January 2013

GoldToken's Monthly News

I apologize for this months delayed newsletter. Why is it that things get hectic and databases crash only when there is a deadline to meet anyhow? Blushing

Throughout 2012, GoldToken saw the addition of Profile Tokens, Mancala, Hangman, Thematic Hangman, Executioner, Thematic Executioner, Spoof, Mahjong, Dragon's Breath, Plateau, Thai Checkers, additional Jiggles and Goldies, Signature Goldies, and Random photos! Poor Tomas busted his patootie for all of us, that's for sure! The year is past us now, and I have been left wondering where the time went! It's been such a crazy year, what with the wedding, the sudden & embarrassing realization that I had suffered an error of judgement as things were not working out as planned and moved back out on my own again (maybe married life wasn't meant for me lol), the purchase of an inexpensive repossessed home that needed oodles of repair work to even move in, a new room mate (Cyndie is awesome btw!!), and the start of a new life has taken it's toll on this chess playing grandmother. No worries however. Life is grand and there are lot's of options on the table, energizing my thoughts and plans. So here is to a fabulous 2013!! Cheers! May the cards shuffle a winning hand for each and every one of you! Dancing Cards Suit Clubs


New Management Position: Club Director

To help up-build club interest and activities, greggyw as agreed to head GoldToken's new directorship handling our club programs. For now, he will be collecting information and ideas, but you will soon see his active involvement in this department. Welcome to the team Greg! High five

Server Troubles

As you have surely noticed, we have been struggling with database issues for the past month. Somebody must have fed our Gremlins after midnight or got them wet! Hammer Laughing All funniness aside, there is a good explanation. With the replacement of our hard drives a few weeks ago, Mecir has to re-tweak all of our settings. It's a painful process. Small adjustments here and there, as major adjustments would be too much and cause more problems than small ones, so he is handling them one step at a time.

Speed issues are a constant battle with any website that adds new features on a regular basis, regardless. Pretty much anything that gets added could contribute towards page spin issues, sometimes even several years down the line. It's a "snowballing" effect of sorts. So Tomas has been working from scratch (because we did a fresh upload of the database when we installed the new hard drives), when in fact, he had everything running pretty smoothly before the big crash a month ago that destroyed the previous database.

We have yet to find the main cause of the current flaw, but to help with this, Tomas has installed an automated terminator of runaway processes, while I have been staying up nights to ensure the database stays up and running....of course, it seems each time I have a pressing need (like eating lol), that is the very time our beloved Gremlins act out. Such is life. Please, just know we are on top of this issue as much as humanly possible and are diligently working on correcting the issue. All memberships have been extended a total of three weeks at this time by way of apology and thanks for your patience and understanding. Thank you for being the best group of players and supportive family any website could ask for. Group hug

Guess the Date Winner!

What a way to start the New Year. GoldToken's #8000000th game started on January 1, 2013! 1926 entered the contest [ Guess the Date ] with his guess December 27, 2012 at 7 PM.

Way to go 1926 and congratulations for guessing the date that GoldToken's 8,000,000th game would start! You have won 10 Golderos for guessing the closest date! Offering flower

Congrats!

This month, amthevessel won his own Signature Goldie! amthevessel Bet you can't guess how! Shhh!



Have a wonderful month and play like you mean it!

--Badger




In this month's newsletter, we have:
  • Birthdays & Special Announcements
  • 1st Stop Information
  • Photozone Competition
  • Game Of The Month
  • Best Recipe Contest
  • Up Front & Personal
  • Writers Contest
  • Testimonial Of The Month
  • Contest of the Month
  • Caption Contest
  • A Fun Tidbit!
  • Tutorials
  • Interesting Club Of The Month
  • Breaking Club News
  • Olympic News



Birthday cakeBirthdays & Special AnnouncementsOffering gift

Birthday Wishes:

