JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED...

Blokes and Blokettes,

What an AMAZING conference - many thanks to the entire conference committee. Your behind-the-scenes efforts (and prayers) bore sweet fruit this past weekend - the conference will surely be one to remember!

We had a fabulous turnout from across the globe - including places like AZ, UT, DC, Peru, Japan, and [choke] yes, AUSSIE - to name a few (It's with great humility that I must admit Aussies do add tremendous value to any conference!) <--washing mouth with soap!

The dances were absolutely wild....We had several proposals right on the dance floor thru a very cool "texting wall"....Who says Geeks aren't sexy??? (Guys, remember to tell her your name the next time you propose, OK?)

The temple trip, service project, and workshop were fabulous...and the Amazing Race was - well - amazingly HARD! The only team to figure out Kiwi math was the RAD RACERS....Good on ya! Although my favorite team was the "ATOMIC TANGERINES" - loved your corporate sponsored matching regalia - very "Silicon Valley"! But the Greek God of Wisdom (Hyperion) didn't help you very much with Kiwi math - too bad!! Try the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob next time

If you stuck around to attend Sunday Services and the Fireside, WOW, what a spiritual feast! What more can I say? The speakers and music were fabulous, and the testimonies were utterly uplifting....I certainly felt the "Touch of the Master's Hand" yesterday!

Finally, I hope all of you guys came away with lots of phone numbers and contact info - if not, SHAME ON YA! Gals, I'm gonna keep my email address open and available, so you can continue sending me your phone numbers (Gents, my email address is up for sale to the highest bidder! Just kidding - strict code of confidentiality here! )

Peeps, we want to receive wedding announcements - post them as comments to this blog! Mele and Si, that means you, too! LOL! We'll be providing a venue for everyone to upload their favorite pics soon, courtesy of our webmaster (and the Sacramento Aussi who got lost en route to NZ)....

Oh, the conference committee is gonna meet soon to debrief, so please send your feedback to Aparna, Mele, Dorz, and/or Si asap - over the next couple of days if possible. Also, vote on which part of the conference you liked the best below....

It was a joy to see Cupid at work in your midst - Indeed, we're "peculiar peeps" and a "royal generation" in more ways than one! On a personal note, as mentioned in many a testimony yesterday, we're all in this together, so let's continue building on the sense of community we fostered this weekend in the Valley of Heart's Delight.

It's been an honor to blog for you....Until we meet again (hopefully, at one of your wedding parties), Arohanui! DR. LOVE

This is a graph of the same survey as above but with mobile voting instructions:

TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT!

Everyone, it's been Real!

And now we're in for a surreal event this weekend! See you love birds at the party....Just a reminder, you absolutely CAN get into any of the activities over the weekend @ a per-event price (pay at the door). Here' s the breakdown:

1) Friday night only: $20 cash at the door. Live caribbean band Broken English, great hors d'oevres, speed networking, speed dancing, dance instruction, meeting your future spouse....

2) Saturday temple session & workshops: FREE! Meet spiritual peeps, service projects, discuss spiritual stuff, find the love of your life....

3) Great America only: $50 cash. All-day Great America pass, rides and water park, Amazing Race, catered all-you-can-eat lunch, access great music, great company, meeting your significant other....

4) Saturday night and Sunday only: $25 cash. Super cool dance at the Marriott, catered munchies, speed networking, lunch after church on Sunday, spiritual food, smoozing, flirting, romance, meeting your eternal companion....

Time to find me a Wahini! See you tonight....

DR. LOVE

DOCTOR LOVE'S TOP 10 LIST OF DO'S & DON'TS FOR THE 2010 BAY AREA MID-SINGLES EVENT

10. DON'T cluster in clicks - it's harder to break into a conversation of three or more guys and gals talking together than it is with only two (of the same gender, that is). Make it easier for the cute guy or gal "over there" to approach you by avoiding clusters and clicks.

