[dlv] DLV 2008 -- next month -- getting close ...

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This is the Diva Las Vegas 2008 announcement mailing list.
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In this mailing:

Welcome
Details of activities
>From the UK
Things to come
Big Sisters
Rooms and roommates
Summary schedule of activities
Administrivia
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Only 50 days Until DLV 2008!
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Welcome:

Welcome to those who just registered or just joined the
mailing list. If you have any questions or concerns, please
let us know.

It's March already, and DLV is next month! It's getting very
close. Yes, you can still get in on things, but you will need
to start making plans now if you have not done so already!

If you would like to attend and have not registered, here's
what you need to do:

1. Read the DLV web site. http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/
Be sure you know what DLV is and what it is not. (It is totally
different from most of the other TG events you've heard of.)

2. Register for DLV. Registration is free. See link below.

3. Make your travel and lodging NOW as prices will be rising
and availability will be diminishing as we get closer.
. . .

General DLV 2008 registration is now open.

{link removed on web archive copy}

This link covers both newcomers and returnees.

One important note is that that if you want to participate in
any Diva Las Vegas 2008 activities, you must register in advance.

We will not be admitting unannounced walk-ins or unannounced
"she's with me" guests for DLV 2008.
. . .

Activity Highlight:

This week we feature the Charles Bar!

What the heck is the Charles Bar, you ask?

Read the DLV Discussion Forum and find out.

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dlvdisc/
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Details of activities:

There's been a concern raised regarding the lack of details on
our activities and we would like to address this concern.

The most important thing, if you feel a need to know something
about an activity but can't seem to find it, is to ASK!

The best place to ask is on the DLV Discussion Forum, which is
on the web at:

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dlvdisc/

If you ask a question about an activity there, chances are that
you'll get more information than you ever wanted. You won't just
get the "party line" either. You'll probably get personal
accounts, anecdotes and digressions.

Another thing about the Discussion Forum is that in many cases
you can get the answers on activities even before you ask the
questions! We've just begun to do activity highlights this year,
but there's quite a set of the activity highlights from over the
past two years which will give you some examples of what to
expect. Here are a couple of direct links, and these will be
sorted by subject name, so "Activity Highlight ..." will be up
toward the top.

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dlv2006/dlvdisc/subject.html

http://www.geekbabe.com/dlv/dlv2007/dlvdisc/subject.html

Details on many of our activities are not available just because
they do not exist yet. Plans are not complete enough to provide
meaningful details.

There are, however, some details about our activities which we
will not be making public. Why? We don't mean to be alarmist or
paranoid, but there are certain details about DLV and about the
activities which only registered participants have a need to
know. Yes, we're being a bit more cautious this year about
what we tell, and to whom, and about who we admit to our
activities. No, there have been no threats received, but we
are proactively exercising some due dilligence.

Our final detailed schedule will be sent to all who hold
validated registrations as part of the Large Final Mailing.
(See notes on the Large Final Mailing below.)

This will include highly detailed information on each activity,
such as:

When the activity starts, where it happens, the letter or number
on our activity map, exactly where and how to meet the group,
about how long it's expected to last, the DLV volunteer(s) in
charge of it, actual street address, facility phone number,
how to get there by Monorail or taxi, general and specific dress
suggestions and notes and various misc. items.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
>From the UK:

The Boudoir Dressing Service from London will be sponsoring
a trip from the UK to attend DLV.

Boudoir Dressing Service specializes in male to female makeovers,
photoshoots, organised events and varied work within the TG
community.

Miss Jodie Lynn and 8 others will be attending in her party.

Jodie will be available for makeover bookings throughout the
duration of the week.

Jodie and her team will be located at The Mirage Hotel on the
strip and will be working from their hotel room providing
makeovers, nails, wig styling, etc.

Jodie is also working in conjunction with the Diva Las Vegas
organisers and will be organising one or two of her own
special events for attendees this year.

