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<TITLE>Re: [Cynnabar] Proposed Thoughts on Thursday Meetings</TITLE>
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<FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'>Kelly/Birke,<BR>
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I think you have made many of the points I would have. Quite well.<BR>
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I would add that a tight time-frame can work for “finished” fighters and fencers whose gear is complete and works well. Others may need more time to tweak things between fights or just get get ready and then wrap up afterwards.<BR>
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Just as tourney formats often favor the already-champions, a tight practice schedule helps those who have got it all together mnore than it helps others.<BR>
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And the less-perfect shape you’re in, the heavier the toll it takes on the next day whether work or school. Now that I have to work again I pay that price Wednesday and Friday — all day -- for Tuesday and Thursday night’s fencing.<BR>
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In my case <B>and some other candidates for SCA activity</B>, Thursday night is already double-booked. If I don’t go fence at the Y (my modern practice time and some of my students) there is the HEMA club at EMU that needs our help. So far I haven’t made it to the latter.<BR>
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David/Daibhid<BR>
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<HR ALIGN=CENTER SIZE="3" WIDTH="95%"><B>From: </B>Kell Carnahan via Barony <<a href="barony@cynnabar.org">barony@cynnabar.org</a>><BR>
<B>Reply-To: </B>Kell Carnahan <<a href="wyndsung@gmail.com">wyndsung@gmail.com</a>><BR>
<B>Date: </B>Sat, 9 Mar 2019 10:11:48 -0500<BR>
<B>To: </B>cynnabar <<a href="barony@cynnabar.org">barony@cynnabar.org</a>><BR>
<B>Subject: </B>[Cynnabar] Proposed Thoughts on Thursday Meetings<BR>
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Hiya, Cynnabar,<BR>
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</SPAN></FONT><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Arial">After contemplating thoughts of new practice sites yesterday evening and my feelings on our local practice lately vs the regional practice in Jackson last month, I’ve come to a new conclusion:<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">I think that business meetings should not happen at Baronial omnibus gatherings/fighter practice.<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">What I *thought* having it all in one place would be like: Oh, great, it’ll be like whenever people taught a music/A&S class besides fighter practice, and the entire Barony is there! I love those days!<BR>
</FONT><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">What including the business meeting at practices is actually like:<BR>
</FONT></SPAN><UL><LI><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Arial">Business meetings feel rushed and annoying because they’re eating into socializing/fighting time
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</FONT></SPAN><LI><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Arial">Fighter practices get compressed and rushed and almost not worth it, for those of us who can’t stay up really late<BR>
</FONT></SPAN></UL><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">A general best case scenario, because we’re a great active Barony that does a lot, is that a business meeting lasts a half hour. This is with rushing through everything and not having fuller discussions of any points.<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">So, best case scenario, the meeting feels rushed, and ends at 7:30. By the time everyone says hi to one another, trickles into fighting area, gets armored up, and ends vital community bonding time of “how are you doing?” updates, it’s 7:45 - 8 pm.<BR>
</FONT><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">I’m not the only one who needs to leave practices by 9 pm to be able to get sleep themselves, or get their children to sleep. That means armoring down by around 8:45 pm, to pack up and say goodbye and leave by 9 pm.<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">45 minutes - 1 hour of compressed practice time means that:<BR>
</FONT></SPAN><UL><LI><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Arial">Can’t do drills, sparring, AND melee work ever. Basically ensures melee work will never happen at these practices, like they used to at rapier practices that actually had more time.
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</FONT></SPAN><LI><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Arial">Can’t do tournaments, because there’s no time for that and practicing anything.
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</FONT></SPAN><LI><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Arial">I can’t organize to have teachers or outsiders come visit our practices, because with variable meeting times, practice time doesn’t start at the same time AND there’s little time for a class and any practicing, AND the compressed time makes traveling further to our practices not worth it. This really limits the capability of Cynnabar practices.<BR>
</FONT></SPAN></UL><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">I’d say move practices to Sundays again to free up more time, but once summer event season starts in May, there’s still the argument that Sundays are needed for other life stuff when most Saturdays are taken by events or other summer happenings.<BR>
</FONT><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">You can’t tell me to “just skip the business meeting” because 1) I like being aware and giving input to my Barony, and 2) almost everyone else is still at the meeting, so practice can’t really start anyway. What’s the best end result to this line of reasoning? No fighters who need to leave by 9 pm (not an unreasonable time) can be at business meetings if they want to fight? That feels exclusionary, even if it’s not the intent.<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">Having business meetings at practices means business meetings are rushed and don’t happen well, socializing is rushed and doesn’t happen well, and fighter practice is compressed to the point of almost not feeling worth it, and therefore doesn’t happen well.<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">The best answer to opening up Thursday evening fighter practice/Baronial omnibus gathering to actually feel connecting and uplifting and awesome again: get rid of the business meeting on that evening. It was a nice concept, but it’s not working out well. Then practices and socializing and everything can actually start between 6:30-7 pm and have a good long chunk of evening to do all the things without feeling rushed and cramped.<BR>
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</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial">Thoughts?<BR>
</FONT><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><BR>
~Birke die Jaegerin<BR>
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