9. DO meet new friends that you don't already know. Be approachable; you can talk to old friends when you get home. We have attendees coming from as far as...Yep, you guess it, down under! This is the time to make new friends and expand your network - it's what the entire event is all about....So take advantage of every minute....

8. DON'T lose your activity pass! Need I say more???

7. DO participate in the speed networking activity - this year's speed networking experience isn't going to be your average "exercise in herding cattle"....The organizers are doing their best to enable you to enjoy the highest quality and quantity of connections possible.

6. Did I mention DON'T lose your activity pass???

5. DO sign-up for the Amazing Race! This event is specifically designed to help you optimize your conference experience by making new friends BEFORE the conference begins. Racing teams are already getting formed, so sign-up fast!

4. DON'T be a "speed hogger" - "Say what?" A speed hogger is somebody who doesn't rotate when they're supposed to in the speed networking event. Don't hoard the cute guy or gal you're chatting with - or, if you've found the love of your life and simply must keep yapping, PLEASE get up and move "as one" into the Chill Lounge where you can warm it up with your hot air....

3. DO more than just flirt. Surely, bat those eye lashes, flick your hair, show your muscles, and flex your pecks, but TALK to people and build lasting friendships that can turn into eternal relationships. Even if you can't dance, try standing in the middle of the dance floor with someone--you'll be better for it. Get into the STAGE II mindset! Special tools may also be available to connect with each other at the dance in real time using social media, so bring your cell!

2. DON'T miss out on the workshops, special temple trip, service project, and Sunday services. I've heard many a mid-single say that the social is great, but the spiritual is even better. There will be mucho opportunities for both at this conference!

1. DO - TBD! You decide (I'm outta ideas!)....e-me or post your comments below. Let me know what your #1 do or don't is for the conference, and we'll add it to the list!

Have a Love-ly Labor Day! Yours truly, DR. LOVE

(love dot doctor at sbcglobal dot net)

SOME GOOD NEWS AND SOME BAD NEWS

First, the good news - I'm gettin' email from ya'll!! Yeah!

Now the bad news: they're not very amorous (and none of them say "I LOVE KIWIS" - yet)!!

Actually, the Aussies are upset that I'm paying too much attention to the Kiwis (notice my alias here, mates!!)....Ok, Ok, so here's a nice love story just for the Aussies down under - Fair enough? Enjoy! (I know this posting has nothing to do with the conference theme, but hey, gotta let them Aussies know we love 'em )

BTW, in case you haven't guessed yet, the actual theme of the conference is "Touch of the Master's Hand"....How cool is that, eh? If you don't remember the storyline, check it out here (Part I, Part II).

A real tear-jerker - I cry every time! Definitely one of my favorites.... Who says Californians aren't spiritual???? I hear we've even gotta GA coming to speak! No doubt, this conference is gonna be spectacular - I'm so excited! Seven days and counting!! :)

Affectionately, DR. LOVE

URGENT MESSAGE FOR THE UNREGISTERED

ATTENTION, ATTENTION ALL YE WHO HAVEN'T REGISTERED FOR THE CONFERENCE!

I have just been contacted by anonymous financial donors (some of whom will be attending the conference!). These mystery donors have generously committed to pay the registration fees for 10 lucky peeps - yup, 7 GUYS and 3 GALS to be exact. But there is a catch! They have a couple of eligibility criteria:

1. You must be among the FIRST 7 GUYS and 3 GALS to sign-up respectively for the conference between 12pm Friday, Sept 3, and 12pm Monday, Sept 7.

2. This is a "challenge donation", meaning that in order for the sponsorship to happen, at least 7 GUYS and 3 GALS MUST register during the specified time period - anything less won't cut the cheese. It's all or nothing....

3. You must send a note to me with these three words visible somewhere in it: "I LOVE KIWIS" (don't ask me why, and don't expect a reply!)

4. You must be tall, skinny or buffed, and tanned (just kidding! )

Who are these generous donors you ask? I am sworn to secrecy (except if you bribe me). However, I can attest that CNN was right - Four of the Top 10 best cities in the US to meet rich singles are right here in Silicon Valley!! LOL!

