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5/4/2004 6:41:30 PM
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bets
Posts 18976
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I was kind of curious how we are distributed across the US-which could help nudge us to a location. It was rather unscientific-if you lived in a state directly touching an ocean, I considered it west or east coast. I`m not REALLY up on the location of all the provinces, except BC, NW Territory, and Yukon Territory (because the drive from Arizona to Anchorage was LONG!) and I`m not REALLY sure where Chickie lives-I thought NM, but was not 100%. How we are scattered-
West Coast 5
Middle 13
East 8
according to the bios.
I also called the Mohair USA council today-they are located about 2 hours from San Antonio-and they were absolutely dumbfounded that I called for a schedule of festivals in state. (Backwards @#@*&^ bumpkins!) But I will check with Tarie Williams of Yarn Heaven near Dallas to see if there are any "events/escape hatches/diversions" planned for Sept-Oct timeframe, if that`s ok for the moms in the gang. Corinna, can you find some time in the next week to see if anything is shaking down in your neck of the woods-Hotlanta, and you must guarantee I don`t run into my ex anywhere in that state---and if someone in the Wisconsin area wants to check out the greater Chicago area, that would be good. We could be near enough to go, IF DESIRED, for a class or workshop, but these are not festivals...except there is one in New Mexico in October, I believe. If there are other areas that you`d like to nominate, speak up. (How much IS plane fare to Seattle these days, anyhow?) Don`t forget that gas is going up like crazy too, and airfare may soon reflect THAT.
If I am being too bossy, someone please tell me to pipe down, ok?
Bets
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5/4/2004 7:22:37 PM
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Guest
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I don`t think your being too bossy. Just organizational! There how`s that for spin doctoring, lol;}
The Taos Wool Festival is in October. I know this because a dear friend lives in NM. As far as Texas. My grandmother is buried there. She also used to live there,San Antonio, just a little post mortam joke. ha ha? As far as some place like Nebraska, for the Brown Sheep thing, cool. But Just like you would want guarantees on not seeing ex in Atlanta, I would want it for not seeing my sister. Canada interests me. Maybe because it`s close, and I haven`t been ther yet. And Seattle sounds really good, because I used to live across the water. And there`s Port Townsend, an old victorian sailing town, now cute and shoppy, with a store called the Twisted Ewe. And Sequim with the Lavender Festival and a really great diner called 101 Diner or something like that. Plus I recently saw on the web a tidbit about a cruise for knitters out of Seattle. At the time I thought that sounded kind of cool.But then I wondered if I would have to take some kind of motion sickness and if that would impair my knitting. Which I don`t need. Sometimes being all thumbs anyway. But it could be a viable option, if someone would like me to check in to it.
I don`t think there is anyone in California here, is there? Plus I think Cali is probably too expensive. New York would be phenomenal, if not overwhelming and a bit intimidaitng. And I`m not sure if I could raise the airfare, and by broom is in the shop for repairs,lol. So if were looking for around October September time frame I could definetly do research on airfares, housing, events, things like that for this area. I love doing research! Around where I live there are quiet a few places that rent cabins and the such. Just let me know if I can help.
Heather
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5/4/2004 8:19:09 PM
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Jamie
Posts 3462
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The Handweavers Guild of America is having their biannual convention--Convergence-on July 1-3 in Denver this year. It`s a big event for weavers and other fiber artists. There is a $10 day pass to visit (registration and the included workshops and events are pricey) and the area will be full of exhibits of weaving and related fiber arts. Brown Sheep Co is kinda in the middle of nowhere in a small town in Western NE and accessible by car from Denver (most easily). Since I live nearby I would be much more interested in a rendez-vous in BC, which absolutely beautiful in summer and fall, or perhaps in Port Townsend, near Seattle. It`s supposed to be pretty arts and crafty. Vancouver is also a great place, but if we all met there we might really get in the papers!
