Back to That Same Old Place, Sweet Meet 'n Greet, Chicago
Nov 16 '04 (Updated Nov 21 '04)
The Bottom Line In which Ben chimes in on topics that have already been covered rather well by other people...
I have such mixed feelings about Chicago. I find myself down there a few times a year, and I've always had a blast with whatever I end up doing there, but every time I go, the logistics of traveling through the city seem to degenerate into a labyrinthine, Kafkaesque headache. Even getting there in the first place can be... unpleasant. Any state that makes you throw coins out your car window as you drive along the freeway is a state still stuck in the dark ages.
But I digress...
When they announced last month that the newest meet and greet for Epinions would be in Chicago, I was pretty psyched. Finally the powers that be were acknowledging that there was land in between the east and west coasts. Rich, fertile land where the people grow up wise and hearty. Where the sun rises rolling fields each day, bringing with it the promise of bright future. Where the good-natured folk would gladly give a stranger the shirt off their back if it means bringing just one more appreciative smile into the world.
Oh, wait. I'm digressing again. (But rest assured, we will come back to that whole "shirt off your back" idea later on for a brief moment.)
I made a whole weekend of the event, and sallied forth after school was done on Friday to spend the evening at my luxurious accommodations at the Chez Ben's Parents House Luxury Suites. Sure, its location in suburban Milwaukee may not make it all that convenient when your ultimate destination is downtown Chicago, but I've got connections and managed to snag an extremely competitive room rate for the two nights I was there.
So I set forth for the windy city itself early Saturday afternoon, still not knowing exactly what to expect. I had read the reviews of previous meet and greets and had seen the pictures of the Boston festivities, but its impossible to get the full story that way. It's akin to riding a bicycle. You can study the whole process all you want, but until you actually climb onto the banana seat with the streamers trailing off the back, steer yourself towards that really big hill across the street from your backyard, and end up laying a huge patch of skin on the asphalt about halfway down towards the bottom, you don't know what it's really like. I tell you, even though it was more than twenty years ago, I still cringe a bit every time I drive past that hill.
And it looks like I'm getting dangerously close to another digression here. Sorry 'bout that.
My trip to the city was uneventful. I went alone, but had WXRT to keep me company once I crossed the Illinois state line. (I will forever be jealous of Chicago radio. Wisconsin radio sucks, with the possible exception of WMMM, which won't even kinda come in where I live.) Once I hit downtown Chicago, though, that's where things got hairy. This was that labyrinthine headache I mentioned before comes in. Downtown Chicago streets seem specifically designed to swallow up out of state travelers so that they eventually give up trying to find their way out, eventually give up, settle down, and contribute to the local economy.
I found Dave & Buster's, the site for our merry shin-dig, without too much trouble, but those familiar with the area know the maze of one-way streets that surround the building. I must have circled the few blocks in the area a dozen times, searching for an elusive parking space before I caved in and found my way to the first parking garage I could find that was neither private, full, nor more than forty dollars to park in for the day. As nice as it was to have the gathering at a place like Dave & Buster's it was a bit frustrating to have to get somewhere where it felt like we needed to rely on a taxi to get there.
But I had finally arrived. For those who've never been to a Dave & Buster's, it's an awfully eclectic place. Traditional wood bars, pool tables, family dining areas, virtual reality war machines, assorted games, and more are all placed next to one another in a rather haphazard arrangement, but there's something there to appeal to absolutely everyone. A series of signs led us upstairs and towards a back dining area. I could tell I was getting close when I saw a legion of the soft, round, poseable little epi-dolls stacked up like an invading army ready to root out all opposition. (And looking back, I can't believe I didn't immediately pick up an armful of them and start juggling. I guess I was just feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole meet-lots-of-new-people experience. Looks like I'll have to wait for my next meet and greet to show off my mad juggling skills.)
I was a little early, and there weren't many people there yet, but I sidled my way up to the table where our faithful staff were greeting the newcomers and handing out name tags. I quickly shook hands with the likes of Randy, Christal, Sara, all wonderful people whom it was nice to meet for the first time, and of course, our manGarrett, whom I already felt like I knew fairly well from all is work in our beloved music category. The whole staff did a fantastic job of making all feel welcome and at home, even an introverted fellow like myself.
Armed with my trusty name tag that did an excellent job of introducing myself to the friendly strangers, I set off to mingle with those who were already there. Soon I found myself chatting it up with Caroline and Jason, learning all about the niceties of being blocked by the community. (It's a long story, but fortunately it had a happy ending.) The names and faces have since blurred together, but I remember talking to the likes of Abraham, Ruby, Mike, Kathy, and Kristina, amongst a host of so many others. I couldn't have hoped to a friendlier, more interesting group to talk to. My apologies to all those that I've forgotten about or whom I simply never got around to talking to. I just ended up a little side-tracked.
