The "Thank You" thread

[Patricio Elicer]

I'd like to publicly express my gratitude to all the people who, in a way or another, contributed to make my stay in LV all way too enjoyable.

arcticpenguin for buying me a dinner at the Aussi Outback and for paying my share of the Red Rock Park fee. He said to me these words: "In my country you are my guest". Words for the bronze.

UnrepentantSinner for his wise lessons on how to order and eat Mexican Food

Randi for his patience to repeat 3 times a handshake picture till I got the right one.

Bizantine Magpie (sp?), Electric Monk, MarkB and Segnosaur for their warm company on the Hoover Dam visit and useful tips on the walk through the Strip.

Paul C Anagnostopulous (sp?), Mercutio and Girl 6 for being kind enough to let me join their dinner table at a late time.

MarkB for admitting me in his car for the Red Rock Canyon tour, and for taking me to the airport on my way back home.

Electric Monk for including me in his car on the Hoover Dam visit

exarch for being such a nice roommate, for not snoring, and for the excellent 4-pack Belgian beer present.

And of course, my special gratitude to all the JREF staff and volunteers, whose efforts made the wonderful event possible.

Well, I'm sorry if I forgot someone, it's just that my mind and body are still suffering from the 5-hour jetlag.

Hey TAM2 folks!!,... post your "thank you" here.

[Lisa]

Let's have a big round of applause for LINDA!! I swear, I don't know how she does it. Arranging TAM plus riding herd on Randi, Hal, and other assorted weirdos must be quite taxing. If there really was such a thing as a saint, Linda should have sainthood with four clusters.

And thanks to all the folks who helped assemble the welcome packages. I know it was boring and tedious, but that's just one of those things that have to be done.

And a huge thank you to all that attended. A conference can have nice facilities and dynamite speakers, but ultimately it is the attendees that determine success. TAM II was most assuredly a success.

[Paul C. Anagnostopoulos]

Hooray for Linda! And Karl, too!

~~ Paul

[Foofer]

Thanks to Renata for making sure I went to the Thai restaurant. You're a very cool chick.

Thanks to Moe for making me laugh when she couldn't shake hands with my husband as his hands were full and she offered to shake his woo-ha-ha.

Thanks to The Bad Astronomer for the great conversation over dinner at the Thai place and for sharing the best non-pareils candy I have ever had. I posted this somewhere else, but I'll write it again - you rock, dude!

Thanks to James Randi. Where would we be without you?

Thanks to Linda for everything you do.

Thanks to Hal for the great job as emcee.

Thanks to everyone that attended.

A special thanks to everyone that volunteered. You guys rule.

[Brown]

Many thanks to all who participated and to all who made it work. At first I thought I would list all those who I could remember and who I thought deserved recognition, but I quickly discovered that there were too many to name, and I was afraid of leaving anyone out.

That said, Linda certainly deserves a vacation! She gets an ovation from me.

And let's not forget Hal. On second thought....

I forgot to make the following remark on my pink evaluation form, so I will make it here: Every year, I attend various conferences as part of keeping my professional license. It is an unfortunate truth that these conferences tend to be boring as a rule, and I usually have to sit through three or four hours of presentations to hear a single tidbit of useful material.

But TAM2 was a refreshing departure. The speakers were interesting. ALL of them were. I wanted to see every single one of them, and I LEARNED something from every one (yes, including Lance Burton). If every professional conference I attended could be so well put together, then attending the conferences would be a joy rather than a chore.

[Girl 6]

Well, I personally think that Linda deserves her own appreciation thread!

BIG APPLAUSE FOR LINDA!!

G6

[shanek]

Wow...there's just absolutely no way I can thank everybody, so don't be offended if I neglect to mention you, but I do want to thank certain ones who stand out:

Wyvern for being such a good friend and a warm person. You made TAM2 particularly memorable.

Chaos for being a great roomie and a good person.

Girl 6 for getting me out on the dance floor for the first time in ten years. I gave it up when I got married because my ex never wanted to dance. I forgot how much I loved it!

For that matter, thanks to everyone I danced with.

deBergerac for being charming and witty, with always something positive to contribute.

Luciana for being a warm and exciting person.

Renata for just being Renata.

EvilYeti for burying a troublesome hatchet.

The whole crowd who went to Outback steakhouse and performed card tricks with the hookers' cards we all were given on the walk up there.

The Saturday Night crowd at Marilyn's cafe, where the food got better and the jokes got dirtier.

