I have to admit this is a new one to me: The state administration backs off mandating that state agencies meet at parks. From the Charleston (W. Va.) Gazette:

The Manchin administration appears to be backing off an April request that state agencies hold their meetings and conferences at state parks.

State agencies are being encouraged “not to forget about state parks” as they look for places to meet, and to pick the location that best fits their needs at a good price, said Manchin spokeswoman Lara Ramsburg. “If you have three facilities with the same services, look at pricing, and pick the best deal for state taxpayers,” she said.

It sounds like something the administration said earlier got the area’s conference centers in an uproar over unfair competition practices. It all sounds a little squirrelly to me!

I just ran across this new service and thought it was worth a mention: Special E. If you book with its network of facilities, caterers, or services (the lists are pretty extensive), they’ll pick up leftover food and deliver it to homeless shelters, food banks, and soup kitchens. If you book outside their network, they still provide the service, but charge a “nominal fee.”

If your venue doesn’t already offer this option, it might be worth checking out.

Here’s today’s helping of Southern hospitality: The Raleigh Convention Center opened its doors to those who weren’t wounded in a train derailment caused by a collision with a truck (the wounded went to the hospital, of course). They provided phone banks, a cool place to calm down in the middle of a heat wave, and refreshments. I hope the same thoughtful staff will bring their caring to the new convention center when it opens in September.

I wasn’t going to talk here about the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia, who died 10 years ago yesterday, but if Seth Godin can, what the heck. As someone who spent much of her misguided youth as a Deadhead, I didn’t realize just how powerful the ideas behind what they were doing were. I doubt they did, either, but in hindsight, their instincts were right on.

By the time I got “on the bus” in the late 1970s, the Dead were inviting people to record their concerts (even letting people plug into the soundboards!), make their own t-shirts, all those things that make most bands some serious coin. The Dead gave it all to their audience, and the audience gave it back in spades—they may not have had much in the way of top-10 hits, but the Dead made more money touring than almost any other band for much of their trip. Their concerts weren’t concerts so much as all-inclusive events that lasted hours (sometimes days) before and after the actual concert. They created passion among their listeners for the band, their music, and a mindset that was unique to the Deadhead culture.

The fierce loyalty Deadheads have for all things Dead comes from a sense of ownership: The fans were not just allowed, but encouraged to take over the scene and make it their own, to add their own funky twist to the story the band is selling—or really, to make up the story themselves, let the band embellish it and toss it back to the crowd. What I took for granted at the time actually was pretty amazing.

The Dead were way ahead of their time, so much so that I think they scared a lot of the traditional music insiders. Now we have open source, we have permission marketing, we have niche markets that are starting to break into micro-markets—we have a world that’s starting to get on the bus, too.

Seth says:

The most important takeaway is this: They repeatedly did things that felt like huge risks, that challenged the status quo and that seemed, on their face, to give too much power to their audience. And in those moments, the Grateful Dead were at their most successful.

Giving up power and control sounds like anathema to meeting planners, I know, but imagine the possibilities…

(I still miss you, Jerry.)

I didn’t know if it’s just that I’m getting old, or if receptions, meeting hallways, ballroom luncheons, and other large gatherings are actually getting louder, making it harder to have conversations in than it used to be. The ambient noise, even without some ear-shattering techno-band, is making it harder and harder for me to follow what the other person is saying, short of learning lip-reading.

So I read with great interest this article in Wired that social noise has actually tripled since the 1980s. And that scientists are working hard to come up with some gadgets that will help:

HearWear — The Future of Hearing, a new exhibition at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, shows off trendy deaf-tech prototypes like gadgets that can filter out annoying noises and memory glasses that replay the last few seconds of conversation — handy for wearers who might have missed someone’s name.

It’s not just the hard-of-hearing who can benefit from applications inspired by traditional hearing aids. Hearing is the next sense ripe for a technological revolution, according to the exhibition’s organizer, Royal National Institute for the Deaf, or RNID.

The exhibit features personal hearing devices, such as aids that enhance conversational speech or filter out ambient noise in a crowded bar. The gadgets illustrate how an effort to redesign conventional deaf assistants might lead to a range of new products for unimpaired consumers increasingly accustomed to wearing iPod earbuds and Bluetooth headsets.

Now these are some gadgets I would use.

Amy Gahran is exploring what people want on the Web—is it OK for business-related bloggers and other Web sites to inject a little personal information, or should it be strictly business? Take her survey and let your feelings be known.

