It was very nice meeting many of you at your March meeting this week. So many excited hobbyists in one room just builds enthusiasm for our reef tanks, right? 
Keith & Jo Ann were kind enough to open up their home for me for my overnight stay. I had the opportunity to see a few of your LFSs, and spend a couple of hours at the Georgia Aquarium.
Are you locals planning to attend MACNA this year? It is in 178 days! Sign up now, because you'll have a great time.
http://www.macnaxx.com">www.macnaxx.com</a>, or talk to anyone on your BOD.
Here's the hotel that the event will be held at, in case you've not been curious enough to find out yet:
[IMG]http://melevsreef.com/pics/08/03/ga/westin1.jpg alt="" />
And standing in front of the Georgia Aquarium, you can see it is within walking distance - 5 minutes roughly.
alt="" />
MACNA is in September, and every hobbyist should figure out how to attend if at all possible. Your knowledge level will be raised significantly by the 21 speakers that present during those three days. If you enjoyed the club meeting this week, imagine that type of educated presentation on every topic related to our hobby. Each year, more and more vendors show off their products in probably 100 different booths, and are there to answer your questions. Often you can buy what you want right on the spot, sometimes at a discount.
If you've not visited the Georgia Aquarium yet, you're missing out the experience of a lifetime. The main exhibit is 6.3 million gallons!! It is roughly a football field long (front to back) with 4 whale sharks that vary in length from 16' to 22'.
In this picture, you can barely make out the seam running vertically above the speakers head. The acrylic is 24 inches thick!
alt="" />
Here's one of the whale sharks cruising the tank. At MACNA, on Saturday night, the gala dinner is being prepared by Wolfgang Puck. The banquet room will be at eye level with the whale sharks, which will be unforgettable. There are two males & two females. Once these sharks reach 36' long, the mating should begin.
alt="" />
This exhibit is not one to be missed. Keith took me there around 3pm Wednesday, and the aquarium closed at 5pm. It was so worth it. Entry fees are $27 each, and there are rules about what you can bring in. My guess is that they are trying to avoid vandalism and pollution to the animals.
alt="" />
So for all of you that are on the fence about attending, please just trust your BOD and sign up now. The people that are organizing this event need an accurate head count. Every single one of your locals should be attending MACNA, as it will NEVER be cheaper than when it is in your area. Your only expense is the entry fee, and odds are ARC is offering a discounted entry to its membership. You don't have to pay for a hotel, nor for transportation like the rest of us across the nation. Each night, you can head home and sleep in your own beds for free. Or hang out with some of us in the bar until we finally call it a night.
If you've never been to one before, you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. I'm a huge fan of MACNA, and have never missed one since attending my first here in Ft Worth back in 2002. Your money will be well spent, and you'll have so much knowledge to work with from then on, not only to help your own tanks run better, but to help others on your forum. Do it for your reeflings. Do it for yourselves. And then tell me I was right!
Keith & Jo Ann were kind enough to open up their home for me for my overnight stay. I had the opportunity to see a few of your LFSs, and spend a couple of hours at the Georgia Aquarium.
Are you locals planning to attend MACNA this year? It is in 178 days! Sign up now, because you'll have a great time.
http://www.macnaxx.com">www.macnaxx.com</a>, or talk to anyone on your BOD.
Here's the hotel that the event will be held at, in case you've not been curious enough to find out yet:
[IMG]http://melevsreef.com/pics/08/03/ga/westin1.jpg alt="" />
And standing in front of the Georgia Aquarium, you can see it is within walking distance - 5 minutes roughly.
MACNA is in September, and every hobbyist should figure out how to attend if at all possible. Your knowledge level will be raised significantly by the 21 speakers that present during those three days. If you enjoyed the club meeting this week, imagine that type of educated presentation on every topic related to our hobby. Each year, more and more vendors show off their products in probably 100 different booths, and are there to answer your questions. Often you can buy what you want right on the spot, sometimes at a discount.
If you've not visited the Georgia Aquarium yet, you're missing out the experience of a lifetime. The main exhibit is 6.3 million gallons!! It is roughly a football field long (front to back) with 4 whale sharks that vary in length from 16' to 22'.
In this picture, you can barely make out the seam running vertically above the speakers head. The acrylic is 24 inches thick!
Here's one of the whale sharks cruising the tank. At MACNA, on Saturday night, the gala dinner is being prepared by Wolfgang Puck. The banquet room will be at eye level with the whale sharks, which will be unforgettable. There are two males & two females. Once these sharks reach 36' long, the mating should begin.
This exhibit is not one to be missed. Keith took me there around 3pm Wednesday, and the aquarium closed at 5pm. It was so worth it. Entry fees are $27 each, and there are rules about what you can bring in. My guess is that they are trying to avoid vandalism and pollution to the animals.
So for all of you that are on the fence about attending, please just trust your BOD and sign up now. The people that are organizing this event need an accurate head count. Every single one of your locals should be attending MACNA, as it will NEVER be cheaper than when it is in your area. Your only expense is the entry fee, and odds are ARC is offering a discounted entry to its membership. You don't have to pay for a hotel, nor for transportation like the rest of us across the nation. Each night, you can head home and sleep in your own beds for free.
Or hang out with some of us in the bar until we finally call it a night.If you've never been to one before, you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. I'm a huge fan of MACNA, and have never missed one since attending my first here in Ft Worth back in 2002. Your money will be well spent, and you'll have so much knowledge to work with from then on, not only to help your own tanks run better, but to help others on your forum. Do it for your reeflings. Do it for yourselves. And then tell me I was right!
