Top Ten Reasons to Attend the National DOG – Redux #8

Posted on September 16, 2012 by Texas Iron Chef

#8 Put Names With Faces

Last year’s top list of top ten reasons to attend the National Dutch Oven Gathering (NDOG) included the joy of the face-to-face meeting of friends met online.   The same will be true this year in Canton at the 9th Annual NDOG.  This year, we have added Facebook as another way for Dutch oven friends to make new connections.  The 2012 NDOG’s Facebook page has grown to over 500 “likes” and has provided a vibrant exchange of information, ideas, and support for new friends across the digital world.

We continue to appreciate the connections we have made via the Yahoo groups, as well as our cooking friends involved with the Lone Star Dutch Oven Society, the Louisiana Dutch Oven Society, the International Dutch Oven Society, and many more, all of which offer digital connections via forums or email groups.

With over 400 Dutch oven enthusiasts making the journey to Canton this  year, the opportunity for digital friends to meet face-to-face will be priceless.  Added to that is the annual opportunity for old Dutch oven friends to meet again, many who met years ago at previous NDOGs, to share old memories and make new ones.

There are lots of great reasons to attend a NDOG, but meeting new friends and adding new Dutch oven experiences with old friends has to be one of the best!  Are you attending the NDOG in Canton?  Will it be your first time or have you attend one in the past?  Tell us about the friends you have made in the digital world or in person and how you keep your friendship going.

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Top Ten Reasons to Attend a National DOG – Redux #9

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Texas Iron Chef

Opportunity to Share Your Photos!

I am back to the topic Top Ten Reasons to Attend a National Dutch Oven Gathering (NDOG) Redux that I started earlier this year and am revisiting last year’s list with a few new ideas added for this year’s event.  Remember, they aren’t in any particular order!  #9 last year was to take tons of photographs, pick out the best ones that tell the story of the National DOG and share that story online.

This year’s NDOG in Canton will be a another great opportunity for Dutch oven friends from all over the country and Canada to share their love of outdoor cooking with each other and the general public.  For many, the way we share that joy is by taking lots of photographs and sharing them.  Social media gives us a great platform to share the stories and also to learn more as our skills and interests are challenged by new ideas, skills, and inspiration.  The 2012 NDOG has a Facebook page with 471 “likes” will be one way to share those photographs as well as to keep the connections with new and old Dutch oven friends before, during, and after the event.  You can also share your photographs on Flickr in the 2012 NDOG group and make sure to tag your entry with 2012 NDOG and other descriptive tags to make searching easier for everyone.

 A new activity added to this year’s NDOG will be a Photography Contest where participants can enter a printed copy of an image they have taken to see if they will win one of many prizes. No entry required!   Prizes will be awarded to Youth – Ages 5-12
  Teen – Ages 13 – 18 and Adults in the following classes:  Color and Black and White:  Dutch oven related, people, and food.

If you are a shutter bug and are attending the NDOG, what images do you like to shoot at a Dutch oven gathering?

 

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