Thursday, March 23, 2006

Hear ye, Hear ye: First Annual K'zoo Medievalist Bloggers' Guild Meeting

If you get a sense of deja-vu all over again when you read the following, it's because much of the following is posted over at Ancrene Wiseass.

Ancrene Wiseass and I are beginning to plan the First Annual Kalamazoo Bloggers' Guild Meeting (AW's name -- I promise not to make you pay half of your money to fund a Corpus Christi play). But we're running into some logistic difficulties and would like your input on several matters. To wit:

1. If you're thinking of coming, please let us know in the comments thread below. If you're thinking of bringing a friend, colleague, significant other, familiar, or minion, please let us know that as well. We'd like to get a sense of how large the gathering will be.

2. We've been told that it would be best to meet early in the conference so's we can keep meeting and greeting over the weekend. This means we should probably aim to converge on either Thursday or Friday evening. Which night would you prefer, and what time frame would be best?

3. The location of our guild-hall has yet to be determined, and we'd very much appreciate your suggestions. The shelter in the park near the pond is one possibility, but we'd have to cross our fingers and hope for good weather. Any other nominations?

Also, New Kid suggested in the comments at AW's place that we e-mail photos to each other beforehand once we know who all is coming. Duh! Why didn't I think of that? She also suggested meeting in either Bernhard (the conference center/computer center/food court place -- did I get the name right?) or the Valley lobby that's farthest away from registration, the book exhibit, and the cafeteria -- which would be the lobby in the back of the one farthest up the hill. (Wiseass, btw, hasn't yet been to K'zoo, but I have; so I'm more likely to know what you're talking about if you say "the business building where the movies are" or "that dive bar near campus with the leather and wood decor" or something like that.) What say ye?

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gazebo is covered, has a fireplace for those who like to play with matches, and is a close stagger back ot the dorms. I've been out where with groups (back in the day) in all weather in all seasons..it's not bad 'cept in the dead of winter.

And we can all have super seeekret identities (except me, of course) - we'll all have name tags with a picture of a penny farthing and a number - who is with me! ;)

Another Damned Medievalist said...

I have dinner plans for both Thursday and Friday, but would be up for the circulation of photos to people willing to keep our super-sekrit identities quiet.

Karl Steel said...

Gazebo does sound good, and it eliminates the whole cab/car/walk thing.

It is possible to get food out there? Is it necessary, uh, to reserve the gazebo?

I like the penny farthing idea. Given that my Christian name online is also my real name, changing my name tag to signal who I am shouldn't be too much trouble...

Anonymous said...

The gazebo can be reserved, student groups have to do it, I'm sure I can swing it somehow...the only thing is keeping alcohol to the far-less-than-obvious variety and my playing really dumb when asked. But pizza (or whatever) could be ordered and delivered to the dorm lobby and carted down, yes, or a pick-up squad could be formed.

It's not graceful, but so much of Congress isn't. heh.

If there seems to be a lot of difficulty with finding a night everyone interested is free, we could have a smaller gathering in my in-dorm crash-space on Wed. night for those with real social lives in addition to the larger group...it's a greater entity than a dorm room, but far from opulent. (it's the "apartment" where the dorm director would live if these dorms were still in constant use)

Dr. Virago said...

The more I think about it, the more complicated the gazebo sounds. I liked your idea, Elisabeth, of reserving one of the private rooms at Gallagher's or the Roadhouse. (Mentioned at AW's blog, not here.) Both are walkable enough, aren't they? I seem to remember walking to the Roadhouse, anyway, in the days before I was driving distance away from K'zoo.

Anonymous said...

Roadhouse is walkable, Gallaghers is not - why don't I check on both locations on all possible nights to get an idea of what we're looking at in terms of availability?

Karl Steel said...

Roadhouse does sound good.

I suppose I speak as one of those with no Kzoo social life, since, uh, I didn't even know I was going until the program arrived in the mail. Damn.

My only limitation is my enthusiasm for the pseudo-Society session on Sat. night; otherwise, I'm there from Thurs-Sun afternoon.

Anonymous said...

I posted this at AW, but Roadhouse, as of the phone call, open Wed-Sat, Gallaghers inside open Wed, Fri-Sat, and the Biergarten/patio open Wed-Sat.

So there ya go.