-- Happy Birthday to SIRI on January 2nd! - From { Club }, The Backgammon Tournament Club, { Club } and { Club } - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to Big Giant Head on January 3rd! - Offering gift
-- Happy Birthday to Leeeeeesa on January 3rd! - From The Pork Chop Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to GUINESS14 on January 4th! - From The Backgammon Tournament Club, The Word O'Rama Club and The Pork Chop Club - Offering gift
-- Happy Birthday to BrnIdGirl on January 5th! - From The Pork Chop Club, The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club and The Innocent Instigators Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to China_Blue on January 5th! - From THE CLUB - Offering gift
-- Happy Birthday to Toodles on January 6th! - From The Pork Chop Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to Callie on January 8th! - From The Pork Chop Club, The Word O'Rama Club and The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to Capricorn - on January 9th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to The TT on January 11th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to GOPACKGO on January 11th! - From THE CLUB - Offering gift
-- Happy Birthday to Blackhawks Fan on January 13th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to vlf on January 13th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to sarahjan on January 13th! - From The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to ArkAngel on January 14th! - From The Pork Chop Club and The Backgammon Tournament Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to adopt 3 on January 17th! - From THE CLUB, { Club }, The Backgammon Tournament Club, The Pork Chop Club, The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club and { Club } - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to gravyrun on January 17th! - From { Club } - Offering gift
-- Happy Birthday to HeartOnFire on January 18th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to maggiefrommd on January 18th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to Kinoko zoku on January 19th! - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to MandyB on January 20th! - From The Pork Chop Club, The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club, and { Club } - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to monkeytyper on January 20th! - The Pork Chop Club, The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club, The Word O'Rama Club and { Club } - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to Dbledee on January 23rd! From The Backgammon Tournament Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to jerseygirl on January 23rd! - The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club, The Word O'Rama Club and From monkeytyper - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to spellbound on January 24th! - From { Club } - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to ET124 on January 24th! - From The Word O'Rama Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to squirrel on January 25th! - From monkeytyper, The Word O'Rama Club, The Pork Chop Club and The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to kittyrambo on January 26th! - From { Club } and THE CLUB - Offering flower
-- Happy Birthday to mutt on January 29th! - From The Monkeytyper's Gaming Paradise Club - Offering flower


Anniversary & Other Wishes:

--Happy 59th Wedding Anniversary goes out to Chuckc33 and Lori on January 5th! Many special wishes sent to you both! - Offering flower

--Happy Wedding Anniversary goes out to furryfeet and his wife on January 22nd! Many special wishes sent to you both for your 46th wedding anniversary! - Offering flower

-- Happy Wedding Anniversary Bride Groom goes out to Jane and hubby on January 31st! - Offering flower

* If you would like to announce any birthdays, anniversaries or other special events coming up for next month, please send GoldToken's Newshound a message before the 25th of this month, so we can give them a shout out in next month's newsletter! (Please keep all announcements upcoming and not belated. Announcements submitted after the newsletter is published, can not be put in after the fact, we're sorry!)



1st Stop Information
Site tips and helpful tools

How does one edit their profile?

Personalizing your profile is fun and easy. It's your page! Start by going to the Options box in the middle of your game sheet, and clicking on the See my Profile link. Starting from the top under Background, paid members can click on the links (upload new background) for Platinum and Gold members, or the (pick background from list) for all paid members, to set a background image. If selecting a preset image, GoldToken offers hundreds to choose from, to suit all tastes and interests. Near the bottom of your profile, click the Edit my Account Info to change the verbiage players read when visiting your page.

Your profile allows the use of wiki code, an easy to learn feature to frame specific information, use quotes, link to games and tournaments, etc. For those interested in utilizing this simple code on their profile, GoldToken offers several pages of lesson material:

Wiki Page Editing


[ How to Copy and Paste ]
[ How to enter a game number ]
[ How to enter a name ]
[ How to make a new wiki page ]
[ How to make a wiki table ]
[ Headings, fonts and bullets ]
[ Links, lines and spaces ]
[ Sample wikis ]
[ Wiki Formatting ]
[ Wiki Sandbox ] to practice your wiki skills

Platinum and Gold members have additional options to post a profile image at the top of their page. They also can sort the order of their profile contents in their preferences, starting from their Options box by going to the Profile section. There, you can move various sections to the side bar or place them under the main body of your profile. You can also specify how you wish to view the profiles belonging to other players on this page, as their owner intended, or by using your preferred settings.

So what are you waiting for? Dress your profile up today!



Photozone Competition
Brought to you by: Redhairchick

4 bacchant with (unknown photo) is December's Photozone competition winner who won the challenge with 21 votes and will be awarded with a profile token. Offering gold token
6 oldog came in the 2nd place with 20 votes for (unknown photo). Offer silver token
5 marcmandy with (unknown photo), MrLarry47 with (unknown photo), and wildgeese with (unknown photo) all came in the 3rd place with 11 votes each. Way to go!!

