Brittens 2007/ Familittens 2007

[passer-by]

I didn't assume you haven't done any sightseeing, I said I'd do too much of it, more than it's normal on holidays. I meant I would spend too much time away from the group which I'd be supposed to hang out with. Even my friends are not happy about this habit of mine, let alone the strangers.

It was more about "things unrelated to AGS that you do during mittens".  I believe you all do such things during mittens and I wanted to stress that fact and that it's not a problem for people which means many different people can attend.

I'm in this forum. I'm not an internet drunk nerd. Why would I assume that you are?

I didn't say anyone prohibited anything. I think I said "different " gatherings.

Both meetings together wouldn't work, especially at one house, but two different meetings at the same region with overlapping schedules some of the time could. I couldn't be near kids, because I'd have to watch my mouth and it would feel like office hours etc. I wouldn't like it, but I could live with it for a couple of hours if it could help some people meet others.

I don't expect anyone to be able to attend mittens. Some people can't afford it, some people work at the time of the meeting, some people fall ill and there are one milion other things that can get in the way. I didn't even make it to the mittens in Greece. How's that for forward planning?  :

While reading all post mittens, next mittens and family mittens threads, I had the impression that it excludes some people. It must be the way some phrases were written.  My mistake.
I have to believe you since you were there and I wasn't. It was just an impression. Sorry if I misunderstood the meaning of those threads.

[Nacho]

By logical deduction, if you say "I would have done the cultural things alone" that implies that the rest of the AGSers were not there, ergo, "The rest of the AGSers don't have the cultural sensitivity to make such things".

Ok... if now the things is that you are a cultural zealot (^_^) , that is a new aspect of the equation, all the logical deduction is no longer valid. Damn, if your own friends can't follow your pace in your cultural tours, saying that we wouldn't either is not an insult! 

And yes... This meetings are not for everybody. We've been making meetings for 5 years. Asking for the members with children 5 days without them (in 5 years!) is not much, IMHO.

I know that "their time is precious", but our time is probably as precious as their time, you know? We might want to be able to enjoy all the time of this meetings completely, and, whereas families are tender and lovely, THEY ARE NOT the BEST option for be into this events.

We can even agree to make a "relaxed brittens" and go with the kids, you know? We could make the sacrifice... But, still, it wouldn't be THE BEST OPTION. And everything else, saying that "we want to freeze the time", "we are exlusive" and "we life in bubbles" is a correct dialectic tactic, but is still uncorrect (bullshit, in common lenguaje  ), because that's not what we are discussing. Sorry.

[SSH]

I'm certainly not suggesting that kids at every AGS meet would be a good idea. But its rather one-sided to say that there will be no people with kids at ANY meet, surely?

[m0ds]

The thing is with my kids, if I have some time not with them and with my wife it is so rare and precious, I'm not going to go and spend it with a bunch of internet nerds Ã, 

So you won't give up your time to come and join the rest of us, but you will gladly let the rest of us come to you when you have free time? We're still nerds, either way... You'd rather subject your family to a bunch of people you've never met AND their kids?

Perhaps you should attend a Mittens greet before deciding how good or bad this kind of idea is, SSH. 21 people has its problems, and I'm sure 10 to 15 including kids wouldn't be so easy, too. What if one dad wanted to go out and get drunk but none of the others did! :p

Maybe a family thing is a nice idea, but I doubt very much we'll allow kids to go to a normal Mittens event. High maintenence holidays is not what Mittens is about. At other meets there could well be kids, but that would be an isolated event. Tottens

[Nacho]

I'm certainly not suggesting that kids at every AGS meet would be a good idea. But its rather one-sided to say that there will be no people with kids at ANY meet, surely?

With the kids? With a group of 20 to 25 internet nerds who will probably want to swear, drink, smoke and... who knows, have sexual encounters? Well... if we make a big effort to behave correctly and hide this behaviour to them, yes, they could come, but still, it's light years far away from the perfect location for this events.

[passer-by]

Asking for the members with children 5 days without them (in 5 years!) is not much, IMHO.

Yes, but not all parents are THAT comfortable with leaving their children at home and worrying about their safety. Or should one parent stay at home while teh otehr is abroad on holidays.
I though the idea was to go somewhere and people with children would be somewhere nearby. I can't see my self baby-sitting or watching a toddler making sprites :. Still, they could come and live nearby. I could spend a couple of hours TOTALÃ,  in the families company, or else AGS would seem exclusive. But judging from the growing numbers of the attendees, separate meeting might be a reality befor we know it.

........ And everything else, saying that "we want to freeze the time", "we are exlusive" and "we life in bubbles" is a correct dialectic tactic, but is still uncorrect (bullshit, in common lenguajeÃ,  ), because that's not what we are discussing. Sorry.

I said "would you rather..blah blah freeze time, would you rather trap AGS in a time bubble" meaning that it's not what you re actually doing, thatÃ,  you don't want to freeze time etc etc

[Nikolas]

Now I'm confused.

The inital idea for SSH to host the next Britens was a really kind one, but there could be problems. For me this idea is out of the question for all the reasons mentioned earlier.

But this thread has moved to keeping people with families out, sort off, which as Andrew says, is one-sided. But definately I don't want to spoil the fun of anyone. I just don't see how this can happen really. After all having a family means having eternal company (whether this is good or bad dunno but it's a different thread really ). You take off wherever you want and cp will go to the sites and I will stay home nappy changing and talking. Plus of course if we were to stay in SSH house, there would be simple rules. I don't think that he would expect 20 people to actually keep absolutely quiet after 20:00 hours! But maybe a lot of swaring or out of hand situations maybe shuold be restricted somehow.

anyway... enough with my posting... I've reached a fair number of posts for today. Time to move to another forum for further posting

EDIT (Nacho): So no Nikolas, or SSH for any mittens...  :'( ??

