Special offer

Is Active Rain trying to tell me something, or am I just weird?

By
Real Estate Agent with HomeSmart Realty West CalBRE #01458572


WARNING

Comment at your own risk. If you choose to comment here,
be prepared for me to visit your blog within the next 7 days and comment there.
I might even comment in multiple blog posts of yours, so beware!

I'm a lister. I admit it. I like to make lists and analyze lists to see if I can determine a trend, a trend that I then might be able to take advantage of to help my business.

The very first time I made a comment in a blog at Active Rain, the spam prevention system asked me to type the graphic into the little box. If I stay logged in and make additional comments, it usually doesn't ask me to type more graphics into the box.

Most such systems are totally random, using thousands, sometimes even millions and billions of text and number combinations. Rarely, if ever, do they spell a word. My first graphic did spell a word, sort of:

moosewood

So I've been making a list of all the graphics to see just how random they were and if the same graphic ever came up twice. The results might surprise you. I've even separated the graphics into categories and the number of times that I have had to type the graphic. Additionally, I did an Internet search on many graphics and increased my knowledge base since some of the ones I didn't know actually are things.

Vegetation and foods

  1. allspice (twice)
  2. almond
  3. anonilla
  4. avocado
  5. azarole
  6. banana
  7. bilimbi
  8. breadfruit
  9. bunya-bunya
  10. cacoa
  11. cactus
  12. calabura
  13. canistel (also known as eggfruit, see 23)
  14. carambola
  15. chempedale
  16. cheremai (three times)
  17. clove
  18. cocoa
  19. cocoplum
  20. cuachilote
  21. cupu-assu
  22. dasheen
  23. effgruit (see 13)
  24. farkelberry
  25. ginseng (twice)
  26. grumichama (twice)
  27. grumixameira
  28. guabiroba
  29. guama
  30. hackberry
  31. jackfruit
  32. jojoba
  33. jostaberry
  34. juneberry
  35. kenaf
  36. ketoepa
  37. koorkup
  38. lime
  39. lingaro
  40. lingonberry
  41. loquat
  42. louvi (twice)
  43. lucuma (twice)
  44. maprang
  45. moringa (twice)
  46. myrobalan
  47. okra
  48. orangeberry
  49. pacay
  50. pandanus
  51. papaya
  52. peanut
  53. pecan
  54. pejibaye (twice)
  55. persimmon
  56. pineapple
  57. pitanga
  58. quince (twice)
  59. rambai
  60. ramontchi
  61. raspberry
  62. rata
  63. rukam (twice)
  64. sachamango (twice)
  65. salal
  66. sapodilla (also known as sapota, see 67)
  67. sapota (also known as sapodilla, see 66)
  68. sepiaia
  69. shaddock
  70. sheepberry
  71. stemberry
  72. sweetsop
  73. tagua-tagua
  74. tamarillo
  75. tampoi
  76. tayberry
  77. tioepa
  78. ume
  79. yanagi-ichigo
  80. yucca

Others, including possible definitions from an Internet search:

  1. amra - acronym for Australian Music Retailers Association
  2. caimo - Gioseppe Caimo, Italian composer (1545-1584)
  3. cas - acronym for Chemical Abstract Service
  4. ciruela
  5. ciruelo - Ciruelo Cabral, an Argentine fantasy artist (b. 1963)
  6. corozco
  7. dalison
  8. escobillo - Evangeline Escobillo, Philippine insurance commissioner charged with corruption in 2007
  9. grauba
  10. hilma - Hilma of Kent, a Swedish artist and mystic
  11. imbe (twice) - acronym for Improved Multi-Band Excitation
  12. kawa - computer scheme environment written in Java
  13. luma - represents the brightness of an image
  14. mocambo - West Hollywood nightclub
  15. moosewood (four times) - restaurant in Ithaca, New York
  16. mowha (twice) - acronym for Mid-Ohio Walking Horse Association
  17. paco - nickname for Francisco
  18. pacura
  19. pama - acronym for Professional Aviation Maintenance Association
  20. paterno - Joe Paterno (b. 1921), Penn State University football coach
  21. roway - a trademarked term for a computer Right-of-Way Permitting System
  22. sorb - acronym for an Australian group, Save Our Riverfront Bushland

Now let's analyze this in greater detail:

Someone at Active Rain is intimately familiar with plants and fruits, including some of the rarer ones, and some of the more esoteric names for those rarer plants and fruits.

