[dlvorg] Age, cost, dancing, etc. ...

In this mailing:

Org List
Slight change in direction
Young-ish reporting for duty
Dancing at Mandalay
Dance event
Cinnamen
Asian buffet
Transportation and Twitter
Administrivia
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Org List:

This is the DLV 2015 Organizational Mailing List (dlvorg_at_geekbabe.com)
Replies to this message will be forwarded to the DLVORG list and not
the DLV-Announce or DLV-Discuss list.
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Slight change in direction:

We had intended to organize the content of the ORG mailings into groups
by the topics noted in last week's mailing.

However, things did not work out the way we intended.

We'll continue with our general mixed-content mailings unless one or
more of the stated topics rises to the top.

If the chatter on these topics dies down, we'll proceed with the yearly
business of adding the new volunteers, confirming list subscriptions,
etc.
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Call For photos closes at the end of May, just over two weeks from now.
If you have photos to submit for this year's collection and have not yet
sent them in, please do so ASAP. Thanks to all who have submitted photos
this year!
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Young-ish reporting for duty:

Vivian writes:

>> with our average age now over 60, and few attending over 70
>> or under 40, well, do we care, or are we ok ...

> We did have one "I wish there were more my age" response on this

> I would welcome input from our under-40 people along this line. :)

Young-ish person reporting for duty ma'am!

Speaking for myself and not as part of an extrapolated group, I'm fine
with smaller attendance. There were younger attendees in past DLVs but
quite a number of them split and formed their own week long Vegas event
(Wildside) after disagreements with DLV organizers.

I've been to Wildside and can honestly say that their activities would
not be popular with current DLV attendees. To be very honest, going to
Wildside is like hanging out with wild friends and DLV is like hanging
around with my favorite aunt/grandma.

That said, there are a few volunteers that try to set up events for the
young and young at heart. Kings of Hustler, clubbing, pole-dancing, etc.

I still attend DLV because I'm not THAT wild :P and I'm still meeting
and getting to know awesome people at DLV (This year, I got to know and
hangout with Delaney).

Those with income and time will be able to afford a week long vacation.

People who can't afford it will be taking selfies in their rooms (go
to crossdressing subreddit if you want proof) for social media. In
someways, social media is how the younger "hangout" these days.
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JoAnn responds:

JoAnn here---

My pet issue-- attracting individuals to DIVA... And the response from
-- "Young-ish person reporting for duty, Ma'am".

Very good "string of thoughts" leading to some insights for me....
Thanks you... thank you..

You are telling Annie, Beverly and me --- my interpretation--- that DIVA
has a niche, authenticity, a "grounded feeling". All good!!! However, at
the same time, we are present as a group that is like hanging out with a
favorite aunt/grandma. I'd rather think of us as a group of older
sisters you admire and find for younger sisters having fun to be
"around".

So how do we address this?...........

What I am saying might seem to be "wordsmith" statements, however, what
I wish to advance is how we might have a discussion on how we "brand"
our vacation week !!!

Annie, I would like to add this topic for further discussion to our
"Roundtable of Topics" you previously suggested last week.

We do not need to get "philosophical" about who we are, but rather
practical in the application of how we present ourselves. Thank you ---
Young-ish person reporting for duty, Ma'am !

I am going to give you a suggestion that we create a new "handle"
referencing people who help us deliver insights "...about really being
real..." and to make a DIVA Vacation that branded unique experience we
want to make it. .. You now have the nom de guerre - DIVA Field Scout.

I would like to assign this "nom de guerre" going forward to various
individuals who we ask to seek, collect. and report information the that
makes DIVA facilities and activities successful.
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Annie responds:

This falls under "Any other relevant topics", which by default is the
topic du jour of this week's mailing. :)

Sorry this got a bit long ...

The remark "social media is how the younger hangout these days" brings
back the nascent origins of DLV, in which those who formed DLV actually
"hung out" on the social media of the time, which was alive and well in
the mid 1990s, but not as trendy as today.

DLV came about due to the desire of those folks to get together in real
life as opposed to the virtual on-line world. Perhaps this trend is
reversing among the younger set.

Another remark you made sheds some light on one reason why our age skews
older, plus another pastime which has been with us longer than many may
think.

"People who can't afford it will be taking selfies in their rooms'

We could talk about selfies, but we won't. :) :) :)

What you really hit on, however, is "People who can't afford it", and
one thing we (DLV) USED TO BE is (or rather was) affordable.

I believe that, due to many circumstances, our event is not nearly as
affordable as it once was, or as affordable as we would like it to be.

We used to be significantly less expensive than the conventions, but
since the Great Recession ended, prices on about everything Las Vegas
related have skyrocketed.

These next numbers are fuzzy and approximate, but they should be in the
ballpark. People reported that they spent an average of 5.42 days over
this past DLV, spent an average of $733.33 on accommodations and spent
an average of 1905.97 total to participate in the event this year.

This means that our people are now spending an average of $120-some per
night for accommodations. Remember that this figure will be "pushed
downward" by our local folks who will report very low numbers for the
cost of accommodations. (Those who took advantage of Beverly's rate at
the Flamingo paid less than this, even when the resort fee was factored
in.)

The numbers also show that our people spent about $315 PER DAY on
average to participate. This includes such things as air and local
transportation. As I think back, the $315 per day is realistic and is
out of the price range of many who would otherwise like to attend.

As the "total cost of ownership" of DLV participation approaches two
kilobucks, it's easy to see that we are excluding many who want to
participate but simply can't afford it.

If we look at the dining venues this year, there's somewhat of a skew
toward the higher end. Even LWG was about $20 most days this year.

