Great idea! I can host parties at my new T Accessible house in Arlington if that helps. <div class="gmail_quote">On Thu, Oct 28, 2010 at 1:42 AM, Holt <<a href="mailto:holt@laptop.org">holt@laptop.org</a>> wrote: <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;">(1) In-person meetings in between Bostonian <a href="http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Oversight_Board" target="_blank">http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Oversight_Board</a> members and Sugar/OLPC Local Lab Boston, quasimonthly. Community is neither a buzzword, nor a fantasy, with Sugar Labs' only 4 active board members now living in Boston today. Community is the 132 volunteer members of <a href="http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/olpc_boston" target="_blank">http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/olpc_boston</a> who want to particitepate in Sugar/OLPC but our promise withers, when accomplished teachers and volunteers willing to pull their weight, simply don't -- as too many of us are unintentionally hiding behind our IRC koolaid, yep myself guilty as charged :) So it's time to throw a few parties. And get over a couple of our antisocial hangups, at all levels of our organizing. As our 130+ person high-energy <a href="http://olpcSF.org/summit" target="_blank">http://olpcSF.org/summit</a> this past weekend proved far beyond a shadow of a doubt. As SF's own amazing hackerspace (<a href="http://noisebridge.net" target="_blank">http://noisebridge.net</a>) reminded us all late into the night before. Sustainable volunteerism == bringing people together in a physical space, even in Boston! Like others have already done globally here: <a href="http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Local_Labs" target="_blank">http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Local_Labs</a> . I made this happen last week in San Francisco for almost 10 valiant-but-poor-volunteers, by lining them up with other more well-off volunteers, using peer2peer donations instead of bureaucratic budget molasses. Next year we can do this for 20 volunteers instead of 10, if we bring ourselves together. Meantime: I, Walter, Bernie and CJB (etc) can do our Boston and Global community a gigantic favor if we Get Out More right here at home :) Learning (i.e. healthy) communities live or die based on the Rhythm their members create -- physical bonds feed online bonds and vice versa. Let us begin now. Progress beckons: Walter, Bernie & I will meet all together Thurs (tomorrow) for the first time in about a year, to discuss our breakthrough community catapult in SF, even before SF's Mayor issued his proclamation: <a href="http://blog.laptop.org/2010/10/22/october-23-is-olpc-day-in-sf/" target="_blank">http://blog.laptop.org/2010/10/22/october-23-is-olpc-day-in-sf/</a> (2) Democracy does NOT grow on trees, or in the back of stale legalistic texts. It is the worst form of governance, if we believe Churchill, and accordingly I and Sugar Labs' Oversight Board have been negligent in not getting folks fired up about the current election process, failing to bringing strong awareness around precise key election dates, even understanding it ourselves! I personally consider both to be constitutional duty: the cleanest elections happen when we enable get-out-the-vote mobilizations of all kind, enabling expression and reflection AKA learning. Disturbing evidence I've uncovered in the past 24hrs is that board members themselves I've spoken to privately remain confused about nomination/election dates, confused about duration of terms, confused about lame duck/impeachment/replacement/re-invitation procedures for the several absentee board members already gone. Pity our rank+file volunteer just trying to get some work done, or get fired up about our so-sweet possibilities! Now drowning in this unadvertised/undecided election machinery-- No more! I suggest we start with Informed Consent, meaning strong advance awareness of all deadlines and voting times -- that we hopefully all together agree to publicize very directly off: <a href="http://google.com/search?q=sugar+labs+election" target="_blank">http://google.com/search?q=sugar+labs+election</a> (3) One specific proposal around strengthening awareness of Sugar Labs' election clearly, widely and far more passionately, with all dates clearly layed out, right off the uniquely memorable page above -- was advanced by Luke Faraone (administering the election) earlier this evening. Walter Bender says he would agree to support Luke's proposal to extend registration (welcoming quality candidates & eligible voters both) until something like Nov 10th 23:59 EST, if the election itself was delayed until approximately Nov 14-27, IF our broad community and board agrees this will all deepen our Participative process, strengthen who we are, illustrate our shared sacrifice -- and most importantly: waken our family and friends to our cause. Yes, I'm paraphrasing, Walter please speak for yourself :) In any case, for me clearness-in-democracy is non-negotiable, as is our blessed responsibility to stay young, Meaningfully open (Lovable too please!) while at last growing up as a 2008-2012 organization, as this election will now decide. I support Luke's above thoughtful proposal and hope others will too, enhancing it ideally if you can, but most important all speaking our consciences towards deciding quickly and carefully, however we proceed. (4) First kill all the lawyers (but please Shakespeare DO read our "SFC by-laws" at <a href="http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Labs/SFC-SugarLabs_Agreement" target="_blank">http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Labs/SFC-SugarLabs_Agreement</a> and <a href="http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Labs/Members/List" target="_blank">http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Labs/Members/List</a> carefully before the light goes out :) And if a board meeting is needed to finalize any electoral learning learning consensus(es) emerging above, or similar/otherwise, please Walter/CJB schedule this very quickly before I go offline most of Sat Oct 30 to Sun Nov 14 to volunteer building <a href="http://blueTarpSchool.blogspot.com" target="_blank">http://blueTarpSchool.blogspot.com</a> in Haiti. (5) I Love Haiti, but can't promise Sugar/OLPC/Realness/FabLab/Whatever Local Lab Port-au-Prince just yet on this trip -- but I *will* do what I can to convince my traveling companion (Tim Falconer, <a href="http://waveplace.com/news/blog" target="_blank">http://waveplace.com/news/blog</a> ) rest you assured!! (6) Fall in Love again, it won't hurt I promise... it might even hopefully spur you to add your name here: <a href="http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Oversight_Board/2010-2011-candidates" target="_blank">http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Oversight_Board/2010-2011-candidates</a> _______________________________________________ IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!) <a href="mailto:IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org" target="_blank">IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org</a> <a href="http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep" target="_blank">http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep</a> </blockquote></div> -- Caroline Meeks Solution Grove Caroline@SolutionGrove.com 617-500-3488 - Office 505-213-3268 - Fax