Hi all, There is a new option for registration on the Columbus Audubon website: register for the Saturday evening dinner and keynote speaker for $30. That's dinner (pasta bar) and our featured talk by Dr. Azzam Alwash of Nature Iraq: The Marshes of Mesopotamia... Past, Present, and Future. If you have a friend or spouse who might enjoy joining us on Saturday evening, dinner starts at about 6 pm and we should be finished by 9pm. We'll make it an early night, because we're going birding Sunday morning at area waterways ('frozen' waterways in some cases). Some last minute weather-related adjustments to the Sunday field trip sites will be announced on Saturday during the event. All Sunday morning field trips are self-drive or carpool. Directions will be provided in attendee packets. Thanks in advance to all our volunteer field trip leaders! Of course, you can also join us early Saturday morning (~8am) on the grounds of GIAC for a casual walk with Jim McCormac. But many folks might grab a few extra minutes of shut-eye after the Friday night shin-dig, hootenanny, dance-a-thon with The Swinging Orangutangs featuring Bill Thompson III, his lovely wife Julie Zickefoose, and many musical friends. Yes, there is also a rumor that Chet Baker will be in the building under the watchful eyes of bodyguards. For those of you who don't know who Chet is, we can assure you he will not be sitting in on jazz trumpet. Maybe sitting 'on' a jazz trumpet.... Recap: the Friday night musical fundraiser, benefiting Nature Iraq, is from ~ 6pm to 10 pm. There will be appetizers, a taste of the Middle East, and beverages provided by Mendocino Brewing Company. $10 at the door. Speaking of 'at the door": we ordered a few extra meals in case one or two folks (i.e. walk-ins) register in-person on Saturday morning. So, you can pay $80 at the door on Saturday morning. Lectures start at 9 am. Or, if you don't want to eat any meals, and only wish to listen to our seven waterfowl speakers on Saturday, you can join us for $40. Strict diet! The Waterfowl Symposium, presented by the Ohio Ornithological Society and Columbus Audubon, with support from The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium and Mendocino Brewing Company, is at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center. If you can't join us this weekend, please visit GIAC another time. It's a spectacular building with abundant resources to further birding in Central Ohio. Special thanks to the GIAC staff for their assistance. In Appreciation, Ann Oliver Cincinnati Waterfowl Planning Committee Editor, The Cerulean Newsletter (quarterly publication of OOS) ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]