NorCal JREF get-together with Ian Rowland

[Quinn]

Attention anyone in or near the Bay Area: I recently got an email from noted mentalist and skeptic Ian Rowland, saying he'll be visiting San Francisco in the near future. I asked if he would be interested joining a group of local JREFers for dinner and conversation, and he graciously obliged. So I would like to officially announce plans for the next NorCal JREF get-together, with Mr. Rowland as our guest of honor. :) :) :)

He'll be in town from June 30 through July 8, but he said he's still working out his schedule and doesn't yet know when the best day would be. In the meantime, all those who would like to attend, speak up and let us know which of those days are best for you. Obviously Ian's schedule will take precedence, but in the event he has more than one evening open to choose from, we'll go with the one that can accomodate the most people. The location has yet to be determined, but will likely be somewhere in San Francisco proper since that's where he's staying.

For those who aren't familiar with the name Ian Rowland, he is a world-class mentalist and magician from England, and a champion of the skeptic cause. He wrote The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading, which is widely considered the bible of the subject and has made life more difficult for many "psychic" readers. He also performed the much talked-about cold reading demonstration on ABC's Primetime last year, which earned him a good deal of wrath from those who would rather keep the public in the dark about such things. In addition, he's also one of the world's foremost experts on spoon bending. For a sample of his writing and his outlook, take a look at this essay (http://www.ian-rowland.com/Vault/FunJohnEdward.htm) comparing John Edward transcripts to known cold reading techniques. While I've never met him in person, my small bit of correspondence with him as well as everything I've ever read by or about him (including the hysterical tirades leveled against him by other, lesser mentalists and "readers" after his cold reading demo) indicate that he's a charming, witty, cordial, talented man whom any skeptic would be delighted to spend an evening with.

So, who's in?

Quinn

[richardm]

Originally posted by Quinn
While I've never met him in person, my small bit of correspondence with him as well as everything I've ever read by or about him (including the hysterical tirades leveled against him by other, lesser mentalists and "readers" after his cold reading demo) indicate that he's a charming, witty, cordial, talented man whom any skeptic would be delighted to spend an evening with.


I was lucky enough to meet him at a lecture in April, and can confirm all the above. If you get a chance to go along, don't miss it!

[Jesse]

Quinn, I see that you have quite a number of posts, and yet I can scarcely recall seeing any of them. In any event, welcome to The James Randi Educational Foundation!

[richardm]

Originally posted by Jesse
Quinn, I see that you have quite a number of posts, and yet I can scarcely recall seeing any of them. In any event, welcome to The James Randi Educational Foundation!

Hey! I thought you'd been suspended :confused:

Anyway, a timely bump for Quinn's get-together.

[kookbreaker]

Hey, I'm game. 7/4 is the only day that is no good for me.

[Quinn]

Shameless bump in an effort to keep the thread afloat amongst all the drama in here.

KB, glad you're in. Other NorCal people, where y'at?

Jesse, thanks. It's always nice to be welcomed to a place you've been hanging around for for a year and a half. :D Guess I've been busy and not posting much in the couple weeks since you've joined us.

Quinn

[kookbreaker]

Originally posted by Quinn
Shameless bump in an effort to keep the thread afloat amongst all the drama in here.

KB, glad you're in. Other NorCal people, where y'at?


Aptos, dude. I've met you at both G6 arranged gatherings.

[RichardR]

That would be interesting. So far, I'm free all of those dates.

[Beleth]

Boulder Creek here. Kookbreaker, maybe you and I can carpool, assuming you don't mind traveling Highway 9.

Monday and Wednesday are best for me.

[Clancie]

Well, you're lucky in SF, but us So Californians don't need to miss out completely.

After Rowland's appearance cold reading on PrimeTime last year, he said he hoped to do a lecture/demo at Caltech. Apparently, he's got that scheduled in June here in Pasadena:

Sun June 22nd - I'm giving a public lecture at Caltech "Mind power - fact, fiction and fakery". Info and tickets: see Michael Shermer at the Skeptics Society, email 'SKEPTICMAG@aol.com' or phone (626) 794-3119. Only a small fee at the door.