And finally, but most importantly, everyone who donated to the Scholarship fund—I wouldn't even have been there without you!

[kittynh]

REnata....for the Thai food, and for being my friend. I admire you so much. I can't stress that enough.

Arctic, for not laughing at me when I gave you that odd present.

All the Skepchicks....

Exarch and the younger guys who made me feel young again. Someone at G6s party said to me, "You don't act like a mom!" I'm still smiling!

LINDA!!! She rocks.

And Karl, honestly, he is funny, handsome, hard working and remember, he doesn't get paid. Linda, how did you get to lucky?

Did anyone else just fall in love with Andrew Mayne? What a wonderful young gentleman. He GAVE me a copy of his DVD and a signed poster. Kitten2 is in love, me too!

All the skepchicks, especially G6 who got Pool Boy up and moving. He plans to post his comments about this bunch of ladies that just won him over.

MOE! She is just my baby. I adore her, even though she did grab Pool Boy's thigh (I have the picture...). Moe just went out of her way, and she is even more adorable than she is on the forum. I wish she WAS my daughter.

as for the guys....I can't say enough.

[shanek]

Originally posted by kittynh
as for the guys....I can't say enough.

Thanks to you, Kitty. The Kittens are lucky to have you as a mom and Pool Boy is lucky to have you as a wife. Neither my mother nor my ex-wife come anywhere close...

[Electric Monk]

Thanks to Mr. Randi for hosting the event and for being patient and friendly throughout.

To the JREF staff Linda, Karl, Hal, José and Jeff K. for all the work that they did in putting it all together and making it run so smoothly!

To the interns and other volunteers for their hard and dedicated work. (And my apologies to those attendees who had a smear of blood on their folders. The requisite sacrifices made to appease the elder gods got a bit out of hand. :( )

To the speakers at the conference. Everyone there made it well worth the trip!

To Penn & Teller for their contributions of time, talent, money, and the use of their homes in the fundraising effort.

To Jamy Ian Swiss for an awesome display of card manipulation in the lobby on Saturday night!

To Quinn for sharing his talent at the piano.

To Julia Sweeney for signing up after only a little bit of nagging, and for not insisting that I leave the room when she spoke. (Clearly I've made a grave tactical error in getting her to come to TAM2. Back off, you devils, she's mine, I tells ya, all mine!)

To fellow So Cal attendees Wyvern, Renata, and MarkB for occasionally laughing at some of my jokes. (Are you going to the Skeptics Lecture this Sunday?)

To the charming KittyNH for the PJ Party shirt.

To The Bad Astronomer for showing up just when I needed you. :D

To the awesome and mighty Skepchick Army for [[Classified Material Deleted]] with the [[Expunged]] and the extra-large bowl of [[Unsuitable Content Removed]]!! ;)

To UnrepentantSinner for having sufficient attitude to power all of Las Vegas.

To arcticpenguin for wearing that "Stop Plate Tectonics" sweatshirt.

To MoeFaux for saying "hey, you must be one of us," on my arrival in the lobby.

To my travelling companions on various (mis)adventures to the Strip, Red Rock Canyon, and Hoover Dam.

To the entire Aussie contingent for putting up with all of the upside-down jokes.

And for that matter, to all of our overseas attendees for putting up with the long flights and our new customs regimen.

To all the forum members I met, both those familiar from TAM1 and those who were new to me. You are the folks that turn an interesting conference into an event to remember!

To all those that I've missed in this post, my brain is still recovering from that same pleasantly stunned feeling I had after TAM1. You folks are addictive.

--James

[Girl 6]

To the JREF members that donated to the TAM2 Scholarship Fund...

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! :D

G6

[Pete]

This sounds trite and stupid as I read it, but, thanks:


To Julia Sweeney for being so nice. At first, I wouldn't talk to her when she was always talking to someone of the Inner Circle.
Then, after the Chocolate contest, I saw her alone and said simply, "Your talk was hilarious". She said, "Oh, you're so sweet!". That made my night.

To all the other speakers who gave great and funny presentations.

To buddyh and his wife for letting me tag along to Hoover Dam.

To the Canadian (I don't know his username) who gave me Blackjack tips.

To the Aussies and others who I ate with at the Outback.

To the skepchicks for just being there.

To the others of the forum who didn't know me, but would still talk to me in the lounge.

To all the people that made the meeting happen.

