amonhen
10/05/2001, 08:55 AM
Well, since it seems we are having an organizational (maybe "re-organizational" is better) meeting, let's get the ball rolling. IMHO, the key to any successful meeting is that people have come prepared, and that means that everyone knows what the meeting will be about and has thought a bit about the issues. Especially since there are some who aren't able to make the meetings, I think that some discussion and information dissemination before hand would be really useful.
I think that the most important thing we need to decide is what the goals of the club will be. Not that we can't change them, but everything else (structure, funding, advertising, etc.) will revolve around the goals. So, think about what kind of club you would like to be in. Think big, think long term. For instance, I would love to belong to a club that had its own facility, had ongoing research projects, a seminar series featuring local and outside experts, DIY workshops, and an active breeding program. (Note--these are just off the top of my head. We can certainly discuss them, but I am **NOT** making a serious proposal here; please don't freak out.)
Now, obviously, such things as this are many years off for us, but there are other types of clubs that have their own facilities and do group projects; we could get there if we all wanted to. But how do we get from here to there? What can we do in the short term with the facilities and funds we have right now? Right now, the club has no money, our own tanks, our own expertise and the libraries to meet in). It's not as bleak as it may seem--we just need to be creative. For instance, it was suggested that we may be able to get a sales rep or two to come and give a talk for free. All we need to make that a success is fill the room. Vince said he gave a talk in a club in NJ for free (they bought him dinner and beers). Larry asked if anyone at the meeting had made their own lighting hood. I'd be willing to bring mine in and talk about it's design and construction. If several people did this, we could do some comparisons ("well, mine is so obviously better than yours because..."); I think that would be interesting and very beneficial. There has been this idea of a live sand project--buying a few detritovore kits, dumping it all in a tank with some southdown, feeding it for a few weeks to let all the populations breed, and dividing it. Sounds like a great idea to me--does anyone have a tank lying dormant to do it in?
The point here is that we can do this stuff if we want to. We can start small and do some really cool stuff, even in the beginning. Membership will increase if there is something to be a member of (If we build it, they will come.....). But first, we have to decide our direction. Think about it, post a few crazy ideas, think about what others post, then let's talk about where we want to go as a group.
As always, this is just me; I'm not the president here, I just have a big mouth. Think another tack is better--go for it! Tell us about it! We want your input.
Jeff
I think that the most important thing we need to decide is what the goals of the club will be. Not that we can't change them, but everything else (structure, funding, advertising, etc.) will revolve around the goals. So, think about what kind of club you would like to be in. Think big, think long term. For instance, I would love to belong to a club that had its own facility, had ongoing research projects, a seminar series featuring local and outside experts, DIY workshops, and an active breeding program. (Note--these are just off the top of my head. We can certainly discuss them, but I am **NOT** making a serious proposal here; please don't freak out.)
Now, obviously, such things as this are many years off for us, but there are other types of clubs that have their own facilities and do group projects; we could get there if we all wanted to. But how do we get from here to there? What can we do in the short term with the facilities and funds we have right now? Right now, the club has no money, our own tanks, our own expertise and the libraries to meet in). It's not as bleak as it may seem--we just need to be creative. For instance, it was suggested that we may be able to get a sales rep or two to come and give a talk for free. All we need to make that a success is fill the room. Vince said he gave a talk in a club in NJ for free (they bought him dinner and beers). Larry asked if anyone at the meeting had made their own lighting hood. I'd be willing to bring mine in and talk about it's design and construction. If several people did this, we could do some comparisons ("well, mine is so obviously better than yours because..."); I think that would be interesting and very beneficial. There has been this idea of a live sand project--buying a few detritovore kits, dumping it all in a tank with some southdown, feeding it for a few weeks to let all the populations breed, and dividing it. Sounds like a great idea to me--does anyone have a tank lying dormant to do it in?
The point here is that we can do this stuff if we want to. We can start small and do some really cool stuff, even in the beginning. Membership will increase if there is something to be a member of (If we build it, they will come.....). But first, we have to decide our direction. Think about it, post a few crazy ideas, think about what others post, then let's talk about where we want to go as a group.
As always, this is just me; I'm not the president here, I just have a big mouth. Think another tack is better--go for it! Tell us about it! We want your input.
Jeff