Atlanta Vampire Alliance [AVA]

[Malhavoc's]

I was just wondering, being back in a small time and working alot. Is there any reputable list of houses by area or such? my internet searches are coming up..well..with roleplay goodness.
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Horrid Dreams, Pleasent Screams, Feed well on this Ravenous night.

[Merticus]

If you want a "list" - download a copy of the VEWRS and refer to Paths / Community

www.vampiresurvey.com
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- Merticus

[Malhavoc's]

I did, thank you. awhile ago it is what spawned this question.
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Horrid Dreams, Pleasent Screams, Feed well on this Ravenous night.

[zero]

We have no opinion on "reputable" Houses, because we are really only taking care of our own business, and we leave others to do their thing. If we start calling other Houses "reputable" or "roleplayers," what kind of criteria are we going to use, who's going to care, what kind of politics would that stir up, and who made us the Boss of Reputability, anyway? We're not in that business - - just as we can't write the Official Guide to Whether Or Not You're a Vampire, House membership is a personal choice, and we can't write a Zagat's Guide to Atlanta Vampire Houses, either. The responsibility is completely on the individual to find out what kind of people he is thinking about associating with.

So Buyer, Beware. Do your research (this is the Universal "you" - I'm talking to everyone out there who is thinking about JOINING THINGS -- any things; health clubs, churches, vampire Houses, cross-stitch sewing circle. The same rules apply), talk to people in the Houses. Check out their message boards, their history, their atmosphere. If they have rituals that don't pluck your magic twanger, or their chatter is too angsty for you, maybe you don't need to belong to that group. If you come across a bunch of nerds like us who don't have rituals and it's not speaking to your vampire spirituality, go elsewhere. Vampire Houses otensibly exist to facilitate "Community" whatever the hell we are deciding THAT means this week. Think of your inner vision of Community, and find a place in which you think you could contribute freely to it without compromising your sense of self or personal vision. There's no real need to belong to a House unless you feel that you might be able to contribute to and benefit from that particular community interaction in equal measures.


About the VEWRS list on the Survey;

The VEWRS question that lists that huge litany of Houses is pretty much intended to be a really long list of House names, but it's not comprehensive (even though we tried not to leave anyone out), and it certainly has no judgements attached to it.

In other words, it's not a list of reputable Houses, or Houses we like, or ones that traded us a Twinkie in exchange for an I'll-be-your-best-friend -- it's supposed to help us correlate survey responses with the respondent's familiarity with Commuity organizations that formalized and (to some degree) publicized themselves. As in, "some people who turn out to answer Question X a certain way might turn out to also be people who had heard of, or participated in some of these groups." Gathering data around the culture and involvement choices of individuals.

This also would help us answer previous researchers who may have seen the House structure online and mistakenly concluded that ALL vampires have to beling to Houses in order to be "being vampries." If X percentage of respondents had said they never participated in a House, and Y percentage said that they had never even HEARD of many public Houses, then we've got a possible counter-argument that needs to be made. If everyone who answers the survey says they are members of Houses, then we will have to address that as well.

But in any case, it's just a list to see what people had heard of, out of a pool of likely groups that people *might* have heard of.

Although if any area Houses are interested in the Twinkie deal, email me and let's talk.

[figment]

Many people (including me, so I'm telling you this first hand ) have tried to start a house listing first hand and... basically... it's a waste of time. Why?

If the creator tries to contact the houses, it's too much work to contact the houses, you will always end up with a very small list, and you're putting your name saying, "III am posting this house on MY list" and though it's not saying you're supporting that house... it is a little bit saying that. Not so good when you know nothing about them.

If you have a database where people can just post houses you either get a lot of spam, or a lot of really stupid houses. The good houses generally not use these, so you are just giving more advertising space for bad houses.

Also, if you are going to make a good house member then you should already have experience in the community, already know people in the community and thus already know the local houses... and whether or not thy're the kind of people you want to associate your name with. Just trust me, don't join a house until you're already involved in the community, kay? Pinky promise? kay. It's one of those things that there's no way you'll believe me until you do it, it messes up, and you go, "You know, that figment of my imagination was totally right. I should lisiten to those wisps more often." You'll learn a lot more on your own, and you'll... get a spine which will be of use in a house. If you join a house without a spine, you wont get the chance to grow one.

The house rant ends.

[Eclecta]

Seconds what they said, LOL.
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"Love is the law, love under will."

