A Thanksgiving Present: A Late Report on the San Francisco Epinions' Meet 'n Greet.
Nov 27 '03 (Updated Jun 11 '05)
The Bottom Line I wish all those connected to Epinions, in any capacity, a Happy Thanksgiving: past, present and future! And thanks to Epinions staff for setting up an elegant West Coast reception.
After ten days or so looking around for the appropriate excuse, let me give you my impressions of the Epinions' San Francisco Meet 'n Greet, held on the blustery afternoon of Saturday, November 15, 2003.
My Son Jason and I arrived at about 1 p.m., a week ago Saturday, at the Thirsty Bear Brewery on San Francisco's Howard Street. As some of you may know, the place is one of the oldest of the modern San Francisco microbreweries, and it is housed in large brick building, downtown in the newly fashionable old loft and warehouse section, South of Market Street (SOMA). The party was above the restaurant, on the mezzanine floor, where there is a service bar, pool table and dart boards.
Jason and I were a study in generational contrasts. He was resplendent in his Butch Cassidy handlebar moustache and mullet, baseball cap and distressed leather jacket. I was in an old tweed jacket, jeans, (even older) green turtleneck sweater, burberry and battered fedora.
We passed through the vast downstairs of the Thirsty Bear and climbed up the rather grand staircase to where we could see the welcoming committee waiting for us.
Nirav Tolia (CE0), Alexis Johnson (in charge of operations), Garrett Garcia (writer development and major domo), Crystal (techperson) and Andy [techperson, whom I shamelessly ignored for most of the afternoon], and a quiet, unassuming guy named Paul, were there as representatives of Management. About half a dozen Epinionators were already on the spot, including a cute, tiny blonde woman, Adrienne, from San Jose, who said she remembered I had left a kind remark on her review of the North Beach San Remo Hotel.
Jason was soon playing pool with Volition45, a tall ash blonde from Statten Island, who had flown in for the weekend, while I had some very nice chats with Tolia, Alexis, and the guy named Paul, who turned out to be the advance man from New York for Dealtime, actually the new functional second in command, I suppose.
Stephen Murray, the non-stop genius of books and movies, who kindly said he came mostly to meet me, spent some of the day in my company. He is an extraordinary writer, as you may know, somewhat more mature and solid-looking than his picture. Just a great man. Tolia kept coming back to talk with us. Adrienne, a bright, cheerful spirit, was often at our sides.
Kristinath, from Indianapolis, a traveling business woman evidently (in addition to being a triple-threat Epinionator) greeted me heartily. As described at the other two Meet 'n Greets she has attended, Kristina is tall, auburn-haired and quite beautiful -- a Viking Princess, as I described her later. She has written a much earlier, more comprehensive local color account of this day. You may read it at:
http://www.epinions.com/content_3612713092
[Yes, all you conspiracy buffs here, I think Kristina may be a femme fatale, and an Epinions secret agent.]
The beauteous zzjulia was also in attendance, but I did not recognize her immediately because she had her name tag pasted on her left hip!
Late in the day, Mike Bracken, a founder of Culturedoze, king of the scream-movie reviewers, made an appearance. He came with his girl, and he is a big, bluff, friendly guy, just like his picture. He sought Stephen Murray and me out and was most complimentary.
Horswhispr, the guitar expert and teenager counselor, came late, too, and spent considerable time with me and Murray. He has a quiet Billy the Kid quality, and looks ready to grab his guitar and leap on his pinto, to carry the heroine off into one of our legendary sunsets here. (Of course, he would soon get his feet wet.) Just a very wise, mature young man. I liked him.
Alexis Johnson, whose New York picture did not do her justice, was elfin, winsome and lovely, in what she described as "a complete hair makeover" and a beige linen pant suit. She told me that she had been with the Epinions outfit for four years, and she showed the keen, direct intelligence and charm I experienced with her when I was a Movie CL.
If Alexis Johnson looked 18, CEO Tolia, a wiry, handsome East Indian-American from Texas, seemed all of 25, but he admitted to being 32 and a seven year resident of the Bay Area. He told us that he had enjoyed the social life of San Francisco, "especially the girls," and that he made it a condition of the recent merger that the operational division of Epinions remain out here.
