And now having actually read his response his avatar is suddenly looking at me in frustration.

If you want my opinion, anytime a timeskip is proposed if it seems like a good time put it to an anonymous vote. Everyone sends there preference in to you and you add it up and see if it is a good time to skip time for the majority of people. If so a few of us will have to suck it up. If not then the other few will have to. I realize this is too large for you to take a vote on everyone decision that needs to be made but I don't think it would be too difficult to put the major RP effecting ones to a the group.