Congratulations to all the winners and Thank you to all of the members who participated either by submitting photos or voting and commenting. We had a total of 108 votes this month. Thumbs up
Without you all, this competition wouldn't be this active Hugging

2 You can view all the images submitted for the Photozone Competition by using the following link Photozone Zepher's Album titled 2012-12 Action

zzzzzzzzz

4 4 The theme for our photo contests in December is New Year,New Photo. Please post your entries on the Photozone DB with "Photozone Contest" in the subject line to enter and please give your entries a name as well.

The deadline for this month's Photozone contest is: 12:00 Midnight, Pacific Time, Thursday, January 31nd, 2013.
Voting for this month's Photozone contest will close on: 12:00 Midnight, Pacific Time, Sunday, February 3rd, 2013.

If you have any question about the rules or details you can either visit Photozone Zepher's profile or post your questions on Photozone DB.

I wish all of you a very Happy Holidays and an amazing New Year. I hope 2013 will be a much better year for the whole world.

Regards,
Redhairchick




Game Of The Month

January's game of the month is Chessgi! Join us in a fun Double Elimination Tournament by signing up today for The January 2013 - Game of the Month - Chessgi! Tournament! Have fun

Bonus! All participants will receive the Director of Capture Management (unknown photo) profile token, and the winner will receive the Fierce Player (unknown photo) profile token.


Chessgi

It's played very little. But it can be very interesting. It gives many possibilities in attack-combinations, when you have some pieces captured to put on the board. So you can sacrifice pieces , in change of leading an attack. I think in many case, a Knight is worth more than a Bishop and a Tower !!


We hope you enjoy it!

Special Thanks written on a blackboard to *carokarm* for writing this month's Game of the Month Nugget. You too, can write a knock-out Nugget and reap the rewards! If your Nugget is chosen as the winner for GoldToken's Game of the Month in GoldToken's Monthly Newsletter, you will win:
  • Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members: a one month extension to your current membership
  • Wood Members: a free membership upgrade
  • Guests: a free two-month Silver Membership
So, what are you waiting for? Start writing! .




Best Recipe Contest

December's winner is: Pralines
Pralines Submitted by birdstoe Dancing

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup heavy cream
4 tbsp butter
1 1/2 -2 cups toasted pecan halves
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp bourbon


In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the light brown sugar, granulated sugar, heavy cream, butter, and water. Place over a medium-high heat and stir constantly until the pralines reach the softball stage, 238 to 240 degrees F. Add the pecans to the candy, and pull the pan off of the stove. Continue to stir the candy vigorously with a wooden spoon until the candy cools slightly and thickens. The pecans will no longer sink in the mixture and it will take on a more matte than glossy finish. Spoon the pralines into small mounds onto a parchment or aluminum foil lined sheet pan and cool completely before serving



GoldToken's birdstoe will receive a "one time" access to the entire list of site icons, and can select any one that is not currently being used by another player, regardless of membership level (Silver and Wood members can keep the icon for 1 year!). Please send a big Congratulations to .! Dancing

January's recipe contest is: "Legumes". The winner will be given a "one time" access to the entire list of site icons, and can select any one that is not currently being used by another player, regardless of membership level (Guests, Wood and Silver members can keep the icon for 1 year!). Rules:
  • Entries must be posted by the recipe guardian/creator on the Cutting Board DB.
  • Recipe must be original and have never been posted on the Cutting Board DB before.



Up front & personal
Interview by: laura lee
{ Image: i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/llwgirl/NewYear/1882022ja2d30yk8x1.gif }
**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

--
Jan 2013  Morse

1. What brought you to Goldtoken?
I was a member of a couple of other game sites, My opponent mentioned that Gold Token was a bigger and better club,with more choice of games.
I had heard of GT and thought I would have a look at what it had to offer. I liked what I saw and joined 4 years ago. It was the best decision that I have made regarding Internet Clubs.

How'd you choose your name for GT?
I chose my nick name after a charecter in a TV series by one of my favourite actors,the late John Thaw,who played DCI "Morse" in a long running police drama.

3. Do you belong to any of the clubs? How about the chat only clubs?
I belong to several clubs on GT, plus I own four clubs that I founded,the first being the The 5 x 3 CLUB for playing Dominoes, The LOCO OCHOS MAU MAU SWITCH CLUB followed by the The POPULAR GAMES CLUB which has about 100 active members. My newest club is the { Club } which was formed jointly by ladyvic and myself in November 2012, We were amazed by the fact that almost 40 members joined within the first three weeks.
Of other clubs I belong to, { Club } is my favourite. I have my own board within that club where I post the History of Israel since 1948, which I am researching hopefully to be published some time in the future.

