I just got done setting up our equipment rental to show the Internets Celebrities movies from Rooftop Films, which means that our first Consumerist meetup must be very close indeed…
Yessir It’s The First Consumerist Meetup
11/4/09 6-9pm
Botanica Bar
47 Houston St, NY NY 10012
Someone emailed me asking what sort of people would be there and whether there would be snacks. To the first, I say, I have no idea. A few Consumerist readers came when we did that panel several months ago and they seemed young and nice. To the second, I say, no, there will be no snacks. Snacks are messy. Go eat a sandwich beforehand if you’re worried. We will, however, be underwriting the liquid refreshment.
I noticed in previous posts a call in the comments for meetups in other cities. Consumerist Meetup across the nation is a very appealing idea, but we’re just going to get this new york thing, a thing we can easily stumble home from using public transit, right first.
(Photo: urbanartcore.eu)
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Even if, for some of us, that occasionally and inadvertently takes twelve hours.
@Laura Northrup: I think this story needs to be told. But I can’t make it to the meetup. DAMMIT.
@katstermonster: My status as a transit geek prevents me from telling this story for the sake of my pride.
@Laura Northrup: But I’ll venture a guess that it involves the G and/or L.
@kateblack: Technically, Amtrak.
@Laura Northrup: Transit Geek Love!
Oh, I should tell you about the time I had 12 hours of unscheduled stops in Montana.
Or the time my Amtrak train was hit by a piece of freight hanging off the side of the train on the opposite track.
Or the time I sat just outside the station in Seattle for 2 hours because they determined a bridge we had to go over was unsafe. (And what made it safe within 2 hours you ask?)
But I actually love Amtrak because I keep coming back for more.
@katstermonster: i know you have class, and so do i … but i’m considering skipping. free open bar and lab coats? i’m so in.
I love that picture. You guys better have a personalized lab coat at the meet up waiting for him.
@squinko – is pretending there’s a star: For sure, and if there is I hope someone gets a video of the presentation of the Lab Coat. And posts it on youtube.
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars: Indeed, there are few personalities on this site as deserving as ol Git em.
@dragonfire81: Yes, I like to think that I’m one of them, but the rational part of me believes that other part is dillusional.
/Complicated
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars:
Now I just imagine the ceremonial presentation taking place, and you running out with a tire iron to go all Tonya Harding on him.
@Several: No, that is not stelthy enough. I’m more ninja like and small. No one would see that it was me. Until I show up at home with pics of the labcoat hanging like a trophy.
Not that I would ever do that sort of thing.
@Several:
Or grabbing the mike and saying “Im’a let you finish in a minute, but first I gotta say, GitEmSteveDave is an awesome commentator but *I* have produced the best comments of the year!”
@ElizabethD: This would be the best.
@ElizabethD: Lol! This is the first time I thought one of these Kanye jokes was funny.
And I have NO dellusions about being better than Stevedave.
@Several: That is the most fantastic image of the day. Thank you.
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars: I’m an actual scientist. Don’t I deserve one?
Probably not.
Sigh.
@subtlefrog: You don’t have one already? That’s sad : (
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars: And IIRC, scientists get white ones. And butchers as well. I think I’m a blue.
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah: They come in many colors: [www.scrubsunlimited.com]
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah: Blue is my favorite color.
Subtlefrog should get a green one.
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars: Green is my favorite color. Yay! Labcoats for everyone! If we buy in bulk, we get a discount…
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars: I don’t have my own. I did catch a random one on fire once. That was when I caught a whole lab on fire. I put it out, it was fine. Like I said, I break things. I am accident prone. The lab coat had to be put down, though. Sadly, I wasn’t even wearing it at the time.
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars: You at least deserve a star!
@Con Seannery: Aww, thanks : )
@squinko – is pretending there’s a star: I got a t-shirt at the Consumer Reports lab, which I am happy with. For now. Like I said, I will totally do ads and photoshoots if given a labcoat. I’ll even wear a wig and be Meg’s “stand-in” during videos so she doesn’t have to wear one.
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah: I find it hard to believe you’d be an adequate stand-in for Meg.
