From: Diva Las Vegas organizers (dlvorg@geekbabe.com)
Date: Tue Sep 08 2009 - 09:45:49 CDT
In this mailing:
Org List
Hotel vote result
Date comment summary
Amended motion
Touchstone location
Raw votes
Administrivia
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Org List:
This is the DLV 2010 Organizational Mailing List (dlvorg@geekbabe.com)
Replies to this message will be forwarded to the DLVORG list and not
the DLV-Announce or DLV-Discuss list.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hotel vote result:
Votes are in regarding our non-exclusive primary hotel
motion.
For: 7
Against: 11
Abstain: 3
Motion fails to carry. Not unanimous, but a clear majority.
Last vote was received Saturday, 9:53am PDT and polls
were closed Monday, 9:53am PDT.
No invalid votes were received.
Raw votes appear below.
I am not at all surprised or disappointed by the outcome.
This has been a recurrent theme both in feedback and
occasionally in ORG for several years. This vote puts the
issue to rest, at least for the time being.
. . . . .
Next item up for consideration is Holly's motion, amended
below for some fairly minor tweaks, for the hotel hostesses
and get-togethers.
Please continue to discuss ...
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Date comment summary:
Our Call For Comments period on the tentative dates has expired.
For those who are new, we announce the tentative dates and allow
one month for comments. Should no reason to reconsider the dates
be presented, the dates then become final with no further action.
Here are the comments we've received regarding the tentative
DLV dates.
All but one comment were in support of the dates:
+From: Billie Henning <dlvdisc@geekbabe.com>
+I am all for the proposed date from Apr 18th to Saturday or Sunday
+Apr 24-25. I have some other gals that will come at this time frame.
. . .
+From: Gina <dlvdisc@geekbabe.com>
+Works for me. Sounds like fun.
. . .
+From: Kaitlin <dlvdisc@geekbabe.com>
+Works for me...It will be tight as I'll just be getting back from
+Vancouver but I should be able to make it towards the end of the week.
. . .
+From: Valerie <dlvdisc@geekbabe.com>
+Luv the date. Was planning on returning to Vegas in april anyway. I hope
+this sticks.
. . .
+From: Cynthia Phillips <dlvdisc@geekbabe.com>
+The projected dates are just perfect, in my humble opinion; I've been
+stuck in this LV desert for 12 years now and I know the weather
+patterns pretty well, they are highly predictable. Holding DIVA any
+sooner would put us in a blustery, rainy, windy season, and any later
+would risk the ensuing godawful hot summer. The dates are really good
+and I'm sooo looking forward to it; It will be my first. Love and
+fondness to you all.
This particular item did generate a digression about weather,
in particular snow and rain in Las Vegas.
. . .
+From: "Leanna" <dlvdisc@geekbabe.com>
+We do not like the dates as the prices will be higher in april as it is
+still the summer vacation for most.The ones wse know can not make it in
+april as they can not schedule their vacation time
+LeAnna Jamie
I responded to this note stating that we had checked rates and
found only one week in April with higher prices.
There was one mistaken comment stating that we were overlapping
with NAB. This was retracted and corrected within a few minutes.
There was also a digression started by a self-professed travel
agent, stating that we need "professional help" in planning
the event. Three responses from this "professional" which
contained profanity were rejected and not posted.
In light of the lack of any substantiated objections, I see
no cause to not let the dates become final by default.
For those who are happy with the selected dates, you don't
have to do anything or say anything. The dates will become
final unless action is taken to the contrary.
I will hold off announcing the dates as final for 48 hours
pending any final action here. I would ask those who may feel
a need to adjust the dates to please exercise common sense
and restraint regarding the necessity of such. :)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Amended motion:
Holly writes (from a conversation):
>As for the second point, I am hesitant to concede the need
>to meet daily. As stated before, people come and go at
>Diva's all the time. It would be a shame for a program
>that is supposed to be promoting hospitality to not be
>available when someone needs it.
I'm trying to consider real-world "heat of battle"
circumstances and also human nature, including human
weakness.
>What I would consider is some type of time frame wherein
>if nobody showed within say 15 minutes of the scheduled
>time, the host(ess) would be free to go on about her/his
>business. I don't know if that needs to be specified in
>the motion itself as I view it more of a procedural issue
>than policy.
It would be both policy and procedure, but I think it can
be put forward by you as a "guideline" in your handbook.
>Honestly, point of allowing the host(ess) the flexibility
>of appointing an assistant or co-hostess was sp that the
>burden of coordinating a daily meet up could be shared.
That does make sense.
