Ah, I am so jealous. This is the first year that I'll miss Third Coast. Hello to everyone, and let's all remind Benjamen not to Drink and Type! Or at least find a way to provide some coverage from locations outside of the bar!

Dear Roman and Benjamin ?-

THANKS! for stitching the (northerly Blue, but mostly rebel Red) Beast Coast and the True Blue Left Coast together with the Swingin' (Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin up-for-grabs) and (Chicago) Bluesy Third Coast.

Here in Alaska, where we've got TWICE the Coast as all the rest o' ya COMBINED, we're Purple. Purple with Passion in the far-off discontiguous colony of Red Sox Nation. We're partyin no less hard than PRXers Jake, Steve, Brendan, and Seth, but! We get a four-hour handicap and go to sleep at a not unreasonable hour. To party again the next day.

R&B, we're looking forward to your dispatches.

Or should I say, Benjamin, friend, and Roman, Lend us your ears!

Last year's 3CIA-fest with Dean Olsher, Ben Rubin, and Lifetime Achievement Award winner Joe Frank provided marvelous examples of the power of word, voice as instrument, and the priesthood of narration. I wonder what wonders you'll log for us in the next days on this interwoven web.

Third Coast is a pilgrimage for so many Members of AIR ? Association of Independents in Radio. Everyone, wherever in the world, is duty-bound to attempt the hadj at least once in a lifetime. For those of us without the resources to be with you to press the flesh this time, we chant "Next Year in Chicago!"

So, thanks to Jay & transom.org for answering, digitally, our prayers meantime. Third Coast and AIR and PRX and transom.org do combine to make a great Gang of Four.

And Roman "I'll pretend to be you for 15 minutes tonight" Mars -- Go for it! But it takes awhile to grow your hair back from that Mr Clean look. Just kidding ? keep your head and instead put your arms around all audio amigos whose works I've been trying to get my mind around this past year.

Fondly, from autumnal fields in Homer, Alaska.

/s/ geo
Geo Beach
Tempest studios
"make .wavs"

Thought I might just feel sad to miss things But What a dynamic duo Ben and Roman are
and
nice surprise to see Barry and Geo's comments.
( I almost didn't get to this page)
anyway, now I don't feel so left out.

Dynamism is what it's about, and I appreciate the way you are generating more and passing it along

there will be Future Coasts and Barry & Geo and others will be there!

I wish I could bottle 3rdC and pour some for some young people I know. this will help

Any chance Ben or others will be at the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System conference at the New England Institute of Art in Brookline (Boston) next weekend?hope to catch and fan some sparks.(I'm back at school as both student and instructor)

any chance Ben or others will be there? I'll be in my student role.but would like to introduce the best students who run a new state-of-the-art community college station (& who don't listen to public radio) to your wild world of documentary/ creative possibilities / mega reality or what would you call it? I only recently "discovered" local colleges, and I find their multi-generational, populist, hands-on ethos refreshing.

I'm trying to get them to join prx so I can bring in docs....

See, now I'm up too late 'cause of dynamism
Guess I'm almost at the conference

Joe, Sue, Davia, Nikki, are you guys out there? Miss you. Wish you were here. Joe/Sue, next year, third coast with the new baby I hope. Congrats! Love, Cz

Hi - this is Marjorie "Oh! Did I tell you that I live in France?" Van Halteren - I just want you to know that as really out of it as I am (I have to experience the elections through a computer screen for example - while enjoying village children imitating what they think is American Halloween by pounding on my door for candy for three days straight) I am really enjoying seeing pictures from the 3rd Coast festival. It sounds like Airlie in 1981. I like that person that said "next year Chicago." Yeah. Me too.