@squinko – is pretending there’s a star: I never said I would be. That’s the point. It’s absurd. It’s hilarious!
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah: So she doesn’t have to wear a lab coat or a wig?
@RandomHookup: Well, as we have seen from the videos, Ben has to chase her down Scooby-Doo style to get her to wear one. And she has longer hair than I. In a way, it would be like that one scene in Spaceballs.
Except lab coat instead of Princess Dress.
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah:
SteveDave, I almost think Meg would accept such an offer. I heartily encourage it myself.
@Kimaroo – No Stars Upon Thars:
@squinko – is pretending there’s a star:
Is begging for a star in your status message the new “in” thing to do?
@WraithSama: We campeign for stars in the Friday open thread. We will be heard eventually. A star will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine.
@WraithSama: Only if you’re super cool like we are.
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah: Except that lab coats close about as well as a snuggy.
@squinko: I did get a Consumerist T-Shirt at the Consumer Reports Anuual Meeting. Here are some action shots, a la ThinkGeek(click for larger versions):
Let the whining and special requests begin:
Can you consider doing the next meetup on a weekend night? I live in a city that’s Amtrak convenient to (but in fact a longish train ride away from) NYC and would love to attend, but can’t on a Wednesday @ 6:00.
Without specifying where I live, I’d be willing to bet there are also Baltimore, DC, Philadelphia, New Haven, and Boston people who’d come but can’t for the same reason as me.
@thesadtomato: Yes, and the Chicago people.
http://www.sadtrombone.com
@bornonbord: +1 on Chicago. I think Meghann is a Chicago native.
@ARP: @Underpants Gnome: God it’s nice out today, I’d way rather be biking the path than in an office right now.
@bornonbord: Currently 72 degrees and sunny in my little corner of the world. I’m in an office with open-able windows that we’re not allowed to open.
@bornonbord: +2 for the windy city.
@thesadtomato: I think that would be a nice idea, especially if there were enough notice that I could possibly save up for a weekend trip to NYC (I’ve been wanting to go there.) but going on a weeknight with a month’s notice is just not doable from Texas.
@thesadtomato: I’d like to second this…I live outside Hartford, CT and could totally do a weekend meetup, but the weekdays…not so much.
@thesadtomato:
OK, I’m going to sound like an old crank here, but… really? People are willing to spend a lot of bucks (in my book, Amtrak costs $$$$) to meet other Consumerist commentators and drink beer? Possibly even spend their weekend going to and fro? WOW.
I say this with all due respect for Consumerist.com and its many clever authors and commentators, whom I adore. It’s just that if I had that money, meeting y’all for a few hours would probably not be the first item on my wish list. Or is all this just a ruse for a speed-dating convention for the “young and nice,” to quote Ms. Pecan Pi?
If I were living in NYC, I’d love to stop by, though.
xxxx kisses and hugs oooo from the ol’ lady
@ElizabethD: Clearly, you haven’t been informed of the Consumerist Meet-Up After-Parties.
The naked Consumerist Meet-Up After-Parties.
@Trai_Dep: see, i’m wondering if we all spend so much time on the internet instead of outdoors and exercising and such… do we want to be involved in the naked meet-up after-parties?
@ElizabethD: I’d like to shake Ben’s hands once, maybe get a picture with the good ol’ GetEmSteveDave. And maybe a boob squeeze off Meg.
@xredgambit: …
@xredgambit: See, that was reasonable. Then it kept being rather reasonable. Then it just got creepy.
@xredgambit: Creepy. Dude, just think how you would feel if Meg was your sister/mother, and not a damn smart editor for a great consumer blog, and someone else said that. Seriously, I live my life on webcams, and stuff like you said gives me the skeeves. Let’s keep it civil, and above all, respectful. And let it be known to all that I have no problem defending the honor of any of the fine editors here and some of the commenters.
And it’s GITEmSteveDave. And I’ll take photos with anyone, provided they aren’t for an “art class”. I fell for that twice already.
@ElizabethD: I think you read me wrong: I have lots of other reasons to be in the city (family and friends reside in the 5 boroughs) and I’ve been meaning to visit. Mr. Sad Tomato wouldn’t want me speed-dating.