>While I have yet to commit anything to paper, I have been
>thinking about creating a Hostess/Host Handbook.
If you don't mind doing the work, I think it would be a
good thing. My only question about this would be timing.
>In it would be things like the daily schedule, addresses,
>phone numbers and maps to the venues of DLV that year, a
>place to record the names, room numbers, and cell numbers
>of the persons staying at their hotel (on a voluntary
>basis, of course), the names and contact info for the
>activity coordinators, and any other information that
>might be useful. I'm considering either Word or PDF
>format so that it could be emailed prior to the start
>of DLV.
The only issue I see is timing. Things happen very
quickly at crunch time.
I always suggest .pdf, since it's usable with almost any
home computer of any type with no hoop-jumping, and .pdf
attachments are not as often blocked by spam/virus filters.
>What I am envisioning at this point is a 3-ring binder
>format (the binder being provided by the Hostess/Host)
>although that could change and I am certainly open to
>ideas and alternate suggestions.
LOL, if you want a three-ring binder, pick up a few cheap
ones and hand them out. I know our people too well! There
will be quite a bit of variation in enthusiasm and
cooperation on things like that. :) I would also include
hard copies of everything, your notes, map, schedule, and
maybe even a print-out of the Large Final Mailing.
. . . . .
Anyway, here is the amended motion. Kat originally seconded
the original version, and we can give Kat the "right of
first refusal " to second this amended version. If not, I
will second it, and we can considered it seconded in its
amended form.
<Begin Motion>
I move that each suggested hotel for DLV 2010 have one
person designated as Hotel Hostess/Host.
The duties of the Hotel Hostess/Host shall be as follows:
Facilitate social interaction among attendees staying at
their hotel. This shall be accomplished by pre-arranging
at least one (1) daily informal meet and greet at the hotel.
The location and time of the meet shall be at the sole
discretion of the Hostess/Host and will be announced in the
final mailing to all attendees.
The Host/Hostess may choose an assistant at their discretion.
The DLV Organizers shall send each Hotel Hostess/Host a list
via email of all attendees who are staying at their hotel.
This motion shall apply to the DLV 2010 event only and not
carry forward to subsequent years.
<End Substitute Motion>
Comments? Discussion?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Touchstone location:
Kate writes (first-person, no quoting):
Hi.
For a group so adamantly opposed to the convention idea we
are suspiciously drifting dangerously close to becoming one.
(For the record.. I am Adamantly opposed to it too)
A meeting point at a vendors? Absolutely not!
Vendors will get our money eventually via a personal visit
or a later, post DLV mail purchase if that's where you like
shoping This is as polite as I can be on this subject.
The word Vendor has crept in over the years and even though
it's not a dirty word, it is becoming progressively louder
in our discussions. Of course they will offer a place to meet.
It's a business. and they sell to our section of the
population exclusively.
I haven't been in attendance for a couple of years but I
intended to make it a vacation stop again several times in
the near future. I hope it is still intact by that time.
A small group get together at a lounge bar is quite
sufficient and as mentioned already in the local hotel
hostess discussion, Friendships naturally develop anyway
as the event progresses. "Large groups at mainstream
locales develop Large problems" I would certainly Not
interrupt a 4-5-6 day vacation in a once per year outing
like this to staff a room or be a hostess on a vendors
schedule.
I realize that a vendor would be primarily responsible for
this but it's Off Strip and a cab ride away away from the
lights so to speak and would need or become an obligation
for at least one of our organizers to be in attendance and
that's not fair to her,and/or them..
Please consider leaving this nice week long party like it
is to an extent.
(If it's not broke. etc') But It soon could be! This is so
different from other events. I wouldn't like to see it
become just another T gathering of no real consequence.
. . . . .
Thanks, Kate.
I don't think JoAnn is intending to move us in any way
toward the convention model with this proposal.
For a few years back in the early 2000s, I felt like I was
fighting a losing battle against the forces pushing us in
the direction of becoming yet another cookie-cutter TG
convention of the "Dream" model.
Well, as it turns out, our side won!
The "DLV model" is now well-entrenched and the opposition
to change is now working for us and not against us. Our
model is now what our attendees are familiar with, and are
comfortable with.
In fact, just the reverse of what we resisted in the early
2000s is happening. The main-line TG conventions have been
becoming more like us! More off-campus on-the-town things,
some of them {gasp!} venturing into the mainstream. :)
And, as we know, a group of coat-tail riders actually
considers DLV to be too "vanilla" and too "establishment"
for them. :)
You can rest assured that if I ever sense that DLV is
heading in the direction of becoming a convention, I will
fight it with all I've got! I think I have a very good
handle on what our attendees want and which way the various
winds are blowing. I'm hearing a lot of caution (WRT the
slippery slope to the convention) in the discussions of
hotels and such.
