where has everyone gone?

[Dichroqueen]

I've been hanging out on Wet Canvas. I do read this forum, but I only have time to post on one forum.

Have been doing a lot of designing with other people's beads, but not doing any fusing lately. I've been working more hours at my regular job, dealing with some health problems, and other responsibilities.

I'm going to Bead & Button and taking two fusing classes, so that should get me motivated again.


Patti

[shellybeads]

You should do a book of poems and put a bead next to it. Maybe we could all make a bead write a poem about it and turn it into a book. Somebody stop me now. I havent even gotten my post cards ready.

[shellybeads]

I love your poem my son is an English major and creative writeing minor. It is much easier for me to make a bead than create a poem. Yor students are lucky to have you.

[MargieShanahan]

Thank you all for your kind words. It's great when the ideas come without a lot of fuss and bother (just like a good day with the glass--and we all know about the other days)! I'm thinking I'll use the poem as my artist's statement at the Passageway Gallery in April, when the glassblower and I will be the featured artists. My writing group liked it too, and got the imagery, even though none of them are beadmakers (so that made me really happy)!
Margie
P.S. I love the bead-poem connection! Maybe we should start a thread: Where do your beads hide?

[SaraSally]

Margie! "You go girl!"*......very nice poem.

*Brickman, Larry, Gathering, Kansas City, MO, 2006

[cghipp]

I think the biggest reason there are bigger "crowds" at the other forums is because, for the longest time, WC and LE were the only places where you could post photos of your work without hosting them yourselves. I believe there were several years where this was the case. So people went to these other forums and got comfortable there, and now that's where they continue to "hang out." The ability to promote your work has made people further entrenched in the other forums, but IMO that's not the main reason why people left here in the first place.

[Molly Butson]

sounds ominous too me....
"not the main reason why people left here in the first place"
well, maybe if we knew the reason why if this is true, what could we as members do to fix this and reenergize this forum?
My uneducated guess would be due to personality/political factions amongst people since this is always the underlying reason in the splintering in any group.
We do all have one thing in common. The love of the art of the Glassbead.
This thread seems to have aroused interest so there is life out there! Any kind of spark is means hope!

[CathyFinegan]

Speaking of sparks......on-line registration for the Gathering opens in 8 days, 4 hours, and 50 minutes!

[MaureenKennedy]

I think part of the reason people don't come here anymore is because this board is so restricted - you cannot post anything in tools & equipment, nor can you post anything in techniques - meaning you cannot share current information except in general discussion.

I know it's been said that some work will be done on the board, but nobody ever gets to it. I remember when I came here the fabulous amounts of information on the old isg archives which were such a treasure to people. Most of the "other boards" have someone overseeing them on a daily basis but this board hasn't changed in years. I would think that a priority of ISGB would be to promote this website as probably many people do visit here first (from the ads in magazines) looking for information on beadmaking.

Having said that, for myself, I see this place as having primarily well established (how else can I say "older and more knowledgeable?" people) bead makers who can answer specific questions (and what would we ever do without Vince!) but generally don't start new threads. And while I have been around a long time, I just don't see myself as so innovative as to be starting threads. I mean, I could say - look at this new technique I just discovered, and everybody could say - yeah, that's been done for the last 10-20- years. LOL

I personally have tons of free time on my hands and would be willing to volunteer to run this board (I did run an online chat board 20 years ago) but unfortunately I do not have the money to become a member of ISGB anymore having a difficult time just affording medications and health care right now.

[PamDugger]

Hi Maureen,

I'm not sure what you are talking about that you can't post in the tools and techniques portion. Is it locked? I can't see that, but if it is locked, I can unlock it.

And work is being done on the website. Hopefully it will be up really soon, but I have said that since December. We have another website up, but there is some problem with moving the forum from the way it was first set up. Our website people are trying to overcome some of the problems without having to trash this whole forum and set up a new one, thus losing all the information here. My understanding is that it has been incredibly difficult for various reasons, but is close to fruition - so, just because you haven't seen it yet, doesn't mean it's not being worked on. It was actually started in the fall.

I appreciate your offer to help, Maureen, and we may take you up on it at some point, but right now the new website will be overseen by the people who built it, at least for a while. Now if we can just get it up and running!!