Frankly, an Amtrak ticket wouldn’t set me back too badly, but it’s not the only option: I don’t know where else these cheap coaches exist, but Chinatown buses from DC and Philly cost $20 or less. Greyhound is fairly inexpensive. For Amtrak, depending on when I leave and which train I take the ticket price drops by as much as 50%. And if you’re an “ol’ lady” they have a senior discount which an ol’ lady friend of mine in her 50s says they never check to see if you’re really 65 or whatever it is. Also, if you live in the mid-atlantic, combining Amtrak with a local train like NJ transit could make it cheaper still. (Tell a Consumerist it costs too much, she’ll tell you how to do it cheaper.)
But I see your point: trips *just* to meet strangers from the internets are not priority one in my book. It was more a question of “the east coast is really easy to travel up and down, can we make it easy in the future for out of towners who could come?”
@ElizabethD: In other news: Bunedoggle stopped working for some reason.
@thesadtomato: Thanks for mentioning that… I was wondering why nobody had replied to anything I said for days!
@ElizabethD: Well just recenly Mr. Aroo and I drove 7 hours to meet up with some people we play games online with. We spent the whole weekend there but the actual “meet up” was an all day Saturday BBQ. It was really fun, and it was a nice weekend trip to get away. The only difference between meeting those folks and meeting the people here on Consumerist is that we’ve heard their voices because when we play online with them everyone has mics on to chat with. It’s a little less creepy that way.
I wouldn’t travel to a week day meetup in NYC, but I could see making a long weekend out of it. I’ve been wanting to see NYC anyway, and really want to go shopping there because I’ve hear that is where they hide all the really small adult clothes. A Consumerist meetup would be a serious bonus on the trip.
But maybe you should ignore me anyway (I might be a bit biased, lol).. because I met my husband online. We’ve been married 6 years now.. so it can’t be all bad.
If only I wasn’t an hour away from NYC and not so lazy.
I’m intrigued by what kinds of people may have shown up to warrant the quote marks around young and nice…were they excessively touchy old people who thought they were hip?
@pecan 3.14159265: Consumerist has trained us to be leery of quotes around “words”.
@pecan 3.14159265: Maybe Ben’s quoting someone? Or perhaps just emphasizing the tenuous nature of his own judgments about the people who showed up, by use of the word “seemed.”
@pecan 3.14159265: Offhand, I remember SteveDave being there. Draw what conclusions you will.
@pecan 3.14159265: No, they were excessively touchy old people with new replacement hips.
@Several: There WAS someone there with a scooter of sorts as he had fractured his ankle, IIRC.
@pecan 3.14159265: It’s Manhattan. The best one can hope for is “nice”.
@Trai_Dep: It’s Manhattan. The last thing one can find there is “nice”.
@MostlyHarmless: Nice people are the majority in NYC.
Everyone’s got their own thing going on, and people don’t spare a lot of time on smalltalk BS, but I’ve never lived anywhere else where people were so helpful & decent. The stereotype of mean NYCers is old and largely unfounded.
@kateblack: Seriously. I don’t want to threadhijack, but just anecdotal experience-wise New Yorkers are way friendlier than Bostonians.
New York came in first place for polite cities in a Reader’s Digest unscientific study a couple years ago.
@thesadtomato: I tease because I love. So long as you’re not wasting a Manhattanite’s time, they’re the nicest people in the US. Interesting, too.
@Trai_Dep: really? i thought the best one could hope for was “too drunk to remember”.
@pecan 3.14159265: Only the “young” and “nice” have time to waste. The old and grouchy are working to support our families, credit cards, and out of warranty electronic devices while still waiting for our Circuit City rebates to arrive in the mail…
Hold on , What Circuit City went out of business? When?How? Next you will telling me that Yuengling Brewery makes good beer now…
(Old German Beer R.I.H:rot in hell!)
@econobiker: I like yeungling beer, better than the other american made garbage. I miss german beer, good stuff.
*nostalgiac about germany now*
@pecan 3.14159265: Maybe they are just taking a cue from the BBC “headlines.”
