Sunday morn'n coffee...

[Mugwump]

...the coffee's awfully good this morn'n...it's a wonderful 6deg's outside headed for maybe the low 20's???.....but nice and toasty in here  ...

G'son's B'day party later, then staying in...    just might watch the Bears game later...

now tho, I need more coffee...

[Rjb3]

Better get moving. You'll be late for breakfast . . . . . . .

[BallAquatics]

Coffee is very good indeed.  Around 30?F here climbing all the way up to 33?F this afternoon.  At least the wind has died down.  On the way back from the OCA yesterday evening the wind was howling with a driving rain.  I could tell Pop's little old S-10 was working hard to maintain highway speeds against the headwind LOL.

Dennis

[Rjb3]

How was the OCA, Dennis?

[BallAquatics]

How was the OCA, Dennis?

I believe that their lack of professionalism is starting to catch up with them Bob.  I spoke with several long-time attendees and they all spoke of a lack of attendance and lack of folks selling from the rooms.  I didn't notice any beer-bottle wielding OCA staff shouting at patrons or verbally abusing their children this year so that was a great improvement.  The vendor room was pretty sparse, but Stephan was doing a booming foam & food business, Mike looked to be selling a good many books, and Brantly & Jodi were selling lots of pleco caves.  Jodi was saying they are beat.... Aquatic Experience, GCCA, and OCA all right in a row.

Personally, I had a great time!  Got everything I went for, and had the chance to catch up with lots of my fishy friends, some that I haven't seen for about a year.

Dennis

[Mugwump]

How was the OCA, Dennis?

I believe that their lack of professionalism is starting to catch up with them Bob.  I spoke with several long-time attendees and they all spoke of a lack of attendance and lack of folks selling from the rooms.  I didn't notice any beer-bottle wielding OCA staff shouting at patrons or verbally abusing their children this year so that was a great improvement.  The vendor room was pretty sparse, but Stephan was doing a booming foam & food business, Mike looked to be selling a good many books, and Brantly & Jodi were selling lots of pleco caves.  Jodi was saying they are beat.... Aquatic Experience, GCCA, and OCA all right in a row.

Personally, I had a great time!  Got everything I went for, and had the chance to catch up with lots of my fishy friends, some that I haven't seen for about a year.

Dennis

I met Gary Mendez at the AE. He seemed like a nice enough guy. I think a lot of the attendance issues comes from lack of participation by the club members themselves. QC, as an example, was a pretty nice club, but the the Pres., John, ended up doing most everything with little help. When he got tired of pulling the load, the club quickly folded. It doesn't matter how big the club may be, if there isn't a good support team in place....you're in trouble.
IMHO, it seems that the newer/younger members just want the advantages, without the commitment. You reap what you sow has become a lost adage.

[BallAquatics]

..... I think a lot of the attendance issues comes from lack of participation by the club members themselves.....

That's a great point.  After what I witnessed last year and some of the things I've heard, maybe they lost many, (or got rid of), the folks that kept the club going.

I know I told our club President that I would not be associated with a club that behaved in the manner that I witnessed and he said he had heard many such complaints about the OCA himself.  Hopefully they can get it sorted out.

Dennis

[wsantia1]

Temps are a balmy 48 degrees here going up to the mid 50s. Tomorrow it will stay in the 40s before climbing back up to the 60s by Thanksgiving. Coffee today is great. First pot down, getting ready to start the second on. Have to putz in the fishroom today. I need to redo the air a little. I now have everything I need. May do some water changes. I was thinking about doing them tomorrow or Tuesday because I am going away for the holiday. Hell maybe I'll do them today and Tuesday.

[Mugwump]

..... I think a lot of the attendance issues comes from lack of participation by the club members themselves.....

That's a great point.  After what I witnessed last year and some of the things I've heard, maybe they lost many, (or got rid of), the folks that kept the club going.

I know I told our club President that I would not be associated with a club that behaved in the manner that I witnessed and he said he had heard many such complaints about the OCA himself.  Hopefully they can get it sorted out.

Dennis

Did you see John Patakos ? or Mark Huffman there?....Mark's the plant guy...

[Mugwump]

Temps are a balmy 48 degrees here going up to the mid 50s. Tomorrow it will stay in the 40s before climbing back up to the 60s by Thanksgiving. Coffee today is great. First pot down, getting ready to start the second on. Have to putz in the fishroom today. I need to redo the air a little. I now have everything I need. May do some water changes. I was thinking about doing them tomorrow or Tuesday because I am going away for the holiday. Hell maybe I'll do them today and Tuesday.