[SkepticScott]

Thank you Mr. Randi for deciding to hold The Amazing Meetings!

Thank you Linda for doing everything to make TAM2 happen. I'll bet none of this was in your job description when you were hired!

Thank you to the rest of the JREF staff, plus Karl, Jonathan, Hal and Chris, the unpaid "JREF staff". This would not have worked without you!

Thank you everyone that volunteered to help! Whether you helped assemble registration packets, helped register people, gave out t-shirts, or stood behind the merchandise table, there were enough volunteers so no one got stuck doing it all. We shared the load, especially with the folder assembly lines, so that everything went smoothly.

Thank you Paul C. Anagnostopoulos for printing all the name badges.

Thank you kittynh for the 'security' t-shirt and to all the skepchicks that signed it.

Thank you MoeFaux for giving me rides in her car, and for not hitting bumps while I was squeezed into the back seat. :)

Thank you Penn & Teller for donating so much to JREF.

A big thank you to all the speakers. I heard that they donated their time.

Thank you everyone that brought chocolate to the chocolate melee (I mean "Chocolate Challenge"), and all the judges.

Thank you Slick for the Red Rock Canyon tour.

Thank you Luciana for showing me some of her photos of the skepchicks pajama party on the shuttle to the airport.
:jaw:

[Jeff Corey]

In addition to all previously mentioned people, I'd especially like to thank Jeff K. for an interesting dinner conversation and even more so for his help in getting me access to the web so I could do the statistics for my Charpentier's Illusion brief presentation.
And thanks to Hal for helping me deal with some of the more pompous paper proposers who thought that getting a paper accepted meant getting all expenses paid to the meeting. (it did not).

[Doubt]

Way to many people to thank individually.

Thanks to the JREF folks for putting this thing on.

Thanks to the speakers for making us think, laugh and question our assumptions.

Thanks to all those who attended. We are all friends, even if we just met.

Special thanks to the skepchicks. It would not have been amazing without you.

[bignickel]

Penn Jillette said
there are obsessions that Teller and I have. One is that we're pro-science, and, strangely, being pro-science is one of the oddest things you can do in show business. Which is very strange, because it was science that, oh, cured polio. I could list others—isn't that enough? [Laughs.] Oh, Western medicine doesn't work; I'm sorry, we cured polio. What more do you want? Your herbalism has done jack; we cured polio. And guess what? It cures polio even if you don't believe in it. We don't have it on Earth anymore. And then there's also small pox, and then there's mostly dysentery, and we haven't even gotten into the stuff we're good at, which is physics. We're not good at medicine; we're good at physics. We were good at physics in the 20th century; in the 21st century, one would hope, we'll be good at medicine.

A very big thank you, Penn!

And of course, thank you to all the guests and speakers at TAM2. Hope to see you at TAM3!

[SkeptoBabe]

SkeptoBear, Ratbag and I are now looking forward to a loooooooooong flight back to where everything really is the right way up so before we go we'd just like to thank, in no particular order,

EVERYONE

It was wonderful meeting all you mad people and hopefully we'll be able to make it back next year. In the meantime we are going to be holding our convention in Sydney this November. I'd like to invite you all to attend a convention in the most beautiful city in the world. If you think you are interested then keep an eye on the Aussie Skeptics website

www.skeptics.com.au

I have many pictures from the convention and have applied for the domain name www.blackmail.commmm <EVIL GRIN>. I do have some excellent pictures so when I get home I'll put them up on a website somewhere.....probably on the www.mysteryinvestigators.com site. Don't worry - none from the pyjama party will go up without permission.

However, there is likely to be an expose of the entire disgraceful weekend on the website www.ratbags.com very soon.

See you all soon I hope

SkeptoBabe

<table cellspacing=1 cellpadding=4 bgcolor=#cc6666 border=0><tr><td bgcolor=#cc6666><fontface="Arial,Helvetica, sans-serif" color=#ffffff size=1>Posted by hal:</font></td></tr><tr><td bgcolor=white><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" color=black size=1>Edited at request of poster, due to joke actually being a real website afterall...</font></td></tr></table>

[Wyvern]

Originally posted by SkeptoBabe
snip...
It was wonderful meeting all you mad people and hopefully we'll be able to make it back next year. In the meantime we are going to be holding our convention in Sydney this November. I'd like to invite you all to attend a convention in the most beautiful city in the world. If you think you are interested then keep an eye on the Aussie Skeptics website

...snip
SkeptoBabe
F^cking AWESOME !!
Anybody wanna plan a trip to Australia with me in November? :D

I LOVE the Aussies. I think I may move to Australia. :)

[shanek]

Originally posted by Wyvern

F^cking AWESOME !!
Anybody wanna plan a trip to Australia with me in November? :D

I LOVE the Aussies. I think I may move to Australia. :)

If I had the money...maybe if 8 of us could share a hotel room together? I don't mind sleeping on a blow-up mattress...