@pecan 3.14159265:
“…excessively touchy old people who thought they were hip”
*Looks around furtively* There are others like me? (gulp)
@pecan 3.14159265: I think Ben is being nice himself. As you should know, Consumerist readers don’t show their ID’s or the receipt they got from the nice store. So instead of callign everyone old theifs he’s going the good customer service route.
I’d propose an independent Columbus meetup, but I think there are like three of us.
@h3llc4t has a slow work day:
My son in Columbus isn’t a Consumerist reader or commenter, but if you had free beer and/or food he’d probably go and bring a friend.
@ElizabethD: Well, our townhouse isn’t big enough for many people so we’d have to meet at a restaurant or bar. I suppose I could wrap some Lil’ Smokies in croissant dough and top them with bacon though. Nothing like eating meat niblets from random girls on the Internet to make folks feel welcome.
@h3llc4t has a slow work day: Man do you know how to show a guy a good time! Meat.
@h3llc4t has a slow work day: in honor of the season, add a little red barbecue sauce and shape the dough like mummies. nothing like bloody mummy bites to really bring out the dead
@h3llc4t has a slow work day: You’re in Columbus? Heh – I’d almost be willing to do that – I’m from Cleveland originally, all the fam is still there. I could just imagine, after going back once in the past 3 years (when grandma died), I turned up to visit, so I could borrow the car to drive to Columbus for a Consumerist meetup.
I do assume you mean OH, not GA.
That would be cool, we could trade stupid herp jokes.
@subtlefrog: Oooh oooh stupid herp jokes!
What does a snake take when it has a headache?
Asp-irin!
My absolute favorite though…
A man walks into a herp store and asks the owner what rare and unusual specimens he has that day. “I’m an expert on snakes, you see, and I don’t want anything that a common man might be able to find.” He continues to rattle off all the species he’d worked with, and proudly states “There’s no one in this hemisphere that knows as much about snakes as I do.”
The shopkeeper thinks for a minute and says “Well, I did receive a shipment today, and you won’t believe it, but I got two flowerpot snakes! Quite unusual for this area. Would you like to see them?”
“Of course!” blusters the customer, “but tell me first: what sex are they?”
(I didn’t get it the first time I heard it, then went back and looked up flowerpot snakes…light bulb went on…laughed my ass off.)
@xredgambit: If people are serious about it, maybe we can work something out for a weekend evening early next month?
@h3llc4t has a slow work day: or how about…
“frog parking only. All others will be toad.”
I told my student this, the one who is famous for her dead baby jokes, and she made me tell it like 3 times.
@subtlefrog: What’s the best wedding gift for a herper couple?
Hiss-and-hers towels.
@h3llc4t has a slow work day:
I’d be driving from the Indiana border (Dayton area), but with enough notice and a reasonable meeting spot, I’d probably be able to make it. I think that would be fun.
@h3llc4t has a slow work day: I’d do a Columbus meetup. Hour dive isn’t bad.
Woot! My first time visiting NYC and the consumerist is having a meetup. How do I convince my friends to accompanying me to an event to meet people that I don’t know, but do know from the internets?!!?!? Anyone planinnig a pre-meetup meetup?
@Cat_In_A_Hat: *accompany arghh edit buttton needed
@Cat_In_A_Hat: Tell them there will be beer?
@crackblind: Yeah, I should be there. I was going to be in NYC with friends anyway.
So I just have to persuade them to stop by this between beers at McSorley’s down the block.
@Cat_In_A_Hat: Don’t mention the cloroform or windowless Dodge van and you’re good to go…
@Cat_In_A_Hat: there would have to be somewhere for them to go while you go to this. Somewhere close that is.
I’d go, but I’d fear getting disemvoweled in public. That would be trrbly mbrssng.
@edicius: Heh. I suppose if you glued someone’s lips shut, it’d sound a lot like a disemvoweled comment read aloud.
@h3llc4t has a slow work day: I’ve heard that Roz has been known to sew peoples lips together.
*shakes fist* Too far. Way too far.
@MostlyHarmless: For me too. I can’t do it.
Maybe if (WHEN! WHEN!) I publish the book, there will be a Consumerist meetup when I have to go to NY to meet with people.