So, if you haven't signed up for the conference yet, do it TODAY...er...tomorrow....It's a small price to pay for potentially finding the love of your life (or at least a Sugar Daddy/Mama )!

Note: you will need to pay for the conference registration fee up front. Iff you are deemed as one of the registrants meeting all of the requirements, you will be contacted by the conference organizers to receive a refund of your registration fee.

Ciao for now, DR. LOVE

LOVE DOCTOR AT YOUR SERVICE...

Greetings to all LDS Mid-Singles Seeking LOVE:

I've been recruited by the Conference Committee to lend my expertise in relationship management, hopefully helping to stimulate some "eternal sparks" for ya'll over the next few days in prep for the upcoming conference.

Who am I?

Let's just say I'm tall, dark, and handsome - LOL! Seriously, I'm a real dude (male in fact )....BUT, so that we can maintain a free flow of discussion and dialog, I'm going to keep my identity anonymous. Nobody - but nobody - knows who I am (except Mele and Dorz - and they're not telling!! ). Rest assured, I'll be at the conference secretly sprinkling Cupid's pixie dust over everyone. So, beware - you may find a lasting relationship this year in the Valley of Heart's Delight!

Here's the deal:

Ask me any question on relationships, dating, love, and being an LDS Mid-Single....If I can't answer it, it's unanswerable (just kidding, I'll get the answer one way or another, most likely from my own evidence-based experience, Church leaders, or crowd sourced from the wisdom of the conference attendees). Post your questions here or send private emails to love dot doctor at sbcglobal dot net, and I will be sure to respond....I'll also be posting my thoughts and philosophizing on this blog over the next several days under the alias, "ATohunga" (anyone know what that means?? ).

So, are you ready for a sizzling September of new found relationships and lingering love? Great - let's get started!

-- International Man of Mystery (aka "DR. LOVE")

10 More Days...

It's September 1st and we're a week (and some) away from conference.  We have so much planned this year, it's going to be ridiculously fun!!!!!!!! Let's begin with mixers.  As I called people to invite and remind them about conference, I asked, "How would you improve this year's conference?"  Majority requested MORE mixers. Some talked about how long they had to wait in line for Speed Dating last year in Santa Cruz.  I about died laughing thinking, "WOW! For reals? People really stand in line for that?"  See, Polynesians don't speed date.  We do Speed Marriage (but that's an entire different blog right there!).

Let me explain...my very first Speed Dating experience was in Huntington Beach (HB) earlier this year AND I didn't even participate.  I just watched the game for a bit. In HB, one of the leaders, possibly a High Councilman, had to literally stop the dance until a couple of men filled the spots for that particular block.  After about 10 minutes, he impatiently says, "Hey, we're doing this for you! We're already married!"  I needed CPR after that comment from laughing so hard!  So, we're not going to beg or force you to Speed because what we have lined up for Friday and Saturday, YOU WILL BE STANDING IN LINE.

Are you competitive?  Well, we have "The Great Amazing Race" on Saturday afternoon at Great America.  Teams will be looking for clues in the park and trying to solve them within an hour.  You can either get your team together or hook up with other midsingles.  Let's throw down in v-ball.  Bring your teams and battle others for the rights as Bay Area's #1 Midsingles Volleyball Team.  There is a live DJ all day so you could get your groove on.  Also, tons and tons of mixers inside the pavilion, like "Minute to Meet It!"  We got the bomb host because he watches the actual game every week, so he's gonna hook this puppy up.  Can YOU do it in 60 seconds or less?  Come find out...
Saturday night I think is going to be off the hizzook!  Boogie Shoes!!! It's all about shoes that night so put on your best boogies to impress.  Speed Networking and more mixers will be on play along with Speed Dancing and Speed Shoes.  It's going to be one buuuuuuuuusy Saturday but all worthwhile.