Before long, I saw some faces at the entrance I recognized right away. The music people whom I've gotten to know from hanging out so much in my category of choice had arrive, and went over to entrench myself in conversation with the likes of Shelly, Eric, Mike, Paul, and Andrew (along with his wife Amy, who instantly became an honorary member of the music crowd.) Even newcomer to the music category Hahna joined in with us and really showed us how well a bright, energetic teen could hold her own with the rest of us bitter, jaded adults. As I dug in with all these writers I had known through reviews only for so long, it really amazed me that despite our wide, wide range of musical tastes, we all had so much in common. Even though I haven't heard of every band that came up in conversation, I've rarely felt so welcome and had such compelling conversations about music (and politics, and movies, and tornadoes, and so much else.)
Of course, there was a fair share of shenanigans throughout the afternoon, most notably Paul's notorious (gratuitous?) incident with one of the official Epinions towels as he spontaneously tore off his shirt and pants so that he could wrap himself in our favorite website's logo and prance around for our shock and delight. (Okay, it may not have been quite spontaneous, stemming rather from some challenges for someone to outdo Mike's antics from the Boston meet and greet.) But the overall feeling I got was that the Epinions staff really does appreciate everything we do for the site. They kept the libations flowing freely (even though I've always been a soda guy rather than a liquor guy) and provided us with plenty of food. Every time I talked with the higher ups, they genuine thanked us for all we do, and even welcomed all of our suggestions on how to change the site. (Paul (a different one from the towel Paul) was especially good at pumping us for tweaks and additions that he could work on for the future of the site.) Randy gave us all quite a pep talk, congratulated us all for the hard work we've put into the site (as an estimate, I guess the thirty or so of us in attendance have been responsible for a good six to eight thousand reviews). We sang a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday to Epinions (has it really been five years?) and had plenty of good, corny, sappy fun.
And the staff did indeed make sure we took full advantage of everything the facilities had to offer. As the afternoon one on, one of the mucky-mucks (was it Randy? was it Paul? was it Garrett? I forget) rounded up a bunch of us to go play in one of Dave & Buster's' virtual reality wall of games. It was a new experience for all of us, and we had a blast, but also learned a valuable lesson. We learned that should we find ourselves trapped in a post-apocalyptic war zone, battling for our very lives from inside giant, robotic war machines, I am apparently the one that everybody needs to count on to lead us to salvation. (And no, that doesn't count as a digression, since that was all part of the meet and greet.)
After our big round of group pictures around 6:30 or so, we all headed off in various directions. I do so wish I had been able to stick around for karaoke with my music peeps (the stories that have already been posted have been great), but was looking at a fairly sizeable drive back to the Chez Ben's Parents House Luxury Suites, and another sizeable drive back to my own place on Sunday morning. As fun as it would have been to stick around, it just wasn't going to be practical this time around. Reluctantly saying goodbye to all of these people that I couldn't believe I had only known in person for a few hours, I headed off to once again brave the streets of downtown Chicago. It was a lonely ride home as I thought about the fun that everyone else was having, but at least I had the company of a wonderful mix CD that the ever wonderful Paul Lorentz had made and handed out to a bunch of us music writers. (And the CD truly kicks ass, Paul. You rock, and I'm working on one to send out to you as a thank-you).
Well, I've said my peace, and I even managed to avoid any real digressions in the second half here. I'll just end by repeating what so many others have already said. If you live anywhere near any meet and greet that Epinions holds in the future, go. This is not a suggestion, it is a command. Epinions writers are some of the most interesting, fun people you can hang out with, and it really feels great to finally put some faces with the words we've been reading over and over on the site for years. Never again will I be able to read a review from anyone I met there without thinking of what unique, entertaining individuals these people are and remembering the great times we had together this past Saturday. If you end up traveling to one of these events from out of town, though, see about arranging some sort of overnight lodging in the area. Epinions may advertise that the events lasts from three until six, but with the kinds of people you'll meet, the fun and frolicking are sure to spill hours and hours past the official end time. And I can't wait to do this all again sometime soon. I know I didn't get a chance to talk with everyone there, but I'll never forget everyone I did manage to meet.
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Epinions.com ID:
DrFaustus
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 in Music |
 - Top 500 |
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Location: the Lake Michigan shoreline
Reviews written: 477
Trusted by: 288 members
About Me:
I can't help being a big fan of the esoteric and the obscure
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