Someday I`d like to cruise to Alaska; I have thought of getting north piecemeal via the ferry system, without a car. It would be an adventure and lots of time for knitting. I need company for such an adventure! Jamie
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5/4/2004 9:08:43 PM
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benne
Posts 19258
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Don`t pipe down, Bets. Your organizational skills are what this group needs. I do have some input about Port Townshend. It is lovely, crafty and a fairly long ferry ride to get there. Other than that, I have no opinion on location except that I feel we should look at keeping it as economical as possible for everyone. I`m afraid that rules out the Himalayan quest for cashmere. I wonder if we should first decide the type of trip we want to make of it. I figure we have about three choices. (1) A gettogether in conjunction with classes and show (2)an adventure near a yarn supplier which involves shopping for more yarn (3) a gettogether somehwhere wonderful that means we bring our own yarn and knit. I don`t think we can meet any more than one of these choices at a time. We could consider picking one of these with the option for the next trip to do one of the other choices until we`ve done all the choices. Other than that I have no opinion. lol
Benne
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5/4/2004 9:26:29 PM
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Guest
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So far there are three comments on Port Townsend. You know all the time I lived on the west side of WA, I never took the ferry to Port townsend. So I don`t know how long. I just see that as more time to knit and chat, only without the need for dramamine. Any other ideas?
Heather
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5/4/2004 11:39:42 PM
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jeanflores
Posts 2658
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Well... you know Bets... San Antonio is home for us so if I was going to the States, it might as well be home. Just probably won`t happen till we move back in two years. We promised everyone that if they wanted to see us this time they had to come here. We were here five years last time and went home twice. No one came here.
Whatever you come up with I can dream at the very least. Who knows... maybe I`ll take a MAC back but I`d still have to drive quite a distance. I think the nearest place I can MAC to is St. Louis or the East Coast.
Now, if anyone`s willing to fly to Glasgow... I have a twin room for the knitting/spinning retreat in the Hebrides at the end of July. I was waiting to hear if my SIL wanted to bunk with me but I don`t think that`s gonna happen. I thought it was serendipity that I`ll end up with my own room, but I`d be willing to share if someone from our little list here wanted to join me.
Peace,
Jean
Ansbach, Germany
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5/5/2004 3:29:06 AM
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patw
Posts 2826
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Bets,
Thanks for taking this project on. I agree with everyone else, you have great organizational skills. I have one other idea. My DH and I are planning on going to Quebec in late September and Point Mousse is sending me some material about the place. I have a family reunion in Rhode Island and we thought it would be fun to take a few more days and go up to Canada. Anyone for that part of Canada? If not, could the trip be planned for late October? If not, that`s O.K. because I will catch another get-to-gether.
Patw
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5/5/2004 3:47:20 AM
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bets
Posts 18976
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Oh,
Jean-If you flew into SA, we could get you anywhere in TX, that`s not a problem.
Now, Benne pretty much distilled this down to 3 selections-
"I figure we have about three choices. (1) A get together in conjunction with classes and show
(2)an adventure near a yarn supplier which involves shopping for more yarn
(3) a get-together somewhere wonderful that means we bring our own yarn and knit. I don`t think we can meet any more than one of these choices at a time."
She`s right. I looked at Port Townsend, it`s 58 miles/2 hours from Seattle, and just guessing, may have a high season, a low season, and possibly a shoulder season.
What IS a good time of year for the moms in the group? I don`t think Corinna can play until the garden`s quieted down, and the kids are in school. Anyone else? Does the weather in Port Townsend turn to garbage after Labor Day?
Cost factors-how much are you willing to spend to GET THERE?
How much do you want to spend on lodging?
Oh, and I didn`t even bring this up-does anyone PLAN to bring off-spring/spouses (as in, does the venue have attractions near-by to keep them happy?)
Shop-fest, woolfest or swapfest-which is it gonna be?
B
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5/5/2004 4:24:33 AM
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Guest
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You`re right I can`t play until after first hard freeze. Generally mid to late October. And I would not be bringing children / spouse. They would be bored to death and I`d feel guilty and feel the need to entertain them which means I`d miss out on the whole reason for the trip. I`ll check what`s available down this way. Since we`re all so spread out we may have to do two trips. One east Coast and one West. You midlanders can just decided which way you want to travel. Maybe you guys can do the West this summer and we`ll do the East this Fall/Winter?
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5/5/2004 4:26:58 AM
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Guest
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Hey I just thought of something. If I`m knitting to sell stuff at market and I incorporate a local farm trip into this outing can`t I claim the whole kit and kaboodle as a business expense?
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5/5/2004 9:36:33 AM
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Cate
Posts 2212
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Best times for me - very hottest part of summer & first 3 weeks in January. In Spring & fall when weather is pretty I am working most weekends.