Our check-splitting issue is another manifestation of the financial
crunch. I'm sure all of those complaining are those who felt they got
the short end of the stick!

Now, shifting gears somewhat. Back decades ago I once found myself to be
the second-youngest at a once-fledgling TG event. I had expected to be
the youngest, as all of those I knew in advance were 40-ish.

I do not remember feeling out of place at all because of my age.

Thinking back, the "why aren't there any more younger people here?"
question came up and the obvious answers were disposable income and
time off, or rather the lack of both of them.

This question has been raised regarding just about every other TG event
I've ever been associated with. One of the formerly-biggies used to make
"scholarships" available, targeted specifically at younger individuals
of limited means.

In conclusion {applause, cheer, whistle} :) I'm starting to think that
we really don't have an issue making our event appealing to those under
(some arbitrary age), it's more like the cost of our event is what is
keeping them away.

Comments?
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JoAnn continues:

Maybe the Roundtable should have a "feedback" analytics survey with
several measurements with regard to age, lodging cost propensity, trip
preferred # of days attendance, an threshold range for total vacation
budget [we can go back and make the needed interpolations / regression
analysis and providing tends.
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Dancing at Mandalay:

Dionne writes:

Please pencil me in for Hostess at Mandalay for at least one night in
DLV 2016. Which night will be determined by what band is playing and my
other commitments for that tbd week.

I didn't offer to Hostess for Paris in 2015 since I was committed to
activities from Sunday thru Thursday afternoons. As that week flew past,
I realized it was more effort than planned. Looking at the photos posted
up, I may have missed out on other fun activities. Balance is the key
and I need to learn from this year's experience.
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JoAnn responds:

Dionne-

One night would be fabulous at Mandalay.

So we need another person to do another night... Please offer when we
start formulating the schedule in 2016.

Thanks Dionne for the suggestion.
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Dance event:

Dionne writes:

> I also think some kind of a daytime organized dance instruction
> and practice thing would go over well.

I have already spent considerable time previewing venues, as I visit
Vegas ~ 4x per year.

Some perspective on what theme or style this group might enjoy would be
helpful. For example, what about a 'Sock-Hop' '50s style event? I refer
to the MyDLV post on the Elvis museum, 'Any Elvis fans out there?'
{Graceland presents ELVIS: THE EXHIBITION} This post was informative and
also a test for the level of interest in this music.

With just 12 views and no replies I interpret this as a low interest
level. Maybe my test method isn't valid. Your suggestions are
welcome.
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JoAnn responds:

It may be too early in our planing process to test this activity. Please
bring it around in 2016.
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Annie responds:

As JoAnn says, please hold that thought. I can easily foresee dance
activities as being received very well.

As for Elvis ("Annie are ya goofin' on Elvis {hey baby!}") :) we did
our 2007 closing gathering at a long-closed Elvis-themed restaurant
on east Sahara. We tried to do a "50s retro" theme, and we did see a
few poodle skirts, but most didn't really get into it.

Here's a shot of the group:

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dlv2007/images/s1.dmr126-R1-048-22A.jpg

I think a "Sock Hop" theme activity could work, but I don't think it
hits our peak demographic (anymore). With an average age of 60, the
mid-teen years of our average DLVer would be early 1970s, long after
the Elvis craze and after both the surf craze and British invasion
peaked and waned.

Anyway, I think that both some kind of a daytime dance instruction
thing, as well as some kind of a dance-themed evening activity could be
very well received.

As an aside, the guy who ran the Elvis-themed place was quite the
character. He was eventually literally chased out of town by some very
angry "tenants" of his. I've been told he eventually surfaced in the
suburban San Diego area. Google if you're curious. :)
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Cinnamen:

Dionne writes:

> Yes, a good old @$$-chewing is in order, but an admonition

First and foremost, I think Katie and all the ORGS @ BB did an excellent
job with the Opening dinner event!! Katie is permitted to enjoy the
event like everyone else and should not feel any regrets.

As Hostess of the Dr. V. chat @ EHM, I was distracted and it ran
overtime. The Survey scores show that this event and the BB were
successful.

As for Cinnamen, I was not aware that she was tasked with serving
drinks. While she didn't perform that task, as per my observations, she
was well received, as friendly and welcoming. I suggest we give her the
benefit of the doubt that this was a mis-understanding. DLV is in need
of my volunteers so let her contribute in some way that works for
everyone. Matching up the skills with the tasks is a shared
responsibility.
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JoAnn responds:

Oh..., yes... an excellent point..... Match interests and abilities to
activities. This is a challenge. I encourage people to try an idea, and
the same time we need to give them "back-up support" for their
sucess!!!
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Asian buffet:

Inspector Dionne writes:

> Do they now have a full liquor license?

I will add this to my research investigations.
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Thanks, Dionne.

Please let us know what you find, Inspector.
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Transportation and Twitter:

Dionne writes:

> We decided, in 2009, to get out of the local transportation business.

Just to be clear, my suggestion was only for the Twitter feed. The ride
share & etc. were Survey comments.
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Annie responds:

You're probably expecting a response such as this, so here goes. :) :)

I really thing it's best to use the tools that we manage and control,
and which couple tightly into the DLV attendee systems, than it is to
rely on external commercial services.

We'll be doing a test case of the intended group text thing this fall
at Pinkfest, and unless something unforeseen arises, the DLV 2016
people will be able to subscribe to this as part of registration and
sign-up.

I'm even wondering about taking out a "short code" for this, but those
usually take real money and involve some formality.
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Administrivia:

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Received on Wed May 13 2015 - 06:40:14 CDT