A makeover with wig styling and nails (false or your own
painted) is US$145. An escorted shopping trip or an escorted
lunch trip including the full makeover and nails is US$290.

ALL appointments MUST be booked in advance by email
(info@theboudoironline.com) or by phone to the UK 020 8211 1666
and ALL services must be paid for in advance by PAYPAL.

Jodie will have a US number in operation for the DLV week
and details of this number will be available nearer the time.

Please check out the Boudoir Website at www.theboudoironline.com
for a full guide to their services.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Things to come:

The next big milestone will pertain to all of you who are
registered for DLV and those who will register in the next
month.

This is activity sign-up.

As you probably know, all DLV activities are optional, but some
of them do need some kind of sign-up, headcount, hoop-jump, in
some cases prepayment, and in some cases some more information
from those who wish to do that activity.

We do all of this at activity sign-up time.

This will begin on or about April 1.

Everybody who holds a valid registration will get a special
e-mail which includes a link to their very own personal activity
sign-up screen.

This will list the activities which need some kind of a sign-up,
headcount, etc., and allow you to select which ones you want to
attend.

You can change your mind and re-submit the form any time, and
this year it's smart enough to "remember" what you have signed
up for previously this year.

For activities with limited capacity, in most cases it will be
"first signed, first served", but in some cases it may be "first
paid, first served" depending on circumstances.

This will also be used to prepare your own personal "itinerary"
of what you've signed up for, which will be sent with the Large
Final Mailing just before DLV.

Speaking of which ... :)

During the week prior to DLV, everyone who holds a validated
registration will receive the Large Final Mailing. This will
include such things as:

* Final detailed schedule, highly detailed.
* Driving/walking map to our activity locations.
* Contact phone numbers, Big Sister Emergency Hotline number.
* List of volunteer drivers and those who need rides.
* Check-in instructions.
* Photography guidelines and hints.
* Any late notices and schedule changes.
* Various merchant and vendor discounts and promotions.
* Your personalized final confirmation and itinerary.

The one thing to remember which is very important, when you get
to Las Vegas and check in with DLV, you won't get any printed
items such as schedules and maps. You will need to print these
from the Large Final Mailing and bring them with you.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Big Sisters:

It's natural to be nervous before heading to an event such as
Diva Las Vegas, particularly if you're new and don't know any
of the others yet.

The Big Sisters of Diva Las Vegas can help!

Big Sisters are volunteer DLV veterans who are standing by to
help as needed, either prior to DLV, or during DLV.

Big Sisters are intended mainly for those who are new and don't
have much public exposure, or those who may be feeling a bit
uneasy about the upcoming trip, but Big Sisters are available
to anybody who wants one.

If you haven't been out in public at all, if you're new to public
exposure, your exposure has never been in the mainstream before,
or if there's any reason you feel uneasy or uncertain about the
upcoming trip, the Big Sisters are here to help, either before
DLV, during DLV, or both.

Before DLV, if you would like to correspond with somebody
one-to-one about concerns regarding DLV, just send a brief
note to dlv@geekbabe.com and say that you would like to get
in touch with a Big Sister. Examples of concerns might be
questions that you don't feel comfortable asking on one of
the mailing lists, request for an honest fashion critique,
etc.

During DLV, if you need some fashion advice, Big Sisters can
help.

If you are uneasy and can't get the nerve to walk out of your
hotel room (this has happened), phone us, we'll have a Big
Sister meet you, assure you, and escort you if necessary.

If you're new and don't know any of the others at DLV, the Big
Sisters will gladly introduce you to the others and help you
get acquainted. There's no such thing as an outsider at DLV!

If you would like to be put in touch with a Big Sister, just
send a note to bigsister@geekbabe.com and we'll get you in
contact with one.

Also, if you have attended DLV in the past and would like to
volunteer to spend some time helping others, please say so and
volunteer to be a Big Sister. (Just reply to this mailing or
e-mail bigsister@geekbabe.com and state you would like to
volunteer to be a Big Sister.) The primary qualification is
the desire to help others.