And economy style it the way I need to go these days.
Cate (in Virginia)
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5/5/2004 9:58:17 AM
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Guest
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Bets-
As far as Port Townsend, one thing to keep in mind is that there are a few other places to stay on that side of WA that might be closer all tho not as grand, i.e. Bremerton or Bainbridge. If you don`t mind rural then there might be a possiblity of Port Ludlow. There also happens to be San Juan Island over that way, which is supposed to be an artist community type place.
As far as Corrina suggests about the two meet ups, one for westies, one for easties, it might be easier. But, and isn`t there always a but, I think we would miss out on meeting some fantastic people. October/ September time would be fine for me. Anytime before snow fall hits. Otherwise one you of ladies might end up taking home more that you planned, namely me,lol.;}
And the whole woolfest-swapfest-or shopfest is a hard choice. I lean more towards the woolfest/swapfest. Simply because I have wool that I can swap. Plus if we end up in the Port Townsend area The Bellwether is in Sequim(pronounced Sqim). It is a fiber supply place that we might be able to visit, because I think they are a farm. Plus there are the lavender farms that I believe you can visit. Although that might be off season. Another idea is Port Angeles. Which is north of Port Townsend. It isn`t real pretty, but it would afford the oppotunity to access four places. 1.Port Townsend(although we would have to figure out transportation, but I have an idea for that) 2.Sequim 3.San Jaun Island and 4. Victoria. The ferry takes off for Victoria in Port Angeles. They have a couple of packages for ferry trips and stays in Victoria. For that matter we could also consider staying in Victoria and doing the ferrys the other way round.That would be a suggestion for the westie right now. I could come up with several, as I know everyone else could too. For the eastie, which I would like to try but may not be able to afford, I can`t even begin to suggest. I have only seen parts of the western US. Nothing of the middle or east. So I won`t even venture a venue for the region.
Heather
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5/6/2004 4:28:37 AM
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Les
Posts 4243
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My 2 cents worth...
Music playing......."Dreamer, they say you are a dreamer........" I would love to get together anywhere with the gang and I vote for a low key gathering and wool swap in a beautiful place away from the city!! I don`t really need shopping or organized festivals but would prefer the comraderie of the group.
But back to reality and financial considerations - we Cannucks really get hosed with airfares- to get anywhere suggested in the US would be $600-900! We have only one major airline now, (which usually partners with United Airlines)which is currently looking for a sugar-daddy to bail them out and I wouldn`t be surprised if it folded in the near future! Which doesn`t mean we`d be stuck here as there are smaller airlines!!
Farmin Garmon`s idea of an Eastern and a Western gathering does make sense tho it would mean not seeing EVERYONE (sniff)but likely with costs,timing etc. not everyone would be able to get there anyway.
so, if there is a western contingent, here are my preferences......
* west coast - I absolutely love being by the ocean.
* BC`s gulf islands - My first choice - Love Alices idea of Thetis Island (a stones throw from the San Juans) and at about $40.00 per day inc. food sounds good to me!! Selfishly, it would cost me about another $300.00 to get to Port Townsend. All these islands are filled with artisans (often have shops at ther homes)and natural beauty. Our family has visited another of the gulf islands for 2 of our summer vacations recently and the homes we have rented sleep up to 12 people and were roomy enough to all gather and touch each others wool. One home was absolutely gorgeous - on the water, bald eagles in the trees, heron on the rock, petroglyphs etc.- the other had several rental places on the property but didn`t have the private access to the private beach. So all I`m saying is that there are accomodation alternatives (and the costs would be low per day in the off season)on the islands conducive to a gathering such as ours which would be quite lovely.
* Heather`s never been to Canada- (do you know that if we each drove about 4 hours we could meet!!). Ann might even be able to join.
* From the bio page: In the WA, BC, Alberta area there are Myself, Heather, Ann, Beatrice, Cheryl, Alice, Darla (who lives in Alberta but hasn`t posted for a while) and Jamie who is in CO but spent time in Victoria and might want to get back........
What do you say? Anyone else figured out costs? All said and done, I could get to the gulf Islands for about $200 plus accomodation and for a 2-4 day wkd would work for me.
