Mary to add forum!

[Leonana]

I posted here and at Collage, and appreciate both of them for different reasons. I don't think it's anything personal against VF. I believe it's a case of being familiar with a place and it feeling like home. I'm feeling kind of sad today at losing one of my forum homes, even though I am comfortable here.

For someone who is used to something smaller, it can seem really intimidating. And when you are losing something that felt like home, you sort of look for something else that is similar to that home. I think Mary's forum would be more similar to Collage in many ways, so that would feel more like home to posters from Collage who never came here. Also, most of the posters are Collage were older, and speaking as someone who is 54, change is harder when you're older, lol.

[jessicavi]

I love Mary and I think adding a forum is probably another logical step in expanding her brand. I feel there's room for both forums. I certainly enjoy seeing/reading lots of people's perspective on w/o's.

[Judy W.]

As a member of the Collage forum, and as an old lady of 64 who can't deal with change (although I've posted occasionally here at VF, usually with no acknowledgement from other posters), I think most of us had developed a feeling of comradeship with the relatively small group at Collage, and we are all saddened to be losing that.

I've been here long enough to know that VF has a lot of that as well, with many wonderful friendships that have begun here. But it's like moving from a small town to a big city I guess, and one tends to feel somewhat overlooked, at least at first. It takes time to be noticed here! That's no indictment of VF or of anyone here -- it's just the difference between a small town and a big city.

Many of us may find we are able to maintain our connectivity in the check-ins, or possibly over at Mary's. It remains to be seen! But we are all hate to lose our Collage neighborhood. It's always tough to say goodbye!

Fitness goes on, even when one must move on. So (humor the old lady and sing along) "You say goodbye, and I'll say hello!!"

[marya]

Originally Posted by Judy W.

I've been here long enough to know that VF has a lot of that as well, with many wonderful friendships that have begun here. But it's like moving from a small town to a big city I guess, and one tends to feel somewhat overlooked, at least at first. It takes time to be noticed here! That's no indictment of VF or of anyone here -- it's just the difference between a small town and a big city.

Love your small town/big city analogy, Judy! I always enjoyed your posts on the Collage Forum, and your success story was so inspiring--hope you'll continue to post here!

VF has been my fitness forum home for a few years now, especially once I found my niche, the Kundalini Yoga Check-in. A "big city" can be a blessing for persons with specialized interests. But I love fitness forums in general--and there's no such thing as too many, IMHO.

[alisoncooks]

Originally Posted by FirmDancer

Kudos to Mary. But I don't see the value of another fitness forum. (I realize others have commented on the wish/need for a smaller, more intimate forum - but my brain can't figure out what that means.) I'll stick with VF and I hope the new forum doesn't pull people away from here.

I'm sort of the same.
I did occasionally lurk at Collage's forum b/c it seemed to be (largely) a different set of people than at VF. (There was some overlap, I know.)

But most of my forum-ing has been here... I don't see any particular need (for myself) to frequent another forum regularly...

[Breezy Trousers]

Originally Posted by jessicavi

I love Mary and I think adding a forum is probably another logical step in expanding her brand. I feel there's room for both forums. I certainly enjoy seeing/reading lots of people's perspective on w/o's.

Me, too! That's what I loved about Collage's forum:

* Sharing check-ins with (often, international) friends who never do DVD workouts, preferring to walk outdoors each day or do their own circuits.

* Sharing check-ins with friends who took open delight in doing old workouts -- the 10-to-30-year-old workouts -- rather than focusing on the latest, greatest workout available on the market.

* Experiencing a culture which seemed much less interested in acquisition than VF culture. (Although Collage posters expressed interest in new releases, that interest rarely -- if ever -- culminated in big bandwagons. The interest felt lighter and more relaxed there.)

* Experiencing a connected but less intimate culture compared to VF. Make no mistake: People absolutely * did * connect on Collage! People got to know each other over a number of years! (One of our posters organized a cyber baby shower for our pregnant friend.) However, we also spent just as much time cheerfully talking about the weather in our different parts of the world, too. That wasn't a bad thing for me. Intense involvement amplifies everything, good and bad, so Collage's less-intense forum promoted a lighter, kinder, more polite interaction, IMO.

I loved both VF and Collage forums but sometimes one has suited me better than the other, depending on my own goals and values.

P.S. Waves to Judy!

[juberann]

YAY,Mary!!!!!!!!!!!

[slinks]

Originally Posted by marya

Love your small town/big city analogy, Judy! I always enjoyed your posts on the Collage Forum, and your success story was so inspiring--hope you'll continue to post here!

VF has been my fitness forum home for a few years now, especially once I found my niche, the Kundalini Yoga Check-in. A "big city" can be a blessing for persons with specialized interests. But I love fitness forums in general--and there's no such thing as too many, IMHO.

Me too

[slinks]

Originally Posted by Breezy Trousers

Me, too! That's what I loved about Collage's forum:

* Sharing check-ins with (often, international) friends who never do DVD workouts, preferring to walk outdoors each day or do their own circuits.

* Sharing check-ins with friends who took open delight in doing old workouts -- the 10-to-30-year-old workouts -- rather than focusing on the latest, greatest workout available on the market.

* Experiencing a culture which seemed much less interested in acquisition than VF culture. (Although Collage posters expressed interest in new releases, that interest rarely -- if ever -- culminated in big bandwagons. The interest felt lighter and more relaxed there.)

* Experiencing a connected but less intimate culture compared to VF. Make no mistake: People absolutely * did * connect on Collage! People got to know each other over a number of years! (One of our posters organized a cyber baby shower for our pregnant friend.) However, we also spent just as much time cheerfully talking about the weather in our different parts of the world, too. That wasn't a bad thing for me. Intense involvement amplifies everything, good and bad, so Collage's less-intense forum promoted a lighter, kinder, more polite interaction, IMO.

I loved both VF and Collage forums but sometimes one has suited me better than the other, depending on my own goals and values.

P.S. Waves to Judy!

well said, I loved that we could talk about anything, we even had a movie thread

[slinks]

Mary's forum is up :-)