[dlv] January updates - DLV 2009 ...

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This is the Diva Las Vegas 2009 announcement mailing list.
This list contains only announcements and high importance items.

If you no longer desire to receive this list, see list removal
instructions below.
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In this mailing:

Welcome (back) everybody
Suggested hotel update
Returnee re-registration is open
Things to come
Behavior and Dress
Restroom situation
Printed schedule
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Welcome (back) everybody:

Welcome to those who just joined the list!

Welcome back to those who have been with us!

Hope to see all of you in May!

If you have any questions or concerns, please let us know.

This is the "kick-off" mailing for Diva Las Vegas 2009. Quite a
bit of information appears below, so please read carefully, and
let us know if there's anything that requires a clarification.

Our next general mailing (1-2 weeks from now) will cover things
such as our suggested hotels, Big Sisters, room sharing, ride
sharing, etc.

We now have well over 850 on our mailing list, the largest
audience we've had of all times! We're looking forward to seeing
as many of you as possible this coming May.
. . . . .

Plans are proceeding on target for DLV 2009. One emphasis in
2009 will be on keeping things fresh and intriguing, with a
good mix of old favorite activities, many with new twists,
and things we've never done before, and, of course, keeping
costs under control, with a principle of having at least one
reasonably-priced option in every evening timeslot.

Another emphasis this year will be on hospitality and the
welcoming and inclusion of newcomers and first-time returnees.
. . . . .

Headcount:

This is the subject that everybody always asks about! :)

We will be posting registration numbers and projections as the
registrations come in. It's still far too early for any kind of
an absolute count prediction.

It's been speculated that we will have a slightly lower headcount
for 2009 than we've had in recent years.

Why? Economy! Numbers for most events in Las Vegas are predicted
to be down over the next several months due to the state of the
world economy.

However, if the number of early return registrations is any
indicator, our numbers will be in line with what we've been
seeing the past few years. This year we hit the validated
headcount mark of 60 about 8 hours after the re-registration
mailings were sent out! This is compared to last year when we
hit that 60 mark about 20 hours after the mailings were sent
out.

Again, we're expecting a varied mix of attendees, people from
all points on the TG spectrum from those just peeking out of
the closet to those who are fully transitioned, SO's, friends,
admirers, etc.

One important note about attendance numbers. You will never see
the entire group in any one place at any one time. Our attendees
will be coming and going all week.

Feedback has indicated, over and over, that our attendees want
at least one large function which gathers as many of our people
as is possible. Yes, this will happen, twice!

We will have two large maximum-attendance functions, the Welcome
Meet-And-Greet and the Farewell Bash, on Monday and Saturday of
DLV week respectively. These are the two best opportunities you
will have to meet the majority of the others.
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Attending DLV:

For those who are new, the steps you need to take if you want to
attend can be summed up:

1. Read the web site (http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/) to be sure
you know what Diva Las Vegas is, what it is not, and if DLV is
something you would want to attend.

2. Register for DLV. Re-registration for returnees is now open
(see instructions below), and registration for newcomers who are
members of this list will begin on or about February first.

3. Make your travel and/or hotel reservations, if necessary.

4. Show up and have a great time!

Simple, isn't it? :)
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Our mailings:

You can expect a mailing to come out every 1-2 weeks until around
the middle of April, depending on the need. Mailings will almost
always be made during the weekend.

Beginning around April 15, mailings will come out as needed,
sticking to the weekend schedule as much as possible.
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Suggested hotel update:

Another hotel has been added to our list of suggested hotels
for DLV 2009.

The Sahara, which has been a DLV mainstay since the late 1990s,
has opened up reservations during the DLV period and is offering
very attractive rates of $50 weekdays and $130 weekends on their
web site. These rates are lower than they were in 2007 and 2008.

Information on the Sahara appears here:

http://www.saharavegas.com/

Information on our suggested hotels for DLV 2009 appears here:

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dlv2009/2009hotels.html
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Returnee re-registration is open:

Re-registration for returnees is now open.

In most cases you will be able to use express re-registration,
which only takes a minute or so.

Most of you who previously attended will receive a personalized
clickable express re-registration link via e-mail shortly, if
not already.

If you don't receive this, if it does not seem to work for you,
if you're in a hurry, or if you just want to do it the hard
way :) use the url:

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/register2009.html

If you have any difficulty registering on line, or if you see
any kind of unexpected result or error message, please report
it. If anything is wrong, e-mail dlv@geekbabe.com and we will
check out the error and help you get registered.

Registration for newcomers who are members of this list will
begin on or about February 1.

Please remember, when you register, depending on circumstances,
you should receive either a confirmation e-mail or a validation
e-mail very shortly afterwards.

IN THE EVENT YOU RECEIVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING VIA E-MAIL WHEN YOU
REGISTER, SOMETHING IS WRONG AND WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT IT! If
you don't receive anything, write to dlv@geekbabe.com and
explain the circumstances.

We cannot overemphasize this! Each year we print this over
and over in bold type, and a few people miss it.

The most common problems we see, and we do see a number of
them each year, are mis-typing your e-mail address when you
register and undeliverable e-mail due to "mailbox full", "user
not accepting mail", etc.

If you have any questions, concerns, or issues regarding
registration, please let us know. Just reply to this mailing.
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Things to come:

Here's a summary of our timetable regarding some milestones that
we will pass in the next few months:

January 1: Re-registration opens. This just happened. Most of you
who attended DLV between 2001 and 2008 who did not have an e-mail
address change should have received your re-registration notices.

February 1: DLV 2009 registration opens for newcomers who are on
this mailing list. If you're reading this via e-mail, this does
include you.

March 1: General DLV 2009 registration opens. Please note that
you must be registered to be admitted to DLV 2009 functions.

(On or about) April 15: Activity sign-up begins. Those who are
registered will be sent a mailing with a clickable link to a
screen for all optional activities which require a hoop-jump
or a headcount. This is a one-stop-shop for all of these.

(On or about) May 6: Registration closes, activity sign-up
closes, Large Final Mailing is sent out.

May 11: DLV! :)
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Behavior and Dress:

Due to our mainstream orientation, we have certain behavior,
dress, and restroom guidelines, which all attendees are expected
to observe, both in practice and in attitude.

As far as dress is concerned at our last few events, with very
rare exception it's been classy and commendable.

A summary of our behavior, dress, and restroom guidelines
appears on the web at:

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dress/nutshell.html

This gives an overview of the guidelines, as well as what you
can expect, and what will be expected of you.

Your understanding and cooperation are appreciated.
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Restroom situation:

We don't wish to scare anyone off, or to annoy you with repeated
admonitions, but we do need to remind everyone that over the
past two years we've had some fairly significant restroom
incidents, resulting in DLV attendees being told to leave casino
properties, which happened as a result of failure to follow our
restroom guidelines.

What is particularly sad is that the removals also involved
those who did nothing wrong, who just happened to be in the
wrong place at the wrong time. Yes, misusing a restroom is
a great way to get SOMEBODY ELSE in trouble.

It's very important that all who attend do all they can to
prevent incidents like this from happening at this year's
event.
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Printed schedule:

Some very good news! Funds have been pledged for a printed schedule
and map to be handed out at the early DLV activities.

This will not, however, replace our Large Final Mailing. The
printed schedule will be a one page summary with a map, and
will not contain many of the details.

Much material which you will need for your participation in DLV
will be sent out in what we call the Large Final Mailing, which
happens a few days before DLV.

We'll cover the schedule and the Large Final Mailing in detail
as the event approaches.
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