This is yet another diary to invite Kossacks to attend a Meet-Up/Wedding Shower/Farewell Dinner for it really is that important and trs, who first met through The Daily Kos. They are getting married in July, and trs is moving away from northern Illinois to join his new family, so let's celebrate (h/t GollyMissMolly for suggesting this)!
So on June 26, we will meet at The Lodge in Starved Rock State Park (the site of several of trs' wonderful photo diaries). We hope many of you will join us for dinner and a raucous good time!
Note: Although this is in part a Wedding Shower, they do not want any gifts. If you want to give them a wedding gift, please donate to Netroots for the Troops.
Details below the fold:
I have placed a reservation with the lodge Dining Room for 6:00 pm on Saturday, June 26 for 20 people, with the understanding that the exact number will likely change (hopefully increase?). The lodge wants a relatively firm number by June 12, so if you are even considering attending, please either say so in the comments section, or email me at normal1792 (at) yahoo (dot) com. Please let me know if you are bringing a guest or family members (welcome!), if you plan on arriving early to explore the park (beautifull), or just to meet early for drinks in the bar. I hope to answer any questions you might have in the comments section.
In the poll in my last diary (which I screwed up and deleted!) there were 11 people planning to attend, and another 10 hoping to attend. Those who actually said so in comments were as follows - Planning to attend: trs, Iriti, Kidlet, NormAl1792, my lovely wife, GollyMissMolly, StateofGrace, Mayrose, hpchicago, Wordene, Spedwybabs, & Stranded Wind. Hoping to attend: BFSkinner, luvsathoroughbred, Mr. luvs, RunawayRose, Alexandra Lynch, Sister Havana, blueschewy1, birdbrain, Predictor (long shot), & ben Masel (not likely). People will bring lap-tops and cameras, so there will be live-blogs, and later photo diaries to share with those who cannot make it - you'll be there in spirit!
My lovely wife and I met with iriti, trs, Kidlet, and the Lodge's Dining Room Manager to prepare for this meet-up. We tasted several of the dishes they serve, and have put together a menu for the dinner that should please most everyone, including vegetarians & vegans. MLW and I were also there to plan our 25th Anniversary, which we celebrated there on May 22 - we had a wonderful time, with great food, service, music, and ambiance. I think you will all have a great time
Starved Rock is located in north-central Illinois, conveniently just off of I-80 @75 miles southwest of Chicago (map). For those wishing to stay the night, the lodge and cabins may be sold out for that night, but it can't hurt to check in case there are cancellations (there were the weekend of our event). There are also many hotels and B & Bs in the area.
I hope to see many of you there to help celebrate!