Sometimes, midsingle activities are not all about looking for that "eternal companion" but rather, a place to have fun with others who share the same moral values.  A place to meet new friends who will make living the gospel easy.  Friends who will assure us that being Mormon is the best thing in life!  Hope to see you there, friends.

Mele
ps.  Got a girlfriend or boyfriend?  This could be the best date ever, so register!!!!!

GET THE WORD OUT...

Yesterday I got back from a 2-day Trek in the Santa Cruz mountains. What a great oppotunity it was for the youth of our stake to renact the handcart treks of the pioneers. The first day seemed like a walk in the park for some but the weather was sooo hot that I know they felt the challenge that some of their ancestors went through in crossing the plains. The costumes alone was a killer for me...those long sleeved dresses and pantaloons, my goodness I was dying.
Anyways, at one point we were reminded of the sacrifices that these pioneers made in crossing the plains...they did not know what their destination would be but they had the faith to keep going even tho it was such a huge challenge for them.
Our youth were put into handcart families and it was great to see how they helped each other to achieve their goal of making it to the end of the trek. They encouraged each other and worked together to get to the end. One young man with a disability amazed me with his enthusiasm, he was right up there with the rest of his family...and you could tell that they respected him just for being there.
Well, while I was out there I had lots of time to think about this conference that we have coming up in September and about the sacrifices that people have been making to put it on and make sure that it is a good one.
Has it been a challenge?... definately!!...
Will you benefit in attending it??...Not sure!!
Do we know the outcome?... No!!...
BUT we do have the FAITH that if we do the work the Lord will help us to fulfill our goals and make the conference a great one.
This is YOUR conference....how it turns out depends on you. We can put our ideas together and do things that may or may not be interesting to you, but its up to you to attend with the right attitude and bring your friends to the event. We can do the usuals in advertising with fliers and handouts etc, but the best way to get people to come out to this conference it is via personal invitation.
I'd like to personally invite each of you to come to this conference, to invite ALL your single friends to come and to personally invite anyone else that you know would benefit from the oppotunity to meet new people. Those that you visit teach, home teach, or even non-members of the church that you may be working with. We need to get the word out, to tell as many people as we can to come out and have fun with the rest of us.
I promise that the sacrifices that you make to do the right things will bring you all amazing blessings that the Lord is waiting to bless you with. Trust me... the Lord loves the singles and will bless us with the desires of our hearts.

Much Love to you ALL
Dorz


I have helped out in this committee since the start and I have seen lots of ups and downs in the process along the way...but I can say that those that have sacrificed over the years to help in putting this conference together have done a great job.
It is not easy to put these things together but its great to meet so many wonderful people

FINALLY....I've figured this out....LOL

Hey everyone, man talk about being clueless on using the computer and they want us to BLOG for the conference... yeah well, put a couple of polynesian sisters on the job and we will see what happens to the BLOG at the end of the day. So I finally figured this out on my own and you would be very proud of my efforts...it just took about 3 weeks to do it but I did it and so.... get ready to hear my thoughts along the way.

Anyways....now that I am in here I need to share some thoughts. Life is busy and we have so much on our plates at the moment....but we still need to find the time to do something for ourselves. A chance to rejuvenate, re-energize, and just CHILL with other singles in our respective age groups, and the conference will be a great oppotunity for ALL of you to do just that. Oh yeah we will be doing all the work behind the scenes but we do that so that you can have a BLAST and take the oppotunities to meet some really GREAT SINGLES from the Bay and from all over.

Honestly I would challenge all those that came out last year to come back this year and bring a friend cause the more the merrier... and dont hold out on your single friends who are not members...if they want to come they can, they just have to be informed of the standards that we have in the church and abide by them.

So get your $75 together and tell all your friends and sign up today. The price goes up soon and you really dont want to pay the extra bucks. If you dont have it right now then...beg , borrow, scab, or work a corner..(just kidding) but you get what I'm saying. Get the money and signup. I know that you will have a great conference and it will be well worth the $75 that you had to pay up front.