I told him that my association with Epinions had indirectly led to my being selected a member of the Edinburgh Castle Writers Bloc in the City, which is presenting a reading of "New Writing from the Castle," at 9 p.m., Wednesday, December 17, 2003. His lack of enthusiasm for this development resolved in my mind that I should note Epinions as an influence, but not read a piece already posted at Epinions, in case there might be a computer terminal in the cavernous Castle out there on Geary Street. I had a vision of Tolia's lawyers marching in with a cease and desist order to shut the place down!
[Just kidding. He generally could not have been more natural, relaxed and kind to all of us.]
In addition to showing knowledge of better recent movies (CINEMA PARADISO is a favorite), Tolia was attentive to our suggestions, and he promised to attempt to install a few of them. (Basically, I urged more recognition for The Writers.) He told me and Murray that the toughest task he ever had to perform in the Company was to lay off so many employees ("family") during the business downturn, many of whom had been with the Company from the beginning. He said the staff down in Brisbane was now 35 in number, but that the Company has been profitable for the first time, about a year now.
He promised to be very cautious about making rash decisions in future, and I believed him.
Paul the Dealtime guy made a note of an idea to form a corps of trusted writers, who would be rewarded on a piece work basis, and whose credentials and specifications would be laid out in the public record, as an incentive to bring in and retain talented writers -- who tend to slip away or become burned out.
Paul was a long-haired young man, who struck me as being quite genuine. He reinforced that impression, when I told him I had lived a long time down the shore in Pacifica. Paul replied that, in his two weeks here on the Left Coast, he had driven around and found Pacifica's isolated pier and seascape one of the things he liked most.
Obviously, a young man of inherent and unconventional good taste.
And the vivacious Crystal, the techperson, circulated taking many instant photos, including a memorable one of tiny, sexy Adrienne, flanked by the towering Stephen and me (almost crushing her.)
Megurrl, CL in Restaurants, talked with me, and we resolved to get together in the New Year. I was also able to greet, as they left, Tennis Player, one of the best restaurant reviewers (among other interests), and his wife, who had been sitting at a corner window table in the back. They were quietly warm and friendly.
As it turned out, despite the specifications on door charges given in Epinions Announcements, no one who came paid for entrance, so far as I could see. (I know my son did not.) And all the food and drinks were free, also. In addition to the excellent house beers, some wines and sodas at the service bar, a long trestle table, set up under the big industrial windows on one side of the room, offered fine crackers, breads, rolls, cheeses, roast beef, grilled shrimp, fried chicken, salads, roast potatoes and sauces. Late in the day, I believe they rolled out desserts, but I never got to them. The food, at least in quality and quantity, seemed much more substantial than that I read of being the case advertised in Miami(?) [correction: Orlando] and New York City.
Garrett Garcia, I understand, was responsible for the arrangements. Many thanks to him.
There were a number of other guests whom I failed to recognize, or who came from distant (to me) parts of what Petra once called the Epinions Village. Some of the nice people at the party, I'm afraid I may have forgotten. If so, my apologies; it is not intentional.
Close to 4 p.m., I played a game of "tug" with an empty beer glass (behind my back) while talking to Nirav Tolia. The waiter tried to take the glass from my hand; I held on to it; then I let it go.
CRASH! on the tile floor.
My apologies went to the waiter for that; I should at least have left him a tip.
But instead, I told Tola: "On that note, the party is over for me. Remember the watch words: 'More recognition for The Writers.'"
He agreed.
On with my rumpled trenchcoat, my battered hat, and I was down the stairs, and out into the bustle of the late afternoon upper Mission.
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And those memories are my highlights of the 2003 Epinions San Francisco Meet 'n Greet.
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My thanks to T.R. Black, who urged me to post these impressions.
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UPDATE: December 11, 2003: The title for my story reading at the Edinburgh Castle is "The Seedman's Long Christmas Eve," a combination of Charles Dickens and Dashiell Hammett, with a pinch of John LeCarre, all brought up to date.
Also, I note that Top Reviewers, at least, have been given new incentives by having their most popular reviews and their standings linked to their Public Profile pages. More to come? We shall see.
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I invite you to visit the "BLOG" which I now maintain on my Epinions Profile Page, where I occasionally discuss matters of the day:
http://www.epinions.com/user-macresarf1/show_~View_Profile#long_bio
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Epinions.com ID:
macresarf1
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 - Top 100 |
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Location: San Francisco, Ca.
Reviews written: 562
Trusted by: 378 members
About Me:
11/7/09: Another Bloody November.
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