I think Australia would be really cool to visit, especially hanging out with skeptics!

[Girl 6]

Originally posted by SkeptoBabe
It was wonderful meeting all you mad people and hopefully we'll be able to make it back next year. In the meantime we are going to be holding our convention in Sydney this November. I'd like to invite you all to attend a convention in the most beautiful city in the world. If you think you are interested then keep an eye on the Aussie Skeptics website

Cool! :D

But, a flight to Australia is sooooooo expensive. :( I would love to go. Maybe a contingent of the West Coast JREFers can show up somehow.

G6

[The Bad Astronomer]

My thanks go to Hal Bidlack, for making me look even better in comparison.

[Electric Monk]

Originally posted by Wyvern
Anybody wanna plan a trip to Australia with me in November?Originally posted by Girl 6
Maybe a contingent of the West Coast JREFers can show up somehow.I recommend teleportation. :)

Sounds like a great time! I would have to see how the year progresses for me, though, before I would sign up for sure.

I'll share rooms, cars, meals, airline seats...

Let the counter-invasion begin! (Hmmm. Maybe we could get a Defense Department grant....)

--James

[SkeptoBabe]

Originally posted by shanek


If I had the money...maybe if 8 of us could share a hotel room together? I don't mind sleeping on a blow-up mattress...


People.........some of us will be quite prepared to billet

SkeptoBabe

[Lisa]

Originally posted by The Bad Astronomer
My thanks go to Hal Bidlack, for making me look even better in comparison.
He does seem to have that effect, doesn't he?

[shanek]

Originally posted by SkeptoBabe
SkeptoBear, Ratbag and I are now looking forward to a loooooooooong flight back to where everything really is the right way up so before we go we'd just like to thank, in no particular order,

EVERYONE

It was wonderful meeting all you mad people and hopefully we'll be able to make it back next year.

Thanks to you, Skeptobabe! It was great meeting you and I hate I didn't have a chance to get my picture taken with you. Next year!

In the meantime we are going to be holding our convention in Sydney this November. I'd like to invite you all to attend a convention in the most beautiful city in the world.

I'd love to, but I just checked prices on flights to Australia, and they're over $3,000! :jaw:

Anyone up for forming an East Cost Skeptics Alliance or a Southeast Skeptics Alliance or anything like that? Something a little more regional for me...

[Wyvern]

Originally posted by SkeptoBabe


People.........some of us will be quite prepared to billet

SkeptoBabe
So, does "to billet" mean to provide lodging?? I've never heard that term used before.


Hey Shane: we'll just stuff you into a large suitcase and check you.

[SkeptoBabe]

Originally posted by Wyvern

So, does "to billet" mean to provide lodging?? I've never heard that term used before.


Billetting is when you lodge people in your homes. It's often done for visiting sporting teams from overseas schools etc

SkeptoBabe

[SkeptoBabe]

Originally posted by shanek


I'd love to, but I just checked prices on flights to Australia, and they're over $3,000!

Believe me I know how expensive it is but it shouldn't be $3000USD. It was $2500 AUD for us so that should work out to something like $2000 US for you. Check discount economy fares with Qantas. There is a facility on the Qantas website that allows you to search for the cheapest fares on the dates you want to fly.

SkeptoBabe

[Paul C. Anagnostopoulos]

BA said:
My thanks go to Hal Bidlack, for making me look even better in comparison.
In comparison to what?

~~ Paul

[Girl 6]

Originally posted by SkeptoBabe


Believe me I know how expensive it is but it shouldn't be $3000USD. It was $2500 AUD for us so that should work out to something like $2000 US for you. Check discount economy fares with Qantas. There is a facility on the Qantas website that allows you to search for the cheapest fares on the dates you want to fly.

SkeptoBabe

Yeah, but $2000USD is STILL expensive! :)

G6

[shanek]

Originally posted by Wyvern
So, does "to billet" mean to provide lodging?? I've never heard that term used before.

