It seems that Dave isn’t the only one that feels the need to prove he is a man. Over the last couple of weeks I am beginning to feel that I too need to prove my manhood in visible ways. I have begun to grow a beard. Surely the more body hair one has, the more masculine that person is.
And today I went to Ikea (okay, maybe that was girlie) to find something that might store my DVDs. I ended up buying a table (for something else) and a chest of drawers. But, being Ikea I got to build them myself.
Somewhere along the line it looks as though the people at Ikea have discovered tools other than the humble allen key. In assembling the funiture I had to use two screwdrivers and a hammer (there were nails, not to let out my frustration).
The table assembled fairly easily (as you would imagine) and didn’t wobble as is prone to happen with Ikea furniture. I like to think this was a side effect of going beyond the allen key.
Then with manly sweat on my brow I took to the chest of drawers. Well, after unpacking the box it looked like enough stuff to build a small space shuttle. Unfortunately when assembled it wasn’t a space shuttle, but a chest of drawers. Nevertheless I am quite happy.
Now to put all my DVDs inside and document them as I do so. Soon I will have an accurate figure of just how many DVDs I own. No doubt I will need to buy another chest soon.
So what were the likely events leading up to the 15/11 prank? The Mill takes this hypothetical journey through the minds of the pranksters in an effort to unveil further clues to the identity of the prankster.
Stage one: The Preparation
It is likely that time was taken to prepare the prank and that other alternatives were considered prior to the final decision to go with the flowers. Possible alternatives might have been Singing Telegrams, Strip-a-Grams or possibly a combination of the two.
Stage two: The message
Once the flowers had been decided it must have become obvious to the prankster that a message needed to be written. The prankster would have spent considerable time trying to find the perfect balance between providing sufficient clues and giving themselves away immediately. References to “Java” and “Michael D. Cameron” stood out within the message and were likely the subtle clues left by the prankster. There was also a line referring to “you are my Ace”, which may refer to either some sort of flying expert or perhaps a reference to Will’s liking of poker.
Stage three: The order
From the photographic evidence and the comments suggested by Will, the flowers were ordered with a free teddy bear. As I can count 10 stems in the photograph (some others may be hidden from view), I concluded that the prankster purchased the medium flowers (12 stems) for $59.50. As for the Vase, it is likely that $25 would be chosen over $35, bringing the total cost of the prank up to $84.50. The prankster may have even phoned the florist to ensure that their true identity (needed for billing) would not be revealed.
Stage four: The aftermath
The prankster was likely to be eagerly awaiting a response from Will. It is likely that a slight jump in traffic could have been seen to Omegadelta.net as the prankster waited impatiently for reports of the prank’s success. Although with the recent addition of RSS to the site (albeit a cut-down version) it is unlikely that anything other than circumstantial evidence can be gleamed from the server logs.
This was a well thought out prank and the pranksters will be revealed. If not today, then surely some other day.
With the cry for swift retaliation for the recent Michael D. Cameron prank, the similarities between this and the war on terror begin to emerge.
Paul seems to be most like Iraq. Responsible for a lot of stuff and therefore held accountable when such a large prank occurs. One could even see Will starting a speech like this:
“We shall prank them on the beaches, we shall prank them on the landing grounds, we shall prank them in the fields and in the streets, we shall prank them in the hills; we shall never surrender”
The Mill has been playing an important role in this investigation and as such has interrogated Paul, making use of torture where appropriate or it just seemed like fun. Through Paul’s shrill girlie screams (which were quite different from Dave’s which sound more like a Britney Spears song), it became obvious that a credit card was needed in order to perpetrate such a prank. Sure, that information didn’t come directly from torturing Paul, but where is the fun of interrogation without torture?
Paul does not have a credit card. Although given his relationship with Trish, he may have access to one. Unfortunately he claims (even under some heavy torture) that he has been banned from using the card “under pain of death”. What for wasn’t entirely clear, but it was likely to be either spending too much on porn or too many transactions at King’s Cross.
So this brings me to Dave, who recently claimed (about two weeks prior to the prank) that he does not like to use his credit card online. That and the fact that Dave is cheap strikes him out from the list.
Of course, Will has a credit card, and may have simply been seeking some attention himself. Will has also demonstrated his desire to see more pranks take place and may have found this to be the best way to start the war on pranks.
Stay tuned as The Mill examines the probable actions leading up to the 15/11 prank.
The Mill has been doing some investigating over the last few days into the question of the identity of Michael D. Cameron. Perhaps most puzzling about what is likely a pseudonym (based on the evidence provided by the Java reference) is the middle initial, or even why a pseudonym was used at all? Why not simply use the more traditional “Secret Admirer”. This is where the differences between this prankster and not-Rhys becomes apparent. This prankster wants to be caught. Besides, if you aren’t caught, you can’t truly take credit for the genius that was this prank.
So why the middle initial? It strikes me as odd that a middle initial was used if not to point to the possible identity of the prankster. It is not too often that people use their middle initial (although the email system at Pizza Hut decided once to add my initial to my outgoing emails (Parry, Rhys C) which was kind of weird, but did make me feel more prestigious for a while until the initial was revoked) at all, so it makes sense that this may stand for something. It is likely that it stands for something that when solved it would have a domino effect that will show meaning in the rest of the message (or perhaps simply the pseudonym).
Perhaps all that is needed from Will is that the correct and full answer is discovered for the prankster to reveal their identity and confess.
Next on The Mill we’ll discuss how this prank attack may have triggered a “War on Pranks”
As has been recently posted on Omegadelta.Net, Will has been recently the subject of what may be the biggest practical joke since not-Rhys.
Adorning a beautiful arrangement of flowers, was a teddy bear (a clue perhaps?) and a large pink ribbon. Oh, and the message:
Roses are Red,
Violets are Blue,
you love Java
and I love you.
You are my Ace
lets share
another cup of
Java soon.
Happy Birthday
Michael D. Cameron.
When I finally stopped laughing I began investigating the potential culprit.
So who is Michael Cameron? A quick Google search finds a Michael Cameron in Melbourne and in the school of computer science and information technology. Interestingly, this Michael Cameron has a brother Jamie Cameron, the author of Webmin.
Is this name a clue? If so, a clue to what? Or is it simply a red herring designed to steer us from the true culprit. Sounds like something not-Rhys would do. Is not-Rhys back? Have we only experienced a minor reprieve from not-Rhys’ pranking?
Will has declared swift revenge on the culprit, and while this threat may prevent the culprit from stepping forward straight away this may lead to a new wave of pranks to finally surpass those of the not-Rhys saga.
More to follow once Will provides photographic evidence. I only wish I thought of this prank first. I tip my hat to the prankster.