6 months

It's about 6 months until FruCon.
Yeah, there will be a FruCon. You know, I don't think anyone could stop it.
Even if no one organized and held it, people would migrate north anyway.
A group of people would get together to hang out in Toronto, see some
shows and hang out together.
That's not the question.
The question is about officialness and organizedness and open mics and
game shows and logistics and who and where and if and what.
I mean there was already the poll question. We have a good sample of
how different people feel about it. The if question isn't as important as
who. Are the usual suspects going to be up to the planning? Are they too
sick and tired of it? Very simply, are they interested or not? And if they are
not, is anyone else gonna step in and do a big planning thing in their
place? And if not... well, then it's just a question of frutripping around a
lack-of-FruCon FruCon, which isn't really a question.
This has gotten long. I just wanted to get something started.
Talk amongst yourselves.

I only have a few seconds, so I just throw in a couple of cents right now:

I think that even if we do this unofficialy, we should still look into getting a block of hotel rooms, and maybe even see how much it would be to rent some sort of meeting space in said hotel. Just a place to play music and meet and such.

(although, as I type that, I'm realizing that if we get a room, we might as well label it Fr�con VI anyways...)

Well it is interesting you should say that. The Frucon Committee hasn't really done anything on Frucon 6 as of yet. I think there IS some burnout, and some boredom with there being no shows and such, but also I think there is a real question about HOW MANY people would come to an event this year. (I know SOME will but the number will likely be small in my opinion.) Last year we had less than 50. The con was quite wonderful, but in some ways perhaps it was over organized for such a small turnout. I am willing to bet THIS year will not top 30 or so, and frankly with those kind of numbers, I really don't feel like doing a full blown con thing.

Kath and I did toss around some ideas back in May, and one thing we thought of is just as you say, just pick a hotel and have people go stay there. I think the committe could proabably rent a meeting room for the group to use. I don't have the figures in front of me, but I'm pretty sure we have enough money for that. Of course if you want to keep a fund available should a future larger con be desired then that money should be put back somehow, but if we all think fruvous is dead for the duration, then we could just spend it on the room I suppose.

Bottom line is that while I will GO to a fruhead gathering in February, unless there are more people coming, I don't think it is worth it to do a ton of planning. My reccomendation is that we all just plan on going to the Comfort Suites (Their prices are pretty good, it is a nice place, and they LIKE us unlike the other places we've used) and getting a meeting room and hanging out.

Thoughts?

A.J.

I definitely agree with the fact that we should use the same hotel, especially if they like us. And having the room again is also great, just so we can have our gathering. Whatever happens outside that weekend is completely up to us, but just to be able to head there that weekend will be fun enough, even if it is 30 people or less.

Don't go crazy planning it out, because we'll make it fun no matter what. Spontenouty rules here (Like when we went busking on Sunday. Was THAT brought up at committee?)

It's going to be a great weekend no matter what, and we'll all be together in one place outside of FRFF. Looking forward to February!

I agree that I'd be happy just having the chance for all of us to hang out, sing and whatnot. I mean, even without planning - its Toronto and we can always find things to do even without setting a lot of stuff up. Hopefully, The Lesters will get their Friday night spot at Lounge 88 and Tory does Saturday night at the Res...

With a troupe of Fruheads coming to town, who will probably ALL go to any show that is approved by Fruhead.com, any artist would be happy to book a show that weekend. Think of all the people we drew to Jian's show at Hugh's Room, and the Lesters show at C'est What?

Just getting a big room sounds great to me. Mostly, we just need someplace where we won't wake up the neighbors. Honestly, I'd be willing to pay the same pre-reg fee as before for it even. (less than the cost of a meal to get a group room, and save the money for a post-hiatus con, is fine for me).
Even without a big committee, would there be any problem just going ahead and calling it Fr�con6? Also, I'm all for the Comfort Suites again. Good hotel, good location, and any hotel that likes us has to be good.

well, if there's not much in the way of an organised con, and no related shows, then why Toronto? February is fine - it's 6 months from Falcon Ridge. but Toronto? I don't think it's even that centrally located with respect to most of the Fruheads who would want to go.

granted, I don't know what is more convenient, because I don't have a list of all the people who were at the Frucon 5. but I think if it's just an unofficial gathering, Toronto isn't the best place for it.

I still think it is.
Yeah, it's not the most central point, but it's the most signifigant. To me, it wouldn't be the same if it weren't in TO.
But that's just my own sentimental side comming through, I can think of more universal reasons for Toronto too. While there won't be an actual Fr�show, Toronto is just about the only place that we could see any of the Lads play. That alone is a big reason for me wanting my one big trip for the year (I'd say one of two, but my FRFF plans never work out) to be Toronto, and I think there are others in the same boat as I am.
I mean, if I'm in the minority here, I'd still go see Fr�heads over the concert, but I don't think it needs to come to that.

I just thought of the one thing I really wanted for Fr�con6 (or whatever it'll be called).
Assuming we have a room, and we have enough people that it wouldn't be too expensive, I'd love to see if we could hire Fordy to give one of his Canadian History presentations. Granted, I don't know if there would be an issue with us not being part of a school, but it'd be a chance for us to see what he's been up to.

Does anyone else think/know if this might be a posibility?

Hard to say, he was talking about going into the studio to record - if he's doing that then he likely won't want to perform.

