DLV 2012 Attendee Survey Report, part 2 ...

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Diva Las Vegas
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This is the second of four reports. This gives the textual comments
received on the DLV 2012 Attendee Survey.

Very little editing, other than formatting, was done. A few items
were moved to the appropriate area and have been noted.

Additional comments and discussion are welcome.
. . . . . . . . . .

Restroom comments:

Still not comfortable going in.
. . . . .

artisan ladies room was beautiful. my first time. fyi
. . . . .

I used the ladies room at Trevi and while I was in my stall I heard the
sound of a small child talking to her mother. Even though there was a
bit of a backlog in the restroom I stayed put until they had finished
and left before I left to rejoin the group. No incident, but an issue I
hope I handled properly.
. . . . .

I know this sounds silly, but I'm more nervous going OUT of a ladies
bathroom than going in. I always expect to walk out and see this BIG
Security Guard standing there with a gun pointed at me ready to arrest
me or throw me out.
. . . . .

What happened to the list of safe bathrooms?
. . . . .

When I used a public restroom it was at a venue where I knew it would
acceptable. I made my stay in the restroom as short as possible.
. . . . . . . . . .

Activity suggestions:

I think group dinners are fine, but restaurants can't handle one huge
order, and do the paperwork for a check. How about groups of 4 or 6, no
more, all together, served by a wait staff in the normal way anyone at
the restaurant would? Trevi worked well that way but Luna Rosa and PF
Changs worked with long tables and one check for them, with confusion.
. . . . .

Better event timing to allow time to participate and get to other
events.
. . . . .

I'm going to check into hosting a dinner at a local German Restaurant
for a night of sausages and beer.
. . . . .

Nicer dining options.
. . . . .

I got the felling that the Trevi is no longer comfrtable with our being
there.
. . . . .

An event where the preferred attire is a Little Black Dress. It is
Vegas afterall!!!
. . . . .

I enjoy playing blackjack and was hesitant about playing and confronting
non understanding tourist at the tables, so I just played the slots.
Maybe next year you could have one night of table games at say the
Paris, so we could play together.
. . . . .

DLV poker tournament

More morning/daytime gatherings and activities. This could include
morning walks/exercise activity, trips to area parks (Valley of Fire,
Hoover Dam), shopping trips.

I wasn't interested in the High Tea or make-overs so I found Wednesday,
Thursday and Friday daytime limited in choices.
. . . . .

Amateur drag show - attendees only.
. . . . .

Cheaper dining venus
. . . . .

I would like to host mini golf at the Kiss for sure and will start work
on this if I may.
. . . . .

The only suggestion that I have is to strive for a time window between
consecutive but non-colocated events, I felt rushed at times and did end
up missing one commitment.
. . . . .

i was uncomfortable when we exited Trevi en mass. Too many TG's in one
place draws a crowd of paparazzi. I ran from the scene.
. . . . .

Since you all like to drink so much, how about a night of bar games,
beer pong, ect.
. . . . .

Great job pulling this together. Thanks to everyone who was involved.
There was so much talent that went into setting up the computer, the
venues, etc. Hats off to everyone! (a pretty feminine one at that)
. . . . .

Needs to be better organized! Needs a way to get several together to
share a ride. Someevents were too rushed. Too many lunches were at
expensive buffets, why?
. . . . .

Frankie's Tiki Lounge would be a fun meeting place.
. . . . .

The Galiano Challenge
Indoor skydiving
Am I still anonymous?
. . . . .

Personally, I would rather have both the opening and closing
celebrations at the Bahama Breeze. The service at the Artisan was
very bad as was the service at the Luna Rossa dinner.
. . . . .

It would b nice if there were some options for TS's. I go with a cross
dresser friend but don't wish to participate with most of the group as I
don't wish to draw attention to myself. I certainly get it if I fall
into too small of a sub-group to accommodate.
. . . . .

Include the venue address and/or instructions on how to get there by
auto. Example: Fritz's Diner in the Blues Casino- Enter parking garage
via Fred Way, off of Charleston. Etc.
. . . . .

Make sure we plan enough time if we plan to eat at the Artisan. The
delay probably negatively effected the attendance at the Bellagio Art
Tour.
. . . . .

