Just in case people don’t look at the ‘Feedback - Announcements’ board, I thought I’d better post this here.
I mentioned briefly some time ago about Jeff and I going on a trip Downunder. Well our plans have been going ahead and we’re hoping to set off at the end of June. We’re just waiting to hear from the Australian Embassy about the 12-month Visas we’ve applied for - can’t see any reason why they would not be granted, but we don’t want to count our chickens. One of many things that will have to go is my job as Webadmin for the Guild’s site and thus this Forum. I shall still be logging in whenever possible, if only to make sure that you are being VERY nice to my successor!!! Glenys Chew has very kindly volunteered to take over from me and I think will do a good job as well as bring new ideas to both site and Forum. Good luck and thankyou so much, Glenys!!
Thanks everybody for being such good sorts over the years - we hope to be able to meet up with a few of our Australian members, and mebbe even the New Zealand lot if we can extend our trip to those beautiful islands.
Thank you folks for your kind words. Of course we’ll stay in touch, Jeff is still a member of the Guild, and is, as I write, down in Sussex to attend this year’s AGM. I shall still be looking in on you all to make sure that you’re not giving Glenys a hard time ;D
We received our Visas a couple of days ago, so there’s no stopping us now - as soon as we get the house sorted we’ll be on our way, although we’re still not sure where we’ll start out from - a lot depends on the availability of a suitable motorhome. We’re also hoping to meet up with a few Forum/Guild members.
Thank you for all the hard work you’ve done up to now. Between you and Mel the Forum is doing well, and although I do have some ideas about how it can play a greater part in the life of the IGKT, none of them would be possible without the foundation you built.
Enjoy the trip of a lifetime, and post us occasionally to say G’day!
Oh - I guess this applies to Webadmin as well as to Secretaries:
IT’S A HARD LIFE
If the Secretary writes tactfully, he’s verbose;
If he is brief, he’s tactless.
If he drafts a report, he’s wrong;
If he doesn’t, there’s nothing to work on.
If he speaks to the Committee, he’s butting in;
If he doesn’t, he’s useless.
If he sends a reminder, he’s a pest;
If he doesn’t he’s slack.
If he asks for action, he’s impertinent;
If he doesn’t get things done, he’s incompetent.
If the meeting’s a success, it’s the committee.
If it’s a failure, the Secretary’s to blame.
If he asks for instructions, he has no initiative;
If he doesn’t, he’s swollen-headed. [or dictatorial ]
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust - if others won’t do it,
The Secretary Must!
Haven’t been round here much for a year or so but maybe I’ll see you in Tasmania for the AWBF next Feb - yes? no?
Frank Brown and I are in email discussion now about Hobart plans and David Glasson will also be there splitting his time between model boats and knotting.
Will you be in Sydney at any stage?
(TIA to Glenys for all the wonderful work she is about to do!)
Oh, starting to show your hand already, so this is the way it’s going to be is it??
If the Secretary writes tactfully, she’s verbose;
If he is brief, he’s tactless.
If she drafts a report, she’s wrong;
If he doesn’t, there’s nothing to work on.
If she speaks to the Committee, she’s butting in;
If he doesn’t, he’s useless.
If she sends a reminder, she’s a pest;
If he doesn’t he’s slack.
If she asks for action, she’s impertinent;
If he doesn’t get things done, he’s incompetent.
If the meeting’s a success, it’s the committee.
If it’s a failure, the Secretary’s to blame.
If she asks for instructions, she has no initiative;
If he doesn’t, he’s swollen-headed. [or dictatorial ]
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust - if others won’t do it,
The Secretary Must!
He he, sorry Glenys, just couldn’t resist that.
I am certain that you are going to be a GREAT Webadmin and I am just very glad that you have found time to take on the job, because I think the things you are doing already are just what we need. (wonderful, verbose, impertinent pest that you are)
Lesley if in Sydney ,you would be most welcome on my Manly ferry.
PS -Dont bring cindylee .lol
Bon Chance - you did good.( never thought u were a pommie)
Now this Miss Chew mod,yah shes the fancy orientental tyier.i remem.
