The Port Townsend Conversation Cafe drew the virtual presence of a baker’s dozen on April 3, when the group took its meetings from in-person to online.

While Gov. Jay Inslee’s stay-at-home order precluded the group’s ability to conduct its in-person meetings at restaurants, the group’s migration to Zoom video conferencing software online as a hosting format for those weekly meetings attracted virtual attendees from not only Port Townsend, but also Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and California.

Organizer Mark Clark reported the group drew the virtual presence of 13 people who took part from the safety of their homes.

“Sixteen wanted to participate, but 13 were actually able to,” Clark said. “Our topic was perhaps predictable—the coronavirus and how it’s affecting our ability to hold community conversations—and at the conclusion of the meeting, we agreed to come together again via Zoom the following Friday.”

Since then, the Port Townsend Conversation Cafe converged on Zoom again on April 10, to discuss the subject of self-centered attitudes, but Clark said the group still has a learning curve ahead of it, in terms of how best to employ its new virtual venue.

“I don't know how many is too many,” Clark said, when asked about Zoom’s attendance capacity for the group. “I will say that it was a challenge to get around to 13 people twice, as we would normally do, but it worked, and we still had time for ‘cross-talk,’ although it was a bit chaotic.”

As the group’s virtual attendance numbers approach between 20 and 30, Clark expressed the concern that touching base with so many participants might prove unmanageable.

“Perhaps we will need to split into more than one conversational group,” Clark said.

Meetings start at 11:30 a.m., which Clark said allows virtual attendees “to straggle in over the course of half an hour, or at least until the participants agree to a shorter sign-in period.”

Topics on the Port Townsend Conversation Cafe’s schedule include diplomacy versus force on April 17, intuition on April 24 and passive resistance on May 1.

“The big and obvious benefit to online conversation is that we can bring in people from anywhere in the world with web access,” said Clark, who acknowledged that virtual attendees to date have included “snowbirds,” Portland residents and even folks in Poulsbo, where he’s located.

Clark does miss the meals that accompanied the in-person conversations, and acknowledged the difficulty of carrying on sidebar conversations online, such as the group used to take for granted at their in-person meetings.

As Clark works to improve his Zoom skills, he reiterated that the primary purpose of the Port Townsend Conversation Cafe is to give people an opportunity to interact with others in “a structured and civil setting,” that allows them to practice not only their extemporaneous speaking skills, but also listen to others with ranges of opinions on a number of topics.

“The pandemic caused a pause while we adapted, but we’ve proceeded pretty much as before,” Clark said, before dismissing suggestions that his group was “essential” to the community. “‘Essential’ is for healthcare workers and other people providing essential services. The Port Townsend Conversation Cafe is helpful in keeping people connected, and using their brains and their social skills. We all need that, now as much as ever, while we’re cooped up, doing the right thing. Our goal is to keep calm and carry on."

For more information, contact Clark at 360-301-6748 and sonomarko@yahoo.com.