Like a phoenix from the ashes...

 

...Glasgow S&B has risen!

I am not going to go into the details here, as I don't think it would be appropriate - my previous two postings were due to my lack of right to reply, as I stated.

We had a very constructive meeting today, which further reinforced for me what great group this is, and I am so glad to be part of it.

We will never know what brought this about, since one of the people who was involved in this has left the group and decided not to attend the meeting today.

We have all learnt from recent events and one of the results is that we are going to ensure that we have as much transparency as possisble. I don't want to post anything more here about the group, but the details will be on our message board for those who are interested.

We are probably going to rename the group, so who knows what we might end up calling ourselves?

Thanks for the messages of support.

India - whose stomach has finally stopped churning

More on GSand B

 

I am posting here instead of the message board as I do not feel happy about posting there right now. Anyone, and everyone is welcome to post a constructive comment. I will post them whether they are in agreement or not – there is one sole proviso – don’t be abusive to me, or about anyone else. The recent posts on the message board seem to be turning the focus away from the main issue. In my opinion the issue is not
1. Karen’s performance as organiser – we all agree that she is very good at organising the group
or
2. Karen’s decision to stay or leave the group – that is her personal decision. As far as I am aware no-one has asked her to do so.

The issues as I see it are:
1. Karen's reaction to group members deciding to have meetings, open to everyone, out with the standard GS&B calendar
2. The sending of an inappropriate and offensive email
3. The removal of a group member’s appropriate postings on the message board.

There is no doubt that GS&B members are a kind bunch and I certainly understand the wish to calm troubled waters and not to make a bad situation worse. But the bad stuff still happened. We can't shy away from this. We must deal with it. We can do that - it may be very uncomfortable for all of us, but we can do it in a calm, civilised manner.
Lord knows, I've screwed up myself in the past and it can be very hard dealing with the consequences.While is a good thing that people want to support Karen in what is clearly a difficult time for her, I’d like to gently point out that she decided to send that offensive email to everyone, and to delete my postings off the board in order to support what she was saying, since it showed her email to be untrue and inacurate - was that a fair way to treat someone?
And it has had some devastating consequences. I cannot speak for the other people who were named in it, or other group members who were affected, but I am deeply upset by it – this email went to my friends, people whose opinion I care deeply about. What about the possible consequences? I’ve been worried sick .
At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how good an organiser someone is, or how great they are in any other way. Surely it must be implicit that membership of our group means that everyone is treated with respect and kindness?

Glasgow Stitch and Bitch - the truth

 

I am posting this on my blog because I have THREE times tried to post on the Knitting Meet Up board and the organiser has removed it. This isn't any sort of breakaway or takeover, it was just a notice about an extra get together that we, including Karen, have been discussing for a week or two, as explained below

In addition to the censorship, she has sent out an email which is full of poisonous untruths. If there are any more emails about me, please come and check with me.

A couple of weeks ago, at a Tuesday meeting some of us, including Karen, had a chat about how much we had enjoyed the weekly meets, and should it become weekly? We, including Karen, decided that 'formal' weekly meets might 'dilute' interest too much, so it was decided by all of us, including Karen, that some of us that wanted might meet on alternate Tuesdays, trying out different locations, though Karen wasn't keen on joining in.

Today at the Tramway several of us continued the discussion as part of the group get together . It wasn't a secret and it definitely is not a conspiracy. KAren was sitting near me, I don't know if she was listening at that point. Our discussion was just part of the general run of conversation. We all thought it would make a nice addition to the group activities but didn't want it to get very formal because, as we had all agreed, that might dilute things. Nonetheless, we thought it would be nice to give everyone the chance to have a get together before the next formal meeting. Because not everyone was there when it was discussed, and not everyone who was there had been involved in that part of the conversation, I decided to post it ON THE MESSAGE BOARD so that EVERYONE COULD COME WHO WANTED. This was supposed to be just another gathering of our group. It definitely isn't any sort of breakaway

Karen, the organiser, removed it because it 'went against the rules'.

I emailed her to point out that it did not go against the rules, because this was a meeting for our group, posted by a member of our group. It just wasn't a formal meeting organised by Karen. When she removed the posting I pointed out that we weren't breaking the rules and were just trying to have an extra get together, then I posted again - and she removed the notification again

I am sure you can understand how distressed I was to receive the email that all the GS&B Members recieved today - here is part of it

"Also, I just can't understand why they would want to set up another group? It can only serve to create disharmony and create a very awkward situation for each of the Tuesday night knitters: that isn't what knitting groups are about, we're friendly and supportive and we all enjoy meeting up and knitting together so why cause disharmony? I just would never have expected this from members of our own group, shafted from the inside, who'd have thunk it! "

I am really offended at the suggestion that anything we have said, done or planned is in anyway undermining the group. I am particularly appalled at Karen's abuse and her use of the word 'shafted'.

So, to set the record straight:
This is NOT a breakaway group
This was discussed with Karen
I have tried several times to make everyome aware of this EXTRA meet up
Karen has REMOVED the notification, is MISREPRESENTING the situation,has now been grossly offensive to me in a public email and most importantly is DENYING ME ANY RIGHT TO REPLY.

Many people will be aware that there have been problems in the past and that Karen appears to have found it difficult in the past when people have expressed views, or made suggestions that she wasn't completely comfortable with. I am, though, very surprised that she has managed to interpret a few people picking up on a suggestion that we meet more often as some sort of revolutionary coup. I know knitting is important, but for goodness sake! I am not comfortable at being accused of engineering a takeover, which is definitely not what is happening, and I am very unhappy at having my actions misrepresented so grotesquely and at Karen's absolute refusal to let me respond in any way to her horrible and completely unfounded accusations.

I don't know what is wrong with Karen, I hope she gets over it before the next meeting.

Let me state once again, this is not a breakaway or takeover. Anyone who wants to come is welcome, and I look forward to seeing everyome at the next formal meet up.

In the interim, if any members of Glasgow Stitch and Bitch would like to meet up this Tuesday, 20th February, we will be at Jam, in Shawlands, from 6 - 8 pm. I haven't been here before, but by all accounts it's a nice place - oh, and I think I have the right place in that link, but best to check yourselves, in case I send you on a wild goose chase!

India