I just got home from Chicago, we had decided to make a weekend of it and stayed until Monday morning to do some touristy things. My first stop upon arriving here (after grabbing a glass of wine) was to see what some people had already written about the get together and now I'm sitting here with tears in my eyes trying to form the words that can describe how I feel about the experience. Perhaps I'll start at the beginning.
We were staying at the same hotel as Lori and Tom but when they arrived (late because of flights) we had gone out for a short walk. Lori left a message on my phone so I called her immediately, not wanting to miss the lunch we had planned together. I was beside myself with excitement and couldn't wait to open the door when she finally knocked. It was like meeting an old friend, we hugged and laughed; I knew instantly (as I already did) that we would get along famously. I attempted to behave myself with Tom and so shook his hand on that initial greeting. We then headed off to meet up with the sweetest, most adorable Epinions member: Ed. It truly was an honour and a privilege to meet you Ed and I hope this time was the first of many. We discovered the place Tom had planned lunch was very busy and we couldn't wait for a table, so we began wandering down the street looking for another spot. Lori and I lead the pack, with Tom, Ed and Gene (my S.O.) following behind. We stopped for a group picture with what I thought was the Sears Tower in the background, turned out it was the John Hancock Tower though -- oh well. Then Lori and I spotted a huge billboard advertising some vodka and I wish I could remember what it said (help me Lori!) Then Lori, (she's such a tart,) spotted a sign for the Wacker Hotel - Weekly Rates! We thought that quite amusing.
Well, six blocks later we had walked as far as Dave and Busters (where the Meet and Greet was taking place) so we decided to eat there and had fun talking about Epinions; then it was time for the get together. I have no idea in what order I met people and I'll try to remember everyone. From Epinions itself there was Sara, Rob, Garrett, Christal, and Randy (I'm forgetting someone.) It was wonderful to meet Ben, someone I've enjoyed reading for some time now. Of course I had to hug Mike, even before I introduced myself (I think I scared him a little!) He realized who I was though when I immediately gave him a second hug from someone else. I've seen Eric around the site so meeting him was fun, we had a great talk about hip hop, where I challenged him to help me understand and enjoy the genre. I got a huge hug from Kathy, she is so sweet and kind. Her husband Michael was there also, along with her daughter Chalathra. Deborah is a blast! We had fun with Lori discussing Tom's private parts. Willow arrived and she's every bit the lovely young woman I knew she would be. I was excited to meet Shelly, even though she was a little taken aback to discover her virtual pregnancy. (No I am not telling you that story!) Andrew and Amy came all the way from Texas and went to the trouble of organizing a great after-party party (more about that shortly!) It was great to meet Rex who impressed me by knowing my name even before I introduced myself, I wish I had your memory. Abraham was lovely and a total cutie to boot! Paul... now what can I say about Paul that hasn't already been said? I was ecstatic to meet you and wild horses couldn't have stopped me hugging you the minute we met. Then you floored me by handing me a mix cd (review coming!) Of course we were all drinking, chatting, nibbling on the munchies provided and laughing continually. Epinions gave us towels and the next thing I knew Paul was disrobing to model one. Well I tell ya, that is one of the highlights of the afternoon. Just wait til you see the pictures. We hooped and hollered, I hoped he would get up on the table but he didn't. Maybe next time?
There were a few speeches and we sang Happy 5th Birthday to Epinions (yeah, it was corny.) A bunch of the people took part in some sort of virtual video game. We made plans to get together later that evening for karaoke and all too soon the afternoon was over. I didn't even get to meet everyone and I know I've forgotten to mention a few I did meet. Please forgive me, I'm rushing to get this written and the links are taking aaages to add! I'll add you once I think about it a bit more. I wish there had been more time to talk with everyone, I wish I had hugged everyone more, I wish I had taken more pictures. It was a pleasure to be there and I'm hoping to get to more in the future (including England next year!) Oh yes, I almost forgot. Lori, Tom, Ed, Gene and I shared a cab back to the hotel that afternoon. Four of us squished into the back seat and I got to sit with Tom's arm around me for the ride. Lori was keeping an eye on me though so I couldn't be a real tart, she's a meany.
Andrew had found a place for karaoke so he, Shelly, Mike, Paul, Eric, Amy and Garrett gathered there at about 9 (I sort of invited myself.) Let me tell you folks, if you ever meet Paul, take him somewhere he can perform. He opened the show with Hit Me Baby One More Time and did it much better than Britney could ever dream of. Then Mike and Eric did Nuthin But A G-Thang, I loved it. Andrew and Amy did a wonderful duet, they both have beautiful voices. I tried to get Shelly up there but she was having none of it (can't say I blame her though, I didn't either!) I cheered and chair-danced the whole time. Sure I knew I'd suffer the next day for it but I didn't care at that point. Mike and Eric both did more songs, those two are a hoot to party with. (Mike disappointed me though by keeping his clothes on.) A group of people did Paradise By The Dashboard Light and Paul immediately jumped in and took control of the crowd once again. Another bar patron was doing Jethro Tull's Aqualung when Paul began what can only be called an interpretive dance during the slow parts of the song. I thought I was gonna split my sides laughing. Speaking of splitting, that's exactly what Paul did to the crotch of his pants during some of his more energetic dancing. Of course, he immediately announced it over the microphone. By this time I was getting the impression he's not a shy boy. The last number of the night, before they had to leave, was Paul and Mike doing The Girl is Mine. They nailed it but everyone that knew them was laughing at the irony. The fellas had an early start the next morning so we went outside where I hugged everyone and then waved goodbye. I had tears in my eyes then too.
It was a wonderful, incredible time and I'm so glad I went to Chicago. I wish we could have had longer together, I wish I could have sat with each of you and told you what it has meant to me getting to know each of you through this site and now in person. I hope the opportunity will present itself again soon. Each and every one of you is a wonderful, fun, exciting and intelligent person. I'm honoured to know you.
Read about other Chicago Meet and Greet experiences here.
I have some not very good pictures of the get together posted on my profile page here.