Hardly matters, compared to the price of the plane ticket.

Hey Shane: we'll just stuff you into a large suitcase and check you.

Just give me some air holes.

[shanek]

Originally posted by SkeptoBabe
Believe me I know how expensive it is but it shouldn't be $3000USD. It was $2500 AUD for us so that should work out to something like $2000 US for you. Check discount economy fares with Qantas. There is a facility on the Qantas website that allows you to search for the cheapest fares on the dates you want to fly.

Not bad...Qantas seems to have some flights around $1500. Still beyond what I'll probably be able to afford, though.

But I'd love to have you billet me someday! (I just love it when things like that sound dirty...)

[Wyvern]

Originally posted by shanek


Hardly matters, compared to the price of the plane ticket.



True enough. But I very much appreciate the offer. And if any of us are able to swing it, this will be a big help.

[Wyvern]

Originally posted by shanek


But I'd love to have you billet me someday! (I just love it when things like that sound dirty...)

If you come to Los Angeles, I'll billet you . . . :D

[shanek]

Originally posted by Wyvern


If you come to Los Angeles, I'll billet you . . . :D :jaw:
[hurriedly checking prices of plane tickets to LA]

[UnrepentantSinner]

The list of people I want to thank or express appreciation of would go for pages and pages of text. Trust me, if you're not mentioned and you're reading this thread, you were appreciated by me.

I've already mentioned the JREF admin, staffers and volunteers in the "TAM2 its over" thread so I won't list the names again but as I've said previously... there's a reason why I chose to spend my vacation at TAM rather than in Cancun.

Girl6 {kowtow} for allowing me to share space with her. Her offer to let me room with her was magnanimous and unexpected. She put up with my snoring and stinky feet like no woman or any human for that matter has since my long time friend Jami has (and I assume that's because I paid for everything during our trips).

Skepchicks. I see that Cleopatra takes umbrage to the term but I will never stop using it. While sounding like a dispariaging term it is actually a term of endearment and respect. I LOVE having women involved in the movement, especially such beautiful, intelligent and funny women. Strippers, Show Girls and waitresses abounded in Vegas but I would rather spend 10 minutes politely socializing with Skepchicks than an entire night of passion with any of them.

Wyvern specifically. We didn't spend much time hanging out but the times we did were a pleasure for a smarta$$ like myself. She's got the devil in her. Whether it was messing with me during presentations, making me walk 10 steps behind her or letting me assault her with my octopus during dinner Sunday. You're good salt Wyvern.

Our non-American members (and yes that includes our Canadian friends). When I had the Genesis for the skeperson telethon in late '02 it was to get Luciana to TAM. I wanted to see more women and non-Americans there. I'm so happy that Patricio, Claus, Luciana, Exarch, Chaos, our Australian contingent and Stimpy (who I saw, but did not meet) made it.

Julia Sweeney. My sole interaction with her was making a joke while Phil Plait was taking a photo before the P&T show but her weekend long presence was value added to an already incredible weekend.

Penn and Teller. Penn's contribution of the Slammer tours was wonderful. Kudos for him. I enjoyed hearing Teller speak. The flap about Penn's "retard" comments aside it was awesome to have them involved.

Drs. Scott and Peoples. While not an atheist/Christian/skeptic issue per se, Creationism is a definate threat to science and rationality in America. I was glad to see their presentations.

Hal. I'm growing increasingly dissatisfied with Hal's administration of this foum but there's no denying that he rocks. Hal, I must admit, assuming you read this thread, that it was me that shouted, "Oh Dear God Make It Stop" before Bob Park's presentation. I do love your puns, but eventually they get to me. Did I mention you rock?

There are so many more I want to mention by name but my fingers are getting numb. Thank you all for making TAM2 a memorable weekend. :)

[MoeFaux]

Oh boy, so many people to thank.

LINDA: Is there anyone nicer in the world? She worked so very hard and the conference was a smashing success. I love her for her kindness and what a wonderful friend she's been to me. She made my stay at the JREF great, and well, there woudln't have been a TAM2 if it wasn't for her.

RANDI: What an inspiration. What else can I say? I adore him.

HAL: I got a hug from him! Maybe I disagree with a lot of what he believes, but I still get along with him and I think he's terrific. What a great job he did at TAM! Thanks, Hal.

KITTY: I've been added on as the black sheep in the family. It means the world to me. Thank you, Kitty.