You can also sign up to have a Big Sister, or volunteer to be a
Big Sister on the web as you register.

Big thanks to Nora for coordinating our Big Sister Program!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rooms and roommates:

We're very aware that lodging will be the greatest expense for
most of you attending DLV. Sharing a room two ways cuts this
expense in half, in one third for three to a room, and 1/4 for
four in a room.

We have a Roommate Clearing House for DLV 2008. You can either
contact our Room Share Coordinator via e-mail at:

roommate@geekbabe.com

.. or sign up to participate in the Roommate Clearing House
when you register on the web.

There's also been some interest in sharing such things as
rental apartments and timeshares and such. If you're so inclined,
please coordinate this with our Room Share Coordinator.

When you sign up for roommate matching, we'll ask you a few
questions, such as if you smoke, if you (knowingly) snore,
things like that, in order to make better matches.

On the roommate screen there is also a large blank area into
which you can put any comments or concerns you may have. For
example, you could say something like "I don't care about
smoking or snoring, I just want the cheapest room!" if that's
what you want.

One important caveat! The Roommate Clearing House is a good-faith
effort on all parts with NO GUARANTEES! Roommates assume all
risks. Please have a contingency plan. Your Room Share
Coordinator, as well as other DLV organizers and volunteers, will
not be responsible if a roommate fails to show, fails to pay,
fails to make reservations, does not get along with you, or in
any other way things don't work out.

Big thanks to Diane for coordinating the Roommate Clearing
House! :)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Summary schedule of activities:

Preliminary and subject to change.

Monday, April 21:
11:00am Studio Lites Open House
1:00pm Lunch With Ginger
2:00pm Walk Off Your Lunch
6:00pm Happy Hour/Business Hour
7:00pm Dinner
8:30pm Welcome Celebration
10:00pm Rock Star Karaoke

Tuesday, April 22 :
9:00am Lake Mead Boat Tour
1:00pm Lunch With Ginger
2:00pm Walk Off Your Lunch
5:00pm Night Of The Soiled Doves
6:00pm Local Happy Hour
7:00pm Local dinner

Wednesday, April 23:
9:00am Diva Las Vegas Invitational Golf
AM-PM Art Tour
AM-PM Glamour Boutique Open House
1:00pm Lunch With Ginger
2:00pm Walk Off Your Lunch
6:00pm Happy Hour/Business Hour
7:00pm Eating Out Night
7:00pm Milano's option
7:00pm Prime Rib Loft option
7:00pm Trevi option
7:00pm Border Grill option
Ev Mainstream-Alternative Night
Ev Alternative Bar Crawl

Thursday, April 24:
11:30am Lunch With Lori
12:30pm Walk Off Your Lunch
3:00pm English High Tea
Ev Big Show Pity Party
7:00pm LeReve Show
8:45pm Limo Tour

Friday, April 25:
2:00am Charles Bar
12:00n Town Square shopping
1:00pm Lunch With Ginger
2:00pm Walk Off Your Lunch
6:00pm Happy Hour/Business Hour
7:00pm Dining options
7:00pm Upscale buffet option
7:00pm Alternative option
7:00pm Affordable option
7:00pm Upscale sit-down option
7:00pm Do Your Own Thing option
Ev Activity options
Ev Dancing option
Ev Socializing option
Ev Gaming option
Ev Do Your Own Thing option
10:00pm Dueling Pianos

Saturday, April 26:
12:00n SBS Social
6:00pm Happy Hour
7:00pm Dinner
8:30pm Farewell Bash
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Administrivia:

This is the Diva Las Vegas 2008 Announcement mailing list.

This list is limited to announcements and other high-importance
items.

Questions/answers and discussion items are redirected to the DLV
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. . . . .

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. . . . .

Diva Las Vegas 2008
April 21 - 26, 2008
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
. . . . .

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