- Joined
- Nov 7, 2012
- Messages
- 5,173
- Location (City and/or State)
- South of Southern California, but not Mexico
For the rare few of you that go to group meetings of special interest groups, how do you manage this??
I routinely go to meeting of the San Diego Turtle and Tortoise Society, mostly for a night out and to meet-up with a few friends, and sometime the topic. Mostly the meet-up.
So last Friday I was directed to a couple who had a Cal Desert Tortoise to offer advise on how to maintain them over the winter and not hibernate. To not interrupt the meeting itself I threw out some very quick factoids, Keep night time temps no less than 75 ambient and day time no less than high 80 to mid 90. Keep the tortoise hydrated.
I exchanged e-mail addresses and filled in the info a bit more. . . along with 'I'm Will on www.tortoiseforum.org and there you will essentially get a moderated discussion as well as refined answers with all the time you like to read."
One of the people I sat with said something like more TFO converts or referrals or something like that. But that friend was 100% correct, I was already planning on suggesting they post their inquiry here.
I in no way shape or form would discourage attending local interest group meetings no matter the social or political climate of the group. In person interaction is a great thing. However I also don't find myself well able to help someone with a somewhat big question in a few minutes of an verbal response that may be available during a meeting. I've never liked the 'here's a recipe' kind of answer. The person getting a recipe will follow what they think it means blindly (too often) and not think for themselves or the benefit if the animal.
I want to hear about what they sorted out for themselves down the road, not that a recipe worked or did not.
Sometimes I kid around and think that the people who attend these meetings are not internet savvy enough to embrace all the dialogue available on the internet, or maybe they think it's all about some jackA$$ in Nigeria trying to get them to reveal secret bank information. I don't know, maybe they too want the enjoyable aspect of the meeting. It is enjoyable.
But how to bridge the not so simple question to here where the simple question could end up being months of reading? That's okay, but what about the tortoise?
Is it unethical, do you think, to potentially be a 'poacher' of people from group meetings to here? I like both.
I routinely go to meeting of the San Diego Turtle and Tortoise Society, mostly for a night out and to meet-up with a few friends, and sometime the topic. Mostly the meet-up.
So last Friday I was directed to a couple who had a Cal Desert Tortoise to offer advise on how to maintain them over the winter and not hibernate. To not interrupt the meeting itself I threw out some very quick factoids, Keep night time temps no less than 75 ambient and day time no less than high 80 to mid 90. Keep the tortoise hydrated.
I exchanged e-mail addresses and filled in the info a bit more. . . along with 'I'm Will on www.tortoiseforum.org and there you will essentially get a moderated discussion as well as refined answers with all the time you like to read."
One of the people I sat with said something like more TFO converts or referrals or something like that. But that friend was 100% correct, I was already planning on suggesting they post their inquiry here.
I in no way shape or form would discourage attending local interest group meetings no matter the social or political climate of the group. In person interaction is a great thing. However I also don't find myself well able to help someone with a somewhat big question in a few minutes of an verbal response that may be available during a meeting. I've never liked the 'here's a recipe' kind of answer. The person getting a recipe will follow what they think it means blindly (too often) and not think for themselves or the benefit if the animal.
I want to hear about what they sorted out for themselves down the road, not that a recipe worked or did not.
Sometimes I kid around and think that the people who attend these meetings are not internet savvy enough to embrace all the dialogue available on the internet, or maybe they think it's all about some jackA$$ in Nigeria trying to get them to reveal secret bank information. I don't know, maybe they too want the enjoyable aspect of the meeting. It is enjoyable.
But how to bridge the not so simple question to here where the simple question could end up being months of reading? That's okay, but what about the tortoise?
Is it unethical, do you think, to potentially be a 'poacher' of people from group meetings to here? I like both.