This is what I know... you make the scarifices to come to this conference and everything else will fall into place...not sure how it will, but it will....just have the faith to take the first steps.

I'm off on a TREK with my stake so I'll be out of commission but hollah back and let us know how we are doing on this BLOG thing and whether you want to kill us for BLOWING up all the pages in advertising and marketing for the conference.

THANKS ahead of time for letting us do it....you'll be blessed for putting up with us

hahahaha..........

Much Aloha's to you all.

Dorz

73 Days Left...

Since my last post, I had the privilege to attend my very first Singles "Chocolate Party" in Rocklin (near Sacramento).  I thought I died and landed in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory!!! Woohoo!!!  Chocolates were EVERYWHERE,  the minute you walked up to the house, two large tables covered with heaps of chocolates welcomed you.  As you walked in through the front door, to your left was a chocolate river smoothly flowing near the kitchen (ok, maybe not a river, but a fondue machine that ran like one and if you ate enough chocolates, it started to look and sound like a river) and the dining room was well equipped with more of those heavenly sweets. Sooo glad there were some chips, a delicious spicy hummus, and a variety of  other dips to balance out that sweetness because I was starting to feel a sugar high!  If you made it to the backyard, you'd think it rained chocolates.  Thank you to the great couple who hosted the party.

The highlight of my night was witnessing this dude sitting on a recliner pull both his legs behind his head, then BAM! The recliner tipped over.  My very first thought was  he must've had one too many chocolates and that his body was reacting to the overload but he explained to me, later on that evening, that he had hurt his back years ago and found an alternative to surgery-STRETCHING!  OMG, just rewinding that picture in my mind has me LAUGHING SOOOO SOOOO HARD right now.  

Anyway, the point of my chocolate story is that there are so many singles activities and if I had not attended the chocolate party, I wouldn't have had this funny replay in my mind.  So please please please, come out on September 10-12 and hang out with a bunch of great people from all over Cali and witness some crazy things!

HE LIVES: Testimonies of Jesus Christ

One of my favorites, available on LDS.ORG or You Tube.  If you have a chance, view it and shoot me a quick comment on sfmids@gmail.com.  Let me know if you'd like me to post your thoughts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ddXNF29goo

FIRST TIME BLOGGER

Ok, I'm going to keep it real with ya'll...this is MY first time ever on a blog, let alone managing one! What the heck did I get myself into this time? But you know what, when the Lord calls, JUST DO IT (dude, am I going to get sued by Nike for blogging their slogan without permission?).  All I ask is if you see something wrong on this blog or it just ain't cutting it for you, send me note.  I can take "constructive criticism" because as a Polynesian, criticism is suppose to be humorous.  Seriously, like here's an example of that.  If my sister is wearing an ugly dress, I simply just say, "I know you ain't going out like that and if you are, you better find your own ride!"  She tells me to "shut-up" and gets in the car anyway.  See, no offense taken. You got the point, right?  Hollah at me with corrections or suggestions for improvement on this blog. I'd still love ya because that's what we sang in Primary for 9 long years (including Nursery time)--"Jesus said love everyone, treat them kindly too. When your heart is filled with love, others will love you."

Now getting back to business.  As I'm typing, the "official" SF Mid singles website has not gone live but will in a couple of days. There has been so much thought and planning put into this conference, I know it's going to be one of the best ever!  And the great news...WE STILL HAVE MORE PLANNING TO DO! We do not expect much from you but an open heart and willingness to make new friends.  Encourage others to come out and have a great time.  One thing I always tell my youth as they dread youth dances..."Don't let the fun come to you, YOU take it to others!" So there you have it, BRING YOUR OWN FUN and share it with others.  It's contagious you know.  Looking forward to catching some of that fun. See ya there!

Oh yeah, one more thing. If you have a TOPIC you'd like to discuss, email me and I'll post it.  Just let me know if you'd like to remain anonymous.

