In this mailing:
Org List
Moving forward
Schedule review
Ending major gathering
Beverly Sez
Art Tour
Personal Improvement sessions
EHM coordination
Mini Golf
New dining venue
Carnaval Confusion
Hotel un-recommendation
Working schedule
Administrivia
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Org List:
This is the DLV 2016 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.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving forward:
First a note to our new volunteers:
Now is the time to speak up and step forward to volunteer for the items
that you're interested in helping out with. The sooner you speak up, the
more options you have.
If you want to help but don't know what to propose or what to do, just
let us know and let us know what ideas, if any, you have. We'll help you
get the ball rolling.
It appears that we will have enough "voluntary volunteers" to handle all
of the items that involve "heavy lifting", so the majority of the items
we'll need are relatively easy.
. . . . .
One of our first priorities is to settle on a day, venue, and format
of our closing evening. See discussion below.
. . . . .
Again, thanks to those who have taken the initiative to get started on
the planning of the activities!
. . . . .
We broke the magic number of 100 attendees Sunday evening. For those of
you who watch headcounts, we broke 100 on January 21 last year, so we're
ahead of where we were last year, headcount-wise that is. :)
As of Wednesday morning we're standing at a headcount of 103. This
includes 18 SOs. New registrations are now coming in at the rate of
about one every 1 1/2 days or so. Still far too early to get any kind of
an approximate final headcount.
. . . . .
This mailing should contain (at least a reference to) everything that
has been received by Monday evening. If you sent in anything and don't
see it here, scream loudly! :)
We're asking all to please review the working schedule and scream if
anything is missing or in the wrong timeslot.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Schedule review:
First schedule review of the year.
For those who are new, we will be doing these reviews occasionally to
give all volunteers a good idea of where things stand and where our weak
spots are. The weaker spots, timeslot wise, are where we devote a
significant percentage of our attention.
We have not had the Monday-Saturday timeframe since 2009. Therefore,
this year's event will be formatted a bit differently than those of
recent years.
+Monday, March 28:
+ 8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino)
+ 12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
+ 5:00pm: New Attendee Welcome and Orientation (Bahama Breeze)
+ 6:00pm: Happy Hour (Bahama Breeze) - ms
+ 7:00pm: Dinner (Bahama Breeze) - ms
+ 8:30pm: Welcome Celebration (Bahama Breeze) - ms
+ 9:00pm: Official Group Photo (Bahama Breeze) - ms
+ 10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (Paris) - ms
Monday, daytime, will be slow whether we want it to be or not. It will
be an arrival day for quite a few of our people and it looks like we can
expect a number of our people to be "fashionably late" that evening.
Something lower-key or very special-interest could probably work in the
morning or afternoon timeslots om Monday, but this is far from our
greater needs.
. . . . . . . . . .
+Tuesday, March 29:
+ 8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
+ 9:00am: Diva Las Vegas Invitational Golf (Wildhorse Golf Club) - ms
+ 12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
+ 6:00pm: Happy Hour options (various) - nd
+ 6:00pm: Cami's choice (tbd)
+ 6:00pm: Delaney's choice (tbd)
+ 6:00pm: Beverly's choice (tbd)
+ 7:00pm: Eating Out Night (various)
+ 7:00pm: Cami's choice (tbd)
+ 7:00pm: Beverly's choice (tbd)
+ 7:00pm: Delaney's choice (tbd)
+ 8:30pm: Evening activity options (various)
+ 10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Tuesday would be a good day for some of those "personal improvement"
activities, morning and/or afternoon. See below. The only major issue is
that those who do golf will not be able to participate, at least in the
morning.
A social at Carnaval Court could work for Tuesday afternoon. Ditto for a
pool party (brrrrrr!) if that can be arranged.
We'll need at least one lower-cost dining activity Tuesday evening, as
all of those which are tentatively slotted here will be higher-end.
The evening is totally open for after-dinner activities. Shows, various
touristy items, etc., would be a good fit.
. . . . . . . . . .
+Wednesday, March 30:
+ 8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
+ 12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
+ 2:00pm: Art Tour (Bellagio) - ms
+ 10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Wednesday is mostly wide open.
Wednesday morning would be perfect for a side trip, such as the Shiloh
Horse Rescue tour.