[Malhavoc's]

1) appologies for my absence work dominates life. as I'm sure we all know.
2) I agree with the above stated opinions. I figured the result would be as such but I thought I would try.

the point of me asking this question, or searching myself for an answer is fairly simple. small town living Makes it hard to encounter people with similiar likeness. But things are never as easy as finding a "club listing" I believe I posted my story somewhere on here. and am continuing my search, thank you all for your replies. I also have under gone the survay and am very well pleased with its layout and the thought put into it
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Horrid Dreams, Pleasent Screams, Feed well on this Ravenous night.

[Eclecta]

I know its hard to find stuff in any area, if you don't know where to look...

One of our local Georgians is a member of this house and also a few of the ppl we met at the Open House.. But of course use your own discretion. http://www.amotah.org/
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"Love is the law, love under will."

[figment]

That'd be me. Amotah is located in Canada and I'm the rarity off par member. Though we are tres chic. ~pose~ I'm not in the foundering position to say this, but we're not really accepting anymore long distance members. Enough troubles with me lol. I dunno how North East you are, and what part of it.

And I didn't know who you were when I replied! Pardon my rudeness. You know me, I assume people know nothing and I'm eating my foot now.

[zero]

it's funny how squirrely most of us are about joining groups, eh? Especially since many of us already joined or even co-founded a house.. *cough*me*cough*

Many vampires I know value independence and self-reliance above community, and that's saying a lot, because we tend to highly value community. So even though many vampires you will meet are in Houses, they are often still wary of telling others what to do; I suspect that most vampires are happier when we believe that people are thinking for themselves, rather than listening to us!

So, we don't want to be unresponsive to any vampire's need for community, but many vampires remember how wary we were of joining a group in the first place, and how involved a process is was - of investigation, introspection and self-awareness. There's no real way for one individual to pass that experience on to another, except to tell you how it was for us and recommend a similar effort of investigation.

[Eclecta]

I always think for the most part, rather than just joining up, that ppl are just curious about what is in their area. I see no harm in letting them know if there is something I know to share. Of course, it's always up to their judgement whether or not to contact whoever, and they should use caution when meeting anyone offline they don't know. Ppl are capable of the damnedest things...

I have no idea why, but so many ppl are soooooo intimidated by houses, esp if they themselves are solitary.. It's like they put these ppl up on pedistals, and think they are really something. I try to remain open and friendly because I don't ppl to think we are hight and mighty or whatever. Not that these houses actually try to make themselves seem that way, it just appears that is how it is percieved.. Everyone I've met thus far, belonging to a house or not, has been really nice and friendly...

But that doesn't mean there are not some loonies out there trying to be godheads.
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"Love is the law, love under will."

[figment]

houses make it real.

Houses means you can't go around being 17 going blah blah blah I don't follow an ethical system blah blah blah All I need to abide by is pure JUSTICE! You can't. It's not the internet, the im, the phone. They're there. They see you. They see your flaws, your studder, your walk. They see how you dress like a vampire 'cause you're so unsure that you really are one you have to try to dress the part. They see it all; it's all real. Are you?

That's why houses are intimidating. 'Cause no one's really real.

[cathmael]

interesting comment figment.

There are two basic rules for people (well not JUST two...):

1. People dislike being hurt.

2. People want to find others like themselves.


Rule 1 makes rule 2 difficult.

[figment]

2a There is no one like you.
2b You're not going to find someone like you when they don't exist.
2c Actually, there is no you (RE: Buddhism)
1 You're going to hurt someone when you act like you're like them, and they find out otherwise.

Vampire community under 25 in a nutshell.

[zero]

be yourself? Who'd a thunk it?

Actually, I think most independents are intimidated by Houses because they give off the illusion of having or creating a unified culture that applies to vampries. Independents aren't used to that and in fact, it's pretty much crap - most Houses are small, MAY contain vampires, and their culture goes only as far as their members.

There are some exceptions to this, but in the main, the illusion is that Houses "make it real" on more than just an individual level - when people organize, the sum looks more important than the parts. By the very virtue of being a "thing" to "join," it looks official and substantial - it's a culture, not just an individual quirk.

The reality of it is, they're still just people and the set of contrivances they develop to set themselves apart are really just individual quirks practiced together. Unique, introspective, perhaps even an honest search for a meaningful path in the world - but not a juggernaut gestalt capable of running away with the rest of us.

I think that's what is so intimidating about the House system to outsiders: the perception of that momentum that doesn't really exist.