Out of 102 times that I've been asked to enter the graphic, 80 of them, a whopping 78%, have been related to vegetation and fruit.

So let's presume that the spam system is left up to the head Active Rain programmer and make some deductions about him. We already know that he has an intimate knowledge of plants and fruits.

Based on the other 22 graphics, here's what else we can deduce about him:

  • He's Australian because many of the plant and fruit names, especially the weird ones, were Australian. Addtionally, we have references to Australia. See 1 and 22.
  • He likes music and art. See 1, 2, 5, 10, and 14.
  • His favorite composer is Italian. See 2.
  • His favorite artists are Cabral and Hilma. See 2 and 10.
  • He likes the Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, New York. See 15.
  • He might have a relative in the Philippines or lived there himself before coming to the U.S. See 8.
  • He lives in Ohio (see 16) but likes Penn State football (see 20).
  • He has a horse and is a member of the Mid-Ohio Walking Horse Association. See 16.
  • He partied at Mocambo in West Hollywood (see 14) when he arrived in the U.S. from Australia (see 1 and 22) or the Philippines (see 8).
  • Someone in his family is a professional aviation maintenance technician. See 19.
  • Someone in his family is a chemist. See 3.
  • Someone in his family, perhaps even he himself, is named Francisco and might go by the nickname Paco. See 17.
  • He has a nice computer programming résumé. See 11, 12, 13, and 21.

There you go. A lesson in making lists and analyzing them.
Or am I just weird?



Some of Jim's blog posts

April Hayden-Munson
Brookfield, WI
Brookfield Wisconsin Real Estate

I love it!  Great list, can't imagine how long it took you to assemble this post.  Thanks for the smile.

Sep 27, 2008 09:41 AM
Richard Mielke
RE/MAX Results - Gettysburg, PA
REALTOR, Gettysburg Pennsylvania Real Estate

My favorite is sachamango. Sounds like a Ben & Jerry's flavor tribute to Louie Armstrong and my favorite tropical fruit all in one.

Sep 27, 2008 09:42 AM
Lenn Harley
Lenn Harley, Homefinders.com, MD & VA Homes and Real Estate - Leesburg, VA
Real Estate Broker - Virginia & Maryland

You're not wierd Jim.  You just have way too much time on your hands.

 

Sep 27, 2008 09:51 AM
Beth Larsen
RE/MAX Sedona - Sedona, AZ
Sedona Arizona

And here I was missing the fruit words. Little did I know that so many of these ARE fruits!

I just got one that I don't see on your list...something like "lilly billy"....??? I don't suppose you know what THAT means?

Sep 27, 2008 09:52 AM
Patricia Murray
Premiere Plus Realty Co. - Naples, FL

Jim, wow...  Keep us updated on more of what you observe. I will be prepared for the next trivia session. I can think of you as my "cheat sheet." 

Pat  

Sep 27, 2008 09:54 AM
Kevin Pierce
Cascade Builder Services - Tacoma, WA
New Construction Warranty Management

I just got "kuko".  What's that?

Sep 27, 2008 10:43 AM
Angelia Garcia
Pure Realtors - Dallas, TX

I have had to type so of those on your list as well.  You are an interesting person, not weird.

Sep 27, 2008 11:04 AM
Sandy Nelson
Riley Jackson Real Estate Inc. - Olympia, WA
your Olympia area Realtor

Jim,

"Bilimbi" is my favorite, it makes me smile every time it comes up.

Sandy

 

Sep 29, 2008 02:54 AM
Janna Scharf
Keller Williams Realty Coeur d'Alene - Coeur d'Alene, ID
Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real Estate Expert

Hmmm.  Well, yes, I think you're weird.  But not JUST weird.  You're also fascinating and intelligent and come up with remarkable lists.  Wish I had time to read through all your blogs....

Oct 01, 2008 05:26 PM