BPFK

["Matt Arnold" <matt.mattarn@gmail.com>]

To:

Arnt Johansen
Jay Kominek
John Cowan
Bob LeChevalier
Nora LeChevalier (through Bob because I don't have her email)
Pierre Abbat
Robin Powell
Jorge Llambias
Mark Shoulson
Theodore Reed

If you would do me the kindness, I would like each of you to raise
your hand by emailing me personally to confirm I have the right email
address for you. I'm CC'ing bpfk-announce, but its not the same as
knowing which individuals I am talking to and knowing whose attention
I have. Also, let me know if you only got one copy of this through
bpfk-announce.

Robin asked me to be cat herder for BPFK work. The job of herding cats
is what I do with the vast majority of my free time, so I feel
uniquely qualified. I define herding cats as coordinating any project
whose workers are true volunteers, are not obligated by compensation.
(I feel the phrase is inappropriate to refer to paid employees, no
matter how catlike; but that's another matter.) Cats show up only when
they want to and are motivated by friendship and/or personal
fascination.

My other specialty is graphic design, and I'm intensely interested in
what the eventual resulting publication looks like. We'll cross that
bridge when we come to it; I am not connecting that task to being a
Shatner (excuse me, a "jatna", but "Shatner" is my mnemonic device for
that word), but when the time comes if someone were to ask me for
graphics before rushing off in haste to publish, I would feel
gratified.

What I am _not_ qualified to do is design a conlang. Just as in
running a science fiction convention, my role is limited as follows:

1. Understand what tasks await doing, not necessarily knowing how to do them.
2. Assign tasks and track who is assigned to what.
3. Set deadlines and warn of their approach and arrival.
4. Keep current with everyone's contact info and preferred means of
communication.
5. Talk to the volunteers a lot, asking for reports to check if they're active.
6. Seek replacements for the ones who went inactive or lost motivation.
7. Motivate active volunteers with vision, encouragement, small gifts,
public thanks, or incentives tailored to their unique motivational
drives.

None of that involves knowing very much about linguistics or logic. I
do not intend to arbitrate disputes over language, discuss linguistic
issues, or even possess voting rights in BPFK. But with your
permission I will keep you moving.

Speaking of inactive volunteers, is this an effective list of them?

And Rosta
Adam D. Lopresto
Craig Daniel
Nick Nicholas
Charles Hope (xod)
Jordan de Long
Rob Speer
Adam Raizen

I'm still working on making sure I have a handle on task #1, since
parlaimentarian procedure is difficult for me to remember. I would ask
myself things like "Does BPFK have bylaws?" and "Does it need to call
a meeting to order through email?" and "Is BPFK part of the LLG, is it
part of the Board, is the Board the same as LLG, etc?" and I kept
mixing up Broca and Bancus, xod and xorxes. Then my head would spin
rapidly on my shoulders. But I now feel confident to draw all these
entities in a Venn diagram.

In addition, BPFK was always somewhat magical to me in its nature. It
was as if it were something done off somewhere, somehow, by
incantations.

Then I encountered this essay by Nick Nicholas, and it helped
immensely, especially the sections "The BPFK's Job" and "Manner Of
Operation". I feel Nick did an excellent job of explaining and I do
understand it. Please let me know your comments if your understanding
differs from his.
http://www.lojban.org/tiki/tiki-editpage.php?page=Mini-dictionary

In the event that understanding is uncontested, I'll get back to you
each about your individual roles.

sincerely,
Eppcott