Dont start me on NZ. ;D
Yes, we’ll be visiting Sydney (our favourite city), and of course the only way to travel around is by the many ferries - could happily spend the day going back and forth on the Manly Ferry - not sure who “cindylee” is, but I’ll have to bring Jeff with me
We are hoping to be able to get to the Wooden Boat Festival in Tassie - I understand that there will be other Guild members there, too.
Sorry Oceanplats, MRS Chew ain’t the tyer of oriental knots - methinks that’s Carol Wang.
We may be Poms, but we consider ourselves at least part-Aussie having spent several years there in the '60s. Would be back there permanently if it was at all possible.
Lesley - Frank Brown, David Glasson and Madeleine Rowles will all be in Hobart. Roger Miles passed through briefly last time, not sure about this time round, though, so that’s at least three members and maybe four, that I know of. David Glasson and I are in Sydney so maybe we can catch up here as well as there. I work just down the road (Garden Island) from your old stamping grounds from the 60s (if memory of previous conversations serves me correctly).
Thank you for the compliments, I haven’t been appreciated like that since the time I banged the gavel on the District Secretary for delaying my meeting with too much chatter. And then it was only a raised eyebrow. Well, what could he have expected? Chairmanship can go to an 18-year-old’s head. Being the youngest chairperson ever in the District, as well as likely the region, can even go to the head of a seasoned veteran of Junior meetings such as I was.
Of course, I may have lost my touch a little since then - but I’m sure you’ll soon have me in practice again >winsome smile<
Hi Oceanplats - I don’t think we’ve met before. There is rumour of a Chinese ancestor very far back in my husband’s family, but personally I thought it more likely the name was an Anglicisation of Tiu, the Norse/Viking god of thunder, since they’re from the Northwest of England. You know, in the same way that Tiu became Tuesday, and Woden Wednesday? Be that as it may, the only Chinese knot I’ve tried so far I discovered as the English Diamond Knot, so I’m definitely not an expert An expert would be someone who knows more than I do about something.
One of the things that will be happening is that I am going to be trimming and slimming the Forum a touch, in both membership and old posts. I’ll ask Mel if it’s possible to store the old posts on a CD, for keeping with the library, as I’m mindful of how much accumulated knotting knowledge there is in them, as well as the friendly swordplay But for members, I will be trying to contact everyone before deleting those who have not posted in 12 months. You got in just in time, Slipjig I’ll post a warning, but anyone looking in should make sure their email addresses are uptodate on their profiles, as that’s going to be one of the criteria by which I decide to prune.
Look forwards to seeing you all on Monday after I get back from Retreat and recover from my daughter’s 4th birthday party.
One of the things that will be happening is that I am going to be trimming and slimming the Forum a touch, in both membership and old posts
Hi Glenys,
Why?
Are we running out of disk space?
And if you do have a good reason for doing this, then once you start - what criteria do you use to decide where to stop?
For example, it has been a long long time since Nautile was badly treated and moved over to KHWW. It would be wonderful if we could encourage him to come back, so why consider removing him? What would be gained? Isn’t our goal to increase usage by those who have only rarely posted but may be regular readers?
There are two things any forum is valuable for. The first is its contingent of active posters available to create and reply to topics. The second is the history and information stored in past posts. The price of disk space today is trivial so why remove this legacy information from direct access by the users? I often use the search facility so it is reasonable to believe that others will as well. Removing the ‘old’ posts is a bit like chucking away old copies of KM. I am involved in the project to make all the past KM’s available in pdf format and I tell you, some of the stuff contained in those old copies is wonderful. The forum hasn’t been going long enough yet to build up stuff from almost a generation ago like the KM’s have, but if you start to ditch stuff now, it will never become an archive worthy of being trawled for ‘old perspectives’, and again, like ditching members, once you start - how do you decide where to stop?
]
But for members, I will be trying to contact everyone before deleting those who have not posted in 12 months. You got in just in time, Slipjig