Zep said:
There are 7487 miles from Sydney to Los Angeles. If you leave now, you'll have to row 312 miles a day for 24 days, or 500 km a day, and then hitchhike the last day.
Easy peasy.
Of course, it's easier if you sell a kidney...
PeterB
Scholar
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My pathetic excuse
I have these many, many thousands of Qantas frequent flier points. To get an FF seat Sydney-LA in January 2005 required booking in February 2004. To get a paid-for seat required booking in July and selling both my kidneys. Rowing is out of the question because I might tear the sutures.
So, instead of going to Las Vegas with someone else's wife, I am going to the tennis in Melbourne with my own.
I do not want to hear about how everyone had a good time at TAM3.
I have these many, many thousands of Qantas frequent flier points. To get an FF seat Sydney-LA in January 2005 required booking in February 2004. To get a paid-for seat required booking in July and selling both my kidneys. Rowing is out of the question because I might tear the sutures.
So, instead of going to Las Vegas with someone else's wife, I am going to the tennis in Melbourne with my own.
I do not want to hear about how everyone had a good time at TAM3.
UnrepentantSinner
A post by Alan Smithee
This is off topic, but why is it so hard to book a flight from Oz to the U.S. that time of year?
Are there connection possibilities like to Santiago, Mexico City or Tokyo and then to the U.S.?
Are there connection possibilities like to Santiago, Mexico City or Tokyo and then to the U.S.?
PeterB
Scholar
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Since United Airlines got into financial trouble, Qantas now fill 90% of the seats they have across the Pacific annually. The peak demand time is December and January, so no frequent filer seats, no discounts and no seats anyway during those months unless you give Qantas $3,000 months before flying.UnrepentantSinner said:
It is possible to go via Tokyo (or via Singapore, Dubai, London and New York, for that matter), but the problem then becomes time. The non-stop Sydney-LA flight is 13 hours. Travelling via Tokyo adds an extra day, an extra hotel room night (at Tokyo rates) and an extra airline (if there are seats). Someone priced this for TAM2 and it came to lots of dollars and a reasonable time only if a stand-by Tokyo-LA seat was available. Then you had to get back home after the event.
Sydney-Santiago one way costs as much as Sydney-LA return. If you want to go directly to Mexico City, you can't start from here.
Australian historian Geoffery Blainey wrote a book once named "The Tyranny of Distance". This what he was talking about.
UnrepentantSinner
A post by Alan Smithee
PeterB said:
Let me just say it's a damn shame you won't be attending (or speaking). I really enjoyed your presentation, and espcially the historical context. I also think it's a damn shame in a world where I can communicate instantaneously and simultaneously with people in Macmurdo Sound, Vladivostock, Tehran, Cape Town, Glasgow, Santiago and Regina, that someone from Sydney can't make it to Los Angeles with relative ease.
Claus, Has "The Amazing Race been broadcast in Denmark yet? It is a small world after all... as long as you have a major U.S. network paying for your airfare.
darling
JREF Kid
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- 352
Let's see:
- I have classes up until late Thursday night, so we couldn't get there until Friday lunchtime at the earliest.
- My bride doesn't particularly want to be subjected to the atheist revival tent atmosphere side of things again. (Can't say I'm a big fan either, but that's a whole thread in itself.)
- I'm really not sure what we'd get out of a third TAM that we didn't get out of the first two. The law of diminishing returns and all (even some of the material during TAMII was recylced from TAMI).
- We had considered just heading out to Vegas, skipping TAM and hanging with y'all, our friends, but the frequent flyer blackout gods did not smile upon us.
- So I said screw it, and got her a Xmas/birthday gift for something else that same weekend.
In summary, the people are great, the conference itself is just not so appealing.
- I have classes up until late Thursday night, so we couldn't get there until Friday lunchtime at the earliest.
- My bride doesn't particularly want to be subjected to the atheist revival tent atmosphere side of things again. (Can't say I'm a big fan either, but that's a whole thread in itself.)
- I'm really not sure what we'd get out of a third TAM that we didn't get out of the first two. The law of diminishing returns and all (even some of the material during TAMII was recylced from TAMI).
- We had considered just heading out to Vegas, skipping TAM and hanging with y'all, our friends, but the frequent flyer blackout gods did not smile upon us.
- So I said screw it, and got her a Xmas/birthday gift for something else that same weekend.
In summary, the people are great, the conference itself is just not so appealing.
Re: Re: Excuse list for those not going
This is my biggest real fear. Any thoughts on what could be added to the mic to make repeat appearances worthwhile for you?
(among my irrational fears are that the people will be no fun, a casino will fall on me, and godzilla will attack the city.)
darling said:
This is my biggest real fear. Any thoughts on what could be added to the mic to make repeat appearances worthwhile for you?