Can we keep the lunch prices down to under $20 dollars please.
. . . . .

Map is much improved, to many options on schedules. Confusing.
. . . . .

Yes, let's have one big formal dress-up glam-out evening. Even the
casual girls can get dressed up once!
. . . . .

Bring back the boat trip.
Bring back the garden party.
Mini golf
more shows
. . . . .

The Diva leaders need to co-ordinate things with the Wildside leaders
and come up with a common week for both events.
. . . . .

The DLV Mystery scavenger hunt could be expanded to more destinations.
One of the girls with me suggested actually having as a week long event.
In either case it is great excuse to take photos.
. . . . .

1. I thought that the segregation of the dinning arrangement at the
Firefly was unacceptable. All DLV attendees were forced to sit at one
very long table against the dinning room wall. We were not allowed to
select a table of our choice with one or two other couples. I felt like
we were treated as second class customers. Recommend that Firefly be
deleted from next years DLV.

2. The quality of the dinner and the high prices at the Artisan were
unacceptable. Service was terrible. Will not return to that place ever
again. We felt unwelcome because we were seated in a separate out of the
way dinning area instead of the main dinning area where many other
people were seated. We felt segregated.
. . . . .

fashion show.
. . . . . . . . . .

New venue suggestions:

I will submit my suggestions later
. . . . .

I took a group of six to Comme Ca at the Cosmopolitan Hotel one night.
We sat outside, overlooking the Strip. It was sensational. The venue,
service, food, etc.
. . . . .

The Mirage Buffet was terrific and the staff were all very courteous.
. . . . .

Comme Ca at Cosmospolitan is a great restaurant and possibly make a
great group dinner in the future.
. . . . .

Mr B's for the newcomers looked good as long as we limit the volume of
the music so we can have QST.
. . . . .

Did a lot of shopping at the local malls. Not sure this would be a good
group activity though.
. . . . .

We had a good time at the car show in the Imperial palace. For those who
stayed there it was free. We had AAA and it was free. Otherwise I think
it is about 10 dollars. Very interesting and worth it. Somewhat a
secluded area.
. . . . .

cleopatras barge at caesars for dancing; nobu for dinner at hard rock
. . . . .

Goodtimes nightlub
. . . . .

Yes went to Charlys cowboy bar and had a fun noght out with friends
. . . . .

McDonalds
Cal. Pizza Kitchen
shopping at Dillards, Nordstroms
. . . . .

Dining at Marie Callender's at 600 E. Sahara - very enjoyable and well
treated.
. . . . .

Sapphire
. . . . .

Yes
. . . . .

Mr. Bills was good. Pre-DLV
. . . . .

Harrah's buffet, $5 craps at IP, IP car museum.
. . . . .

Had a very nice dinner at the Comme Ca at the Cosmopolitan with 5 other
DLVers.
. . . . .

I and 2 others went to Battisti's Italian place behind the IP, but it
was not that good. Prego or Ragu sauce out of a jar. Cheap rot-gut wine.
expensive for what you get. Olive Garden is much better.
. . . . .

I love a great steak, but you never have any steak houses on the menu.
Please add one.
. . . . .

Celebrity black-jack at IP.
. . . . .

My own buffet summary:

Harrahs: Great
Imperial: Awful!
Rio: Great
Mirage: Great
Sams town: So-so
Escalibur: So-so
Terribles: Terrible
. . . . .

Toby Keith's in Harrah's. Expensive for what you get but fun. I think a
group of girls woud be a hit there. Also the dance bar at Bally's. I was
afraid to go in alone but with a group I would be comfortable.
. . . . .

Shopping at Fashion and Nordstroms which was fun and uneventful. Treated
very well by all we encountered.
. . . . .

107 at Stratosphere is wonderful for happy hour and sunset.
. . . . . . . . . .

General comments:

I find that the work done by DLV leaders to be excellent and it is well
appreciated.
. . . . .

I did not like Drink and Drag a all, It was dreadful! I suggest that we
come up with a more real world atmosphere for next year, something like
in the past.. EG:-- The Plaza in 2010. (Yes I know it is closed now) Or
the Aritsan, (Yes I know that there were issues) but we could work
around them I am sure.

