Post by Lady B on Oct 14, 2007 11:09:10 GMT -5
Hello Fellow RTH Members!
The Holiday Gift Exchange is now closed as of 11/24/07. All of the Participants have been sent a PM with the name and the pertinent info about their secret recipient. It will be great fun to read about all the exchanges come Christmas-time!
Lady B--#2 Elf reporting for a much needed R and R! ;D
__________________________________
This is what I will be using to track who is in; who has restrictions on locations for sending; who has no restrictions; who has rocks, et cetera, to provide for individuals who want to participate but whose rock, slab, cab, or supply piles are not quite big enough to share.
Today, November 22nd, 2007[/i]is the final day to sign up for participation in the Gift Exchange! Any member who chooses to participate should expect to spend between ~ $1.00 to ~ $20.00 (US) ON POSTAGE. (Costs will vary according to size and type of package sent as well as by location; a Gift certificate in an envelope would cost $0.41 to mail US first class; US Domestic FRE: $4.60; US Domestic FRB: $8.95; links for international rates are listed below.) The "cost" of the gift you choose to send is strictly up to you.
The list of participants is in the first reply to this initial posting. If you do not see your name posted there I do not have your name included in the exchange. I am going to pull participants’ names out of a hat to match givers and receivers. I will notify all participants by Friday, November 23rd who their respective Sort-of-Secret Holiday Gift recipients are to allow for packages to start their Holiday journeys. All gifts should be sent in order to arrive sometime between December 5th and January 7th. (See the schedule of Winter Holidays below. When you receive your matched recipient, you will also receive the information on what Winter Holiday(s) the recipient celebrates so you can determine the necessary mailing date.)
Only Steve and I will know who is responsible for sending gifts on to another RTH member. In keeping with the Spirit of this being a Sort-of-Secret Gift Exchange, members should not post who their respective gift recipients are. Once the gift is received, the recipient will discover who the sender was and that is why this is being called a Sort-of-Secret Gift Exchange.
Here is what I need—sent in a PM, please…
That should do it. Please send a PM if you want to participate. I will acknowledge only your name in this thread. No other info will be posted here except for clarifying details as needed.
Postage and Delivery Deadline Information:
I do not have mailing deadlines and postal fees for all RTH Members (sorry about that) but I do have this info for USPS users, for Canadian Members, and for members living in the British Isles.
USPS Holiday Deadlines:
Domestic Mailings Recommendations: artapart.com/christmas-delivery.asp
INTERNATIONAL HOLIDAY MAILING DEADLINES: www.usps.com/communications/news/press/2006/pr06_063.htm
(At a Glance: Listed below the major dates recommended for mail to be delivered by Dec. 25.
• Nov. 13 —Parcel Post to military APO/FPO addresses.
• Dec. 4 —First-Class cards and letters or Priority Mail to military APO AE ZIP 093 addresses.
• Dec. 11 —First-Class cards and letters or Priority Mail to all other military APO/FPO addresses.
• Dec. 18—Express Mail Military Service to all military APO/FPO addresses except APO ZIP 093.
• Dec. 4 —Priority Mail and First-Class Mail to Africa and Central or South America International Mail locations.
• Dec. 11 —Priority Mail and First-Class Mail to all other International Mail locations.
• Dec. 12—Express Mail International to Africa and Central and South America.
• Dec. 17 —Express Mail International to all other countries (except Canada, Dec. 18).
• Dec. 19—Global Express Guaranteed to all countries (except Canada, Dec. 20).
How to Calculate USPS fees: ircalc.usps.gov/
Shipping rates for
Australia: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ab_012.htm#ep1572941
Argentina: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ab_008.htm#ep3491336
China: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ce_009.htm#ep1400280
Great Britain: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/fh_014.htm#ep3576772
Romania: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ps_012.htm#ep1601574
Serbia–Montenegro: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ps_024.htm#ep3508059
General Index of Countries and Localities: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/immctry.htm
Information for Canadian Members:
canadaonline.about.com/library/bl/blmailhol.htm
Information for Members living in the British Isles--
Here are the Christmas Deadlines for the Royal Mail:
We sincerely hope we are not offending anyone with our Gift Exchange idea. We recognize that not everyone celebrates the same Holidays—that is one of the reasons we are suggesting the range of arrival dates (12/05/07—01/07/08) so as to cover as many celebrations as possible.
