Re: [Killietalk] losing interest?

[Joe Bulterman <jbulterman at yahoo_com>]

My first AKA national convention was in Milwaukee some years ago.  Great place for a show and it was well hosted.
 
Joe Bulterman, CPA/CELTA
Raffles-H.U. International College
No 2 Teaching Bldg, 3rd Floor, Huizhou University
Jinshan Lake Campus, Mazhuang, Huizhou City
Guangdong Province, CHINA 516000
+86 1341 453 9710 (Mobil)
+86 752 252 9498 (office) 


----- Original Message ----
From: George& Melanie <caraway at erienet_net>
To: Joe Bulterman <jbulterman at yahoo_com>; killifish discussion list <killietalk at aka_org>
Sent: Friday, May 5, 2006 6:26:35 PM
Subject: Re: [Killietalk] losing interest?

Seems like someone had mentioned that next years AKA convention was going to be in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Is this so?
George

Joe Bulterman wrote: 
Is it possible the AKA might ever have a show on the west coast?
    
 
My understanding is that there is talk about this for next year's AKA convention but I have not heard about anything that has been decided and I don't know any details.  My guess is that something will be firmer in about 3 weeks.
 
Thanks for the analyis Ms. Kate.  Sounds thoughtful and insightful.
 
Joe Bulterman, CPA/CELTA 
Raffles-H.U. International College
No 2 Teaching Bldg, 3rd Floor, Huizhou University
Jinshan Lake Campus, Mazhuang, Huizhou City
Guangdong Province, CHINA 516000
+86 1341 453 9710 (Mobil)
+86 752 252 9498 (office) 


----- Original Message ----
From: Kate Breimayer <kate at munat_com>
To: killietalk at aka_org
Sent: Friday, May 5, 2006 3:47:11 PM
Subject: Re: [Killietalk] losing interest?


Is it possible the AKA might ever have a show on the west coast? I get 
one trip a year, if I was to go to the east coast it would be to visit 
friends I haven't seen in years, go to the Smithsonian or the Georgia 
Aquarium, see the fall colors in New England, New Orleans, snorkel the 
Florida Keys, visit NYC... there is no way I would be able to 
rationalize the con when I have never done these other things.  Course 
if you want to hold the next convention in New Orleans, Queens or the 
meeting rooms of the Georgia Aquarium I am totally down with that!

I think WCW attendance was down because previously we had an 
artificially high attendance as the local freshwater club was booming. 
Most never kept a killi and chatted through the lectures (and some 
didn't pay), but it was nice having them. Lately their club has suffered 
a lot of negativity such that people have speculated it won't survive, 
and the members don't have reason other than socialization to pay 20 
bucks to attend a killi show. Last year we had people fly in from other 
states as well who didn't show this year. Maybe they will make this a 
once in a while thing, I totally understand that, there are other clubs. 
Or the general economic downturn so many of us are experiencing is 
forcing cutbacks.

There was also some problem with it being a holiday of some sort. Don't 
remember if it was school or maybe a christian thing but it was 
definitely a family thing.  Auction and show fish numbers were also down 
which was sad, speculation was that people were sending to another show 
  but I think people just didn't like the 50/50 split. I think the show 
is very important. Don't like the split, don't auction the fish, I 
don't. The show is great for the newbies, it's how they first learn what 
the fish really look like instead of what they look like in the photos 
on aquabid! Oddly this year the gardneri went for more than a buck. All 
the fish sale prices were up but there were far fewer fish for sale.

Definitely lets spread out the shows over the year, and maybe at some 
point the AKA can have a show over here. And lets all try to avoid those 
holidays that make some members with kids unable to break free. Sad to 
see someone whose club for their one hobby has it's big yearly event and 
they can't leave the house because they have to feed the kids grilled 
meat at 4 or some other random tradition they can't break.
Kate


  
For the record, I don't think that is why people are losing interest
and, for that matter,  I'm not convinced that people are losing
interest, in particular in the killie hobby as a part of the larger
aquarium hobby. My feeling is that we are holding our own in comparison
to other branches of the fresh water aquarium hobby. That is not to say
that we should rest on our laurels. We should continue to expose people
to killies as an interesting group and continue to do our best to
recruit people to the hobby and the AKA. Personally I think that happens
mostly at the grass roots level not because we do or don't post show
results immediately. The grass roots level includes such things as
trying to encourage local stores to keep some killies, talking to people
in stores when the opportunity arises, being active in local aquarium
societies and so on. In other words, it is the "work" of individual
members that attracts people to the hobby.

Barry

Barry J. Cooper
Sweet Home, OR 97386


        
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