Not everyone likes Gay bars and D and D was definitely a Gay bar. Gay
bars are Always Sleazy and this one was no exception, If we use it next
year I will not be attending the opener.

A mainstream place would be a much better starter to an event of this
caliber, You can only make ONE First impression and first impressions
count when new attendees arrive weather they are brand new to going out
in public or seasoned vet's.
. . . . .

I tend to try and make everything a positive, so that is why I all good
ratings above. So a few notes. Margaritaville was great last year and
dumped on us this year. We should have had a locked in floor (3rd). I
still had fun because I still socialized.

The Neon Museum had many no shows (seemed to be more this year than
last). But during the tour, the guide asked everyone to follow that
gentleman referring to one of our members. I sent them a nicely worded
email after explaining the faux pas and haven't received a response.

And the Artisan.... It seems we get torn on it. Not big enough last
year and the exceedingly slow service this year. It seems to be
running out of chances.
. . . . .

Thanks for all the hard work
. . . . .

The refusal of the Trevi to make out individual bills and to seat us
as they did in the past was a major negative! I doubt if I would be
inclined to attend the Trevi dinner again.
. . . . .

It became clear to me rather quickly that DLV was really not going to
be as appealing to me as it would be to many others in attendance for
reasons which really aren't important.

Having said that, I did meet some very nice folk.

I would like to personally thank Annie. She was very helpful to me and
it was obvious that she was quite integral to the overall success of
DLV.

I did very much enjoy speaking with her as well.
. . . . .

I think DLV is a great opportunity for CD-ers to dress and get out and
about. I found, somewhat to my surprise, that I really preferred the
alternative venues far more than the mainstream ones, which I found
rather uncomfortable. The mob museum in particular felt really
uncomfortable with lots of "regular" people and even some families.
It's totally my own issue about my comfort level and being seen while
being dressed but was an interesting insight for me.
. . . . .

Limo Tour:

I thought the Downtown location was lame and a bit too cliche. I was
also disgusted by the person wearing the mask. It made us look like a
freakshow and that is not the image I want our people to portray.

I thought the Treasure Island location was lame, enough said.

The Bellagio was awesome, it made the trip worthwhile! More locations
like this. I would also want to know where the stops would be before
signing up for this event again.

Paris, Venetian, NYNY, Wynn, the nice casinos are the places to stop.
The Limo Tour should be about hanging out in fun places and getting fun
pictures in front of fun places IMHO.
. . . . .

We had a great time and felt that the dlv organizers did a great job.

Our only complaint is not towards dlv but the prices of the food. We had
not been to vegas in ten years, and althought the flight and room was
resonable, the food /restaurants were a rip off. We loved meeting other
girls from around the country and very much enjoyed DLV.
. . . . .

Thanks for the opportunity to dress, socialize, party, learn from others
and the friendship!
. . . . .

i enjoyed Diva Las Vegas, met some nice people, and enjoyed being
myself. I recieved many compliments, and positive attitudes from all the
local staff and businesses. The last time I was in Vegas was 2 years
ago, and the climate has changed. Two years ago Vegas was more
welcoming to visitors, lots or freebees. Now it seems as though there
are no more comps or perks, they charge full price for everything, and
don't really care if you are there or not. Just spend your money then
leave, there are 2 more waiting to loose. I stayed at Bally's and even
had to pay $3.00 per night to use the safe in my room. It's like big
banking now, fees for everything.
. . . . .

Friday was great. Rest of the week sucked.
. . . . .

DLV 2013 - unsure at this time.

I was uncomfortable sometimes with the attention a large group draws.
. . . . .

SuggestionL When you have a big group somewhere, give us the group name
which it will be booked under. I went to Margaville and said I was with
the big group but they didn't know anything. They told me to look around
but I couldn't see anyone.
. . . . .

As I keep saying time after time. This is the best girl time one can
ever hope for. Thanks again to the staff. I'll be back next year with
bells on.
. . . . .

Drink&Drag is a fun place! I hope they make it. The club previous in
that space closed in a few months. I was chatting up a straight couple
who wandered in, educated them about the difference between a DQ and a
CD. Music got a bit to loud toward the end but we were just about to
leave for Freemont Streeyt.
. . . . .

Trevi's is MUCH NICER with the 4-tops instead of the long banquet
tables. Kudo's to whoever thought of that.
. . . . .

