Changes by Dierk Neugebauer You may have noticed that the last several issues of your Journal have been somewhat slimmer than what you've received in the past. There are several reasons for this change. Some of it has to do with the fact that articles "gleaned" from the internet and reprinted here, though useful, are nonetheless somewhat repetitive. Many members now use the internet themselves, and, therefore, have access to all sorts of research. Furthermore, when you consider the scope and breadth of our club library, most articles from the web are also covered very well in our own printed materials, and usually in more than one book. I think one would be hard pressed to find a better collection of resource materials than what our club has at its disposal. I am also told that many members do not bother reading the articles in our Journal since the information is all "old hat" and has been printed many times before and in many different resources. It has been suggested that a series of basic "information handouts" be made available at meetings for those who are interested and in need of the information. I'm thinking here of articles on overwintering, soil, potting and repotting, wiring, etc. Naturally, these changes also elicit some thought provoking questions to which you are invited to respond. What function should our Journal have for the club's members? ...Teach? ...Inform? ...Entertain? ... Is our audience largely made up of novices or experienced bonsaists? And should we publish something that is geared to the various levels of expertese that exist within our club? Do we publish for those "regulars" who attend all meetings, no matter what, or to the invisible members who pay their annual dues but do not have the opportunity to attend on a regular basis? Can we happily accept their money while not giving them an information-packed Journal in return? So what is in the works? We will once again be publishing our "president's message" to the membership. Occasionally, your editor (that's me) will editorialize about something that I think is relevant, such as this article. Our new secretary, Jeff Shortt, will do his best to "publish" the minutes of the executive meetings (held the week after a general meetring) for the membership. Various members will be encouraged to create photo records of "what happened at the last meeting", complete with captions, and possibly even some more writing, that will then appear in print in the Journal. And what is the hope for the future? Copies of old Journals will be made available for sign-out via the library. Members are encouraged to record and report what they're doing with their trees, and to share that information with Journal readers. Frequently members bring in a tree or two to our general meeting. We would be happy to photograph and publish your tree for you if you are interested in writing a little something about it for us. Hopefully lots of "before and after" picture records of trees can be made available (with your comments) for all to see - those are records of "your trees." Many members attend bonsai conferences abroad. It would be a great service to all if these events could be shared with words and pictures in our Journal. Often the club or individual members buy new bonsai books. Wouldn't it be great if reviews of those books could be created for all to read? Our club library has many outstanding volumes, some of which are seldom signed out, whereas others have a willing, waiting list of would-be readers. Ultimately, the goal here is to make the Journal a faster read than ever, and thereby also save the club some postage, or to involve more of you, the club's bread and butter, in generating some interesting reading matter. Let me know where you stand.