My take is that I actually prefer to know at least a little about the person who’s putting together what I’m reading. Not about their favorite pair of bunny slippers, but more some of the things that illustrate what they’re writing, or add perspective to a topic, or just give a sense of where that person’s coming from. Especially on a blog. I know I let things slip every now and then (OK, maybe a lot)—is that offensive to people? No one’s yelled at me yet, but that doesn’t mean they don’t want to. I try to use good judgment about these things—you won’t see much on my views of politics, religion, or other hot-button topics, unless there’s something specific that’s impacting the meetings/hospitality industries.

Then I look at some of my favorite off-topic blogs, like The Examining Room of Dr. Charles, where the whole point is his personal reaction to the situations he faces as a physician, and his perspective on his patients and their challenges. It is, simply put, beautiful. Take away his personal musings, and there is no blog.

Anyway, what do you all think? Should all online business-related interactions be kept strictly business in tone and content? Is it more interesting to go to Web sites that let a little personality creep in? Are Web sites different in that regard than blogs? Should they be? I find the whole topic fascinating.

(Thanks to Business Blog Consulting for the pointer.)

Golf must be making a comeback—or did it never really fade much after all? Anyway, from HotelBusiness.com: Marriott Pairs Golf And Room Reservations Online.

Marriott International has introduced a golf resort reservations system that allows golfers to simultaneously book tee times and hotel rooms. The new program is in place at 19 golf resorts worldwide and features 29 golf courses.

It doesn’t say any more than that, but it sure is an interesting twist. I wonder what’s next? With some of the online travel booking sites now offering to book everything from rental cars to show tickets, along with air and rental cars, it seems only natural that hotels would jump on that one-stop-shop bandwagon, too.

Update: Thanks to Gary the Sabre Geek, here’s another one from Travel Weekly (free subscription req’d):

In a partnership deal, the Ticket Reserve [www.theticketreserve.com] now offers sports fans booking tickets via the company the option of also reserving hotel accommodations with Choice Hotels International.

The partnership coincides with the launch of the Ticket Reserve’s kick off of its college football championship game series “Fan Forward” options, which guarantees a face-value tickets should the college team fans select qualify for the Orange, Rose, Sugar, or Fiesta bowls. Market values for “Fan Forwards” are offered as low as $5.00 initially and will increase or decrease depending on the team’s standing during the 2005 season.

I asked the MIMlist listserv what they thought about the XtremeASAE blog, which ASAE and the Center are hosting in conjunction with this year’s conference in Nashville. So far, responses have mostly been tepid at best, with lots of “ho hum”s and “too promotional”s.

Consensus is that it needs to be more provocative and ask much more interesting questions to really get people engaged. Personally, I’d like to hear a little behind-the-scenes stuff—how are they handling last-minute glitches, what planning tips do they have to share that they’re learning as they go, that type of thing. Maybe even (gasp!) ask for advice on something to do with the annual meeting as the dates grow close.

I’m checking it out daily (plus I want to comment a lot so I can win an iPod ;0), but I have to agree that it’s not cutting it yet overall, though some posts are pretty good. Still, as one person said:

Engaging membership is a problem that all associations have and it appears to me with this blog that ASAE is taking the lead and setting an example that other associations can follow! If it doesn’t work they can point at it and say “It is ASAE’s job to be a leader and experimenter for the benefit of other associations.”

Above all the blog has to be honest to work and the only way that is going to happen in an association is if it has the good and the bad, a place to applaud and a place to bitch and above all an open forum for common problems. If it works they need to extend it beyond the annual meeting.

It will sure be interesting to see what happens.

My sentiments exactly. I hope it really heats up once the conference starts, with some meaty posts, pictures, and the low-down on what’s happening. I applaud them for trying, and for being brave enough to leave it mainly in the hands of volunteers—that has to be scary for an association. But associations can’t rest on their laurels anymore; they have to get out there and take some risks if they want to stay alive in this increasingly competitive world.

Update: After reading Kevin’s comment (click “comments” below), I realize that I forgot the whole point of this post, which is—what would make it compelling to you before the fact, during the conference, and after? I know what I’d like, but who cares. It’s all about what would make it relevant and exciting for you. Please leave suggestions in the comments below, or e-mail me.

The U.K.’s National Meetings Week, scheduled this year for Oct. 3 to 7, looks to be gaining some traction. Now in its fifth year, “has now received support from highly influential MPs such as Liberal Democrat leader, Charles Kennedy, and Conservative members that include Oliver Letwin. Over 77 other MPs join Charles Kennedy and cross party leading figures in his support for the annual campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the power of face to face meetings and highlights the economic contribution that the industry as a whole brings to the nation,” says the press release.

OK, U.S., we can do this, too. Planners, hoteliers, industry associations, everyone, let’s start hounding our local government officials to support a similar effort here in the U.S.