I agree that the con should stay in Toronto. Even if Fruvous isn't performing, there is the chance of Frulads performing there. Which would not be the case elsewhere.

i like the idea of toronto, too, but i think this idea has some merit. for what it's worth, the geographical center of north americal fruhead-dom is latitude 39.928455383547 by longitude -84.790804093884, which is roughly Richmond, IN. that's on i-70 between Indianapolis and Columbus.

1. you scare me sometimes.
2. Toronto it is, then. :)

but what about the geographical center of the fruheads who are driving distance (say, less than 600 miles) from Toronto? I figure the location wouldn't be all that important to people who would have to fly anyway, unless the fares to Toronto are much lower than to anywhere else.

Why? If it is just a little show for us? It is just him and a guitar is it not?

He MIGHT be willing to do it. We could always ask.

A.J.

Why? If it is just a little show for us? It is just him and a guitar is it not?

He MIGHT be willing to do it. We could always ask.

A.J.

Oh great! computer glitch and now there are like 5 million copies of this!

Oh great! computer glitch and now there are like 5 million copies of this!

yes, but at least that also means we get 5 million pictures of your cat. :)

I think Toronto is the best place because in addition to the possibility of fru-related shows, there is just SO much to do, and the prices are so much lower. There is no other city we could do this in where we Americans could get by so cheaply, and the Canadians could at least afford it. Have you checked hotel prices in Manhattan or downtown Boston or Philly lately? And those places are far away too. We could pick some small town in the middle of Pensylvania or something, but how fun would that be? Basically I think despite the potential weather (not necessarily better anywhere north of the mason-dixon line in any case) and the distance for some people Toronto is far and away the best choice.

A.J.

One thing that might be considered, assuming the relative smallness of the group might be to book a reasonably large suite for the con (and preferably the rooms around it for noise concerns). Someone would have to research the relative merits of doing that over booking a conference room. One other possibility might be to find a coffee house with a meeting room, we have one here in town that will let you book the room for free...they make extra in coffee sales and desserts so they are happy. Anyway, just my 2 cents.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

It would have to be an awfully large suite, but couches would be nice. Hmm.

I'm all for having a random people gathering in Toronto.... and getting a block of rooms.
I don't think, however, that there's any need to rent a conference room or anything.... at least, IMO.

Moreso, I think it would just be cool to get a bunch of people there and bum around toronto for a weekend!!
It's a fun city.
:)

Well, getting a confrence room makes group singing and such a lot eaiser than doing it in the rooms. Also if we managed to get anyone special to show up (Fordy with a show for example) I think a confrence room would be better than just a block of rooms.

The suite idea might work though...

Couches would be nice=) but anywhere would be just fine with me. I think we have to keep the Frucon tradition alive in some way or other and although rooms in a hotel would be good I think just gathering anywhere in T.O would be just as great. There's countless shows here every week and those Fr�lads pop up here and there once and a while. There's always the Lesters on Friday night and we could make a Fruhead invasion on >PLAY=).
Either way I think that we should all make a conscious effort to get in touch with each other and plan something no matter how small.

Now it's 5 months to Frucon 6. I've got it marked on my calendar. If it were not for Frucon 5, I might not be doing barbershop right now. Any balls rolling on hotel rooms?

So, from the looks of things, Fr�con VI is happening, to some degree or another, and it's happening in Toronto. This is good because: After not making it to FalconRidge (or really anything) this year, I miss everyone, and b) Toronto is good because I don't have to go anywhere and c) I was just in the States this summer and I'm not in any hurry to go back (people concerned about the travel costs; you'll make up for it by spending Canadian dollars all weekend instead of American ones, oh my goodness but everything is expensive in your country).
And I believe that the Art School Rejects (or at least half of them) could be persuaded to play a gig.

I don't know, I agree with Talcott in that Toronto has kind of that sentimental "fruvous-ish" feeling...it just wouldn't really feel like FruCon if it wasn't in TO.

I'd also be more than happy to pay an extra fee to get a comfort suites conference room. I really enjoyed having a kind of set place to sing and play and impersonate Jian and act ridiculous.

so basically I'm just chiming in with all the other posts with "yeah, yup, I agree" :-)

I don't know why I'm following this forum (and I use following in the least active possible form) since I probably won't be in attendance this year. Since I'm only two hours from Richmond, I'd probably go to that 'Con. I agree that TO is the better option (history, possible shows, and the whole "It's not Richmond" factor), even if having it across the border keeps me from attending.

(yes, I recognize the trival nature of this post.)

That being said, I'm not giving up all hope. I'd like to attend another 'Con, and I'd like to visit TO again. Give me a destination and I'll try to be there. (even though very few of you have any idea who I am)

yup, well i don't care what all you guys do, i'm still rooting for a eurofrucon. at home, on my own :D maybe i can get some life-size cardboard cutouts of the frulads and some random fruheads, and sit in my room with my fruvous cd's on... anyone fancy sending me some big GIFs? hehe :D

This is just a thought about replenishing the funds for future Frucons - if there is a Frucon this year. We just had a silent auction where I work, to benefit a local charity, and it was quite successful. What we did was have people donate items and we auctioned them off. (Jewelry, t-shirts, whatever...) Perhaps attendees of this year's Frucon could bring 1 item to donate - something they made, a concert picture, a bootleg, or another Fru-item they would be willing to part with. Some autographed items from the guys would probably bring in the most funds. Unfortunately, I am not sure how much money it would raise if there was a really low turn out - especially if the guys aren't into doing a concert or anything this year. 30 items at $5 would only bring in $150.