Editor: Alan De Angelo

Publisher: Daryl Hutchins

Contact: [email protected]

Greetings and Cichlidic Salutations!

Is the vaccine ready yet? Man, I never thought I’d ever want a vaccine to be produced like I do this one. Things really need to get back to normal. If you are like 99% of the world population, you are very tired of all of this pandemic stuff. I know that I am. We are being consumed by it. However, as we learned in WWII, the human mind can adapt very well. We are wanting to be rid of the constraints of our masks and are willing to take the chance to live a normal life. Google the phrase “Blitz Spirit” to learn more about how the Londoners and the general population of Great Britain reacted to the constant bombing. That’s what we humans do, we adapt. Keep safe, keep healthy and hopefully this will all be over with soon.

Elections

Due to the fact that there were only four applicants to fill the four positions open on the BOT, there is no need to have an election. I’d like to welcome back, Ron Coleman, Paul Loiselle and Pat Tosie to the Board. I’d also like to welcome our newcomer, Cynthia Norrgan, to the BOT. Let’s look forward to a productive new year in 2021.

Convention News

The 2021 American Cichlid Association Convention will be hosted by the Missouri Aquarium Society. Pat Tosie is the Convention Chair for MAS. The hotel is the Holiday Inn-Airport West, Earth City, MO which is just outside of St. Louis. My daughter recently had a few friends over to my home and one of the boys was from just outside of Earth City. He said that it was a very nice area to visit.

The whole CoVid mess has made the hotel world and everyones’ schedules topsy-turvey, so this will be a “convention lite” with no fish show. There will be Room Sales with a $10 Bulletin Board and a Tank Rental Area will also be available. The usual educational talks and auctions will be taking place as well.

I just visited the convention website link and it is not carrying any information yet. I’m sure that will be corrected soon. I’ll keep you informed.

ACA FaceBook

Our ACA Convention and American Cichlid Association FB pages are both up and running. The general ACA FB page has 9070 members on it and has quite a bit of activity.

There is still a question by some as to why there are not only “American” cichlids on the page. I as well as other Admins and members repeatedly tell the new members that the ACA is inclusive of all cichlids and that the ACA was formed over 50 years ago (54?) and the name implies the location of the organization, much like the British Cichlid Association (French, Victorian, etc). As we all know, there are no naturally occurring cichlids living in the ponds, lakes and streams of the UK (France, Victoria [AU], etc).

As information rolls in on the Convention, I’ll be sure to pass it along to all of you. Be good.

In the meantime, you might want to check out details for the OCA’s Extravaganza 2020. See below …

– Alan

LOCAL CLUB EVENTS

Send your cichlid-related news/events to the AN Editor at [email protected] and we will be happy to help you spread the word about your local events. Please allow six weeks lead-time.

WHERE ARE YOU?

Please ensure that the ACA has your current e-mail address. Otherwise we could lose touch … e-mails not arriving, fire and brimstone coming down from the skies, rivers and seas boiling, 40 years of darkness, earthquakes, volcanoes, dead rising from the grave, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together – mass hysteria! Oh, wait …

Your street address and/or mobile/phone number could prove useful too … just in case.