I find myself distracted by information. I'm a researchophile. I get interested in a subject, and I start researching. It is a great form of procrastination, as I'm sure other Wikipedians can attest. The threads lead me in interesting directions: The rivers of British Columbia and their history, because my father was a freshwater surveyor for the Province of British Columbia. And of course, talking about the history of rivers brings my attention to the Europeans who explored them, which gets me working on their biographies, and then this gets me interested in the colonial history of western British North America.
File:Shelbourne Valley.jpgThe Cedar Hill area in which I grew up, photographed about sixty years before my birth
Perhaps the best example of just how much I've been drawn into Wikipedia is the Anglicanism WikiProject, which I designed and initiated. I was motivated by the fact that Google searches on subjects related to Anglicanism and the Anglican Communion typically yield a Wikipedia article in the top five...many of which are (or were) frankly incomplete, inaccurate, or POV-ridden. This fact is combined with the total absence of articles on important Anglican theology, history, institutions, and individuals. I realised I couldn't do it all myself, and was not qualified to do it all myself, anyway. When I compared Anglican-related articles to those of other denominational traditions, especially Roman Catholicism, I felt embarrassed. Hence, the WikiProject. I am delighted that we now have over sixty participants. I wish them all the best.
Finally, I am an administrator of Wikipedia. Having long thought that sysops were those "other people," my nomination and selection were a complete shock to me. But I am humbled by the confidence shown in me, and have now embarked on a process of learning the scope of my responsibilities.
My involvement in Wikipedia over the last three or four years has been seriously cut back. I don't even know if I still have administrator status. But I do little bits here and there as time (and my will) merit.
Articles I've created or substantially revised include
Amor De Cosmos is one of my favourite B.C. historical figures. He sums up Left Coast eccentricity and passion
.Herein, "extensively reworked" means that, following my editing, roughly three-quarters or more of the material in the article was added by me.
British Columbia Geography
The article on Simon Fraser was in such poor shape, it motivated me to become a Wikipedian and was the first I worked on, and this was the first image I downloaded.