EDIT 2 (cp): Exactly that

[Nacho]

No one has pohibited to attend mittens. The ideal is you to look for 5 days of 356 without the kids (Well, just 5 days from 1,787 days, because we have been making meetings for this time...).

But if you want to come with the kids, we won't aim you with an AK-47 or something... We won't be unpolite... But you won't probably enjoy it, and the others would probably have to limit theirself because of it.

I think it's quite clear.

[jetxl]

I agree with Nacho, because...

most of us are between 16 and 26.
I like to stay up late, have a drink and laugh out loud. I'm a student, and it's hard to relate to family men. It doesn't mean that I don't like you, but just that I have different values, habits and intrests. If you're happy hanging out the nappies, then I'd rather be... unhappy.

[m0ds]

You have to remember that the majority of forum members want to meet other forum members. And your kids aren't forum members. It's supposed to be a meet of AGS developers. Anything else and it loses its meaning. Why don't you AGS families just meet up on your own accord? Or, as SSH said - have a specially designed family Mittens/Brittens - so that others can attend one elsewhere.

[Nikolas]

Or, as SSH said - have a specially designed family Mittens/Brittens - so that others can attend one elsewhere.

Well this way I won't get to meet 21 people that interest me greatly, including you Mark. That's why.

[SSH]

Perhaps you should attend a Mittens greet before deciding how good or bad this kind of idea is, SSH. 21 people has its problems, and I'm sure 10 to 15 including kids wouldn't be so easy, too. What if one dad wanted to go out and get drunk but none of the others did! :p

Maybe a family thing is a nice idea, but I doubt very much we'll allow kids to go to a normal Mittens event. High maintenence holidays is not what Mittens is about. At other meets there could well be kids, but that would be an isolated event. Tottens

Nearly everyone is reading what I am saying as me taking the kids along to all AGS stuff. No, what I was planning to do if I'd been able to go to Benidorm is stay with my wife and kids some of the time and go off with the AGSers another part of the time. If at some point there was something that the kids could enjoy too, like a theme park, then great.

Now, as for leaving the kids, my wife wouldn't be able to do it for 5 days, not yet, and not in a different country. I'd probably miss them a lot too, never mind whether they could manage. And since I married my wife nearly 8 years ago I have spent a total of 3 nights away from her, for essential work travel, and I hated it.  Sorry for being romantic, but there you are. If I did have some time without the kids, I'd spend it with the most important person in my life who has been waiting 4 years for some real time alone.

So, all I was saying at the beginning was, would any non-family people be interested in going to a family-style meet? Apart from Ken, cp and Nikolas most people seem quite offended at the whole idea!

[AGA]

I'm not saying I wouldn't necessarily be interested, BUT, not to sound selfish, but what would we actually do? I like kids, but I couldn't spend 18 hours a day, for a week, with them. My (now 12-years-old) sister was bad enough

[Vince Twelve]

Heh, Famittens...

Why don't you just have a little get together where Nik and family go to SSH's house and then extend an open invite to anyone else who wants to come?  I guess without the "ittens" in the name you don't get the interest of the rest of the AGSers...  and with the "ittens" comes certain expectations that might not be met at a gathering that includes kids.

I'd love to come to something like this with my wife and daughter because if there are two things I like talking about, it's adventure games and poop.  But I know that I wouldn't be able to come because: A.) it would be really expensive to fly from Japan with the whole family, and B.) my wife would feel uncomfortable because she wouldn't be able to understand our conversations.

[scotch]

Certainly is kind of awkward having someone's family around an AGS meet... I don't know what it'd be like if the family is meant to be part of the meet, but I can't imagine it'd work too well, and when there's a wife and two children for each AGSer present, it's not really an AGS meet anymore. I think the best thing for you to consider is leaving the wife and kids for a weekend and coming to a normal AGS meet, as Alynn considered this Brittens.

I'd probably go, if enough other AGSers were up for it, but it sounds like it'd put a damper on things... not because we'd have to work around kids, just because there'd be too many non AGSers and I'd feel sorry for them being dragged along.

[Sam.]

I thought Id revive this thread instead of starting a new one.

I thought it was worthwile, since no real organisation has been done about brittens, and it needs to be done so overseas fellows can book tickets.

We need to sort out a date and a place. Im happy with Taffs Well since its close to me, but it depends on waht other people (and AGA) want to do.

As for time, easter or early summer would work best, but again its up to consensus. Something concrete needs to be sorted out soon though.

[Tuomas]

If it were easter, I would probably make an attempt on coming, which would then count it out, so consider that

[Chicky]

I would actually come if it was easter, and less than 100 miles for me to drive. If more i'd have to get public transport i guess.

[AGA]

I'm probably spending Easter with my real friends, so I'd rather it be early-mid July or something (term doesn't finish for me until the last week of June this year for some reason). However, Mittens is July 12, so maybe having it even later would be better. Early August maybe, if people are willing to wait that long?

[Sam.]

I dont mind waiting a bit. Just a concrete date for me to plan for. People like annie and disco need to booktickets soon for cheapness.

Early August is good for me, as long as it doesnt clash with festivals.