4. What State or Country do you reside in?
My home House is in Coventry, which is a city of just over 300,000 population located in the center of England. England I was born here but I've lived in several other places in connection with my occupation, plus oversease SEASEAIsland locations whilst serving in the RAF.

5. What hobbies to you have?
my hobbies,which include the history of WW2 and subsequent wars,plus my studies of Israel, which take up most of my leisure time.I used to travel quite a lot, both as a walker and motorist Driving a car until I became disabled in 2006.

6. Children?
Grandchildren?
The only family I have is one sister Twinkly Yellow Horse who is very dear to me as it was she who brought me to accept Jesus Christ as my savour and who introduced me to Jewish teachings and history.

7. Do you work?
I am now retired and I am able to continue with hobbies

8. Any pets?
The pets I have had during my lifetime have mainly been dogs Brown Dog and horses, I have a retired greyhound and I sponser several other greyhounds who are cared for by the Greyhound Trust.One of my smaller dogs,a Cairne Terrier was the first dog in England to be fitted with a human pacemaker,as she had a weak heart.I would say that next to my faith, the most important things in my life are my pets and most other animals.

9. Are you under 30?___ 30 to 50? ___ or over 50?
Very much over 50 !!! Smiling

10. What's the farthest you been from home?
The furthest I have been from home is Texas which is 6,000 miles away. I've lived or visited most countries in Europe both as a civilian and during my service life. My favourite country is Spain and my favourite city is Barcelona.

Since joining Gold Token I have made so many good friends through playing games or Discussion Boards and the clubs I belong to. The high standard maintained by GT is a credit to the hard working Moderators who ensure it's good reputation.Badger and her Admin Officials do a great job in providing more games than any other site I know of.They encourage individual clubs to meet members needs,and promote the numerous Discussion Boards.No other club I know of offers all these facilities which is no doubt why GOLD TOKEN is the BEST CLUB ON THE INTERNET..

Wishing you all you wish for yourself and your family as we approach the festive season.......... *Morse*

We would like to say Thank you to Morse for letting us step into they're personal life for a bit.

If there are any questions you would like to see asked in future interviews, please let us know.
Laura
laura lee



Writers Contest

A Writers Award profile token will be given to the person who writes the best short story (300 - 400 words) on the topic: When Christmas Almost Wasn't. The only other rule is that each entry include some of the topics we have covered in the DB.

To enter, post your story in your Personal Blog and also on the DB.

The winner will be chosen by poll on the DB.
Thanks!
Happy Holidays. 



Testimonial Of The Month
Brought to you by: *GoldToken* Players

Ok, it's about time I wrote one of these! I was first invited to GoldToken when it first opened it's doors in late 1999 by Coach, an aggressive chess player promising "GT" offered challenging games, and haven't left since. It's the only game site I've played at since 2004, when I first purchased it from Chad. GoldToken is everything a game site should be. Not because I've worked hard at making it so, but rather, because of you, the players who keep this place a warm family of playing members. No site owner could be prouder. Hundreds of you have volunteered your time to better this home for the benefit of everyone, donating thousands upon thousands of hours with your talents in coding, club management, game creation, graphic design, suggestions and love for those who love to play. You are what keeps me coming back, day after day, week after week. I have met so many of you in person, developed incredible friendships and enjoyed your friendly banter. Group hug

Thank you for helping make GoldToken all it can be, and joining in the fun with our incredible GoldToken family!

Mary the Badger




Contest of the Month

Player of the Year

January's contest of the month is Player of the Year. The winner will receive two extra months on their current membership, or, if Guest, a two month Silver membership.

All of GoldToken's players are special. But each year, we want to recognize those who stand out over and above the norm. GoldToken's Player Of The Year is not only a great player, but also one that is helpful, friendly, and makes playing here a joy. Each year, the top players of each game category who have not won in prior years will be selected in a special poll for the players vote. The poll for 2011's Player of the Year will run on Thursday January 31st. Please vote for the most helpful and friendly player on the list!

Nominate GoldToken's kindest, most helpful players on the Photo Album Contest DB today!


We have a winner for December's Most Original Photo Album contest!


Congratulations to oldog for her entry titled oldog's Album titled OLDOG'S WORLD! She won two extra months on her current membership! Dancing




Caption Contest

The Caption contest winner for the December, 2012, newsletter is smiler5 with:

(unknown photo)

Huh! There's snow mail for me!

Congratulations smiler5!
 

To enter January's Caption Contest, click on the link and post your best caption. (unknown photo)
The winner will be chosen by our news team, given 5 Golderos and announced in next months newsletter.