We also recognize that for any number of reasons, RTH members might not participate in this Exchange. We trust that all RTH members will respect those decisions.
Steve (steveholmes) ;D and Lady B (ladybeabea)
The Holiday Gift Exchange is now closed as of 11/24/07. All of the Participants have been sent a PM with the name and the pertinent info about their secret recipient. It will be great fun to read about all the exchanges come Christmas-time!
Lady B--#2 Elf reporting for a much needed R and R! ;D
__________________________________
This is what I will be using to track who is in; who has restrictions on locations for sending; who has no restrictions; who has rocks, et cetera, to provide for individuals who want to participate but whose rock, slab, cab, or supply piles are not quite big enough to share.
Today, November 22nd, 2007[/i]is the final day to sign up for participation in the Gift Exchange! Any member who chooses to participate should expect to spend between ~ $1.00 to ~ $20.00 (US) ON POSTAGE. (Costs will vary according to size and type of package sent as well as by location; a Gift certificate in an envelope would cost $0.41 to mail US first class; US Domestic FRE: $4.60; US Domestic FRB: $8.95; links for international rates are listed below.) The "cost" of the gift you choose to send is strictly up to you.
The list of participants is in the first reply to this initial posting. If you do not see your name posted there I do not have your name included in the exchange. I am going to pull participants’ names out of a hat to match givers and receivers. I will notify all participants by Friday, November 23rd who their respective Sort-of-Secret Holiday Gift recipients are to allow for packages to start their Holiday journeys. All gifts should be sent in order to arrive sometime between December 5th and January 7th. (See the schedule of Winter Holidays below. When you receive your matched recipient, you will also receive the information on what Winter Holiday(s) the recipient celebrates so you can determine the necessary mailing date.)
Only Steve and I will know who is responsible for sending gifts on to another RTH member. In keeping with the Spirit of this being a Sort-of-Secret Gift Exchange, members should not post who their respective gift recipients are. Once the gift is received, the recipient will discover who the sender was and that is why this is being called a Sort-of-Secret Gift Exchange.
Here is what I need—sent in a PM, please…
- Your name and address.
- What Winter Holiday(s) you celebrate:
Hanukkah (December 05, 2007)
Feast of St. Nicholas (December 6, 2007)
Saturnalia (December 17, 2007)
Eid al-Adha (Dec. 20, 2007)
WinterFest (December 22, 2007—January 7, 2008)
Winter Solstice (December 22, 2007)
Christmas (December 25, 2007) Kwanzaa (December 26, 2007—January 1, 2008)
New Year’s Day, (January 1, 2008)
Twelfth Night (January 5, 2008)
Little Christmas (January 6, 2008)
Epiphany(January 6, 2008)
Other (Please give the date of any Holiday I have inadvertently left off the list which you celebrate.) - Any shipping or other restrictions you have for the Gift Exchange.
- Any help you can provide for other participants who don’t have rock-related reserves to draw from for the Gift Exchange. [Please Note: This particular element of the Gift Exchange involves the following: RTH Member “A” will send the cost of postage for the item(s) involved to RTH Member “B”—the member who has goodies to generously spare/share for those of us who don’t—who will then ship the Gift to RTH Member “C” in the name of RTH Member “A”. Any additional costs (e.g. the purchase of a particular slab, cab, pendant, or supply) will be worked out by RTH Member “A” and RTH Member “B”.]