*89 DAYS LEFT* Shout Out to the WEBSITE CREW

Today we had another planning meeting which went quite well.  Just want to give our website gurus Gregg LeFevre and David Wilkins 2 thumbs up and a salute for the great work they've done on the Bay Area Midsingles site, especially for putting up with me and Doreen's NONSTOP suggestions.  It got to the point where we would flood everyone's inbox with suggestions and Si had to kindly suggest that only ONE person work with Gregg.  I think if we had a clue on the amount of work it took, we would've settled for the traditional emails and Facebook invites.  But THAT is how much YOU mean to us---it's ALL or NOTHING and we want ALL of you to be at the conference.

We're going to hit up this region BIG time and invite every mid-single from South Bay to the Peninsula, into North Bay and over the Bay Bridge to the East Bay.  By getting all the stakes within those regions, we anticipate over 400 attendees these year.  That's what I'm talking about...DIVERSITY!  Majority of these wards we're going to hit has never heard of the mid-singles program nor have any clue how major it is.  Take my stake, the San Francisco East Tongan Stake, for instance.  We never heard of mid-singles until we received an invitation to perform in the luau for last year's conference in Santa Cruz.  See, for us Tongans, once you're 18, you're in the young adult program until ONE: you get married or TWO: you die.  There's no in-between there.  As long as you're single, you're in the YSA program for life.

Now that I am officially on the planning committee, there is so much more to it! My very first activity with the San Jose region was a snow trip to Twain Harte, CA (near Sonora).  It blew me away that an LDS couple in that area was so generous to allow the singles to use their vacation home FOR FREE.  Now, had that been the Tongan stake---there is NOOOO way anyone would lend the singles group their home!  Hehehehe, just kidding, we're not that bad. Anyway, it was a fun weekend and I got to meet a whole bunch of great people. I learned four valuable lessons that weekend in Twain Harte:
1.  Materialistic things are just that, MATERIALISTIC! They do not last forever.  The home was not as important as the souls who occupied it and the new friendships formed.  I will be forever grateful for the couple who so kindly let me sleep on the guest bed while the others slept on the floor.

2.  Everyone has different personalities and not everyone will agree.  However, it is a commandment to "love  one another"  and we should always respect others opinions.  Life is all about disagreements but it's how we handle them that makes us who we are!

3.  Never park your motorcycle near the garage where someone could back up into it.  Poor Jeff.  His baby was slightly bruised but not as bad as the garage door.  And yet, he was so brave to ride it all the way back home on Sunday.  For those of you who have never been in Twain Harte, well it's the woods--the forest and it's totally pitch black.  The only light are the owl's eyeballs and their weren't any out that night.  Hence, the driver of the car backed up into the motorcycle and put a huge dent into the garage door!

4.  Now this is THE most important:  NEVER WEAR A SKIRT TO GO SNOW TUBING!  I don't care how long it is.  I have it on video but I dare not show it because I don't have her permission (she was not part of our group).  But I must say, Mariah and I had a great laugh and made the long drive from San Mateo all worth it that day.

The point is, you're going to miss out on a lot if you don't come out.  There is so much to learn from one another and so much to give to each other.  Mark your calendars for September 10-12 and come enjoy being single!

SAVE THE DATE: September 10-12, 2010

Mark your calendars and save the date: SEPTEMBER 10-12, 2010 is SF Bay Area's Mid-singles Conference 2010.  Don't miss out like you did last year! For those who attended last year...it's even BETTER.  We're going to start you off with some Latin vibes on Friday night (lots and lots of dancing & food), inspire your soul with Saturday morning's workshops, challenge your intellect with an afternoon of Amazing Race at Great America (don't forget to check the box during registration), "raise the roof" at sundown at Santa Clara's Marriott w/one of the best DJ's in town, and put you back in check on Sunday.

We guarantee you will meet lots of people and have so much fun that you will beg to come back next year (ummm...as long as your under 45 years).  Don't wait for the fun to come to you--YOU BE THE "FUN" and let others come to you!