Les
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5/6/2004 7:07:32 AM
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patw
Posts 2826
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I vote for a swap/meet fest first. I live on the East Coast and therefore would prefer something along the East Coast, Pennsylvania is in the middle and has some wonderful yarn companies (The mannings is one). But if the concensus is West Coast of Canada, I can deal with the airfare if the daily costs are kept to a minimum, ie $40.00/day for room or less, not including food. Or if we have a place that allows us to cook some meals, would also keep costs down. These are just some ideas.
patw
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5/6/2004 10:04:18 AM
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Guest
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Les-
I love all the ideas you have, about the location and prices. I see we`re thinking along the same lines. I was on the net late last night looking at what prices are like for hotels in Port Townsend. I found one hotel for about $49 a night, but was kind of bare bones and I don`t think they offered anything as far as meals. When breakfast was introduced, of course, the price jumped to about $85 per night. A little to steep for me I then tried to locate rental cabins, but at that point my eyes were quite tired and I was beginning to wilt. I was thinking that maybe a vacation rental thing might be cheaper. I liked Alice`s idea about the $40/night w/food. Would there be some way that we could meet and then drive to Townsend together? I will apologize now for being a complete airhead about geography. My DH often looks at me asknce when I say "where`s that honey?" So if the drive and meet up is stupid don`t be afraid to say so. And driving 4 hours to meet you would be great! But where would be at after we drove 4 hours, in other words "where`s that, honey?"lol
My DH has been keeping up with this and he just made a suggestion of Winthrop, WA. An old west town. I haven`t been there but he has driven thru and he thinks that there are rental cabins there. I will try and check into it today or tonight.
I have noticed that most of the ideas for getting together is on the west side of the US. Do you easties have any ideas of certain locales that would be price friendly for us westies? Actually, Les, is the Thetis islands that far west? In other words... where`s that honey?LOl
Heather
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5/6/2004 12:14:58 PM
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MacChick
Posts 3589
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Well, I`m jumping into this conversation a bit late. I live in Southern California, to put that question to rest, rather near the Death Valley area.
I`m not going to have too much input on this though, because I probably won`t be able to participate in something like this until a couple of years from now. Travel budget is very tight, and I try to use it to visit my family once a year, since I miss them a lot and they all live on the other side of the country. (I will be in Florida visiting some of them the last week of June/first week of July, though... does anybody live there?) (Hey! Doesn`t Corinna live in Florida! Wow! I could finally raid that Peruvian stash I know she has!!! Just stand outside her house and say, "Accio Peruvius!")
But I sure want to hear all about these trips and see pictures! And I will join all of you one of these days. That sheep farm/B&B sounds so perfect! Eastern U.S. is definitely noted for more-better-cheaper yarn stores than western, isn`t it? I thought Pennsylvania was supposedly some kind of a yarn hub or something.
And if you want to keep the food costs down, bring a crock pot... you can always toss something into a crock pot that everyone can pick at for a day or two and not have to bother with taking time out for proper meals.
Well, I should stop... it is an exciting thread to follow, though!
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5/6/2004 2:08:59 PM
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Guest
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MacChick,
I`m sorry when I said that I didn`t think anyone lives in California. For some reason I thought you were back east. I understand travel budgets being tight. Heck mine is non-existent. But right now I`m not going to let that stop me. After all where`s there a will there`s a way to a yarn store or knitting group get together. lol
Heather
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5/6/2004 3:21:39 PM
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Les
Posts 4243
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If you`re in Bellingham and look towards the west, you see the San Juan islands. Thetis Island is a few islands north of the San Juans, very close to Vancouver Island. The ferry to Thetis is from a town called Chemainus on Vancouver Island.
It is too long a drive for me (12 hours to Vancouver)so I would fly to Vancouver or Victoria (most likely Victoria)and go from there.
For yourself, you`d probably want to head to Seattle and then take a ferry to Victoria. Or, meet up with Vancouverites.
Alice lives on Salt Spring Island which is a much larger island than Thetis and is basically between the San Juans and Thetis.
Les
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5/6/2004 5:33:51 PM
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Guest
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Okay, what time do I leave?
Isn`t Salt Spring Island having a fiberfest soon?
Heather
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5/6/2004 6:04:12 PM
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traina@optonline.net
Posts 139
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I have been reading what everyone is saying and havent said much because i too live on the east coast....as Corinna and Pat W have mentioned the possibility of 2 trips....I dont know if i could afford the airfair to the west coast. The other thing for me is figuring out how what to do with my kids!
Cindy
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