Florida Get Together!

[tbondo]

We, the people of the maligned state of Florida are awaiting TaylorStock guitar deliveries before commiting to the 9th/10th of November for a get-together. Then we plan to meet in St. Augustine and have a blast, and go bug Bagelsgirl at Mi Casa Cafe. Oops, I think I said too much.

[Lisa]

You tell 'em Tom. That sounds like beaucoup fun!!!

[rsimper]

Originally posted by tbondo
We, the people of the maligned state of Florida are awaiting TaylorStock guitar deliveries before commiting to the 9th/10th of November for a get-together. Then we plan to meet in St. Augustine and have a blast, and go bug Bagelsgirl at Mi Casa Cafe. Oops, I think I said too much.

In other words...to Taylor...HURRY THE HECK UP!!!

heheheh JUST KIDDING!! :D

(just hurry up on mine...dont worry about those Florida people...they have warm weather all year...the winter's a comin' up here in Vermont!)

[jmeinel]

Originally posted by tbondo
We, the people of the maligned state of Florida are awaiting TaylorStock guitar deliveries before commiting to the 9th/10th of November for a get-together. Then we plan to meet in St. Augustine and have a blast, and go bug Bagelsgirl at Mi Casa Cafe. Oops, I think I said too much.
I hope you decide soon because it takes a few weeks notice to get a plane ticket. Then I'll have to start begging to see if anyone wants to let me crash on a couch or a floor. :roll: As you can see...these things take time. As much notice as possible would be good. And no giving me the wrong date...that would just be plain mean. :p

[Lisa]

You can crash on my floor Jenn, remember we're long lost triplets :D Just remember to push the cat off when you really want to rest, he tends to lay on things that are on the floor ;)

Seriously, you are welcome to stay here if they have it on the 9th and 10th of November. I'll go for sure if it's on those dates. Of course you could hold out for a better location like St Augustine, I wouldn't be offended.

Why can't we just book it for then Tom (contingent upon Taylorstock guitars being finished of course) and schedule a guitar "rain date" if they aren't???

[jmeinel]

Originally posted by TaylorSmitten
Why can't we just book it for then Tom (contingent upon Taylorstock guitars being finished of course) and schedule a guitar "rain date" if they aren't???
I'd be happier if you picked a date and stuck with it. Just remember, if you have a "rain date" you guys will be stuck with me for the 9th and 10th no matter what. Unless someone wants to give me a "buddy pass" (those of you who work for the airlines), I will be stuck with whatever days I make my reservations for. But I'm pretty sure that the guitars will be delivered to us by the middle of Nov. Everyone should have their guitars no later then the end of Oct.

Originally posted by TaylorSmitten
Of course you could hold out for a better location like St Augustine, I wouldn't be offended.

Lisa, do you live in the ghetto? How bad is your place?! I don't konw anything about Florida except...(add any current FL joke here). :lol: Heck...I didn't even know where St. Augustine was until I looked on a map while I was flying home from PHX yesterday. hehehe

[tbondo]

Perhaps I was my usual mumbling self, but the date is Nov. 9/10, and the place is St. Augustine ...I need to contact Doug L. about his condo "common" room usage, and we could use a Taylor dealer to help, but those are details...we'll find a way to make it all interleave.

Doug, send me an email....

[MJH]

Would you guys accept a midwesterner for the Florida get together? My wife has relatives in Palm Coast (about 20-30 miles south of St. Augustine) that we could visit and stay with. She loves music and Taylor guitars, but this would give her something to do if she didn't want to do Taylor stuff the whole time. We are both educators and have Monday off for Veterans Day, so this would be a great weekend for us. Let me know when it is a firm deal and we can make arrangements.

Could we move this to another thread to make it easier to find?

Mark

[MJH]

By the way, last summer we were down in the area and got to see bagelsgirl at Mi Casa. Absolutely fantastic. That would be a must do!