I had a severe foot infection which prevented me from attending any
event except for Bahama Breeze, which was quite lovely as usual. I'm
glad we could have the group photo taken.
. . . . .

For the Monday dinner I entered 2 restaurants as I don't remember which
one I went to.

Also 3 of us showed up at Goodtimes for the Pub Crawl & it was locked
up. We called Nikki & she didn't know why. We then went to Buffalos,
met Nikki there & nno one else showed up. Then we went to the last club
on the list & no one showed up. It surprised me as last year there
seemed to be a fairly good attendance.

Thanks to all of you volunteers for putting this event on. I had fun in
a fun town.
. . . . .

This was my first time at DLV, I had a big sister but recieved no help
from her at all. Everything that I did was on my own, like finding the
places of the activities, meeting other attendes etc. At the beginning
of the week I was ready to leave but I made my mind that I was going to
stay. I did meet some very nice people that helped me out alot.
. . . . .

Thanks to everyone.
. . . . .

do share a ride program. have a place for all to meet to go places.
. . . . .

Map was MUCH better this yer. Thanks.

Seems like so many gurls who are repeat-timers went off and did their
own thing instead of doing the scheduled events. Too bad, since there
really were a lot of fun things planned. I had the time of my life.
Thansk again.
. . . . .

Glamour Boutique was very hard to find, especially since they changed
the name.
. . . . .

Opening night was for me was disappointing. While it was great to have a
photo this year and having time on Fremont Street was amazing the food
at Luna was really quite poor and one poor guy to handle 50 to 60 not us
was crazy. My 30.00 meal was not worth it. I don't ever mind spending
that for dinner but the value was not good. We then waited 2 1/2 hour to
get the bills. We have a good time because we had great conversation
with old friends but the restaurant experience was simply not good.

Having the opening in a bar called drink and drag was really not a very
classy venue. Personally I'm not a huge fan of bars to begin with. I
liked the atmosphere of a place like the Artisan was last year.

The mexican dinner cost me $15.00 with 3 beers and the dinner came fast
it was hot and the service was very fast. I loved that meal.

Margaritaville was also disappointing this year. Bahama Breeze was a
good value as always.

Loer the hike to Red Rock. I would like to see more low cost outdoors
healthy living kind of events that don't just focus on drinking and
partying.
. . . . .

Drinks were quite strong at Drink/Drag. Got a good buzz off 1 rum&coke.
. . . . .

I think a venue where the girls can really dress up HOT would be great!
Maybe a costume event? Somewhere they can dress a bit slutty/risky
without offending any Muggles?
. . . . .

The tour guide at the Neon museum used a male reference to one of our
party attracting attention that may have been otherwise avoided. An
email was sent to the museum with a little bit of positive instruction.

Artisan food is very tasty, but the service is sooooooooo
sloooooowwwwww. Nice place otherwise.

3 stops for the limo seemed to be a reasonable choice. We had a good
photo op at TI, but not much else. It was a nice touch to have Charles
and his wife along.

It was another wonderful DLV, thanks all around.
. . . . .

I was planning to stay for just 2 nights but left after one. The Artisan
was great in terms of comfort level and acceptance, but the noise from
traffic in the night was awful and I did not sleep at all. That was why
I left early
. . . . .

Let's see, first of all thanks for another wonderful week. It seems you
have two kinds of gurls attending, those who want to dress t the 9's and
those in ordinary tourist clothes. Very contrasty.

I'm very impressed with the organization, but not impressed at the small
head count at many of the events. You need more large events where all
can meet and get to know each other. Suggestion, the big Welcome sign
for the limo ride.

Other suggestion, more co-located events. Seems like we were spending
more time moving from event to event this year.

Thanks again.
. . . . .

What's the deal with the mask? Is that allowed? Is it supposed to be
some kind of a joke? Very out of place.
. . . . .

You need more plans to keep the group together. There were just to many
things that didn't appeal to me or to those I hung around with.
. . . . .

The limo ride was a lot of fun but at my age its hard getting in and ouf
of them with any ease. Also, I can't find any information about the Pink
Festival this Fall. Looked on line and didn't find it. You need some
more organization to the opening mixer. There wasn't any real mixing
going on, just people talking with who they knew allready.
. . . . .

