Well, Sharon, I think Laoise said she wants to do it on Zulu Time (Greenwich Mean Time), but we in the US are lacking in math skills and would never figure that out. Maybe we could agree that anybody who wants to chat, whenever that might be, should head for the chat room "on the hour" or "on the half," and wait for 5 minutes for people to gather. It would take some Great Arbiter, well respected by all (like Dick or Max or Susan) to credibly declare such a meeting time.
Otherwise, somebody who is reallly desperate to chat could post or refresh a forum thread saying, "I'm Lonely, Please Come and Chat," and then go to the chat room and wait. That would place the plea at the top of the thread list. Since we are all polite, caring folkies here, surely the next person to log on would have pity and join in at least a token chat. I don't particularly like chat myself, because I've never seen anything (other than maybe sex) discussed in a chat room with any depth. I prefer forums like this, which give me time to think about what I'm saying. Nonetheless, I myself would probably also be driven to pity and would enter the chat room for polite conversation.
I have to admit it was interesting the other night to be here in California, chatting with Alison in Australia.
-Joe Offer-