(among my irrational fears are that the people will be no fun, a casino will fall on me, and godzilla will attack the city.)
darling
JREF Kid
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Good question, and maybe it's more complex than I made it out to be. I guess the short answer is "I don't know".Loon said:
It's probably not the fault of the conference itself - it could just be that I've reached my skepticism intake limit (I certainly haven't been around the forum much this past year).
I could critique Dr. Shermer for giving very similar talks in the past two years, but then this year I'd be looking forward to Julia Sweeney repeating her success from last time. I could say that it seems like Randi only invites his friends to speak, and not "outsiders", but then it's his meeting, so what do I expect?
Actually I think the biggest turn-off isn't so much the speakers, but logistical - the hotel ballroom set up Just Doesn't Work. A lot of the presentations were strongly visual - if you didn't get up early and snag seats in the first few rows you coudln't really see, so missed out on a *lot*.
This type of conference cries out for lecture-theater-style seating. This one thing would probably make a bigger difference in peoples' enjoyment than anything else - last time it would have changed some so-so presentations into great presentations. (I don't know what the layout is like this time, so my wish may already have been granted, and my rant rendered unnecessary).
Anyway, apart from that, I suppose the answer to your question is "diversification". I'm fully aware that you can't be all things to all people, maybe others think the line-up is just perfect. Certainly this year's registration shows the JREF is doing more right than wrong. But you asked, so there it is.
Once more, the people are the number one reason to attend TAM.
As for your other fears, maybe Mac King could lend you his cloak of invisibility...
PeterB
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Re: Re: Excuse list for those not going
It's hard to believe that there isn't a 4-500 seat tiered theatre somewhere in Las Vegas which can be hired at a reasonable cost. I know that my enjoyment of TAM2 would have been much greater, both as speaker and audience sitter, if the room had been better.
But the people, now there's another story. No complaints there! That's what I will really miss by not getting to TAM3.
The layout last year was an absolute PITA. From the stage you could barely see the people in the back row, so they had little chance of seeing your magic tricks or reading your PowerPoint slides. (The bottom 5% of the slides was projected below the screen anyway.) I had to work without a clip-on radio microphone (because Penn's producer needed a whole hour to set it up for his boss!) and the microphone on the lectern was highly directional. Great for holding an inch in front of your mouth while singing, useless if you wanted to turn your head away to, say, look at the 95% of a slide on the screen. The sound system was pathetic and the speaker positions meant that there was no audio feedback to the stage, so I had no idea what the audience was hearing.darling said:
It's hard to believe that there isn't a 4-500 seat tiered theatre somewhere in Las Vegas which can be hired at a reasonable cost. I know that my enjoyment of TAM2 would have been much greater, both as speaker and audience sitter, if the room had been better.
But the people, now there's another story. No complaints there! That's what I will really miss by not getting to TAM3.
Re: Re: Excuse list for those not going
I agree. The downside is that it will be a limited (max) number of people.
It could be interesting to know how many "repeat customers" there are.
It's difficult to reach a level where everybody (or just the majority!) is happy: Those who have been there before learn less than those who are there for the first time. I talked to people at both TAMs who were just beginning as skeptics, and they thought it was great - but also felt as fumbling a bit. It was a big surprise that everyone were so accessible.
darling said:
I agree. The downside is that it will be a limited (max) number of people.
darling said:
It could be interesting to know how many "repeat customers" there are.
It's difficult to reach a level where everybody (or just the majority!) is happy: Those who have been there before learn less than those who are there for the first time. I talked to people at both TAMs who were just beginning as skeptics, and they thought it was great - but also felt as fumbling a bit. It was a big surprise that everyone were so accessible.
Nyarlathotep
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jj said:But, but, you guys can DRIVE! And through wonderful scenery, too!
Awww...... No plane fare, a 5 hour drive (isn't that about right), and there must be a cheap motel
Oh wait, I've stayed in cheap motels. You're doing the right thing.
Actually closer to eight hours, if you take into account stops for meals, potty breaks, gas, etc.
It's a shame though, I would have liked to have gone but we can't make it this year. Hopefully, next year we'll be able to go and bring our oldest daughter as well. She really seems interested in going.
Philip
JREF Kid
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- 473
OK, I just have to tell myself that I wouldn't be having any fun if I went to TAM.
I'm not part of the "in" crowd so I wouldn't be invited anywhere.
Nobody would hug me.
Skepchicks would pay no attention to me except to stay as far away from me as they could.
No skepchicks would dance with me.
Whenever I entered a room with scantily-clad skepchicks, they'd all cover themselves up with burkas.
No one would even hold a conversation with me.
It would be no fun at all.
I did the right thing by staying home and working on research papers.
I'm not part of the "in" crowd so I wouldn't be invited anywhere.
Nobody would hug me.
Skepchicks would pay no attention to me except to stay as far away from me as they could.
No skepchicks would dance with me.
Whenever I entered a room with scantily-clad skepchicks, they'd all cover themselves up with burkas.
No one would even hold a conversation with me.
It would be no fun at all.
I did the right thing by staying home and working on research papers.