Here too, it's supposed to warm up for Thanksgiving...downside is it'll rain....   We won't be traveling far tho, so it won't be bad...

Pot #2 mostly gone...only 8:30 and I feel like a nap....

[wsantia1]

Temps are a balmy 48 degrees here going up to the mid 50s. Tomorrow it will stay in the 40s before climbing back up to the 60s by Thanksgiving. Coffee today is great. First pot down, getting ready to start the second on. Have to putz in the fishroom today. I need to redo the air a little. I now have everything I need. May do some water changes. I was thinking about doing them tomorrow or Tuesday because I am going away for the holiday. Hell maybe I'll do them today and Tuesday.

Here too, it's supposed to warm up for Thanksgiving...downside is it'll rain....   We won't be traveling far tho, so it won't be bad...

Pot #2 mostly gone...only 8:30 and I feel like a nap....

No rain here for Thanksgiving. The good thing for you is that it will wash away that snow and you can get a fresh start. You guys had a lot going on out there yesterday.They actually showed Elgin on the news out here. They were showing some power lines that came crashing down on a lady's house. They also showed that fire at the Hancock building in Chicago.

[PaulineMi]

Sun is out here, clear skies, 25 degrees and the snow is sparkling. Some snow is melting and icicles are forming but the 40s and 50s we're expecting will make all this go away soon. Fish room stuff is on the agenda today. After that I may try working my way into a Denis Diderot biography. Hope it doesn't hurt my head too much...

[Ron Sower]

Coffee's good here too today. Up early this morning. Making up for the last two days, I guess. Going to do water changes today. Got a few things to put on CL to make more room in the house. A friend is coming over to take a lot of stuff that I was going to take to the dump this week, but she said she could use it.


I'll be watching the Seahawks around 1:30 and see if they can pull one out of their collective posteriors.  Everyone is saying that because they went ahead and gave the big players lots of money, they've lost the drive. Could be.

[LizStreithorst]

I will make all you snow people laugh at me.  It's cold as the dickens here!!!  It dropped to 33 overnight.  Right now it's 40 but with the wind chill it feels like 31.  I'm suffering!  Tonight it will drop to below freezing.  Time to bring my asparagus ferns and Hibiscus in for the winter.  Time to start feeding the horses twice daily and buying hay and getting it under the shed before the good stuff runs out.  Hay will be crappy starting around February because it was so dry here for so long.  For now they have rye grass in the pasture.  Damn horse has been sneaking in the house soon after I open the door to let the dogs out to pee and poo.  She's loosing condition.  I detest winter.

I will for sure go to Loews Monday.  I need to suck it up and spend money.  A dehumidifier is a necessity.  The oil filled space heater struggling to keep the temp in the fish room over 77 by morning which makes the tank heaters have to work harder.  Condensation has been building up on the ceiling.  While I am there I will have to buy a generator.  I've been without one for so long and gotten away with it that I hate having to do it but I know that I must.  Walmart is right across the street and I will have to go there and buy things.  I have a tendency to wear jeans and underwear until they start falling apart   And there are other things that I would rather not have to buy for the house that don't last forever.

I didn't used to be such a cheapskate.  I used to think that if I spent a bunch of money it would be OK because I'd just make more.  But since then I have become used to doing without unless disaster was imminent.  I've got my beloved Social Security now but I don't want to become too comfortable with it and spend it all up.  It would be easier if we knew when we were going to die so that we could spend it all up before that day arrived.  Alas, that's not the way it works.

[Ron Sower]

I have a tendency to wear jeans and underwear until they start falling apart   And there are other things that I would rather not have to buy for the house that don't last forever.

I didn't used to be such a cheapskate.  I used to think that if I spent a bunch of money it would be OK because I'd just make more.  But since then I have become used to doing without unless disaster was imminent.  I've got my beloved Social Security now but I don't want to become too comfortable with it and spend it all up.  It would be easier if we knew when we were going to die so that we could spend it all up before that day arrived.  Alas, that's not the way it works.

Liz, I'm the same way about clothes. Until they fall apart, they still work...!  Right??!!

We took our SS as soon as we were eligible even though it was a lesser amount monthly.
Reason #1...we didn't know how long are going to live, so get it while we can!
Reason #2...we didn't know how long the SS program was going to live, so get it while we can!
Reason #3...at that point in our lives we really needed it, so get it while we can! (Probably the biggest driving factor!)

I worked long and hard and contributed a lot into that account when I could have used the money to raise my family. I'm glad it's still there for me now.