It isn't the "official" aspect of the Howdy Folks that matters, really, but the
spirit that is manifested. I know there are two schools of thought about the
Howdy Folks--one, which I share, is that the Howdy Folks is to send the final
culmination of the circle, to share in advance a little of the spirit of the
Gathering; the other school of thought is that the Howdy Folks is simply a
utilitarian means of letting people know the directions to the site--I've even
heard folks say they feel the Howdy Folks is a bad idea, that the real Rainbow
spirit would have the news of the Gathering delivered by word of mouth, by
personal networking. The South Dakota Howdy Folks reflected the first style, the
Colorado Howdy Folks the second. Most picnic attendees didn't seem to care much.
(One person said of the SD Howdy, "Of course it looks great; if you're
counterfeiting something, it's got to look authentic!" I don't entirely agree,
but it was a funny comment).
See You all in Colorado. I look forward to the NetCouncil, should be fun.