Mark

[Lisa]

Well Jenn, we live in squalor, but hey we have our Taylors! :D

J/K, I only said that because St. Augustine (at least 45 minutes away) is so quaint and Jacksonville is like any other city. I mean if I had the option to bunk with someone in St. Augustine or Jax, I'd pick St. Augustine. You can walk around the city and do the sites, a little like Alexandria but not as developed you see.

I would love to have you as my guest but you would not be in the neat historic district of St. Augustine if you stay with me. We'd still have fun though. :D

MJH, of course you're welcome to come to the FL get together! I wish everyone could come. Palm Coast is nice I bet the relatives like it there.

[Lisa]

Guys I moved this under the new subject line so we could all find it, thanks for the suggestion MJH.
Tom, if you and Doug want to move this to General Discussion let me know.

[TimB]

Well, this happens to be a weekend that my wife is having a old friend of hers coming to stay with us, and she's agreed that I'm allowed to have a prior engagement that takes me out of town. "I'm so so sorry Freda, Tim would LOVE to be here but he just can't make it!" ;)

So its quite possible that, if you don't already have enough Brits down in FL, I'd be able to come down for this too! :ha:

-=Tim=-

[TimB]

How far is St. Augustine from Jacksonville?

I just checked Amtrak and I could take a train down there from DC and not have to worry about checking in the Taylor!

-=Tim=-

[tbondo]

Tim mi compadre,

You could fall out of bed in Jax and be in St. Augustine before you were fully awake (not very far).

MJH.....sure, come on down...

Doug, need to talk....this is sounding serious.....3 day weekend, FL visitors...I'm getting jazzed....any body got a line on a guitar friendly place to stay in St. Augustine (Bagelsgirl??)

This feels right, let's roll!

[rsimper]

hahah so there are rumblings of nov 2-3 in vermont/new york...plans for nov 2-3 in north carolina, and now what's lookin to be concrete plans for nov 9-10ish...

Fun stuff!

maybe ill look into money-making options for that weekend...florida cant be all that bad!

[rsimper]

What are the next two closest airports to St. Aug...(after JAX I guesss.)

[Cynbrad]

Ryan - Daytona and Orlando both have airports. I'm not sure which airlines travel through Daytona. Orlando is about 1 1/2 to 2 hours away from St. Augustine.

[JW]

Originally posted by TimBarwick
How far is St. Augustine from Jacksonville?

I just checked Amtrak and I could take a train down there from DC and not have to worry about checking in the Taylor!

-=Tim=- AMTRACK? You brave soul:roll: :roll: :roll: JW

[TimB]

Originally posted by JW
AMTRACK? You brave soul:roll: :roll: :roll: JW Hey, what's a few accidents! :eek: But seriously, I LOVE Amtrack.

I know some time I'll have to check in a Taylor for a flight but I remember those Samsonite ads with the gorillas.

:ha:

-=Tim=-

[rsimper]

Tim- just dont take the train that runs through Kensington :eek:

[Doug L.]

tbondo,

I called tonight and talked to Vicky. I will try again Sunday afternoon. I will talk to the management of our condo complex to make sure that date is available for our Social room. If so, we should be OK on this end.

For those who want to fly, it is 1 hour and 20 minutes from Jacksonville International and about 1 hour and 40 minutes from Orlando. I would think Orlando would have the best airfares and rental car rates. (it is a tourist trap and they are hungry for business after the terrorist mess) I will check on accomodations in St. Augustine for those who need it. I will be in touch after confirming the dates.

Best Regards,
Doug L. :)

[jmeinel]

When you find out let us know, Doug. Then I'll be able to start looking at flights and how much it would cost. I looked at Amtrak and that isn't too expensive. I don't know what I'm going to do about bringing guitars. I will have 3 by that time and there is no way I'm taking all 3 on a plane. Sorry. ;) I may be able to bring two of them. If Tim is serious about coming maybe we can both take Amtrak. Once I know a specific date it will be much easier. As of now, I'm expecting this to be Nov. 9th.

[tbondo]

Let's change the name of this Thread!!!