Again, social at Carnaval Court or a pool party could work in the later
afternoon.
We'll be needing mid-size dining activites for Wednesday.
The evening would be a great timeslot for an "anchor" activity such as
EHM or the Limo Tour. A show could be a very good second-track option.
. . . . . . . . . .
+Thursday, March 31:
+ 8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
+ 9:00am: Pistol and rifle shooting (tba) - ms
+ 12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
+ 10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
+ 11:00pm: Flamboyance Drag Show (Flex) - sv
Thursday daytime could be side trips, touristy things, recreational
things, etc. This would be a great day for the mini-golf paired with
lunch.
Now for Thursday evening. We still have the option of using Thursday
for our second major gathering. See discussion below.
Assuming we have the ending celebration on Friday, Thursday evening
could be EHM or Limo Tour, whichever does not get slotted on Wednesday.
. . . . . . . . . .
+Friday, April 1:
+ 8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
+ 12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
+ 10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Friday has often seen a Fantastic Indoor Swapmeet trip during the day
and it would certainly work out fine. We do have a Saturday on the
schedule this year, and FISM would work there too.
Friday evening seems to be the first choice for holding our final large
gathering, but there may be some issues with facilities. If that does
not work out, the Limo Tour or even the EHM could be a good fit.
. . . . . . . . . .
+Saturday, April 2:
+ 8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
+ 12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
+ 10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Saturday is about as blank as blank can be.
There was some recent off-line discussion about doing a wind-down day
centered around downtown on Saturday. This could include such things as
shopping at the North Outlet Center, Mob Museum, Container Park, during
the day and multi-track dining, FSE-ing, and meeting at a common
location later in the evening.
. . . . . . . . . .
That's where things currently stand, gang. It's not a bad start at all,
but there are plenty of holes needing plenty of activities coordinated
by plenty of volunteers to fill it out. :)
Feedback? Comments? (Errors?) :)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ending major gathering:
Annie writes:
Setting plans for our final gathering needs to be our first-priority
front-burner item at this time.
Friday, of course, would be most appropriate for an ending, assuming
that Saturday will be out strictly due to the fall-off in level of
participation.
On Thursday, however, we would most likely have an easier time finding a
venue and a somewhat larger potential crowd.
We do need to make this decision shortly.
To help us with the decision, we can look at how many of our people will
be departing on which days. Of those registered so far, about 10% have
indicated that they will depart on or before Friday, April 1. We can
assume that level of fall-out for Friday, compared to Thursday.
Almost 40% of our people have indicated Saturday as a departure date, so
it's fairly evident that we can rule out Saturday for any kind of a
major gathering.
With close to 90% of our attendees present on Friday, and almost 100%
present on Thursday, those are our best days for a closing maximum
attendance gathering.
The specific ideas discussed so far are:
1. A single-venue HH/Dinner/Celebration on either Thursday or Friday.
Margaritaville, Yardhouse, and Carlos & Charlies have been suggested as
possible venues for this. All of these are in the vicinity of the
Flamingo/Linq.
2. A "forked" multi-track HH/Dinner followed by a common gathering at
a single venue, either Tnursday or Friday. Both the Flamingo/Linq area
and downtown have been mentioned as potential settings for something
like this.
Comments?
. . . . . . . . . .
Cami writes:
(Late update: Cami is reporting three other promising leads on venues.
Hard Rock, Buca di Beppo, and a new venue downtown are being looked
into.)
This is what I got back from the Yard House today.
They can't do Friday nights so our only option with them would be
Thursday. It is an option to consider. Maybe instead of us having a
farewell dinner we spin this into something else.
+Thank you for the call and for considering Yard House Linq.
+Our upstairs space is currently available on Thursday, March 31st.
+Our upstairs space seats over 150pp does require a $35 per person
+minimum food and beverages spend to reserve for groups over 30. We
+would staff specifically for your group and base the $35 per person
+on your estimated guest count. Our beverages are always billed based
+on consumption and we have lots of options to help keep you within a
+budget. We sincerely hope for the opportunity to host your group!
+Please let me know if I can put a date and time on hold for your
+group and I would be happy to do so.
