Why does anyone live in OK anymore?

If I can make it ... gotta look at flights and all that fun stuff.

I could never forget you Sternie! You're one of the few who can out-snark me!

So discuss. I think the locations get picked from enthusiasm of the herd. If a compelling case were made for OK, we might schedule something there. Or not. I think LA took hold because of Stern's margaritas.

Moi???

I thought I did!

Many of our lawyers live in the southern areas or east coast. Those of us in the PNW, and there are a number of us, have lower paying jobs than those in the south and east coast (I am in NO way saying that is the case for everyone who lives outside of the PNW).

I had been discussing, with a few members (off the main board), the idea of a PNW gathering here for Sept. Had I known the May gathering was going to be moved, I would have moved that discussion to the main board. It felt wise to wait until after the May meet-up to suggest another.

I get that some spots are easier than others. I just think that 2 gatherings in the same part of the country doesn't make as much sense as moving the gatherings around more would.

I get what you are saying and don't disagree.

There was also one in D.C. Just sayin'.

I didn't mean to leave that out. That is kind of my point. We have had gatherings in the southwest, northeast and will have one in the southeast. Why not the northwest and hopefully somewhere in closer to the midwest? It would be nice to get as many folks meeting each other as possible.

Or we could stick with cross-triangulation!

NorthWest would be a good choice for the next, post L.A. meetup. We should all get rooms at the Travel Lodge on Mercer Island, by the Shell station just above downtown! We could visit MI High where Stanley Ann attended high school and visit the apartment building where the Dunhams lived at that time, should it still stand. (I think it was near Luther Burbank Park)

Then it's just a quick hop over the floating bridge for the attractions & nightlife of Seattle.

I think that if we wait for post-LA, it will be next summer before the PNW makes sense unless we have a gathering in Sept or Oct. Who wants to come here in Nov or Feb?

Oooo, a Stanley Ann tour! Estiveo, now we are going to be accused of literally being Obama worshipers..... Going on pilgrimage and all of that!

Meh, I just wanted a reason to visit my childhood home again. I lived on Mercer Island from 1965-1971. After the Dunhams moved away, but still...

Well, as the one who brought it up, I think it also took hold because we have at least 5 Fogbowsers in the greater LA area and several more within not-too-difficult driving distance. So why don't you think of it as "the SoCal Fogbowsers are going to get together for a party, and all the rest of y'all who can come are invited" rather than a competition for who gets to pick the location?

Plus Sterny and Kate and I can share some of the set-up and planning so that we have a good plan and some reasonable souvenirs, we have Stern's FEMA Camp 17 to use as HQ, and Wavey-Davey has an idea on the musical program. And I make ice cream and sorbet, which I could bring to Malibu, well packed in a cooler, but not to Seattle.

This isn't mutually exclusive with having meetups elsewhere.

I really feel bad about seizing the initiative and jamming LA down everyone's throat.

Bottom line for me? I can make LA; anywhere further is out for now.

I thought I could make Phoenix, but had to bow out, which was extremely lucky as my mom took ill and ended up in the hospital that weekend. I knew I couldn't make DC, and NOLA missed all of us due to circumstances beyond any of our control. Next offered meetup is LA, which is where I intend to go.

The Northwest would be great for the next meetup, and if I can get care-giver coverage to go to it, I will. Same for a NOLA redux. We could also do OK for Milspec sometime. We could get a bus and visit Leonard "fist m cuffs" McCauly! (Sorry, Milspec, only OK attraction I could think of )

But since this is all about me, I'll be seeing those attending, at FEMA Camp 17, in August.

Next order of bidniz?

I personally didn't mean to set up a "competition". Truly. I was asked to expand on my .02 and did. The PNW is seasonally contingent; LA isn't. No harm in presenting options for discussion. I thought...

Perhaps, in the future, we could discuss possible meet up options and then decide? I kinda thought that was how we have tried to handle this for previous meetups, but perhaps I was out of the loop.

Sternie, you are such a bully!

Estiveo, you are a good son! Will you take care of me when I am old an grey?

No way are you older than me. And even if you are, I must LOOK older than you. And baby, I look much younger than I am.

.

I guess I will have to hire the young person who nurses Sternie!

Sooooo.....how many can we get interested in a Portland/Seattle gig? As I said, I like Vancouver WA, but I can do anywhere from Salem and up to Everett...

How many are interested in a Northwest Jam? The raspberrys should have an exceptional year...

NOLA wasn't canceled, NOLA wasn't "missed". NOLA is to be re-scheduled for after the weather cools down. My $0.02 is NOLA should have been re-scheduled before a new event was proposed that now competes for folks' travel $'s and availability. Sure now you want to call Malibu a spontaneous regional event. but that's not how it started. It started as " well NOLA didn't work out so what's next?" and I don't think it was fair.

We will get a PNW group organized soon, SuEdB! I am so looking forward to meeting my fellow webfooted TFB friends!

I am swamped with work right now, but I hope to start talking with folks soonish to see if we can plan something for the summer (certainly not at the time of the LA gathering).

Kewl - Well to get it started, I nominate Vancouver USA/Portland Area. It is 3 hours from Seattle, but we do have a couple of obots on the I-5 Corridor. Seattle is OK too as we have a real strong member in northern Seattle. Portland has an easier airport to navigate.

Portland

We had a meet up of folks from Atrios/Eschaton there in Sept 08, about 25 or 30 folks from as far away as Vermont and Florida. I'm sure we could get a bunch of Atriots there, our two groups would mesh very well.

I took antler hats for everyone.

Might Mr. Great Grey be available in Sept 2011 to bring antler hats to the gathering?

Portland is a good idea. It is 3 hours south of Seattle and 2 hours north of Eugene, so everyone on the I-5 would have a reasonable drive.

Let me get through Fri and I will get a thread started and a poll for dates. Or someone else may have the great honor of doing so. I am thinking Sept so that we don't in any way conflict with the Aug gathering.



Is anyone in contact with Smithereens? I know he has mentioned interest in attending a gathering in the past, but I haven't seen him around in a while.

Is I the only TFB lady folk in the PNW? What to do .... what to do. I might get myself in heaps of trouble!

I don't know, but we could always do like the GOP does and have it at a strip club on the waterfront???

Can I then suggest you start a thread for your discussion of your PNW meetup, since this one is about the LA meetup in August?