[Roadtoad]

I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in!

Okay, I'll be there. (I don't know what days I can attend, but I'll be there for part of it at least!)

And in case you didn't get the point, Quinn:

I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in! I'm in!

[dharlow]

As far as Rowland's being a "champion of the skeptic cause" this could be debatable. He certainly plays the role of skeptic, but not the "organized skeptic", as I have termed previously. He states in the link provided by Quinn that he does not tend to agree with the styles adopted by CSICOP or Skeptic magazine( and in fact makes reference to CSICOP's Mars Effect debactle). As a mentalist, though, he is aware of the vast amount of trickery that could be performed on the public. He seems to be a "loner" of sorts, and his approach, and his willingness to actually serve as a control "cold reader" is far more valuable than any heresey I see in the previously mentioned magazines.

[SteveGrenard]

dharlow: his willingness to actually serve as a control "cold reader" is far more valuable than any heresey I see in the previously mentioned magazines ....

Where and with whom has he served as a control for cold reading? Thanks.

[dharlow]

Steve,

He did it on the ABC special. Now you can debate about the logistics of control, and how "well" he did, but he took a stand, did his performance, and took a lot of heat from it from the mentalist (psychic entertainer) community. I respect him for that. Regardless of his performance, he performed what many on this forum promote as an unfalsifiable hypothesis. I dare not bring up my thread to show how many here are ignorant of this technique, from Tvtalk about Jamy Ian Swiss' performance at the Amazing Meeting, do I?

[SteveGrenard]

I thought you meant he served as a control for cold reading in an experimental study of puportedly genuine mediums and did as well. In this example, as I recall, he was really not pitted against purportedly genuine mediums but rather, against some of the sitter's credulity. My vision of "serving as a control" would be to have him and a purportedly genuine medium read a series of sitters who then rate each as to accuracy. Has he ever done this?

Thanks....

[TLN]

Originally posted by Quinn
So, who's in?

I am. I'll be working in the city on those dates so any should be good for me.

Nice work Quinn. :)

[TLN]

Originally posted by SteveGrenard
My vision of "serving as a control" would be to have him and a purportedly genuine medium read a series of sitters who then rate each as to accuracy. Has he ever done this?

Has anyone, in any study?

[RC]

I'd be interested depending on the date. Can't do it on July 6th or 8th due to Fleetwood Mac concerts, but don't schedule around me.

[Goryus]

I'd love to come! :D

[Quinn]

All right, I'm glad there's so much interest.

Kookbreaker, sure I remember you. My "where y'at?" was directed at the other NorCalers who I knew were out there but hadn't responded yet.

Roadtoad, I'm not sure what you're getting at. Are you in or not? ;)

RC, I'll see what we can do to work around your (multiple?) Fleetwood Mac concerts.

This should be great! I'm looking forward to meething those of you who haven't been to one of the get-togethers yet. I'll keep the board informed as things develop.

Quinn

[Quinn]

Shameless bump since the time is drawing near and Ian has joined us on the forum. Schedule-wise I'm hoping to avoid the 2nd, 3rd and 4th, as I'll be out of town those days. Anyone else interested?

Quinn

[Girl 6]

Memememememe! :D

I can't make the 4th, though. Any other night is fine!

G6

[RichardR]

Will this be in The City?

[a_unique_person]

Originally posted by RC
I'd be interested depending on the date. Can't do it on July 6th or 8th due to Fleetwood Mac concerts, but don't schedule around me.

You're going to two concerts two days apart? They can't be that good.

[SRW]

Originally posted by kookbreaker


Aptos, dude. I've met you at both G6 arranged gatherings.

Aptos? I work a Cabrillo.

