Potluck in the Park (Summer Mixer & Cookout - no reading required!)

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Please join us for our second annual potluck picnic and cookout! We hold most of our events indoors, so this will be a nice change for us. Lake Accotink is a great park just minutes from where we hold our book discussions, and offers mini golf, an old-fashioned carousel, boat (paddle, canoe, and row) rentals, and a great hiking/biking trail.

As our group continues to grow so fast, we've seen so much interest in our events that we've had to limit space at the majority of them, and we've held so many events, that most of our members can't make it out to all of them. It's not as often as we'd like that our entire group can get together without restrictions or waitlists. A few times a year, we'll be holding special events (such as happy hours, picnics, parties, etc.) so that we can all get together to mingle and socialize and to meet members we may not have shared an event with yet. Guests are absolutely welcome! You may also bring pets (well-behaved and on a leash), but it can be miserably hot for animals outdoors in late July, so please use your best judgment.

We are asking that each attendee pay a small cost ($10 cash or 10.61 credit card or pay online beforehand) to help us defray the rental cost of the picnic shelter. In addition, we are asking that each attendee bring a potluck contribution. Please bear in mind that even combined, the shelter fee and your potluck contribution will likely cost less than what a meal out would cost, given tax and tip. Since this is a potluck and we'll be counting on your contribution, please make sure you attend as planned.* You do not need to size your potluck contribution to the attendance count. We will have a lot of people bringing food, so sizing for 10-15 full portions is plenty.

We will be coordinating the potluck on a separate site, in order to keep track of what everyone's bringing, but I promise you it's easy to navigate and won't require much extra work. You must submit your potluck contribution no later than Tuesday July 22 @ midnight in order to attend. Please follow these steps:

RSVP for the event on this page and include your guest count

Go to the potluck coordination page here (http://goo.gl/th3Eau)

Please review the Available Potluck Slots and decide what you'd like to bring.

Click RSVP Now

While you don't have to create an account, if you do not you won't be able to go back and edit your contribution. But if you choose not to and need to make a change, pass me all the info via PM and I can manually replace your original entry.

The form asks for First and Last Name. please use your Meetup username so that I can match to the attendance list. If it's a single word, just add an initial for last name.

Select the slot you want in the dropdown, and add the details of what you'll be bringing under Specific Potluck Contribution.

Hit Submit/Update RSVP and you're done.

Please arrive on time! Since others will be waiting on or directly dependent on your potluck contribution, it's really important that you arrive on time so that we can all enjoy lunch and the remainder of the day. If for some reason you have an unavoidable conflict, let us know and we'll help you select a potluck contribution that's not time-critical.

Allergies: There are a few allergies that we've been made aware of. We have enough food coming that nobody needs to prepare their dishes differently than planned, but please label accordingly. And let's all please be very careful about cross-contamination between dishes.

Please remember that July can be warm, so dress accordingly and bring sunblock/sunglasses/hats/bug spray, etc. as needed. Since we're right on the lake and will have a roof over our heads, we should get some decent relief from the direct heat.

Remember that you're responsible for your pets. That includes scooping poop and bringing food, etc., keeping them on leashes, and making sure they play nice. There will be water available, if you bring water bowls, etc.

Please feel free to bring frisbees, beach balls, games (active, board, card, etc.). There will be several decks of playing cards available for anyone who wants to use them.

There are two large parking lots near our shelter that you can use, and a smaller marina parking lot that will likely be full right next to the shelter (which does have handicapped spaces). If you have something heavy you need to unload, come to the marina parking lot next to the shelter to unload before reparking. This google map (http://goo.gl/maps/CTqqw) has both park entrances and parking lots marked, as well as our picnic shelter.

This is going to be a lot of fun, and will be a great chance to reconnect with friends you haven't seen in a while, and to meet some of our newly joined members.

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*Since missing a potluck meetup means that a contribution we're counting on doesn't arrive, we'll need to have a stricter attendance policy than normal. A no-show will prohibit you from attending any special events or space-limited DVD/TV nights for 3 months after your no-show. In order to avoid a no-show, please update your RSVP no later than 48 hours before the event (Thursday, July 25 @ noon). Thanks for your understanding and cooperation!