BADAST: Thanks for the milkshake. And for giving me a good flirting duel.

CLEOPATRA: Yeah, I know she wasn't there, but her heart was with us, and I have to thank her for her instructions that enabled me to do something quite fun.

MERCUTIO: Thanks for the kiss. Actually, make that, kisses. Oh yes. And more than that, thank you for your sweet words. You made me feel great. Also, thanks for letting me comment about how hot your wife is without threatening to punch me.

SKEPTICSCOTT: Thank you for putting the activity list together. Thank you for the chocolate challenge. Thank you for the cards. And for going to the screening. Now we have a great inside joke. You're a sweetheart. Snap a 'crat!

MARC & US: The first forum members I got to meet. Thanks for being there in the lobby that afternoon. Thanks for recognizing me.

PAUL: Thanks for my namebadge. And for dancing with me, even after I insisted I couldn't dance. I had a blast dancing with you.

G6: Thanks for letting me check out your legs and flirt with you.

RENATA: Thanks for being there. You're a beauty and a dear heart. Thank you for the slumber party and for getting the girls together. And dear lord! Thank you for introducing me to that wonderful poppyseed cake! Holy crap, that stuff is good!

ELECTRIC MONK: I know I need to thank you for something, but I can't remember what. I know I wanted to thank you for being there and hanging out in the lobby with me. But what else? Eh, I owe you something.

LUCIANA: Thank you for your smile. You're brilliant. Your personality outshone your dress.

EXARCH: Thanks for the delicious chocolate!

PIRATE LAD: Thank you for being there at Marilyns. Thank you for your laugh. I get to cracking up just when I think of you laughing that night.

EVIL YETI: Thanks for your companionship. And for the lap dance. And for dinner. And for putting up with me, even after I elbowed you in the balls. Thanks Yeti.

BYZANTINE MAGPIE & SEGNOSAUR: Ah crickey, good times of yore, eh? Thanks so much for being my dates for our medieval dinner. And yeah, thanks for fronting me dinner! And for the candy and my bookmark. You guys were a pleasure to spend the evening with. We were the last three forum folks for TAM. Thanks for the company.

Thanks to all the men who let me flirt with them or otherwise molest them, from feeling up QUINN in his velvet jacket to seriously violating DOUBTs personal space.

Thanks to the skepchicks for letting me be in your club. Finally, I'm one of the cool kids.

Thanks to everyone who rode in my car with me, I had fun driving people around.

And well, thanks to everyone who made me feel special. I was so flattered by people coming up and asking, "Are you Moe?". Really, thanks to all the TAM attending forum members. You guys were wonderful. I'm so very glad that I got to meet all of you. It was fantastic.

If I've forgotten anyone, it's because I'm an insensitive jerk. (I can't use the blonde excuse anymore). I'm sure I've forgotten many people. I'm sorry. I'll add you on as I think of you.

See you all next year!

[shanek]

And thank you, Moe, for BALL PEEN HAMMERS. :D

[shanek]

Originally posted by Wyvern
If you come to Los Angeles, I'll billet you . . . :D

Okay, even if you hadn't deserved a poem before, you really deserve one now!

In neither Anaeid by Virgil
Nor 20,000 Leagues by Verne
Was there ever a thing quite so fancifuly grand
As the lovely, vivacious Wyvern

And oh would the great Grecian artists
Have made ten thousand and five urns
To place there for ages the image they'd seen
If only they had met Wyvern

I'd give her the largest bouquet
Or the most tall and high fern
Just to see one more time that beautiful smile
That lights up the face of Wyvern

And now it's my one goal in life
To make it for certain I've earned
The sharp and persistent affection and ardor
Of the ravishing skepchick Wyvern!

;)

(I hope you appreciate it&mdash;that was even harder than rhyming "Luciana"! :D)

[Paul C. Anagnostopoulos]

Moe said:
PAUL: Thanks for my namebadge. And for dancing with me, even after I insisted I couldn't dance. I had a blast dancing with you.
Huh? Dancing? But we didn . . . oh, right, dancing. Good codeword. ;) ;)

~~ Paul

[The Bad Astronomer]

Hmmm... I find that I am having a hard time putting faces to some of the forum names here. I know I met pretty much everyone, but now the images I have are a jumble. Maybe what we need is a webpage of annotated headshots of everyone.

By the way, just for everyone's knowing, I was able to embarrass MoeFaux not just once, but twice. So anything's possible.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

So far no one has thanked me for not raising an army of zombies to descend upon the hotel and kill everyone.

