bgg

[Martin]

I'm very flattered! - just had another go at entering the forum - no luck so far!

[the.fee.fairy]

I got my certificate finally too!

Not sure what to make of the involvement of Mr Live8.

On one hand, i feel that BGG do need some help, and on the other i don't like the Live8 Ethos. i hope that he will just be a financial support, and not have anything to do with actually running the festival.

The shareholders camp looks good. Might have to go to that. That ha[[ens to be the exact dates that i booked off work too!

What were those dates for the 'actual' BGG this year? or is it just the shareholders camp?

[Martin]

that's one of the worrying things -the only reference I can find is the veggie one...........
Despite registering on the new forum a couple of days ago, I still haven't been allowed access (perhaps they're too busy putting up the blast walls )
I do worry about mega corporations taking over and using it to greenwash their dodgy products........to me the very spirit of the festival was the really nice guy with the home-made solar showers - all made out of recycled materials, and definitely not in the least "corporate" - I'd hate to see that sort of thing lost......

[Martin]

oh well! - I'm now into the BGG shareholders forum, and making some posts
- I have a strange feeling that it won't be long before I'm slung off.........
Those of you who are shareholders would be very welcome, if nothing else to let me know if I'm "getting it right".........I'd also like to know if you think I should make public what I now know as a shareholder (says he cryptically)

[the.fee.fairy]

and what is that?!

Did you get insider knowledge that i didn't.

Admittedly, i'm not on the shareholders forum yet...

[Martin]

Well, I thought it best to ask first - I can reveal that there will be NO public Big Green Gathering Festival this year, but plans are afoot for 2009!
There will be a small shareholders gathering however - details and venue to be announced!

[the.fee.fairy]

Groovy.

Thankfully, i am now officially a shareholder...

I hope its those dates on that veggie place!!

[dh ver1.0]

Those of you who are shareholders would be very welcome, if nothing else to let me know if I'm "getting it right...

Hi Martin - James here. The circlercross gang won't be visiting Brighton tomorrow I'm afraid - I've got a class of 30 4-5 year-olds to face on Monday morning, and my travel options are a bus getting back in to Carlisle at 5.15am, or a 700-mile round trip in the car (the irony of burning 20 gallons of petrol to get to a bgg EGM...Similar to the two-day EU Summit on when to talk about addressing climate issues that finished today. I wonder how many of the foreign ministers attending came by train - or for that matter, if any of them thought, "Hold on a minute, instead of merely arranging a meeting for 2009 today, seeing as we're all sat round the table NOW, maybe we should be wildly spontaneous and talk about it straight after the buffet lunch?")

As for "getting it right" on th that forum...I think you've been valiant in your show of restraint!

[Martin]

despite the fact that it's "on my doorstep", I won't be going either! Since the announcement that the guy from AEG can't be stuffed to turn up, neither can I
- I really can't see Sunday's meeting as being anything but a non-event now!
We have our shareholder's vote, and I think the forum is going to be very useful
I note that despite having wrung from them the news that there will be be no public BGG this year, they still haven't got round to deigning to put it on the main website!

[QuakerBear]

Hi ho,

I've never been to a BGG before, what goes on there and does one have to be a share holder to attend?

Thanks

[Martin]

normally, it's like any other festival, buy a ticket and turn up - unfortunately, owing to their financial problems, there won't be one this year!
The following was written by a friend, following his first visit last year, and I reckon sums it up beautifully -

"Being with 20,000 other people, all individuals (and some just plain weird), and at no time feeling threatened,

Being appalled to find that a festival with no history of crime or violence was forced by the local council to spend £200,000 (a quarter of the entire budget) on unnecessary security in order to get a licence,

Seeing Teens without attitude,

Seeing kids who actually appeared to like their parents (and vice versa),

Seeing kids with disabilities and their own choice of dress and hairstyle, not their parents’,

Realising just how attractive people can still look without make-up and other artificial enhancements,

Realising just how individual dress can be, for males and females – don’t waste the opportunity to re-use that wedding or bridesmaid dress, costume you made for the school play or bought for that odd fancy dress party,

Being surprised at the amount of facial hair (mainly males),

Being surprised at the amount of body hair (mainly female),

Being impressed at just how many things you can power with a bike (lights, music, lathes, forges, drilling machines, band saws, grinders, polishers, washing machines, even wheels!),

Being impressed at how you can power a whole festival including lights, music, cinemas, cooking, saunas and showers without a single generator. The ticket warns that you will be frisked for generators – and we were,

Doing loads of stuff I’d never done (hurdle building, scythe sharpening. Making fire by rubbing two boy scouts pieces of wood together, Tai Chi, Chai Tea (clever little spoonerism there), meditation, laughter workshop, (watching) a Trance workshop, learning to juggle to the three ball level),

Hearing some amazingly talented bands and comics. Rodney Brannigan was awesome playing two guitars at once. The clip on Youtube doesn’t even begin to do him justice:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QluXiXUycA4

Talking to Brigit Strawbridge about her forthcoming project launch,

Being surprised at seeing not a single cigarette produced from a packet – every one was hand rolled, including many very loosely and with a distinctive smell,

Not feeling embarrased or a minority by asking for Veggie options - there were no meat options in any of the many outlets- Phillipino, Japanese, Mexican, Caribbean and others,

Being impressed that some very young kids were allow to do lots of things that they would never be allowed to do at school, or even home – using a draw knife, hand axe, Stanley knife, forge, stone carving and lots of others, though I did cringe at the group of 8 to 10 year old doing fire juggling,

Being cross that Justin Rowlatt, ethical man from Newsnight, failed to turn up for his workshop, allegedly because he was frightened we’d all have a go at him for flying to the Caribbean at the end of his series,

Being impressed at the ability of the chap who filled 45 minutes hoping he’s still turn up for his slot,

Avoiding the Didgeridoo healing workshop as I wasn’t sure where they’d insert the didgeridoo.

And of course all the usual festival attractions, naked cyclists, nude mud wallowing, odd cakes for sale.

It was brilliant, we enjoyed it greatly, and we will go again next year."

[QuakerBear]

That sounds absolutely wonderful, I'd love to go.

[red]

Being appalled to find that a festival with no history of crime or violence was forced by the local council to spend £200,000 (a quarter of the entire budget) on unnecessary security in order to get a licence,"

this is at a slight juxtaposition with the fact that they stopped issuing day tickets as the day ticket holders caused trouble.
so I guess they have had trouble after all.

[the.fee.fairy]

In the experiences i had, the trouble with some of the day trippers was that they went around asking everyone for drugs!

I was chilling out in the Green Theatre, watching the Vagina monologues and i watched a small group of day trippers (different coloured wristbands...) snorting white powder, and then i had another couple askng where to get Keta mine from because 'We've come for a good time'.

I haven't seen violence or even overly drunkenness, but the drugs from the daytrippers were ridiculous!

[red]

you did say you were offered stuff from other campers too.. didn't you? seem to remember it.. or maybe I remember it wrong

either way they cannot claim to be trouble free if they have had trouble... from daytrippers or otherwise.

and er... they did not do day trip tickets last year.. so how did you come across them? ah wait not i see from their website... remember now too. only do day tickets for locals. more local than me...