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**marauder_77868** · 09-10-2007, 01:42 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Rob....
Well said....ditto
--Charles

**fishlady** · 09-10-2007, 02:52 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

well i will say this about HAS....i did enjoy their last auction and i payed my dues to them and bought quite a bit of things at the auction....after it was over....i saw my checks were cashed, including the dues check....but i have yet to receive anything from them about my membership....i even emailed the president and have yet to get a response from that effort either......so as far as HAS goes....they hit me as glad to get your money and run kinda people......i'm very disappointed in them....and as far as a club forming here .....if you don't want to join it then don't ...but don't be critical of the ones that do.....we're all in this hobby for various reasons.....but meeting with everyone this past friday showed me that there's so much fun to be had in just the comrodery alone....all are so eager to help each other in a moments notice....that's what clubs are all about in my books...rather it be fish related or not.....

just my humble opinion

fishlady.....

**loopy119** · 09-10-2007, 03:00 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Well said Fishlady!

Rebekah

**jughead** · 09-10-2007, 03:10 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

i missed the part where someone was critical of someone else for forming a club.point that out for me.thanks.

**rrocket2002** · 09-10-2007, 03:11 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Fishlady...You go girl! LOL

**eklikewhoa** · 09-10-2007, 03:37 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Regardless if there was anything said to nay the situation the formation of this club is to tend to the members which is what is should be....a club IMO is a group of people who share the same interest and want a reason to hang out.

Regardless of what it is called or the supposed "goal" I think this club has been brought to surface because......

1. a group of people who share the same interest wanted it to form, otherwise it would not happen.
2. from what I gather everyone wants a reason to hang out with each other in a more organized way.
3. possibly the other clubs out there do not tend to their wants or interest.
4. the atmosphere that was shared in the get together friday was very pleasant.
5. Scott brought it together but being as that we were not in "Lake Houston" Scott is just trying to expand what is already there so that those interested can be more active in the club.

I don't see a problem with there being more then one club....I mean it is what it is.....I don't see MARSH joining together with HAS, LHA or even HLA but then again they share a slightly different interest and that being a bit salty.

I mean why have Whataburger, McDonalds, JITB, Wendy's, etc....why not join them all together I mean they all do serve burgers.

Why have so many different choices in vehicles, colors, homes, fish, bikes, states, cities, or even underwear?

Why break it down to different types of fish clubs? different city orientated clubs? plant club? saltwater club? why all the different forums? hell I am a member of at least 3 different Tropheus forums.....all the different plant forums and lets not start with the just plain ole cichlid forums. Hell I even see the same people on every last one of them and most of the topics are either similar or exactly the same.

**fishlady** · 09-10-2007, 08:20 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Originally posted by jughead";p="

i missed the part where someone was critical of someone else for forming a club.point that out for me.thanks.

"quote....never really concidered h.a.s. a niche club.dont really see how the overall local freshwater community will be better served with 2 clubs.to me,1
strong club would be best,what its called does not really matter to me,although i do have some sentimental attachment towards h.a.s....end quote"

duh.....

**rrocket2002** · 09-10-2007, 08:20 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Yeah, it was blowing my mind when I was asking if anyone was interested in a club one the SE. I had alot of response in the Box and out. I also saw that people from all over Houston were interested. That took me by surprise a little. There were also suggestions to expand LHA so that others could join.

There is a definite need for another club. The atmosphere at Mike's was great! I felt like I was at a regular LHA meeting, but on steriods! I think there were like 37-39 sigs on the sign-in sheet for the raffle. That was an impressive turnout by anyone's standards.

I was hopping from one group to another the whole time I was there. What is really cool is meeting those whole are just starting out in the hobby. LOL...I felt like Taz, David's dog, excited to see so many people. Another thing to consider, some people wanted to go, but could not make it or amazingly enough they didn't know about it.

Raul

**fishlady** · 09-10-2007, 08:30 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

your right Raul.....it was a great time....and I think that all the people that were there are great individuals.....and yes alot of them couldn't get there that evening....and i'll be anxious to meet them at future meetings....There are alot of people from the box that wanted this new club to form....i think that all who want to be a part of it will definately not be sorry for joining....but there was no need to even comment about it's formation as jughead did in my opinion.....he shoud've just said "cool, where do i sign up", or left it alone for that matter, As I stated before, I am not a fan of clubs taking your money and just dropping you by the wayside....I love the comrodery of the HFB, and how we come together when someone needs help moving rabbits, tanks, or needs a filter, or just has a question about something happening in their tank at the time....it's so cool how we all stick together and help one another....And having a club form from these beginnings is a very cool thing indeed.....and as the turn out at mike's proved we all have become friends and we all share the same passions for a great hobby....

fishlady.....