A Fun Tidbit!

I joined GT 14th March 2004 and one of the first players I played was nana210, in fact we started playing on that first day of my membership (I was a guest at the time). Today, 7th January 2012 we completed our 1000th game. We usually have 2 or 3 games going all the time. I am ahead 587 to 413 and most of our games are single backgammon games. Thought it might be an idea to see if anyone else has such a long running challenge with as many games as we have?

johnnyyboy

  • Editors note: If you have had a similar long running challenge, please send a note to GoldToken's Newshound to enter our signature contest. Player with the most games in a long running challenge will win their very own Signature Goldie! Example: JimC



Tutorials

Use them in your clubs and when helping newbies!

(unknown photo)
(unknown photo)
(unknown photo)
(unknown photo)
(unknown photo)

Special Thanks written on a blackboard to Redhairchick for designing these easy to understand site tutorials. They are awesome! High five



Breaking Club News:
Brought to you by GoldToken's roving reporter, PattyMac

The Overall Competition Club
The 2013 edition of the Overall Competition will start on January 31st with Backgammon, Loco Ochos, Whist, Dominoes, and Hangman.

This year's competition will be divided in twelve five-game monthly challenges. The three players with the most wins each month will win 3, 2, and 1 golderos Offering gold token.

The three best players in 2013 will win 40, 20, and 10 golderos Offering gold token.

For complete rules, more information, or to sign up, click on this link: The Overall Competition Club or contact the owner 1926.



The Kitties Korner & Doggie Daycare Club wants to remind everyone that this if for cat or dog lovers. Besides the games they offer, they have a chat board just for bragging, talking about or maybe asking for advice of your beloved pet. Come join the fun and bring your pets along. Conjuring catPlaying with dog
Contact furryfeet for any info.



The Daily Laugh Club

A little boy returned from the grocery store with his mom. While his mom put away the groceries, the little boy opened his box of animal crackers and spread them all over the kitchen table.
"What are you doing?" asked his mom.
"The box says you shouldn't eat them if the seal is broken," said the little boy. "I'm looking for the seal."

A sample of the Daily Smiles! December saw their first Presidential Challenge. In a close battle Team Smiler5 defeated Team Katja! President Blackangus is now gearing up to play President Smiler5 in the January Challenge!

With a new game every day they are a very active club and the members are a lively, fun-loving crowd! The have a goal of gaining 10 new members in January. Contact them thru the club or the owner smiler5 Smiling



{ Club }
Will be holding a Club Ownership Training and Officer Training within the club. Owner will turn the club over, for a month, to anyone interested in gaining experience. If you would like more information contact MM David littlefair XI.



Morse has several clubs and is excited about them all

{ Club } is a new club which according to the owner has already attracted over 50 Members who want to play just these games. With two more Specialist Clubs,The 5 x 3 CLUB and The LOCO OCHOS MAU MAU SWITCH CLUB he also has the The POPULAR GAMES CLUB, which formed only a few months ago, and with a big membership drive by the officier the club has just marked their goal of 100 members by the end of December. If you are interested in becoming a member or just want more information contact the owner Morse or Officer ladyvic.



ClubvsClub News

16 clubs joined in the Tourne-case Championship, we are down to the last two clubs battling it out...Going to be a nail biter, its between { Club } and The Horsin' Around at GT Club....stay tuned for the results next newsletter...late news! The Horsin' Around at GT Club has WON...Congratulations Club

8 clubs joined in the American Rummikub Championship and that was won by The Sallyp and Friends Club.Way to go!!

Sign-up to play for your Club today!



Olympic News
Brought to you by: *GoldTokens* Olympic *Presidents*

The 2012 GoldToken Olympics are underway. We do not have any finished challenges, however, we do have our first 2012 Olympic Gold Winner!

Trumpet player right A big congrat to Red Panda Trumpet player left

The Plateau Competition in The 2012 Olympic Tournament Group 3B Tournament
PlateauGOLDThe 2015 Winter Olympic Team Minerva ClubRed Panda


Good luck to all Olympic players.





Wanted

  • Do you have a special story, poem or testimonial you would like to share? How about some club news, announcements or any other special events? Then don't delay, send GoldToken's Newshound your submissions today! We look forward to hearing from you! Smiling
** (Please note: All submissions are added on a first come first serve basis.) **


Trumpet player right [ Main: GoldToken's Monthly Newsletter - Past Issues ] Trumpet player left
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