[meteorite-list] Tucson 05 Retrospective

From: Notkin <geoking_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue Feb 15 22:36:48 2005
Message-ID: <F928EA57-7FCB-11D9-B289-000393593854_at_notkin.net>

Dear Friends and Listees:

I've come up for air after a long and sometimes exhausting Tucson show.
This was my first show as a legal resident of the great state of
Arizona and it was a very different experience for me. I had a house
full of overnight guests, hosted the big birthday bash, met with
clients, acted as Allan Lang's auctioneer, bought and traded for a few
collection pieces, and generally ran around like a lunatic taking care
of a million things for nearly three weeks. I think it was more fun
when I used come out here for a vacation each February . . . but then I
had to go back to New York afterwards, and that part wasn't so fun :
)

I'd like to sincerely thank all of you who joined Steve Arnold IMB and
myself for the Sixth Annual Meteor Mayhem party and Harvey Awards. The
consensus was that the new venue (The Copper Club, inside the Arizona
Plaza) was a HUGE improvement over previous venues, and I agree. Our
many guests were able to move around and socialize, instead of being
pinned behind a crowded restaurant table, while experiencing lousy
waiter service . . . and Steve and I certainly enjoyed having a stage
from which to present the Harvey Awards. We will return to the Copper
Club next year if the hotel remains open.

Congrats to the 2005 Harvey Award winners:

Dr. Art Ehlmann -- Lifetime achievement
Michael Blood -- Ambassador award
Mike Miller -- Best new meteorite find
Ruben Garcia -- Best new meteorite find
Sonny Clary -- Rookie of the year!
Jose Guggiari -- Best new meteorite find
Edwin "E.T." Thompson -- Lifetime achievement

And remember, you don't have to be "old" to receive a lifetime
achievement award : ) There are many other deserving people in our
community, so stay tuned for next year's awards!

Low point of the show this year was when somebody stole one of our
Harvey Awards, while they were on display prior to the awards ceremony.
It was somewhat embarrassing that -- thanks to our thief -- we did not
have an award to give to our final recipient (E.T.), but I was able to
make another one, and deliver it to E.T.'s room before he left for
Oregon. I know that Harveys are something of a hot item, but COME ON
that's pretty low. We're going to make a special "Jackass of the Year"
certificate for the person who stole the award, and we'll leave it out
on the table next year, so be sure to steal that too. Thanks.

On a more positive note, I'd like to thank Twink & Larry Monrad and Jim
Kriegh for the stunning Gold Basin panorama birthday cake, which they
very kindly brought to the party. This year's cake was the best ever.
Also, thanks to my co-host Steve Arnold IMB, and my great friend Geoff
Cintron who did everything from act as chauffeur to buying us drinks
during the awards; and Lisa Marie Morrison of Sirocco Design, a very
talented jewelry designer, who served as our glamorous hostess *and*
absentee bid agent during the R.A. Langheinrich auction.

As always, Michael Blood's auction was a great event (I came home with
the one piece I really wanted) and bigger than ever this year. Allan
Lang's auction on the Sunday was a success too, and I shocked everyone
by showing up in a suit and tie. Well, once a year with the tie isn't
so bad.

It was a pleasure to finally meet fellow collector Martin Horejsi,
after many years of friendly correspondence. Monnig Gallery Director
Teresa Moss and her husband Lane made their first visit to the show,
and it was particularly nice to see them here, as Teresa, Dr. Ehlmann,
and I have worked closely together on the Monnig Gallery website.

Another highlight for me was spending time with genius inventor Bill
Mason. My girlfriend and I joined him for dinner just last night, and
Bill gave me a personal class in working with his meteorite rust
prevention kit. You shoulda seen what it did to my rusty old Brahin!
This product is truly amazing, and if you haven't tried it, you should.
I must also mention that Bill was the recipient of this year's Charles
H. Sternberg Medal from the paleontology community and the good people
at AAPS (www.aaps.net). This is an extremely high honor, very well
deserved, and I'm sure Bill's many friends in the meteorite community
will join me in congratulating him on this fine achievement.

Finally, we owe a big vote of thanks to Allan Lang, Bob Haag, and the
other exhibitors at the Westward Look Resort who financed a special
event which made it possible for many of us to listen to, and meet,
famed astronaut Harrison "Jack" Schmitt on Sunday, Feb. 6. What a
superb afternoon that was!

It was great to see so many of you out here, and I apologize to those
friends whom I saw only briefly or not at all. You'll just have to come
out for a longer visit next year. Oh yes . . . and Dr. Joel Schiff, I
expect see you here for Tucson 2006. There is no Harvey Award for
"Meteorite" magazine until you come out here to receive it in person
(that's because we all want to see you again) : )


Regards to all,

Geoff N.
(trying to catch up with "real" work in Tucson)
Received on Tue 15 Feb 2005 10:36:41 PM PST