The SCHEDULED post-Taylorstock Florida TGF get-together is on for November 9,10, and 11 (holiday weekend) in St. Augustine, FL.

Planned highlights include a scheduled space shuttle launch (Nov. 10th), a beachside jam (or two), Taylorstock video viewing(?), the display of several Taylorstock custom guitars, open mic events, a visit to see Bagelsgirl at Mi Casa Cafe in historic downtown St. Augustine (http://www.elizabethroth.com), some restaurant outings, some time at the beach, etc.

Lodging specials and plans are being developed right now, and we will have
more details soon.

Doug L., Bagelsgirl, and myself (possibly others - like TaylorSmitten and Cynbrad) will be working together to make sure this is a mellow yet fun event. Taylor dealer participation TBD, but we don't consider that a show-stopper.

Tom

[rsimper]

you guys are killing me! Who woulda ever thunk Id actually consider flying to Florida in the middle of the semester to come see a bunch of online guitar geeks! :D

GRRRRRRR

I have 250 bucks credit with JetBlue from a flight I never took...maybe i can swing this, but only if y'all want me :D

Beachside jam??? so youre tellin me I have to bring my TS guitar AND my 310???

[TimB]

This all sounds VERY cool and exciting. I'm 99% certain that I'm going (I'm never 100% until I have tickets/reservations, etc.) I would Amtrak down to Jax and then rent a car to St Aug. I LOVED Elizabeth's piece from the TGF CD and it'd be great to see her perform. Once y'all have a recommended place to stay let me know that too and I'll make reservations, etc. I'd imagine that's a pretty quiet time (between start of school and Thanksgiving) for tourism but what do I know?

I imagine I'd bring my TS 912ce (no e) and either the LTG or the PS55. Please understand in advance that there is no connection between my guitar playing skills and my ability to buy them!!! ;) I'm a clumsy picker and enthusiastic but routine strummer.

Originally posted by tbondo
Taylor dealer participation TBD, but we don't consider that a show-stopper.

Tom I agree, it'd be great to have some dealer involvement but if not, that's cool too.

-=Tim=-

[rsimper]

Hey Tim, maybe you, jenn, and I (or anyone else in need of lodging) can bunk up in a room to save some costs (If I go...)...since the three of us are all buddy buddy and we probably wouldnt be in the room much anyway...

I wouldnt mind crashing on the floor one bit.

[tbondo]

First and foremost, everyone is invited....that even includes you, Ryan -- hey, I am kidding (and I dislike those smilies!) ...we look forward to seeing all our new TS/TGF or TGF friends, as many as possible.

We will be looking for nice but economical digs to stay in (hoping to have a block of rooms near to each other and a banquet room or the like to do informal gatherings in...maybe they'll include breakfast too -- the coffee and bagel kind! )

As noted, this is an pre-season time period in FL, so we're hoping for a good deal...we are looking beachside and old town, will go with the best offer.

We will try to arrange for many opportunities to play guitar together...something I wished we had done more of at TS, so here's the makeup event.

There's lots of cool stuff and shops in old town for anyone who get's bored with TGF madness....that won't be me.

We'll set up a "reservation" link in the next week or so, to make sure we understand who's planning to come and such.

[rsimper]

Are there any places in FL along the lines of a vacation rental? I.E. a condo/house or something for several or all to stay in, and a central place for guitar gathering? Just wondrin'...if I can make it, im game for anything!

[Lisa]

Ryan
I know there are lots of homes along A1A (outside of St. Augustine) that are beachfront but I think that those go for a week stay. Do any Floridians know about whether or not this is the case? I would think it would be a lot more relaxing to stay in St. Augustine than to drive back and forth to and from Jacksonville. I have a friend who stays down there every year at an ocean front place I can check into.

[rsimper]

Lisa-
I kinda think that most places are weekly also...ive been looking into some in Vermont for the weekend prior, and its hard ti find things for just a weekend...

Then again, it is the off-season for florida, so maybe we could catch someone with a vacant house for a week...more profitable for them to rent to a weekend group than no group at all.