Can You Read This in Three Minutes

As First Vice President, I find out that it's my honour / responsibility / opportunity to "do an article for the Recorder" ... (If it's too long, nobody will read it, if it's too short, the Editor will kill me, and I have no great theme upon which to expound!) Heather suggests it could be "controversial" ... sure, I'll do that and get a whole bunch of folks mad at me!? I might do it by accident, but surely not on purpose! Well, here we go ...

• The C.S.E.G ... what is it & what's its value to a person.
• Continuing Education ... let's go for customer service.
• RECORDER stuff ... no brain surgeons needed
• "Get off your butt and do something." (uh oh, controversy?)

The Canadian Society of Exploration Geophysicists:

Firstly, Canadian means Canadian, not Calgary, and Geophysicists are not simply Seismologists ... it just happens that many of us live in the Calgary area and work with seismic data. For those of you who live on the East or West Coasts, Ontario, or many other places in Canada ... in oil & gas, mining, the environmental or other businesses, this is also your society! You/we need to ensure that everybody in the CSEG is a "part of the whole" and getting value from their membership. Did you know that our bylaws state that a "section" can be formed with a minimum of 20 persons sharing common interests and / or living in another locality. (See March RECORDER.) So, "if the shoe fits, try it on." You or your group don't need to be part of the "mainstream" to both "give to" and "get from" the CSEG.

What Value does a person get from being a member? (see also "get off your butt" ...) Never mind the large list of technical, social, sports, educational, and scholarship functions of our society ... what economic hit do I really get for my 35 bucks a year?? Let's make this real simple ... remember the two day Seismic Acquisition Forum, Before the First Shot ...? Recently a private group advertised a one-and-a-half day seminar on similar topics ... at a cost twenty-seven times (read 27 times!) that of the CSEG/CAGC forum. Not only was the cost 5925 less expensive, the Forum included a gala cocktail party, with enough shrimp to sink a battleship! Our society sponsors, subsidizes, and backstops many costs involved in the large list of activities we pursue; the Forum was just a recent & . , . eye-poppin' comparison.

CONTINUING EDUCATION, what do you, the customer, want?

So it turns out that I'm accountable for Continuing Education this year (they don't tell ya some stuff til after the election & it's too late). 50000 ... we could put on some really heavy technical topics with formulae out the ying-yang (technical term), or we could put on seminars on the real value of out-turns & push brooms, or how to play fair in golf ... or we could deal with some really neat topics that you'd like to see. Your choice ... we really do need your input, so please call Barb Young at Fletcher Challenge (531-6505, email: barbaray@fcec.com) as Barb has recently volunteered to chair the new Continuing Education Committee, or call me (212-1678) or email: pkotkas@arcisgeo.com, and give me your ideas, please. We'd really like to hear from you.

RECORDER STUFF, no brain surgeons needed:

Everybody would like to see more short stories / topics / letters in the RECORDER. Have you got a "Letter to the Editor" or an interesting idea ... about something/anything in our business or community? Would you like to see stuff in the Recorder besides advertising? Well ... unless there is a piano tied to your ... finger ... consider contributing something. Mail or email it to the Recorder Editor or to the CSEG office. It's not that hard to do (and with spell checker now) anybody could do it; even those of us of Estonian/English descent!

"GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND DO SOMETHING":

How many geophysicists does it take to change a light-bulb? How many persons does it take to run the CSEG and the twenty-three plus standing committees? Did you know that Calgary is the volunteer capital of Canada ... the committees would really like to have some new people join them! It is not a "good ol' gal/boy" group, and the committees really do have fun as well as do some good work. ( Need to have some fun, since the pay is not so good ...) You are not left on your own to figure things out, people with experience help you out. The sense of self-worth gained from volunteer work is outstanding! The contacts you'll make are invaluable and the friendships lasting ... most of the work isn't very tough or time-consuming. Give it a try!

GOT A CHALLENGE, AN IDEA, A PROBLEM ?

We're heading bang smack into a new century plus the Fiftieth Anniversary of the C.S.E.G., GeoCanada 2000 and SEG 2000 ... all in Calgary next year! If you want to bounce an idea, a concern or simply have a question, give me or any of the new Executive Committee members a call. I can be reached at 212-1678 (pkotkas@arcisgeo.com). I'd be pleased to talk to you.

P.S. it only takes one "Geo" to change a light-bulb, unless it's in an APEGGA fixture.

P.S. #2. if you took less than three minutes to read this, watch in future RECORDERS ...