CLAM - Cichlid Lovers Anonymous Meeting

[Al]

If you recall, back in February many of us commented upon how small interest was in cichlids in Ottawa and OVAS. While there were some great posts, we all more or less agreed that the cichlid "nuts" were few and far between but there were some brave souls who weren't afraid to fess up to their cichlid sickness.
As a matter of fact, if we look at the cichlid section here on this site, there have been maybe 2 posts since April. But I'm leaning towards more interested parties than those #'s reveal.

Fish hobby interests grabbing attention these days seem to be plants, salt and other mixed interests like shrimp, etc.
Cichlids not so much.
Nothing wrong with this. It wasn't always so. Times and interests change, it's a constant cycle and it's great for the hobby overall.
Change keeps it fresh and brings new learning, challenges and discoveries.

I have kept cichlids for well over 20+ years, mostly focused on Malawi for a couple of years, then the majority of my focus was tanganyikans - mostly tropheus and petrochromis. I then moved on to west Africans and for the last 3 years have kept south americans.

3 years ago if you would have asked me if I kept South American cichlids, I would have looked at you weird and thought to myself - any sane person knows that the only cichlids worth keeping are African - right? - wrong!
SA cichlids - or should I say the change -  has been a real high in my hobby keeping for me.

OK, so what about CLAM.
Back in that February post, lucius had posted a reference to CLAM and I must say ever since then it has stuck in my mind. Cichlid Lovers Anonymous Meeting.
I attended one of the plantaholics meetings along the way and must admit despite not being a plant person, I had a great time engaging with some new folks and had fun.
A lot more fun than looking at my fish alone in the basement.

This brings me to the point - I would like to gauge interest in a first CLAM meeting. We could pick a date to kick-off a first meeting - a Saturday or Sunday afternoon meeting and I would be motivated in hosting that meeting at my home in lovely downtown Greely. We can talk shop, learn, see new fish at each others "man caves" and generally have a good time sharing our passion. Having fun!!

Any thoughts??
Al

[bitterman]

Sounds fun to me! Weekends are pretty busy for me normally with the kids but will try to make it work.

Bruce

[Al]

Hey Bruce,
I figured you would be one of the first to respond - thanks -it would be great if you could join us IF we get a group interested. Your experience with fronts and gibbs would be invaluable as I'm sure more folks would really enjoy these great fish with some guidance.
Keep posted - hope you're having a good summer.
Al

[bitterman]

I'm hoping more people see this. It should be lots of fun!

Bruce

[fish finatic]

I would possibly be able to attend but no promises as I am very busy.

[limmer]

I would be interested but I am gone from Aug. 23 to Sept 23 on a trip.

Peter

[Al]

Well, two interested and a maybe so far, it's a start - thanks Bruce, Peter and fish fan. I'm supposing that a first meeting target date would probably be mid to late September so about 6 weeks out but that will be for the group to decide.
Let's hope that as folks get back from summer vacations over the next several weeks, that we get some more interested parties.
Al

[Bob_S]

I too have kept cichlid's for years, Malawi's and tanganyikan's.
Currently in the process of setting up a tank for some Daffodil Cichlids I got from Big Al's last week.
A September meeting sounds great.

bob

[Al]

Nice to hear from you bob s. It would be great to have you join us, I'm sure you've got some great war stories.
Keep posted and good luck with the neolamps, hope to see you in September.
Al

[ikon]

Wow I have been gone for a long time I have also kept Mbuna and Tropheus just getting my feet wet again will be aiming to get 2 tanks up in the near future one Malawi and one Tang tank I think a meeting of like minded fish keepers would be fun and would help me get back into the swing of things

[Mike L]

 I too would be interested Al and I would prefer some time in later September. My work and family obligation right now are crazy.
Mike

[Al]

Well we have some interested people, 7 of us so far, to be exact

Al, bitterman, fish fanatic, limmer, Bob_S, ikon, Mike L

and hoping that some more interest may come over the next several weeks.
If you are reading this and have some interest but haven't posted here yet, you are welcome to join us - just let us know your intent, we'd be glad to have more cichlid hobbyists, which will make for a more dynamic meeting and more experiences to share.

This meeting isn't aimed at showing everyone we're experts or comparing how many years experience we have versus one another. The intent is to have hobbyists from all levels that have interest in cichlids and to learn, share and have some fun.

As I said in an earlier post, "it sure beats watching my fish alone in my basement". It's a laid back get together for a few hours - drop in, meet some new people, see some new fish/equipment/etc at the hosts home and have some interesting one-on-one and group chats. 

Tentative Date

From some of the feedback posted, I am leaning towards the date of Saturday or Sunday, September 26th/27th as a  kick-off meeting. This accommodates several folks travelling and busy with work schedules and gets us past the start of school, Labour Day, etc.

Any further thoughts? How does these tentatives dates work for you? Ideas for our first meeting?

As we get into the first week of September, I will communicate through this post, finalizing and reminding you of the date, time, etc and sending you my coordinates, address, etc by pm.

Al

[ajm1961]

I would also be interested in meeting other cichlid enthusiasts. I've been keeping cichlids for several years and it is interesting to meet other hobbyists and see the species they keep. Never been to your place Al and it would be a blast to see those large tanks.

Last weekend in September could be a possibility - however it is being looked at for the club's first garage sale. It should be confirmed in the next few weeks.

So, keep me in the loop and thanks for getting this off the ground!

[Al]

Andre,
Look forward to you joining us.
Once the club sets their date, we'll work around it and would definitely not meet on the same weekend.
Al

[bitterman]

I am really looking forward to this meeting!

Bruce

[ikon]

very happy to see this solidify so end of September works for me

[Al]

Well hard to believe but September is here !!
...............although you wouldn't know it was September by today's temperature - another blistering hot day.

I wanted to confirm that I will be hosting the first CLAM meeting at my home on Saturday, September 26th.
I'm going to say anytime after 1:00 and we'll shut it down when we shut it down.

As was communicated earlier, if you are reading this and have some interest but haven't posted here yet, you are welcome to join us - just let us know your intent, we'd be glad to have more cichlid hobbyists, which will make for a more dynamic meeting and more experiences to share.

This meeting isn't aimed at showing everyone we're experts or comparing how many years experience we have versus one another. The intent is to have hobbyists from all levels that have interest in cichlids and to learn, share and have some fun.

I feel that for our first meeting, we should focus on meeting new people and getting a feel for each others interests and expertise as well as what we feel our direction should be as we move forward.

Let's keep it simple, open, relaxed and about talking shop about our hobby interests.

Please let me know in this thread if you will be attending on the 26th so I can have a ballpark idea of munchies, etc.
Once I get your intent/confirmation to attend, I will send you a pm with my coordinates.

If there are any other ideas for our first meeting, please share.

Look forward to meeting you all.

Al

[fischkopp]

Great initiative Al! I sure like to join in, but won't be able to attend the first meeting in September. Hope there will be a second one.

[bitterman]

I will be attending!!

Bruce

[Al]

Always good to hear from you Robert. Trust everything is good at your end. Thanks for the encouragement and would be glad to have you join us in the future.
Bruce, I'm glad to count you in.
Al