- Any particular interests, preferences, or reasonable needs, such as:
Rough rock
Ready-to-tumble stones
slabs
roughed-out cabs
bails for pendants
epoxies
grits
polishes
mineral specimens
ceramic and/or plastic pellets - Any particular goodies that you can easily and readily share with a gift recipient, such as:
Rough rock
Ready-to-tumble stones; partially tumbled stones; beautifully tumbled stones
slabs
roughed-out cabs; ready-to-wrap-or-set cabs
bails for pendants; wires for pendants
epoxies used for setting cabs
tumbling or flat laps grits
polishes for tumblers or flat laps; pastes
mineral specimens
ceramic and/or plastic pellets
Gift Certificates for any of the above
an offer to wrap a pendant or set a cab for another member
the makings of, or a completed, wind chime or mobile or fish bowl
tutorial articles or CD's about gem and/or cab cutting and jewelry making or other lapidary interests (Thank you, Adrian, for this wonderful suggestion!)
or anything else you can think of ;D - Any additional information you think I need to know about your participation in the Gift Exchange, such as dietary restrictions or food allergies (Some senders might want to include some rock candy, seasonal treats, or some cookies, etc. in their gifts. Don’t want anyone keeling over because there were hidden peanuts or other allergens/no-no items in the gifts! ) or if there is someone you really are not comfortable exchanging a gift with—we are all humans here and some of us do have our little differences. I will hold such information in confidence from all other members except the matched sender on a need to know basis. Discretion is important here.
That should do it. Please send a PM if you want to participate. I will acknowledge only your name in this thread. No other info will be posted here except for clarifying details as needed.
*** *** ***
Postage and Delivery Deadline Information:
I do not have mailing deadlines and postal fees for all RTH Members (sorry about that) but I do have this info for USPS users, for Canadian Members, and for members living in the British Isles.
USPS Holiday Deadlines:
Domestic Mailings Recommendations: artapart.com/christmas-delivery.asp
INTERNATIONAL HOLIDAY MAILING DEADLINES: www.usps.com/communications/news/press/2006/pr06_063.htm
(At a Glance: Listed below the major dates recommended for mail to be delivered by Dec. 25.
• Nov. 13 —Parcel Post to military APO/FPO addresses.
• Dec. 4 —First-Class cards and letters or Priority Mail to military APO AE ZIP 093 addresses.
• Dec. 11 —First-Class cards and letters or Priority Mail to all other military APO/FPO addresses.
• Dec. 18—Express Mail Military Service to all military APO/FPO addresses except APO ZIP 093.
• Dec. 4 —Priority Mail and First-Class Mail to Africa and Central or South America International Mail locations.
• Dec. 11 —Priority Mail and First-Class Mail to all other International Mail locations.
• Dec. 12—Express Mail International to Africa and Central and South America.
• Dec. 17 —Express Mail International to all other countries (except Canada, Dec. 18).
• Dec. 19—Global Express Guaranteed to all countries (except Canada, Dec. 20).
How to Calculate USPS fees: ircalc.usps.gov/
Shipping rates for
Australia: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ab_012.htm#ep1572941
Argentina: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ab_008.htm#ep3491336
China: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ce_009.htm#ep1400280
Great Britain: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/fh_014.htm#ep3576772
Romania: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ps_012.htm#ep1601574
Serbia–Montenegro: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ps_024.htm#ep3508059
General Index of Countries and Localities: pe.usps.com/text/Imm/immctry.htm
Information for Canadian Members:
canadaonline.about.com/library/bl/blmailhol.htm
Information for Members living in the British Isles--
Here are the Christmas Deadlines for the Royal Mail:
- Friday 7 Dec - South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa,
Middle East, Asia, Far East (except Japan), Australia and New Zealand - Monday 10 Dec - USA, Canada, Japan and Eastern Europe
- Thursday 13 Dec - Western Europe
*** *** ***
We sincerely hope we are not offending anyone with our Gift Exchange idea. We recognize that not everyone celebrates the same Holidays—that is one of the reasons we are suggesting the range of arrival dates (12/05/07—01/07/08) so as to cover as many celebrations as possible.
We also recognize that for any number of reasons, RTH members might not participate in this Exchange. We trust that all RTH members will respect those decisions.
*** *** ***
Thanks for your interest and support!
Steve (steveholmes) ;D and Lady B (ladybeabea)