When was it that life got so complicated we had to start sending out invitations to announce the invitations? How far will that concept go, I wonder? Will we reach the point when we have to send save-the-date cards to announce that we are planning on sending save-the date-cards for a future save-the-date event that no one even wants or cares to think about as yet? Perhaps, I have also mused of late, if we didn’t plan so far ahead the time wouldn’t seem to go by so fast. There is, I suspect (and seem to remember from some younger time in my life) great freedom in come-as-you-are, spontaneous behavior that has nothing to do with schedules, calendars, deadlines or, yes, even the dreaded save-the-date card.

Well, obviously I jest—a little—and in case you haven’t noticed, there is indeed a copy on this page of the CAMP Rehoboth save-the-date card that is presently being mailed to all of you who are on the CAMP Rehoboth mailing list. It is the second save-the-date card I’ve had a hand in this year, the first being one for the CAMP Rehoboth Women’s Weekend that was mailed earlier in the year. To organizers, event promoters, and those engaged in fund raising activities, that saved date is of the upmost importance, a kind of ground zero, holy number toward which we work and after which we will heave a sigh of relief, rest for three days, and then remember that we will do it all over again next year. Fortunately, however, we can actually wait until it is time for the next save-the-date card before we get too worked up about what lies ahead.

Joking aside, the events printed below are important to us, and, I believe, to our community. Some of them are fund raisers; some of them are community raisers; most of them serve more than one function. All of them bring us together—to dance, to laugh, to create, to remember, to learn, to be entertained, and, yes, to pay for all that we do. Some of them have been around long enough to become traditions; some of them are relatively new. All of them require deep commitment from organizers and volunteers from all parts of our community.

As the Rehoboth area has grown, so has the number of activities and events being offered in our community. Twenty years ago there was no CAMP Rehoboth; no Sundance, Love, Splash, or Starburst Gayla; there was no Independent Film Society; and no Film, Jazz, or Cabaret Festivals; no Main Street; no SCAC, HTP, Stonewall Democrats, Delaware Pride or Bingo-A-Go-Go. Back then life at the beach was a little slower (and a lot less expensive). Back then it was just beach, happy hour, dinner, house parties, and late night dancing—which all still exist (except for, alas, the late night dancing), if you can find the time or the energy for them.

These days, I guess, we really do have to send out save-the-date cards—as much for ourselves as for those who receive them—and we still have inevitable overlaps. This summer, for example, The CAMP Rehoboth Follies, which is always scheduled for the 4th weekend in July, is also the same time as the Gay Games in Chicago—which means we’re losing a few valuable players (but not, thank heaven, our host Christopher Peterson). The RB Convention Center is booked through the season, especially for major events, and no one wants to give up an established time slot. This year’s Women’s Weekend just happens to be Easter weekend, which is good for some, not so good for others. Every single day during the season seems to be packed with so many possibilities that no one, with the exception of our social photographer Tony Burns, could ever make them all.

Though a part of me sometimes wishes for simpler times, the growth and diversity of events and activities and organizations in our community is a good thing. We are a unique community that connects GLBT people throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. So save us a date or two, mark your calendars, and join us whenever possible for these and all the other activities at the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center or around town.