What a week! I'm still not recovered.
. . . . .

Downtown is a fun place, and Drink/Drag is kind of off the beaten path
but fun. There are more bars in that area of town that might be fun
checking out, even the casinos.
. . . . .

How about we try to stagger meal serving times. When everyone tries to
order all at once it overwhelms the kitchen.
. . . . .

This group was hard to understand and Im not sure I fit in. I expected
more regular cross dressers. It looks like everyone either glammed up
all the way or went casual, stealth I assume for.

And that mask. What the hell is that about? Don't hide yourself, girl!
. . . . .

My sincere thanks to all of the staff for a super and well organized
affair. You really know how to put on a party.
. . . . .

Two suggestions, not criticisms.

First, you need something more formal or structured to introduce new
girls to the group. It took me 3-4 days just to get in the swing of
things and meet others.

Also, when you are supposed to meet somewhere, have a girl out there
waiting to meet the others. I absolutely hate having to go to the
restaurant hostess desk and ask if there is a group of crossdressers in
there.
. . . . .

I found the Artisan Friday band playing until 5am made it impossible to
sleep.

I will check out on Thursday and go elsewhere.
. . . . .

I was severely limited in my available time to participate in any
activities since I was with my 80 year-old father. But I was able to
check-in at the Artisan volunteer lunch. I met Annie and Walter, both
of whom were friendly. I hope in the future to have a more flexible
schedule to attend an activity or two.
. . . . .

Just a couple of things...

I may not attend another DLV for several reasons:

Generally I have out grown it. I do not need an occasion to dress, I am
a full time TGirl. I attend to meet up with friends and to be in Vegas
and have fun. Our list of activities is getting rather stale and there
just isn't some of the more fun activities like we used to have. I
spent most of the week at non DLV venues.

I could comment on dress and boys in dresses, but realize that for most
its not about being a girl, its a dressing fetish so I think DLV is a
good venue for them. I do miss Holly's Murder Mystery Dinner and the
pity party though. I would like to see more of a party "Girls just want
to have fun" atmosphere. I really do wish we were organized better and
had published contact lists for coordination's of events. I just didn't
feel the fun and happy spirit this year. I think it was to late in
April this year. I think it should be before spring break or something.

Also PLEASE! do not do another Artisan eating experience. They have
never worked! Don't do it again. The Artisan has lousy service in the
bar, there is no service in the Resturant, and the rooms are small, dark
and tired.
. . . . .

I was comfortable at most all events, but the clicking got to be tiring.
. . . . .

Thanks so much to Jane, Annie, Wally, Robin, Dale, Ginger, Candy, who
were so nice to me and really helped me grow this year. This was my
second year, and the others were far friendlier this year.

Hugs to all.
. . . . .

My little sister did come to Las Vegas but only attended one event. She
was terrified. She got cold feet and bailed out even though her spouse
was with her and supported her attendance. I think their expectations
were for something else. I have restablished contact with her and am
attempting to determine the core issue(s). I heard from another first
time attender that she was disappointed because she did not feel
included and felt like an outsider. It seems we still have our work cut
out for us as far as creating a welcoming, friendly environment is
concerned.

IMO Drink and Drag was a poor choice for the welcome event. The layout
of the place provides few opportunities to sit and talk with even a
small group and even if you could, the noise level from the music would
prevent it. QST not possible. Service was poor and in subsequent
visits since DLV it hasn't improved.

I am seriously reevaluating my participation in 2013. Maybe I've
outgrown it.
. . . . .

You need to ask how many pairs of shoes the gurls take to Vegas.,
. . . . .

Please go back to listing prices, even if only ball-park, on the
schedule. Things like 'dinner on your own' don't help much in budgeting.
. . . . .

My wife and I met many wonderful people and other couples that we have
visited with outside of DLV. We made some lasting friendship since out
first DLV in 2010.

We are very grateful for the hard work of the organizers and volunteers
that make this all possible.
. . . . .

Suggestion for question: Would be interesting to see how many are truly
Straight and how many are gay or bi.
. . . . .

I would like to see some stronger language concerning people of our
group trying to get sexual contacts. I know of one couple who was
approach by an individiual, that person did not want to take repeated
NO's for an answer. I urged them to report it but they did not want
to cause waves.