I could have done that you know.

[bignickel]

It's true folks.

I've seen Scrut's zombies over at Ted Drew's Frozen Custard.

They're all mouthing "must have strawberry concrete....."

[Finella]

How could I forget?!

thank you to Renata for her culinary research and locating the Lotus of Siam! Never have I eaten so well and so cheaply -- and never before have I eaten at the same restaurant for three nights in the same week!

And thank you to the wait staff there for putting up with our large crowd there on Friday night, as well as my husband's picky tastes. :P

---,---'--{@

[CFLarsen]

Originally posted by Finella
How could I forget?!

thank you to Renata for her culinary research and locating the Lotus of Siam! Never have I eaten so well and so cheaply -- and never before have I eaten at the same restaurant for three nights in the same week!

And thank you to the wait staff there for putting up with our large crowd there on Friday night, as well as my husband's picky tastes. :P

---,---'--{@

I agree. We ate there 3 times in 4 days, and we paid but a pittance, compared to both quality and quantity. The first evening, we each paid $20 (tips included), and the following evening, we paid $24 - but then, we had an "expensive" dish, too. The third was, of course, where we almost filled the entire restaurant (the place is tiny).

Courses worthy of mention: The Nam Kao Tod (grilled sour pork suasage, ground up with lime, green onion, fresh chile, and ginger, served with crispy rice), the Northern Larb (spicy meat), duck in red curry, and - of course, their coconut icecream with rice and mango.

The place is highly recommended by Frommers (http://www.frommers.com/destinations/moredining.cfm?h_id=51887), Chowhound (http://www.chowhound.com/southwest/boards/southwest/messages/10209.html) and a lot others. I can't even find a review that is bad.

The place is in a small mall, it looks like just another run-down oriental sloppy restaurant, but you are fooled. Las Vegas is full of magicians, and you will find a culinary one here.

[Chaos]

Originally posted by Finella
How could I forget?!

thank you to Renata for her culinary research and locating the Lotus of Siam! Never have I eaten so well and so cheaply -- and never before have I eaten at the same restaurant for three nights in the same week!

And thank you to the wait staff there for putting up with our large crowd there on Friday night, as well as my husband's picky tastes. :P

---,---'--{@

Unfortunately, I cannot second the thanks for finding the restaurant, as my taste-buds have just recently recovered from this adventure :D (when Thais say "spicy", they mean "really, really, really spicy") :p

Otherwise, it was a nice evening.

[Finella]

Originally posted by CFLarsen


Courses worthy of mention: The Nam Kao Tod (grilled sour pork suasage, ground up with lime, green onion, fresh chile, and ginger, served with crispy rice)...

ooooh, ::drools:: I sure could eat some of that now. It was sooo tasty. There was cilantro in it too, I recall.

Any cheap flights to Vegas out there?

[BigShoeStu]

Hello everybody! I want to thank the forum members, whos names I've already forgotten (sorry) for inviting me to be a part of the JREF Forum.

I was at TAM2 and had a real blast. I was the tallest guy there. Being 6'-7" that's usually how I am remembered wherever I go. Anyhow, I met a few guys at the Tuscany bar one night after TAM2 and they made me feel very welcome to join this forum. Unfortunately, I'm horrible with names so hopefully you know who you are.

Thanks again and I look forward to someday picking a cool custom avatar myself. 2 posts down, 48 to go.

BigShoeStu

[bignickel]

What happened to Stubacca?

[exarch]

Originally posted by Chaos
Unfortunately, I cannot second the thanks for finding the restaurant, as my taste-buds have just recently recovered from this adventure :D (when Thais say "spicy", they mean "really, really, really spicy") :p

Otherwise, it was a nice evening.Oh come on, that wasn't spicy. We had a couple of #5 dishes, (and I personally thought Renata's #4 was spicier). And the scale went all the way to 10 :D

[BigShoeStu]

Ah yes, Bignickle! That was one of you! I like the name Stubacca too, but decided on BigShoeStu this time. My next big decision will be my avatar. Should I go with the picture of a Sumo or the more risque Man Thong?

[scifair]

Thanks to Hal B. for the cleaver poems used to introduce the speakers.

[scifair]

GAK!

My first post and I demonstrate that I am illiterate. I was hoping to surprize you all with that later. cleaver-no clever-yes

mea culpa (part of my marraige vow, by the way)

[Electric Monk]

Hi scifair, and welcome.

