Re: SPAH

[Joe and Cass Leone <leone@xxxxxxxx>]

On Jun 14, 2004, at 8:55 AM, Tim Moyer wrote:

>
> d.m.fairweather wrote:
>> So who's going to SPAH this year?
>
> After just two great years, I'm not going to be able to go this
> year.  I am starting a new career as a school teacher, and SPAH takes
> place after the school year starts, I'll be working.  If the dates
> don't move, I'll not see too many more harmonica conventions.
>
> -tim
>
> Tim Moyer
> Working Man's Harps
> http://www.workingmansharps.com/
>

   Dear Tim, It was great meeting you in Dallas.
  The scheduling of SPAH is a calendar problem.

I have in front of me a brochure from the 1993 convention. The dates 
read AUG 31 thru Sept 4.
The 1994 brochure would have read SEPT 1 thru Sept 6.
The convention "used" to be the week IMMEDIATELY preceding Labor Day.
The latest the convention could have possibly been held was Sept 1 thru 
6 because Sept 6 is the latest possible date FOR Labor Day inasmuch as 
that day is ALWAYS the FIRST Monday in Sept.

What I'm saying here is that Labor Day "gradually" creeps ahead one day 
every year, and "theorhetically" one would have to "back-up" a week 
every so many years. Theorhetically, one would have to account for a 
week every 7 years, but THIS doesn't work either.

THIS year (11 years later) the calendar reads the SAME as it did in 
1993. The last week in Aug is such that if the convention was scheduled 
as it once was, the dates would be AUG 31 thru Sept 4. Even though 11 
years have passed the calendar has moved 14 days. This is due to LEAP 
YEARS (which stretched out the years).

There are 365 days in a year (divided by 7) equals 52 weeks PLUS 1/7th.

I brought this to the attention of Gordon Mitchell and Norm Dobson, 
only to find out that they were ALREADY considering  moving the 
convention BACK into Aug to make up the difference. I advised them that 
they should move it back TWO weeks. Not only to account for the 
calendar but ALSO to accomodate teachers.

I have friends (Al Data) who is a terrific chord player and George 
Miklas (terrific on ALL harps). They were (at that time) BOTH teachers 
and could NEVER make the convention.

It was too late in 93 & 94 to do it because irons were already in the 
fire, but the week was changed as of 95.

Unfortunately, it was around that time that many school districts 
across the country (for one reason or another) ALSO backed up THEIR 
school week so that school would start BEFORE Labor Day, (something we 
weren't used to in Pa. for example). Since there were ALREADY snow days 
in Pa. (Fla has Hurricane days), we didn't understand the change.

It turns out the change was due to "in-service" requirements pushed on 
the schools by the federal govt. to bring everyone into 
"standardization" compliance. Also, everyone was made to have a MINIMUM 
number of days per school GRADE.

Conclusion: SPAH HAS backed up the convention a full 2 weeks, but the 
rest was a curve we didn't expect.

Hope this, in some way, helps explain things.

smo-joe