+Attached are our Group Dining Menus with various price points to
+accommodate any budget. There are also options to add on additional
+courses, should you wish to do so. I have also attached our
+appetizer menu for review as well as our beverage options.
+If any of these menu items catch your eye and you would like to move
+forward with booking, please let me know and I will be happy to send
+over an event agreement with recommended quantities. Please also
+share with me the plan for alcohol service (i.e.; hosted bar, cash
+bar, drink tickets, etc so that I can make note on the agreement.
+We do not require a deposit, a signed event agreement and credit
+card to be kept on file will secure the date and time. We kindly
+ask to have all paperwork submitted 10 days prior to your event
+date.
If anyone wishes to see the menus, please write in.
. . . . . . . . . .
Katie writes:
Cami. This is only if the Margaritaville does not work out and there is
still a wish by the gang to hold the Final Night bash close to where a lot
of our ladies will be staying.
Carlos n' Charlies is quite large and is right off the Casino floor with
a decent sized patio overlooking the Flam Gardens for those who would
like to sit outside later on after Dinner.. The staff sing and dance
around the tables and the atmosphere is quite nice.
The menu is Mexican with variations and deals towards snacks or meals,
whichever is needed and it might suit our purpose well if all other
options are nixed I think.
This is not a suggestion to steer away from Margaritaville. Only an
alternative if MGV does not want to a side shift a bit and accommodate
us as a group.
The final day and evening for me is usually a bit of an ad lib thing and
I don't always want to dine heavily as in a full Meal because I may have
decided to grab a monster piece of cheesecake or something of that
nature around lunchtime. so the Friday night would be more like eat at
will sort of thing if I am still hungry after a day of gallivanting
around town often dining much too well around lunchtime to appreciate a
nice meal in the evening. (I am sure some can relate to this) lol.
Vegas and being at DLV for a week can inspire those who are new or
even those who are not to explore towards the end of the week when
they realize how vast the dining and vacationing possibilities are in
town so a place with snacks and drinks is all they need.
(Just my thoughts on the DLV experience) and not to be considered an
opportunity to overeat! Wink. Take a look at the web page
for happy hours and meal prices ans styles.
https://www.caesars.com/flamingo-las-vegas/restaurants/carlos-n-charlies-las-vegas
. . . . . . . . . .
Annie responds:
Thanks, ladies.
To all, what we need most are comments and guidance! We promise that you
will not get coerced into any "heavy lifting" by simply commenting or
suggesting.
IMAO, Yardhouse seems promising. However, it's only available Thursday.
They do have a minimum, but knowing our crowd's dining and drinking
habits, it's an easy nut to crack.
Margaritaville would be great, if the are willing to think outside the
box and work with us to accommodate the non-diners as well. Ditto with
Carlos and Charlies.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Beverly Sez:
Yes, there will be a Kickoff Katie's Koffee Korner (that's 4 k's) on
Monday morning at Club Cappuccino's main location (the one with seating)
at 8:00am Monday morning. It will last about an hour and we will talk
about anyone who's not there.
I am also interested in the mini-golf and lunch activity if is not on
Tuesday. I love the Rio buffet so I think this is a great idea and
location. Holding it on a different day then the golf outing might bring
some of the golfers to the event. Something to think about anyway. I
would not be interested in doing this as an evening activity as I prefer
to get dressed up in the evening and dine out at a nice sit-down/be
served establishment. Mini golf is definitely a daytime activity in my
book.
I will be arriving on Sunday afternoon and am interested in a dining out
option for those interested in getting together before the actual
kickoff. I am not sure where this will take place yet but a few years
ago we had a gathering at The Grotto in The Four Queens downtown. It was
a great meal, moderately priced with great service. Being downtown was
fun also. If I do this it will be a dinner only without the cocktail
hour. 6 o'clock would be pushing me too much to get checked in to the
Flamingo and dressed to go out. So I would plan on meeting at 7:00
downtown (maybe 6:30 at Flamingo for those wishing to carpool from the
Flamingo). If others want to meet early for drinks the Grotto has a very
nice bar. Let's hear your thoughts on this please.