[SRW]

Originally posted by Beleth
Boulder Creek here. Kookbreaker, maybe you and I can carpool, assuming you don't mind traveling Highway 9.

Monday and Wednesday are best for me.


Roland is also going to be in San Jose Wednesday the 2nd, if SF does not work out we can shoot fo that.

[JesFine]

I may be out of town on the 3rd-6th, but I am definitely interested.

[kookbreaker]

Originally posted by SRW


Aptos? I work a Cabrillo.

College?

[Girl 6]

Originally posted by kookbreaker


College?

Yes... It's Cabrillo College.

Quinn? Any word on a preferred date for us to all get together? And, where?

G6

[SRW]

Originally posted by Girl 6


Yes... It's Cabrillo College.

Quinn? Any word on a preferred date for us to all get together? And, where?

G6

Yep thats the place right down on Soquel. (but I live down in Marina).

[kookbreaker]

Originally posted by SRW


Yep thats the place right down on Soquel. (but I live down in Marina).

There's a fun commute!

[Quinn]

Originally posted by Girl 6
Quinn? Any word on a preferred date for us to all get together? And, where?
G6

I'm waiting to hear back from Ian regarding his schedule and restaurant preference. It will probably be somewhere in the city, since I believe that's where he's staying. Will let you know when I hear anything, unless he just posts it here first.

Quinn

[SRW]

Originally posted by kookbreaker


There's a fun commute!


It's a great commute, great view and because I'm going opposite traffic it's faster than my old commute to Monterey.

[luvtinayothers]

Ian's giving a lecture at Caltech in Pasadena this Sunday >
I plan on attending! :D

[Ian Rowland]

Originally posted by SRW
Roland is also going to be in San Jose Wednesday the 2nd, if SF does not work out we can shoot fo that.
Actually, I'm only in San Jose for one evening to give a lecture for magicians. Sorry, but it's strictly a magicians-only paid ticket lecture.

I will get back to Quinn and the rest of you re date and time, but can't do this just at the minute.

I look forward to meeting up with you all, and I'm very gratified by your interest. However, I can't say I'm entirely confident that Quinn's very nice description of me bears any relation to the reality!

- Ian

[Girl 6]

Originally posted by Ian Rowland

Actually, I'm only in San Jose for one evening to give a lecture for magicians. Sorry, but it's strictly a magicians-only paid ticket lecture.

I will get back to Quinn and the rest of you re date and time, but can't do this just at the minute.

I look forward to meeting up with you all, and I'm very gratified by your interest. However, I can't say I'm entirely confident that Quinn's very nice description of me bears any relation to the reality!

- Ian

Booooooooooooooo!!! :D

Well, okay. I'll spare you my whip this time. ;) However, you MUST consider having dinner with us. We won't let you leave Northern California otherwise! :D

So, I look forward to an announcement from Quinn regarding that. :)

G6

[RC]

Originally posted by a_unique_person


You're going to two concerts two days apart? They can't be that good.

Oh yes they can! :D That's only 2 of the 5 shows I'm going to on this tour. Nothing makes me happier than getting my Stevie fix.

Quinn, I'm still interested in this get-together and would love to meet Ian Rowland. His website is great and I particularly enjoyed his guide to London. Please keep us informed when this starts to gel.

[SRW]

Any new news on this?

[UnrepentantSinner]

Feh!

Ian, I'm glad you're trying to connect with NoCal skeptics and all, but this thread is diverting attention away from the other you related thread and the pressing question.....


..did anyone get pics of Renata!!!

[Girl 6]

Hey Quinn! What's the haps?

:D

G6

[Quinn]

Haven't heard yet. I imagine Ian is keeping quite busy in his travels, but rest assured you'll know as soon as anything is worked out.

Quinn

[renata]

I know that Ian is very busy, and I think his access to a computer is intermittent at best.