In all of the discussion of recent years, I haven't sensed
any "red flags" warning of such a movement. The closest we
came to anything like that this year was in the discussion
of a primary exclusive hotel As long as it's understood that
a hotel is for sleeping, and not for our activities, I don't
see a primary hotel, exclusive or not, as a threat to our
model.
Among the "red flags" that crows-nest lookouts need to be
wary of, which would indicate movement in the convention
direction, are such things as:
1. A heavy concentration of activities in one "safe"
location, such as a cordoned-off hotel ballroom.
2. Common facilities. Meeting room(s), vendor hall,
hospitality suite, activities room, private dining room,
lecture hall, etc. in one or more designated hotels.
3. Activities financed by a common pool of funds, paid
for by attendees via registration fee and other required
fees.
4. The nature of the activities. Lectures, seminars, etc.
5. The Rubber Chicken Banquet, with keynotes and pageant.
I really don't sense any convention-direction movement in
either Holly's proposal for hotel hostesses or JoAnn's
proposal for a series of non-exclusive vendor touch points.
I can see only two concerns about JoAnn's proposal. If the
motion entered by Holly should fail, we can consider JoAnn's
idea in more depth.
The first concern is that of convenience. The local hotel
is more convenient than a vendor location. The other is the
overall question of how tightly we want DLV to be coupled to
commercial ventures. Since JoAnn's proposal specifically
calls for a rotational touchstone location instead of one
and only one vendor to which we are bound, I don't see much
of an issue here.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Raw votes:
(In no particular order.)
Message-id: <D09061CAD162453BB19A2A3BA3F99418@
I vote AGAINST the motion to designate one hotel as the "Primary"
Message-ID: <648612.33832.qm@
I am for this motion.
Message-ID: <008401ca2bd7$e6b931a0$b42b94e0$@
Against
Message-id: <38876C21-FFE7-44CD-A189-5D1F8F71FAA2@
I am AGAINST this motion.
Message-Id: <200909021457.n82EvpON019867@
> FOR (yes, aye, etc.): I am for this motion.
Message-Id: <20090902080412.cb57cd7cba748d2aea61c3a59ddf5805.
AGAINST (no, opposed, etc.): I am opposed to this motion.
Message-ID: <270984.96611.qm@
NO
Message-Id: <20090902.121013.12073.0@
FOR (yes, aye, etc.): I am for this motion.
Message-Id: <FF2D4868-BC0E-40D5-AB6C-87760C4665E1@
AGAINST
Message-ID: <663069.83167.qm@
ABSTAIN: Cast no vote for or against this motion.
Message-ID: <685085.41837.qm@
ABSTAIN
Message-ID: <282196.17092.qm@
Re: hotel...ABSTAIN
Message-ID: <23592.50542.qm@
AGAINST (no, opposed, etc.): I am opposed to this motion.
Message-Id: <8CBFA4378B8446F-28D0-AE5D@
AGAINST (no, opposed, etc.): I am opposed to this motion.
Message-ID: <4A9FF203.9030207@
I am AGAINST this motion.
Message-ID: <719237.32628.qm@
AGAINST
Message-ID: <534576.49694.qm@
Yes
Message-ID: <4AA091B6.6040308@
I am opposed to this motion to designate a "Primary Hotel"for DLV 2010.
Message-ID: <SNT109-W648FF95828876AC4CBDAAFC7EE0@
Yes
Message-ID: <770661.66100.qm@
FOR
Message-ID: <714791.34985.qm@
> FOR (yes, aye, etc.): I am for this motion.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Administrivia:
This is the Diva Las Vegas 2010 organizational list.
One address for all items regarding this list, additions, removals,
changes, submissions, questions, etc.:
dlvorg@geekbabe.com <--- NOTE: all lower case
Diva Las Vegas 2010
Dates to be announced
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Archives of this list appear on the web at:
http://www.geekbabe.com/annie/org10arc/
To unsubscribe: Simply reply to this message with the word UNSUBSCRIBE
in either the Subject: field or the first line of an OTHERWISE BLANK
message body. The word "unsubscribe" (case is insignificant) should be
the only item in the subject field or the first line of the message,
justified to the left.
To send material to this list: Send submission as regular e-mail to
the address: dlvorg@geekbabe.com
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Wed Jun 16 2010 - 09:56:46 CDT