Many people have their ideas about the truth of things like UFO's, but most do not spend much thought about it until they see one. A special group of people have such an intense interest that they dedicate much of their life in research, attending conferences and traveling to obscure places called 'hot spots' where they have the best chance of seeing UFO's or ghosts or strange animals that science does not admit exist. When I wanted to find out what was true and what was not, I decided the best place to go was to the one best conference where I could meet the people who gave the talks and claimed to have the experiences-by becoming a conference volunteer. That was the IUFOC. You see conferences now that use the name but they ate not the same. After 20 years, things had changed and most conferences are 'circuit speakers' who have a lot of ideas about what is what. This book tells of the early years when anyone could walk in to the conference with a video and if it was interesting we would put them on the program. Much of what went on was odd and a lot of fun, and a good part of it, I think, was real. Is it a government conspiracy to now have well dressed speakers with glossy books for sale, and a new idea that keeps them on the circuit next year, but who never got their shoes muddy at a 'hot spot'? The old days are gone forever, and I an glad I was there to share them, working as night security on the conference desk. I recently became a volunteer at 'Contact In the Desert' people have to get a hotel room or camp out in tent or car at the event, and there is a lot of walking or you can take the free trams to where you need to go. Diane is the goddess of Volunteers. At the IUFOC they had between 40 and 50 volunteers it was mostly the same people year after year. We could have put the event on without the official people running it, and one year we did, Diane has a whole different set up. She had 175 volunteers this year (2017) and many people canceled and many others like me, turned up a day before the event started. She didn't trust me as far as she could throw me, not understanding that with my military and conference background, I would back her to the limit and always do things following the guidelines (which I really did read, Diane!)and do the job as she expected it to be done. The conference was a whole different thing that the IUFOC but just as great in it's own way and it was really nice to be in Joshua Tree in Frank Lloyd Wright (and a relative of his) buildings. They had some of the oldest presenters that I had not heard before, like Erich Von Daniken, who was stupendous, James Gilliland the same pure spirit and hard to figure how we both go so old...Jacques Vallee, a lot taller than I remember him from the MUFON event in 89, but just as vibrant. Their was one big name speaker whose lecture I walked into mid way through who said, 'just who was it that decided the Anunnaki were gold miners?' Well we had some flakes at the IUFOC. The Contact at the Desert did not have any stigmatics that I could see or guys who plugged live wires into a socket and held the ends an had people use a multitester to see how many volts were going through him, which he said proved his contact with aliens. You have to read my book to know about them. But if you want to have the closest good time to that great event, maybe I will see you in Joshua Tree next year. And I will see you Diane, even if I sell a million copies and become a speaker I am still going to volunteer! But please don't put me on parking!!! Love you!,
About the Author: I was raised in a middle class home in Southern California in the 60's. I went to school and while a few small things happened that were 'spooky' I would tell myself it was nonsense. I went into the Army into Counterintelligence, to get the GI bill to finish my Bachelors degree and later became the first woman to work as a Correctional counselor in a California Men's prison. a decade later I became disabled. I decided that it would be interesting to check out some interesting things that, with my training I could figure out what was real and what was not. when I decided to write about the IUFOC conferences and how things were at a particular time and place that would not be that way again. It was intended as a gift to the people I had spent so much time with. I did not know that they were already at an end. The conference name got leased to another group, and events still go on, but as a spectator sport for those who can afford the new prices. I still do research, but now it's bigfoot and conehead skulls, and people with new stuff who are not circuit speakers put the unaltered or edited truth in YouTube videos. And even there disinformation bad guys mess with them. Hexagram 8 in the Ching 'holding together' is about when people must do something important that people undertake that must be done. 'those who are uncertain gradually join-who ever comes too late (does not join the effort) meets with misfortune' (is left out of having been one, who was part of what years later was known to be a big deal). Something a group of people do together that will never happen exactly that way again. Ok Diane, I did run into a group of ex WACS and women from other services my age and they were all smoking Marijuana and offered me some and I said NO because I was working for you and just about to go on duty. And next year, the marijuana is legal! It could be that in a few years I do a book about Contact in the Desert, and all of you still have a chance to be in it. See you there!