Ron and I hit on the idea of possibly connecting sometime in the future with members of the forum. This would be pretty casual, perhaps a day hike to share skills and ideas, putting a face and personality to the posts ( looking at reflection in monitor and groaning sadly ). Just an idea tossed out for now. Don't forget to practice field butchering on those turkeys defrosting right now .Please report the efficiency of SAK's vs. SAS commando saws.

I'd love to do a comparison but 1) I'm on duty all day Thursday and 2) When in Vet school my family said "you're studying surgery, you carve." I pulled out a scalpel handle and fresh blade, and they haven't let me near a turkey since.

Chris,<br><br>Great idea! Actually, Sue and I were talking about something similar. Technically (well, traditionally perhaps) these are referred to as a "gig" when an online community has such a gathering. It may just be a meeting between members for dinner if someone has come to town for some reason or a conference/convention is going on or it can be a weekend event with seminars and scheduled activities and anything in between. One of the most successful of these special interest events that I have attended regularly has been SMXgig http://www.smxgig.org/ for the AVSIG online aviation community with its 13th year in planning stage.<br><br>Over the years I have attended perhaps a hundred such gigs, mostly just dinner or breakfast gatherings at some other event. It is great fun to finally meet the people behind the names.<br><br>Anyway, I'd be interested in attending (finances and date permitting). If someone wants to volunteer to organize it, I will be happy to provide what support that I can. With the holidays here, next year would probably be best and it's always a good idea to keep other major events in mind when selecting a date.

Schedule and travel costs would likely be a problem with me. But there may be future opportunities to pigg-back on existing events (i.e., outdoor shows, SAR conventions, etc.) when members could gig together in small groups.