You should take note that there is an Edit button at the bottom of your post which will allow you, for up to an hour afterward, to edit your posts and eliminate the embarrasing evidence.

Such as liking Hal's poetry.

"Cleaver", on the other hand, might be quite apt. As the Vogon poet anonymous once said...

[Content deleted by galactic president as harmful to sentient and semi-sentient beings]

--James

[bignickel]

Originally posted by BigShoeStu
Ah yes, Bignickle! That was one of you! I like the name Stubacca too, but decided on BigShoeStu this time. My next big decision will be my avatar. Should I go with the picture of a Sumo or the more risque Man Thong?

Well, if you want the Man Thing as your avatar, who am I to quibble?

[Wyvern]

Originally posted by shanek


Okay, even if you hadn't deserved a poem before, you really deserve one now!

In neither Anaeid by Virgil

snip . . .


Ahhhhhh . . . So sweet! I've been out of commission for almost a week, so I just now saw this . . . You have no idea how this has made my day. :) :) :)



And I mean it about billeting you :D

[shanek]

Originally posted by Wyvern
Ahhhhhh . . . So sweet! I've been out of commission for almost a week, so I just now saw this . . . You have no idea how this has made my day. :) :) :)

Yes, we'd been wondering in PalTalk what had happened. Glad to see you back!

And I mean it about billeting you :D

Any time, sweetie...any time. :D

[exarch]

Originally posted by Wyvern
Ahhhhhh . . . So sweet! I've been out of commission for almost a week, so I just now saw this . . . You have no idea how this has made my day. :) :) :)Yeah, what happened to you? We missed you on tRSotTTWND as well ;)
(I know I did)

[SkeptoBabe]

Originally posted by shanek


Yes, we'd been wondering in PalTalk what had happened. Glad to see you back!



Any time, sweetie...any time. :D

Would you two like us to leave you alone? :D

I'm glad I've been able to introduce a new word into the "vocabularia erotica"

SkeptoBabe

[Byzantine Magpie]

Well, folks, this is the first chance I've had to post comments to this board since TAM 2, so I hope you'll forgive me for my apparent reticence until now.

As with others in this thread, thanks to Randi and everyone at JREF (Linda, Karl, Hal (and anyone else I missed!)) for putting this wonderful event on. Speaking as someone who had to travel across the world’s largest ocean to get there, IT WAS WORTH IT!

Thanks to all the speakers at TAM 2. I took lotsa notes and have been spending a lot of my spare time since getting back typing them all up. This includes an article which will appear in the Autumn 2004 edition of Australia’s “The Skeptic” magazine (with some of my photos if I can get them scanned).

Thanks to Thornhill and Segnosaur for being willing to share their rooms with a fellow member of the Commonwealth.

Thanks to Electric Monk, Patricio Elicer, Segnosaur and MarkB for being great travelling companions on the Monday jaunt to Hoover Dam.

Thanks to Moe Faux for joining Segnosaur and I at the show at the Excalibur on the Tuesday night, for driving us around before and after, and generally being great company (of yore, crikey!).

Thanks to Dinonychus for driving me (and others) to Red Rock Canyon on Sunday. And to people like Unrepentant Sinner, Girl 6 and Sidhedevil who made me feel so welcome. (Oh dear, I'm sure I've forgotten someone!)

Oh heck, thanks to the lot of you, you’re all great! Seriously, though, it’s a wonderful feeling to be able to mix with so many such intelligent, thoughtful, pleasant and funny people.

For those who are interested, I took a helicopter trip to the Grand Canyon on the Tuesday. Absolutely awesome! I also managed to get some spectacular photos. I was also impressed when the pilot related the scientific theories for the Canyon’s origin, but a bit less impressed when he also mentioned the creationist theory.

On the Wednesday I drove out to Red Rock Canyon again to spend a bit more time there and take some more photos. It was certainly worth the second visit.

Incidentally, one of Australian TV’s breakfast shows is currently coming to us live from Las Vegas (TV series called “Las Vegas” is due to start next week on the same network). It’s funny to see so many recognisable features back on TV.

And I don’t know whether it’s telling tales, but I understand there’s a chance the Bad Astronomer might be heading Down Under for the next Australian Skeptics Conference in Sydney in November (a bit warmer than Las Vegas in January!). So maybe a few of you North American skeptics could come along as well…