I am not leaving for home until Sunday so that leaves me free on
Saturday with a rental car. I will most likely be taking a day trip some
place. At this time I am thinking about going to Death Valley. I could
take 3 people with me or we could caravan with other vehicles if others
are interested in coming along. My understanding is that it is about a 2
to 2 1/2 hour drive there. A lunch would be part of the outing with
details to be determined. Let's hear your thoughts on this also please.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Art Tour:
Sarah (with the "h") writes:
I'd like to slot the Art Tour at the Belligio in on Wednesday afternoon.
They have a Picasso exhibition up now but it will be ending in mid
February. So far they aren't offering anything about the exhibit to
follow, but the shows are always top notch and I'm confident we will
find something worth our time.
I'll provide an update when I get the information.
. . . . . . . . . .
Thanks, Sarah. You're all set. Please keep us informed as to the exhibit
when it is announced.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Personal Improvement sessions:
Dionne writes:
> For any "Personal Improvement" type of session, such as a Wig
> Seminar and the planned "Doing Brows" demo and such, I would
> strongly suggest doing them as early in the week as possible,
Maybe we can combine the wig, brows and shape sessions into one personal
improvement afternoon? Having it all-in-one place is more convenient for
newcomers regarding transportation and scheduling.
. . . . . . . . . .
Annie responds:
Yes, a one-stop shop would be nice to have for all three of these
sessions, but it would take some cooperation among a few people and
firms to make it happen.
Of the three sessions, Creative Wigs and 2bshapely are quite "portable"
with regard to where the sessions occur. Bare Escentuals/Bare Minerals,
however, might not be so portable. Therefore, they are the ones the
whole series depends upon. I figure they will probably want to do their
thing in their shop due to convenience and exposure.
A few Big Burning Questions here:
1. Would the BE/BM shop have space, and would they be willing to let
both Creative Wigs and 2bshapely set up and do their respective things
at their shop?
2. Would Cindy and the BE/BM staff be willing to go off site to such a
place as Spotlight or Blue Ox to do a "Doing Brows" type of session? I
can envision both Spotlight and Blue Ox letting us use facilities in
exchange for the business, with the former being more conducive to a
higher turnout simply due to the proximity.
If BE/BM does not want to participate in a combined session, maybe a
combined Creative Wigs and 2bshapely session can be arranged.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
EHM coordination:
Dionne writes:
> If you need any help with communication, from exchange of email
> addresses, an ad-hoc mailing list, a conference bridge for a
May I suggest we start an ad hoc list to serve this EHM event due to the
timeframe we need to get this one done.
. . . . . . . . . .
Annie responds:
Yes, we'll get the dlvadhoc_at_divalas.vegas list going. We'll start it out
with those I'm aware of who have had some involvement with EHM already.
If anyone else wants to be included in the planning of the EHM activity
or activities, please write in (just reply to this note) and we'll put
you on the list.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mini Golf:
Dionne writes:
> Since this is (will be) in the Rio, it would pair nicely with
> Lunch With at the Rio Buffet.
Thinking about a buffet and mini-golf pairing, this could add additional
benefit of encouraging DLV'rs to mingle around. The golf course holds ~
40 (to 54) players ((18 holes x 2 (or 3) per hole)).
The RIO has meal vouchers available at a pre-sale discounted price. The
Buffet can hold our entire group and we can walk around to visit other
tables, as well.
We can queue groups to play golf that can return afterwards to the
Buffet.
We mix, mingle and make new friends with this arrangement versus a
sit-down dinner. I suggest we consider this as a potential anchor event.
. . . . . . . . . .
Annie responds:
Let's, all of us, think outside the box (to use the buzzword-compliant
term) regarding this.
I always assumed this would be a daytime activity, perhaps paired with
our Lunch With, but you say "dinner" and "anchor", which implies an
evening affair.
Let's get some comments from the gang on this. (Yes, YOU, you who is
reading this now, please comment! Just hit REPLY.) :)
Would you, personally, enjoy attending something like this? Mini golf
and a buffet dinner, not necessarily in that order, in the evening, with
socializing at the Rio. There are other dining options as well. They
have recently combined the main (Carnival World) buffet with their
Seafood Buffet, with the seafood-intense items available at extra cost
with a wrist band or hand stamp or something like that.
Comments, please.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
New dining venue:
Delaney writes:
I expect to book Nove Italiano for dining out this year. The attendance
at Pample has been flat, so perhaps a new venue, and Nove will likely
work out a bit less expensive in most cases.
