by his junk.

[JohnnyReb]

I picked cotton....does that make me a picker?











Waiting for the cotton picking jokes....

[Ballygrl]

oh mio frank!

[franksolich]

oh mio frank!

There's no harm in it, and actually such a thing should be encouraged, but whatshisname isn't the only primitive who's read something here, and then brought up the same topic on Skins's island (it's been going on for years)--but it does show a lack of imagination among the primitives, getting their ideas from somewhere else.

[franksolich]

oh mio frank!

You know, madam, the last four campfires I inspected (but didn't bring over here), three of them mentioned things that were first mentioned right here in the DUmpster.

whatshisname mentioned the d'Alessandro crime family of Baltimore--and trust me, the notorious d'Alessandro family has never been discussed on Skins's island, ever.  I'm sure I know where whatshisname got the idea, although he incorrectly capitalizes the "d" in the name.

[Ballygrl]

There's no harm in it, and actually such a thing should be encouraged, but whatshisname isn't the only primitive who's read something here, and then brought up the same topic on Skins's island (it's been going on for years)--but it does show a lack of imagination among the primitives, getting their ideas from somewhere else.

I guess we're more paison to him than people at DU. How come he doesn't come out of the closet here?

Translation

Credo che siamo più paison per lui che le persone a DU. Come mai egli non esce allo scoperto qui?

[franksolich]

I guess we're more paison to him than people at DU. How come he doesn't come out of the closet here?

Actually, whatshisname doesn't have to.

After all, franksolich's mole on Skins's island is pretty quiet too, but remember, franksolich's mole is not to cause any discombobulation there, but rather to cultivate trust and cull information from other primitives via personal messages.

Which is why my fellow alum Skins, who surely must know the identity of franksolich's mole, allows him to exist.  franksolich leaves Skins alone, and Skins leaves franksolich alone.

As far as I know, whatshisname hasn't violated any rules or the decorum of this site, and so I'm copacetic, cool, with him being here.

[miskie]

Oh My....     

Stinky The Clown  (1000+ posts)          Sat Jun-04-11 12:21 PM
 Response to Original message
3. Fwanker, you poor, misguided fool . . . .
   Edited on Sat Jun-04-11 12:43 PM by Stinky The Clown
Yes, I got the idea from there. But only to show you how ill-informed you are.

Here's an article from 2003 that uses the term and describes it pretty much as in the OP. I'll bet more than 13 seconds on the Google would turn up even older articles and use of the term.

http://www.journalofantiques.com/Feb03/businessfeb03.htm

So, no, fWanker, it didn't come from the teevee show.

By the way, buddy, how's the dating scene been for ya?

[franksolich]

Oh My....     

Well, well.

I'm rendered speechless; I thought whatshisname had forgotten franksolich existed.

[WinOne4TheGipper]

Oh My....     

Oh look, the monkey is starting to fling poo...

Hi stinky!

 

[franksolich]

Okay, I recovered my powers of speech.

Quite obviously, whatshisname is referring to this, from this:

http://www.conservativecave.com/index.php/topic,59649.30.html

Romance is for real life, not for the internet.

Notice, please, franksolich usually omits the sex-element from his stories, so as to keep them clean.

Right now, franksolich has been dating, off-and-on, a blonde gold-digger.

She doesn't know yet it's brass.

Right now, the dating life is sort of so-so, but it happens, going from cold to hot to cold to hot to cold.

I hope that answers whatshisname's question.

[WinOne4TheGipper]

Okay, I recovered my powers of speech.

Quite obviously, whatshisname is referring to this, from this:

http://www.conservativecave.com/index.php/topic,59649.30.html

Right now, the dating life is sort of so-so, but it happens, going from cold to hot to cold to hot to cold.

I hope that answers whatshisname's question.

You have a fan, frank.

[franksolich]

You have a fan, frank.

Yeah, but it's a problem; I call it my Margaret Mead problem.

Once primitives know they're being observed by decent and civilized people, they change their behavior.

They're still primitives, but they act differently, usually so as to please their observers.

That ruins the whole point of anthropology.

Anthropological observation requires that primitives act naturally, not artificially.

Margaret Mead discovered this phenomenon during the early 1930s, when she noticed South Seas Islanders, especially the top ones, the most prominent ones, started seeking her favor by giving her gifts.

She just as soon would've preferred they didn't know she was there.

[franksolich]

You have a fan, frank.

Whatshisname also forgets that I said there was nothing wrong with it, aping decent and civilized people.

There's no harm in it, and actually such a thing should be encouraged, but whatshisname isn't the only primitive who's read something here, and then brought up the same topic on Skins's island (it's been going on for years)--but it does show a lack of imagination among the primitives, getting their ideas from somewhere else.