I think we could cut down on some of the daily venues. There was so
many I wanted to do but there were conflicts with each other.

Although the food prices was up this year, along toward the end of the
week I had to cut back on the buffets. I was simply eating too damn
much. I ended up having to wear a corset so I could fit into one of my
dresses. With the heat that was a problem.

I also had an issue with the timing of the event. I had express my
doubts about the weather being too hot when a vote was taken when to
have this event. Unfortnuately no one paid heed to what I had said and
voted it to be at the end of April and as I had feared!

the weather was very hot. One day it got to 99 degrees. It was a
strugle for me to get dressed up to go sweat my ass off for an event.
My under clothes was soaking wet by the end of the daily
event.

I really wanted to attend the neon event but the online registration at
their site and the early payment made it impossible for me. If we are
to do this in the future something needs to be done to make it easier.

I was not about to go through all of the hassel to do this event. The
volunteer dinner was very enjoyable and I did have a great time, but it
should have been started a little earlier. I missed the art tour because
it ran over so long.

For this year I cut back on some of the things I wanted to do and just
took my time and really enjoyed myself. There was some things I would
have done but the heat was too much for getting dressed up for.
. . . . .

couldnt find to limo location.. Call the moderator for the event and
it no answer
. . . . .

Need more of an introduction or orientation event. (Moved to general
comments.)
. . . . .

After I checked into the Artisan, my bag got lost and I didn't have my
things to attend the functions. Therefore, I checked out of the hotel
and returned home. (Moved to general comments.)
. . . . .

(In addition, the following comment was received via e-mail):

for my first time attending, and only on a limited basis, I found
the hardest part in attending was the lack of a Single spot, where
everything works out of.

To that end, I would like to offer the concept of useing a hotel room,
such as the Ramamda on Flamingo, as a central point.

The hotel is off strip by about 3/4 of a mile, parking is easily had.

By renting a small or medium size meeting room, and using it as a
place where we can go to meet-up, catch-up, share-rides, provides a
central point. Hotel rates, at the ramada are very reasonal, and they
Welcome all lifestyles, and for staying there a free breakfast too

Hotel is also dog friendly. Shuttles can be used for strip, and airports.
Easily accesssed for taxis, and more

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(This posting was entered by Diva Las Vegas, an external user of MyDLV.)

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Rosada Delano
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> And that mask. What the hell is that about? Don't hide yourself, girl!

I didn't attend the limo tour, but did anyone ask the person that was
wearing the mask "Why?" Perhaps a group of you should have said
something to her.

Remember, one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel. Then, again she
might have thought it made her look cute. Hopefully, this person will
explain why in some future discussion. Perhaps this person should plan
an activity next year where we all wear and call it Mardi Gras night.

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(This posting was entered by Rosada Delano, an external user of MyDLV.)

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Jane Shure
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> And that mask. What the hell is that about? Don't hide
> yourself, girl!

Hello

I will speak in the person's defense who wore the mask. I did talk to
her and it was all just in fun. Isn't DLV all about fun? She did not
wear it all the time. She is a very enjoyable person to talk with. My
only complaint about the mask is I wish my own face looked half as good
as it did. DAMN DAMN

Oh well,---- if we only got half of our wishes we would double our
troubles.

Jane Shure

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(This posting was entered by Jane Shure, an external user of MyDLV.)

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Alice B
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Sherry is an extremely nice person. Lot of fun to be with and not at
all trying to present us in a bad light. She is very selective as to
when she wears her mask and if you look at the photographs from DLV
in 2011 you will see that many of us wore the mask. It is all in fun,
so go with the flow.

Alice B

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(This posting was entered by Alice B, an external user of MyDLV.)

[Robyn]

Hi Jane

Hope you had a non eventful trip back East.

How is baldy doing?

Regards Robyn

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Jane Shure
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Hello Robyn

Baldy --"dummy"--is doing very well. As for the trip east, my car blew
out two front tires and the motorhome blew 3 tires. My jury rig fuel
pump failed on me also. Other than that everything went ok. Frankly I
could have done without the excitement. My mom is doing very well
considering her age.

Jane Shure

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(This posting was entered by Jane Shure, an external user of MyDLV.)