**SCOTT** · 09-10-2007, 08:50 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Jughead, in response to your questions:
Most people who are members of HAS that I have spoken to seem to agree with you on the benefits of HAS being their fish auctions. However, once you get beyond the auctions very few can give a reason for belonging to HAS. From my brief stint as a member of HAS, I found it extremely lacking in the social aspect that I and many like me were searching for in a club. It's for that reason that I formed LHA almost 2 years ago. As LHA has grown I have been asked repeatedly to expand our operations to include a much broader sampling of the local population and hold more centralized meetings. Well, the long and the short of that, it was pretty much driven home this past Friday at the LHA meeting when we had 41 people show at our monthly meeting that we would in fact be far ahead by moving forward and establishing the social club that is so desperately wanted.
As for the niche clubs, I was actually reffering to myself, (LHA) and some of the newer clubs that members were discussing forming to meet their local needs.
You are correct in your assesment that 1 STRONG club would be ideal. However, I just don't feel that we have that choice at present. I am basing that statement not only on my personal beliefs, but on the turnout and demand I witnessed on Friday.
You asked if someone at HAS had made me mad at some point. No, I can say I never gave it that much thought or energy. I have never been mad at anyone in HAS, more like dissapointed I guess. After reading some of the literature that was out there on HAS I was expecting something other than what I got. Is HAS to blame for that or am I? Personally, I just feel that we have different goals and means of achieving them.
As for the politics, don't even get me started on that. I absolutely abhore politics. As much as I hate it, it seems that I am rapidly becoming mired in it. I think to a certain extent politics is going to rear its ugly head no matter how hard you try to avoid it. I am of the opinion however that politics needs to be as minimalistic as humanly possible. Probably not doable, but at least worth the effort.
I am attempting to draft a constitution and by-laws for the club which will in effect allow us to trim the sails and let this ship sail itself. Will I succeed? Time will tell.

**szidlon** · 09-10-2007, 09:07 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Does this mean that the LHA will be dissolved or is the name and meeting location the only things being changed? Or, is this a new club in addition to the LHA?

Issues arise if local clubs begin competing against each other rather than working together. The problem of members of multiple clubs having to choose between events is bound to happen, as it already has. If memory serves me correctly the LHA planned and had an event last year on the same day as the FOTAS auction.

If you're concerned about paying dues and not receiving anything in return, please remember HAS members' bidder fees are waived for the three auctions they hold each year. If you attend the three auctions, your annual dues pay for themselves. As to feeling that HAS took your money and ran, I'm sorry you feel that way. If you notice, the people working the hardest at the HAS auctions are the board members, and in their defense I will say they simply do not have the time to socialize during an auction. As to the unanswered email, I don't have an answer for that so I can't comment.
(Disclaimer: I am just a regular HAS member, my opinions are only mine, and have not been approved or disapproved by HAS)

I have also seen many clubs, fish and otherwise, fall by the wayside after the initial interest wanes. It's like that newly open toy at Christmas, after a while, it just sits in the toy box. Hopefully that will not be the case here and I'm not trying to stir up a flaming pot, just presenting my opinion.

I probably would have attended the "meeting/party" at Mike's Friday, but I already had plans to attend FOTAS, another example of conflicting events.

**Tiapan** · 09-10-2007, 09:27 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Well I have a few things to add. I may be younger then a section on this forum, and definately younger then Scott

But I have been involved with fish and the fish Industry just shy of a Decade, and I had never even heard about HAS until i joined this forum, which i found through a planted forum (of course EK is on that one too) Ans when i went to check out their site I was dissapointed. I love fish swaps, havent gotten to go to an auction though. But i have been to lots of Expos. and i like that idea as well. Now a combination of the two might be a better solution but anyway. It seems that if there are so many people tending to fish in our city that arent interested in joining HAS, that that one club is diffinately not curbing its efforts towards the general fishkeeping populace. You have to try to include as many people as possible to strenghthen you organization. Maybe HAS has just become a little too focused on auctions and speakers, and not recruiting new fish keepers and old alike to share information and aid so that we can all become better fish keepers/breeders/ or sellers for those that auction as well. It just seems that if HAS wanted to be a larger club it would have its members try to spread the word of the club and increase its membership. But this NEW club sounds like a great idea in that it will be good for all levels of keepers and a broader membership base (Diversity is one fo the best things in my opinion) Just my 3 cents

**geoff_tropheus** · 09-10-2007, 09:33 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

I can definately see Walters points. I think that to get things started, its important to have George Washington be the first president.

Then after that, its important to hold elections.

**eklikewhoa** · 09-10-2007, 09:34 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

Just to add I did now what HAS was for the longest time after I found this place which I found through another site like Tiapan stated.

I think a lot of members here I saw on other forums way before I ever knew about this one...even invited a lot of them.

**geoff_tropheus** · 09-10-2007, 09:42 AM

Re: GHAC - Comments and like Chatter Thread

I hear that.

I never knew anything about HAS till this site.

Personally, that get together at Mike's in my opinion was really a Houston Fish Box forum get together. I know it had other agenda, but in truth, it was about the people in this forum wanting to meet.

I had a great time, and Mike, thanks for letting us hang out till your Girlfriend had to shut us down... 8) All that pants talk, and well, now we know who wears them in that relationship.