I assume Tuesday will be dining out night, I'll make arrangements after
we lock in the schedule.
. . . . . . . . . . .
Thanks, Delaney. Yes, things are moving in the direction of Tuesday for
our traditional Eating Out Night so this would be a good fit.
We do want to steer the price points downward if at all possible and
Nove would be a good step in that direction.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Carnaval Confusion:
There seems to be a bit of confusion of the name of what's known as
Carnaval Court and the location of such.
Carnaval Court (Spanish/Portugese spelling) is the area located between
the Linq (old IP/Quad) and Harrah's on the Las Vegas Strip.
This is the place where our people have visited off and on over the
years with the covered bar/dance area. They have live or deejay type
entertainment nicely. Sometimes there's a cover.
Carnival World (English spelling) is the area of the Rio in the upper
area of the casino and including the buffet and attractions area.
These were verified with current Harrah's and Rio property maps sent to
me a few weeks ago in regards to another event I'm involved with.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hotel un-recommendation:
Dionne writes:
For my Vegas trip from Dec.10-18, I stayed at the Super8, Ellis Island
hotel.
This hotel needs renovation and my room had many issues. The main issues
were; inoperative TV, ever-running toilet and broken furniture.
I reported the IN-OP TV upon arrival but no repairs were made for the
entire week I stayed there.
I checked out other rooms but all seemed to be in poor condition.
I suggest we flag this hotel as not recommended due poor maintenance.
Security was not an issue. I will not stay here, again.
. . . . . . . . . .
Annie responds:
Thanks for the report.
I have personally stayed in this hotel, but not in the past few years.
I might suggest that you post this in the Discussion Forum, as that's
where the majority of the hotel discussion is happening and that's
where it will get the most exposure.
I'll be chatting informally with a TA who knows Las Vegas hotels quite
well next week and I'll ask her if she knows what's going on, as she has
booked this property for me in the past.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working schedule:
Diva Las Vegas 2016 schedule
Tentative and subject to change
All times Pacific Daylight Time
PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS AS THE FINAL
AND ACCURATE DIVA LAS VEGAS SCHEDULE.
Monday, March 28:
8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
5:00pm: New Attendee Welcome and Orientation (Bahama Breeze) - ms
6:00pm: Happy Hour (Bahama Breeze) - ms
7:00pm: Dinner (Bahama Breeze) - ms
8:30pm: Welcome Celebration (Bahama Breeze) - ms
9:00pm: Official Group Photo (Bahama Breeze) - ms
10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (Paris) - ms
Tuesday, March 29:
8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
9:00am: Diva Las Vegas Invitational Golf (Wildhorse Golf Club) - ms
12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
6:00pm: Happy Hour options (various) - nd
6:00pm: Cami's choice (tbd)
6:00pm: Delaney's choice (tbd)
6:00pm: Beverly's choice (tbd)
7:00pm: Eating Out Night (various)
7:00pm: Cami's choice (tbd)
7:00pm: Beverly's choice (tbd)
7:00pm: Delaney's choice (tbd)
8:30pm: Evening activity options (various)
10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Wednesday, March 30:
8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
2:00pm: Art Tour (Bellagio) - ms
10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Thursday, March 31:
8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
9:00am: Pistol and rifle shooting (tba) - ms
12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
11:00pm: Flamboyance Drag Show (Flex) - sv
Friday, April 1:
8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
Saturday, April 2:
8:00am: Katie's Koffee Korner (Flamingo - Club Cappucino) - ms
12:00n: Lunch With Ginger (tba) - ms
10:00pm: Late Night Dancing (tba) - ms
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Administrivia:
This is the Diva Las Vegas 2016 organizational list.
One address for all items regarding this list, additions, removals,
changes, submissions, questions, etc.:
dlvorg_at_divalas.vegas <--- NOTE: New address, all lower case
Diva Las Vegas 2016
Mon, March 28 - Sat, April 2
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Archives of this list appear on the web at:
http://www.geekbabe.com/annie/org16arc/
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_at_divalas.vegas
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Received on Wed Jan 13 2016 - 05:22:01 CST
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.2.0 : Wed May 11 2016 - 05:54:23 CDT