Betsy: Nice to hear know there are some 'punters' following this. It would be nice to hear what some of you think about folk club guest lists, door charges, etc. Are you bored with predictable guest lists or a constant diet of 'big names' or would you be happy with a more mixed programme, including some unknowns, or even the odd 'frst booking'? Somebody, back in the mists of time, must have given Martin Carthy, Vin Garbutt et al their first dates. They wouldn't get a look in at some clubs now. Would you rather see people in the intimate setting of a club, or on the concert platform? Tell us - I think it's relevant to this thread, and would be helpful.
I know about doing the public transport thing - I've done all that in the old days (incidentally, I'm not new at this; it's what I did before marriage/family. I dropped out for a while, and have spent a number of years operating in a very limited capacity, but am now able to get on with it properly). I wasn't using the harmonium on solo stuff in those days, and had transport for group work. It would be out of the question to use it if I was on public transport. An advantage to staying on campsites is that I can cook, so avoiding the fast food diet you mention. I get the impression, staying on the more basic, open-all-year sites( which are cheaper!), that quite a lot of people are living like this, at least some of the time.
Tony: Playing folk music to Mr. & Mrs. J. Public is possible, up to a point; you will find some who really don't want to know, but many will listen, just as long as you don't expect them to listen to anything too 'deep'. I'm not being snooty; I have had some experience of this, and some of it really is a waste of time. It all rather depends on how close it is to what YOU are comfortable doing. If you feel compelled to do material you hate, then why do this job at all? You'll end up hating it.
John Kelly.