It's harmless, but it does show a lack of intellect and imagination.

[Tucker]

Well, well.

I'm rendered speechless; I thought whatshisname had forgotten franksolich existed.

And here I was thinking you wanted to keep a low profile.

[franksolich]

And here I was thinking you wanted to keep a low profile.

And it's my own fault.

That was the biggest ****-up I ever made.

When conservativecave, and specifically the DUmpster, got underway, I was big, really big, about promoting the site to primitives.  My objective was to help bring in traffic.

A fine and noble objective, to be sure.

However, I forgot to remember that the goals of the DUmpster and the goals of franksolich were at odds with each other.

The goal of the DUmpster of course is to illuminate decent and civilized people about the stupidities of the primitives.

The goal of franksolich is pure anthropology; to observe the primitives in their natural primitive state without the primitives knowing they're being observed (because if they know, they alter their behavior).

The goal of the DUmpster of course is the superior goal, the paramount goal, and one which I enthusiastically support, but damn, it's messed up my anthropological research for the betterment of humanity.

But again, it's my own damned fault.

[Ballygrl]

OMG frank!

I really think he likes us better than his fellow DU'ers.

[GOBUCKS]

OMG frank!

I really think he likes us better than his fellow DU'ers.

Well, that's not saying much. The DUmmies hate each other nearly as much as they hate Christians and everything else decent and good.

I just think Stimpy's vulgar, simpleminded mentions of coach are his misguided way to campaign for Top DUmmy (And let's face it, that's the only award that matters. All those other categories are no more meaningful than John F'n's Purple Hearts.) I have little doubt his campaign will fail, because he is one of the most boring, unimaginative, unentertaining DUmmies in the entire DUmp. He squats by the catbox all day, making what seems like dozens of posts every single day. Aside from his occasional obscene references to coach, not one of his efforts is remembered for ten seconds by anyone who reads it. He just isn't very smart.

[Ballygrl]

Well, that's not saying much. The DUmmies hate each other nearly as much as they hate Christians and everything else decent and good.

I just think Stimpy's vulgar, simpleminded mentions of coach are his misguided way to campaign for Top DUmmy (And let's face it, that's the only award that matters. All those other categories are no more meaningful than John F'n's Purple Hearts.) I have little doubt his campaign will fail, because he is one of the most boring, unimaginative, unentertaining DUmmies in the entire DUmp. He squats by the catbox all day, making what seems like dozens of posts every single day. Aside from his occasional obscene references to coach, not one of his efforts is remembered for ten seconds by anyone who reads it. He just isn't very smart.

I don't like when people campaign for votes.

[franksolich]

I'm donning my primitive hat, thinking like a primitive for a minute here.

I wonder if whatshisname is really campaigning for votes, or stalking franksolich.

After all, he does read franksolich a great deal.

So that must mean whatshisname is stalking me.

And come to think of it, there has been a lot of Italian-looking strangers running around the roof of Nebraska lately.

So that has to mean whatshisname is stalking franksolich.

Okay, I'll take my primitive hat off now, resuming thinking like a decent and civilized person.

[GOBUCKS]

Stinky The Clown  (1000+ posts)        Sat Jun-04-11 10:52 PM
Response to Reply #3
4. If it was about anthropology . . . . .
. . . . fWanker, and the Margaret Meade thing were meaningful to your (:snort: ) work, you'd be more concerned with keeping your self-absorbed showboating yap shut.

Look, fWanker, I know this is all ya got to even approach having a life, but being a peeping tom is pretty ignoble, even for a person like you.

Gipper, can it, you silly ass kisser.

Cigarette girl, you sad sycophant.

That does it. I'm posting photos of Stimpy's little cat pecker.

[franksolich]

That does it. I'm posting photos of Stimpy's little cat pecker.

Oh my.

Whatshisname seems grouchy tonight.

I'll think of something to cheer him up, but it's late here too, so it'll have to be later.

[franksolich]

It just occurred to me.

Whatshisname misunderstands franksolich's anthropological interest in the primitives on Skins's island.

franksolich has never claimed to be a professional anthropologist, or a serious student of the subject.

As odd as this might sound, it's just light amusement, a hobby, a little recreation, nothing more.

Some people--most markedly the primitives--want "fun" fed to them.

Other people prefer to get "fun" by looking for it, searching it out, scavenging for it.

It's the difference between mindlessly watching the boob-tube in Baltimore or Connecticut, and actively creating situations out here on the eastern foothills of the Sandhills of Nebraska, where the script of the "show" is spontaneous and unpredictable.....and with the primitives, highly amusing.

I can think of hobbies and recreations much worse than this, and the primitives pursue them.

[WinOne4TheGipper]

That does it. I'm posting photos of Stimpy's little cat pecker.

They love me, they really love me!