However, if you guys can arrange to meet him, you are in for a treat- he is a remarkable man and great company. Just make sure to pick a place with decent beer :)

Oh, and although I tried to hide he did take a pciture of me, but I will ask him not to show it to you guys - gotta keep some mystery.

[SRW]

Literature and arts? Ok I guess its a stretch but better than flame wars.

[Vorticity]

DAMN.
IT.

Alas, this is the first I've seen of this thread... and I'm going to be gone for two weeks out to Colorado during the whole viable period. And here I'd been waiting for the next NorCal get-together...
Oh well, there's always the monthly meeting of the East Bay Atheists! :p

[Quinn]

Okay folks, here's the scoop: This is sort of last minute, but it looks like the best time for Ian to get together with us is going to be Monday, June 30th. Yes, that's the day after tomorrow (all right, technically it's tomorrow by now). We're looking at getting together between 7:00 and 7:30 PM at a Mexican restaurant in the Mission district. Unfortunately, I don't know the name or address of the restaurant because my answering machine garbled that precise portion of the message, and it's too late to call back tonight. But I'll post it tomorrow (Sunday) morning or early afternoon as soon as possible. I hope those who wanted to come can make it on this short notice.

Stay tuned...

Quinn

[renata]

Lucky people :)

All I ask is that you guys post about the meeting here :)

[arcticpenguin]

Originally posted by renata
Lucky people :)

All I ask is that you guys post about the meeting here :)
They can't do that. All information pertaining to Ian Rowland is copyrighted by him. They could be sued if they so much as related that they had attended a performance of his.

[renata]

Originally posted by arcticpenguin

They can't do that. All information pertaining to Ian Rowland is copyrighted by him. They could be sued if they so much as related that they had attended a performance of his.


Just the photos! :)

I posted a long description of the lecture, and not a peep from him!

And by the way, after I met Ian I specifically asked he does not refer me to anything other than "brilliant, witty, warm, wonderful gorgeous and all around perfect human being".

So when he says those things it is because I paid him to do that. :) Best 25 cents I ever spent. ;)

[Quinn]

Okay, here's the deal: we're meeting at a restaurant called La Rondala at 901 Valencia at 20th St. I've never been there, but it's supposed to be good and cheap.

Plan to arrive around 7-ish. It's the Mission, so parking is tricky, although hopefully it won't be too bad on a Monday evening. I'll be soming right from work and will probably show up closer to 7:30 than 7:00, but don't wait for me.

If those who are going could post here or PM me and let me know, I'll give the place a call tomorrow and tell them how many to expect. Look forward to seeing you all there.

Quinn

[Beleth]

I need more than a nine-hour warning. Maybe next time.

[renata]

Originally posted by Beleth
I need more than a nine-hour warning. Maybe next time.


As somebody who met Ian Rowland for a little bit after the lecture a week ago I can say that he is delightful company.

I am just saying that if you guys can make it, don't miss the chance. :)

[RichardR]

Hey Josh:

What part of La Rondala at 901 Valencia at 20th St. 7 ish, Monday, did I get wrong? ;)

:confused:

[RC]

Oh great, it's 8:13 pm on the 30th and I've just read this for the first time.

[Girl 6]

Eh, me too... :(

{sigh}

[Quinn]

Originally posted by RichardR
What part of La Rondala at 901 Valencia at 20th St. 7 ish, Monday, did I get wrong?

How long did you stay? I ended up getting there about 7:25, and Ian just a couple minutes later. Did we just miss each other?

To everyone else, very sorry for the last minute notice. I wish I could have given more of a heads up, but with Ian's hectic travel schedule that was the best that could be done.

At any rate, it ended up being a thoroughly enjoyable, although conspicuously JREF-free, evening. Details to follow after I get some sleep...

Quinn

[RichardR]

Originally posted by Quinn
How long did you stay? I ended up getting there about 7:25, and Ian just a couple minutes later. Did we just miss each other?I guess so. The restaurant was shut (just the bar open), and I didn't see anyone I knew. I left about 7.20. No problem.