The GUFF newsletter is edited and published by
Paul Kincaid
60 Bournemouth Road, Folkestone, Kent CT19 5AZ, UK
guff@appomattox.demon.co.uk
May 2000
I thought this was going to be a short issue of GUFFaw, after all, I didn't really have much material planned for it. But Eva Hauser has generously let me reprint her GUFF trip report, which has not, I believe, been widely seen. And then the second chapter of my own trip report just growed – gee, I do prattle on! And lo, another 20-odd pages.
The big news this time, of course, is that we have a race. And a very interesting and close race it promises to be, so make sure you take your opportunity to vote. There should be a ballot form enclosed with this issue of GUFFaw, but if it's missing or you need more please contact me.
And next time round we're promised articles by the candidates. It's not clear yet whether it's going to be one article from each pair, or one from each individual. Either way, it looks like the next issue is going to be fairly meaty again.
GUFF News
Two for the price of one...
The GUFF race begins.
The race to bring a GUFF delegate from Australasia to Paragon, the 2001 Eastercon, has started. And rather than having two candidates, we've gone for the luxury of two pairs of candidates.
You'll find a ballot paper included with this issue of GUFFaw, but here are their platforms:
Eric Lindsay & Jean Weber
Secret masters of getting someone else to run a WorldCon after we've successfully bid for it. Eric (Party Animal) and Jean (Project Manager) want to visit UK and other European fans in their native habitats. Jean has never been to the UK. and Eric hasn't visited since 1972. Now retired from the paid workforce, we have lots of time to travel, party, and produce fanzines and websites, but little income to support our habits. You probably know our fanzines Gegenschein and WeberWoman's Wrevenge. Our sf websites are at http://www.wrevenge.com.au/wrevenge/ and http://www.wrevenge.com.au/psiphi/ and our Australian travel website is at http://www.avalook.com.au
Nominators: Eve & John Harvey, Irwin Hirsh, Dave Langford, Perry Middlemiss and Lyn McConchie
Damien Warman and Juliette Woods
We've been fans all our adult lives – even if that is only the last ten years. We've edited fmz, organized relaxacons, run Adelaide's discussion group 'Critical Mass' and have now started the OzMemoryHole. We are eager to expand our fanning interstate and inter-State, strengthening ties within Australia and to Europe. We know that GUFF isn't all real beer and skiffy. We're dead keen to admin – this is our real chance to make connections. Barring acts of gods, we'll be fun and frolicsome at Paragon and travel hard in search of fans in the UK and on the Continent.
Nominators: Claire Brialey, John Foyster and Yvonne Rousseau, Roman Orszanski, Marc Ortlieb and Gregory Pickersgill
Voting is open until midnight on Monday 13th November, 2000, which means I'll be able to collect votes at Novacon. In the next issue of GUFFaw, due later this summer. I hope to feature articles by our candidates.
GUFF trip reports
The GUFF coffers are suddenly richer by US$2,000.
As you may know. Los Angeles fans have for some time offered a bonus of $500 for every completed fan fund trip report. Recently, word went out that the rules for claiming this bonus were changing, reports would have to be completed within a certain period after finish ing the trip.
This concentrated the mind, but fortunately we had newly finished trip reports from Karen Pender-Gunn and from Eve Harvey. Then, through some very good detective work. Irwin Hirsh discovered that Eva Hauser had published at least part of her trip report. I contacted her, and it turned out that it was, in fact, the entire report.
So, all at once we had three complete trip reports, and off they went to Bruce Pelz. And back came a cheque not for US$1,500, as hoped, but for $2,000. Because Bruce had also seen John Foyster's completed trip report, and realised he hadn't paid the bonus on that. Many thanks, therefore, to the four GUFF delegates who've made such a contribution to our funds. I wonder if other GUFF delegates might now be persuaded to complete their reports...
Anyway, $1,000 of that bonus will be staying in European coffers, while the other $1,000 will be winging its way to Karen. Meanwhile check out the back pages of this fanzine to find out how you can get hold of copies of Karen's and Eve's complete trip reports. John's should be, I believe, available from him. And. as a special bonus. I'm proud to reprint Eva's trip report in this issue of GUFFaw.
Thanks, Pat...
Pat McMurray came up with a really neat idea after his trip to the Australian Worldcon.
He suggested that all that irritating loose change that one is inevitably left with after any foreign trip could be donated to the appropriate fan fund. Which means that the next fan fund winner will go ready-armed with much needed cash.
Pat was as good as his word, and we now have an envelope stuffed with a variety of Australian coins. So the next GUFF delegate from Europe to Australia will indeed have some necessary small change.
Now, anyone else care to follow suit?
The full text of this issue, a substantial genzine with another contributor and an instalment of Paul Kincaid's trip report, can be read at Fanac.org.