NESI ATTENDEE GUIDE
| Arrival and Departure | Weekend Schedule Overview | |
| Ride Sharing | ||
| Jamming Etiquette | ||
| Private Sales |
Weekend Schedule Overview
The Weekend Schedule Overview is an overview of how the time is blocked out throughout the weekend. Note that this tells you when meals are, when the workshops take place every day and like that. It does not tell you what the individual events are, as they are not scheduled in advance.
The Big Board
The Big Board (in the
registration room off the dining hall) shows where, when, and what
workshops are actually taking place.
- We can arrive at Chimney Corners any time after 3 pm on Friday. Please don’t come earlier than that. Registration check-in will open no later than 4 pm and probably sooner.
- Come to the dining hall to sign in. The registration room is on the right-hand side of the main room. You’ll get your official name button, among other things, which makes you One of Us.
- If you are going to be arriving late on Friday, come to the Pub Sing in the dining hall registration room. Lynn will be there and will sign you in. If even Lynn has gone to bed, booked rooms will be indicated on a list taped to the registration table. Confirm your room assignment, go there, and sort it out with us in the morning. If you have signed up for meals but are going to be arriving hungry and late after dinner ends on Friday, let Lynn know (via email: lynnh1947@gmail.com) and we will get the kitchen to pack up some food for you, which we will leave on one of the serving tables with your name on it.
- Parking areas are well-defined on the campus map. Please make sure your car is there and not left somewhere else on the grounds. Please respect the handicapped parking spots at the dining hall – we have attendees who really need them.
- Manor Lodge is the only lodge with parking. We put people with mobility issues in Manor unless they request otherwise. There are beds for 22 people in Manor but not enough room for that many cars. If you can park elsewhere after you unload at Manor, the people who need the closer parking will appreciate it.
- If you are camping in a wheeled vehicle, you may park in any of the parking areas, but we encourage you to park below the dining hall. It stays open all night and has toilets.
- No vehicles can remain on the fire roads. You may drive on the fire roads to get to your lodge/cabin/campsite to unload.
- You may NOT drive onto the camping field, even with a bicycle. Please keep all wheeled vehicles on the fire road when you unload your gear. If we put ruts in the field, there may be no camping at all in the future.
- People in cabins and lodges need to be packed and out of their rooms by noon on Sunday, but remember that lunch is served at 12:00, so don’t forget to enjoy one more meal and perhaps a final jam before you go. The Sunday lunch is always sandwiches – intended to make it easy for some of you to grab one and take it with you as you hit the road, if you must. And yes, you can hang around for a while afterward, just not in your room.
- Everyone staying on site in cabins and lodges needs to bring bed linens (sheets and blankets or a sleeping bag), a pillow and pillowcase, your favorite stuffy, wash cloth, soap, shampoo, towels, toothbrush and toothpaste, and other personal items. The bunks in the cabins and lodges are single-bed size. You might want to consider bringing a fitted sheet to cover the mattress and a sleeping bag to put on top, but it’s up to you. We have heat and electricity in the lodges but not in the cabins.
- A flashlight – it gets very dark after the sun goes down.
- People in cabins need to bring their own battery-operated lanterns.
- Campers who are doing their own cooking should bring a propane camp stove. Please remember that there can be no open fires of any kind except in approved locations.
- People in cabins may NOT cook in the cabins. (But why would you, since you have paid for meals in the dining room?) So just bring your appetite.
- If you are planning to offer a workshop, please bring your own handouts (if any).
- You may want to bring some kind of recording device for any workshops you attend. Be sure to ask for permission from the workshop leader before recording, of course.
- You may want to bring a music stand. You can always hang your wet socks on it.
- Bring your pet to spend the weekend at a local kennel or herpetology center, if you want him/her/them along for the ride. There are NO pets allowed on site. That applies to campers as well as to people staying in buildings.
- Alcohol is BYO and is limited to those of legal drinking age in MA: 21. Please be responsible about cleanup and intake. Recycle what you can and leave the lounge/registration room clean at the end of the night.
- Snacks! We like to set up a late-night snack table on both Friday and Saturday, and that depends on contributions. Consider bringing something sweet or salty, fruity or veggie to share with others. If your contribution contains tree nuts or peanuts or if it is gluten-free, it would be a good idea to label it so others will know. You should also bring anything needed for serving – spoons, cups, plates, etc. We’ll have a place to store your donations in the registration room, and some of our volunteers will set it up and clean it up. Consider being a volunteer to help with this much-appreciated snack.
- Check the Big Board in the registration room to see the workshop schedule and workshop requests. Consider offering a workshop, please, and feel free to request one. Post-its and pens will be provided.
- We need beginner-level workshops on all instruments.
- If you are going to offer more than 2 workshops (thank you!), please change location after the second one. Some workshop venues are closer and/or more comfortable than others, so do give other people a chance to use them.
- If possible, leave the workshop spaces closest to the dining hall for workshops whose participants will include those heavy piano accordions.
Private Sales of Instruments, etc.
- Private sales of a few instruments by an attendee are welcome. There will be tables set up at the back of the dining room. Be sure to include written information that includes the price of the iterm and your contact information (phone, cabin or lodge room #, email, etc.).
- Your own original publications (music books) and recordings (CDs) are also acceptable for sale by attendees. Most people set up an honor-system cash box for this.
- Professional instrument builders and/or dealers are limited to bringing flyers or business cards and one or two samples that are not for sale. They may not bring instruments with the intention of selling them on-site.
Miscellany
- Please do not make any housing changes without talking to Lynn. For safety and emergency contact reasons, we need to know where you are during the night. For organizational reasons, we need to work with you on making any changes – for example, any lodge rooms that appear to have space on the handout may have had them filled after the page was printed. If you are a camper facing inclement weather who wants to upgrade to a cabin, again you need to work this out with Lynn.
- There is an ice machine in the dining hall for everyone’s use and small refrigerators in most of the lodges for residents. Coffee and tea are also available to all attendees. It would be a good idea to put your name on anything you leave in the refrigerators to avoid misunderstandings.
- As usual, the Button Box will be setting up their traveling shop in one of the side rooms adjacent to the dining hall. They probably have the instrument of your dreams, along with books, shirts, and other stuff.
- There are lots of places for workshops and for jamming – please respect other people’s sound space. (Also see our Jam Etiquette Tips)
- Lodge rooms and cabins do not have locks. The good news is that you won’t have to remember to return your key when you leave. However, if you are worried about your stuff, you should probably plan to keep it in your car when you are not carrying it around.
Looking for a ride? Do you have room for a passenger who could share the cost of gas? Please use Si-Talk to let other attendees know. If you are not already a member, you can find information about that here. By the way, even if you don’t need Si-Talk for this reason, consider joining anyway. The more members we have, the better it works for all kinds of squeeze-related purposes.
Still have questions? Check the FAQ