Since it's not clear whether the question is rhetorical, consider the possibility that the person genuinely wants to gauge how much interest there is in their endeavor, making a yes or no response a courtesy, not rude.

When in doubt, I find the best practice is to give the benefit of the doubt to the responders.

Yes!

This spring I’m looking to plant some Pirate themed boxes starting in the Cocoa Beach area heading south to Melbourne Beach, probably ending in Vero Beach? The theme is pirates. Not for an event just a themed planting idea geared towards pirates and their bottles of rum 😁.
I’m kind of burnt out on carving right this minute although I will carve 1 or 2, but if you have any such pirate themed stamps that are gathering dust and you are done with them and would like them to be permanently planted would you consider sending my way in Florida?

Count me in!

Will I attempt? Probably.
Will I succeed? Almost definitely not.

I agree. A question was asked. Was it rhetorical or was person trying to gauge interest? We don’t know. But a simple no and some agrees doesn’t seem rude. I think that’s reading a LOT into it that just isn’t there.

Yes I will!

Except... without knowing anything about it... where the boxes are, what the clues are like, how it's presented... How could one reasonably say "no", without it being a direct and uninformed rejection of the entire concept, or of the individual? That sounds rude to me.

Except (again), I also suspect it was just a joke response. It may have misfired a bit (and TRUST me, I know allllll about misfiring jokes). So, maybe not so rude after all.

Some reasonable "no" responses to the concept might be:
The "flavor" of tarot/astrology is not compatible with one's spiritual beliefs.
Some people may not want an involved puzzle-solving exercise, because they simply enjoy a more leisurely outing - and finding a LB along the way is a bonus.
Someone is currently up to their ears in life happenings, and don't have the energy or time to add a complex puzzle-solving exercise right now.

As the saying goes, not every letterbox is for everyone. That's not rude, and not a rejection of the individual. It's knowing how the person enjoys this hobby, and chooses letterboxes to seek, which may be different than someone else.

I love tarot and seeking! Intrigued! Yes! Share your cards Romanian friend!

this annual event occurs May through June at Forest Park. Years ago a letterboxer began collecting stamps to honor each year of the performances. The box was made available at the main tent for boxers to access. Sadly, she left the STL area. The box of stamps which is the size of a shoebox and holds maybe a couple dozen stamps is with me, but sadly I'm not a Shakespeare fan.

Is anyone willing to host the Shakespeare in the Park box? If not, I'll offer the stamps up on the AQ stamp exchange.

I was able to get another answer from Elana! I asked "How?" and she replied:


Her answer appears cut off, but that's all I got.

I like to plant...FWIW.

One more possible clue! I asked "Can you help?" and Elana replied:


I'm pretty much a newbie at this. Does this mean anything to anyone?

Any suggestions for further questions to ask Elana?

It sounds like the AI is getting generic info about Letterboxing from AQ info pages.

(bolding mine)

Maybe this?

It is from the AQ Help pages...
https://www.atlasquest.com/about/wiki/question.php?wikiId=239

The AI is able to find answers from the AQ Help pages.

I suspected AI from the beginning of this!

There are many other reasonable reasons to respond with "no." As already mentioned, not every box will be interesting to everyone. And I am not alone in finding some boxes just plain annoying for various reasons.

I won't be actively seeking whatever this is, although I did poke it with a few sharp sticks around the edges. Because that's fun. For me.

This should be added to the description of this amazing satellite:

"Vanguard 1 is the oldest artificial satellite still in Earth orbit".

I was able to ask a question this morning so I asked:

What question should I ask?

Elana responded with:

Which way is north?

I’m sorry

Honestly I'm a bit torn on this. Yes, of course there are many reasons to not be interested in a certain aspect of the hobby, but I'm not seeing the need to flatly saying no in a thread about it. If it was a joke, fine. But if it was genuine, it does seem a little unnecessarily impolite.

I'm not the least bit interested in postals. But when a thread starts about a new postal, I think it would be perceived a bit rude if I dropped in just to say, "I'm not interested".

My 2 cents worth - not my circus, not my monkeys.

Cool, I wasn't aware. A bit of sleuthing turned up this additional info...

Vanguard 1 is the oldest artificial satellite still in Earth orbit. Launched by the United States on March 17, 1958, this grapefruit-sized, 3-pound satellite was the first solar-powered spacecraft. Although its communication stopped in 1964, it remains in a stable, high-Earth orbit and is expected to stay there for several hundred years.

It holds the record as the oldest man-made object still in orbit and has travelled more than 6 billion miles.

Edited to add: That's a lot of rocket and fuel to put a grapefruit in space!

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1958-03-17_3rd_Vanguard_Successful.webm

I actually placed a letterbox near McDonald Observatory called Vanguard 1 on 3/17/2008, its 50th anniversary. Unfortunately it was destroyed by fire several years later.


You aren't the only one. The same day that I placed the box I went to a star party at the observatory and not one person knew about it. Of course, I'm a bit of a space nerd.

I think many read the "yes or no" question as a genuine request for feedback, and their "no" was a polite indication that they would not be attempting to solve the mystery leading to this box. They did not simply "drop in" to offer an unsolicited opinion, at least in their minds, but responded to the question that was asked.

I'll see your 2-cents and raise you 5-cents. 🤔

As am I. I don't know how that escaped my attention.

When I feel I can justify the expense, I'd love one of these:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/LEGO-Ideas-NASA-Apollo-Saturn-V-92176-Building-Set-for-Adults-1-969-Pieces/969740382

Cool!
When I was a kid in the early 60's I used to put together Estes rockets and launch them with solid-propellant engines. Lost too many so couldn't afford to keep buying them, but it was fun for a while.

When I wiin the lottery I'll get you a dozen --- don't hold your breath though!

In 1969 I was 10 and I built a scale model of the Saturn V using found items scrounged up. It was for a school project and I got an A+ My grandfather was an engineer and he helped me take measurements from a photo of the actual rocket and scale it down accurately. End result after many hours of effort was quite amazing.

I find it interesting that a certain date is in 2 weeks. Coincidence?