Okay quick poll. Does anyone in and around the Nashville area want to hack up their own meetup? I live 2 hours from there, and I dont mind coming to nashville for the meetup.
Show of hands, please?
@MostlyHarmless: BNA here too but was thinking about cruising to the Mahattan meetup on my motorcycle.
Not really- hate the cold, black ice, tolls, potholed roads… shiver.
@econobiker: And the 1000+ one way mile ride isn’t an around-the-block thing either.
@econobiker: Former Tennessee resident here: drive up in two six-hour days, but stop for the night in Roanoke and eat the best Thai food in the world at a little place downtown.
@MostlyHarmless: I could get there from here, but I’m broke.
@MostlyHarmless: Hand raise! Smashville Meetup!
@MostlyHarmless: I’m hanging here at UT, Knoxville, so I’m ready anytime.
Free snacks. I love it. They wouldn’t be good Consumerist readers if they didn’t ask. Have fun, kids!
@dollywould: You still into an LA meetup that night? I’ll be in Malibu during the day, but I’m W LA. We could meet somewhere…I know there are other LA People, too. Trai Dep?
Free drinks and no snacks? Sounds like a great night. You know I’m there.
@JPropaganda: And by great I mean awesome and messy.
@JPropaganda: That does kinda have “recipe for disaster” written all over it.
Too bad CU wouldn’t let them have a sponsor.
i want to meetup! i have to work though & about 1-1/2 outside of the city. plus, i can’t help thinking that it’ll be me, vork & zaboo sitting in awkward silence.
Aww. I would have totally been there if not for the fact that I’m flying out of the city the day before. Here’s hoping this is the first of several meetups and that I’ll be in town for the next one!!
If you ever make it down to Fort Worth let me know, or I suppose Dallas, wait scratch that- will not go to Dallas.
remote meetups by skype? satellite meetups done like a conference call?
so you could have chicago, boston, wherever else you people live at the same time as new york?
of course without the new york support network the other cities would likely be someplace cheap [someone's living room] and with a different class of beverages [cheap] but could probably manage to provide snacks
i know, it doesn’t apply to me anyway, i only know of three of us in the state where i live
@catastrophegirl: You’re in NC, right?
@Con Seannery: si, i know of one more across town from me and one in another city a few hours away
@catastrophegirl: I think we’ve got 2 in Raleigh, 2 or 3 in Greensboro, and maybe a few more floating around.
@Con Seannery: well due to previously mentioned stalker issues i’m not going into which city specifically but i think your numbers are probably right or really close.
Ha ha ha that nametag! Love it.
@ElizabethD: You should see my LED ones!
@GitEmSteveDave_FeelsLikeABurningAngel: Did you make these yourself? I’ve seen some nifty work done by Make (and on Instructables).
TraiDep, Veronykah, Dollywould…any other Los Angeles / So Cal people. Last call. If you are in – let me know where you are and we’ll try to set something up somewhat central…
@subtlefrog: Could we do later in November or December instead? This is two days before I leave to go out of the country for over a week, so I foresee many late worknights leading up to it.
@dollywould: @Trai_Dep: So – since neither of you are up for that particular night, perhaps a different date could be reached for a LA meetup. We could do the weekend before or shortly after, when dollywould is back. If you’re up for drinkypoos, Trai.
@subtlefrog: Trai Dep is SanFran, iirc. And does not have a very high opinion of LA
@MostlyHarmless: Ooooh. I’d have sworn there was a recent comment where he said LA and I was surprised we were in the same town. Like it’s a small town, you know. He hasn’t been around much today, so maybe he’s not actually offended at my invitation…
@subtlefrog: And, of COURSE I’d not be offended. C’MON!
@Trai_Dep: So I was correct. This makes me feel a little less insane at least…
And I don’t think anyone has a really high opinion of LA, to be honest. We’re here because where here. I’m here for grad school, BF is here because that’s where the best job offer was out of school, and that’s what I’ve got. All the people I associate with are in school and here for that reason….
@Trai_Dep: And Trai – would you get on Twitter already?
@MostlyHarmless: Well, I’m a born & bred SF native, but I’m in Purgatory in Los Angeles. Long Beach, to be exact.
I was going to jump ship back to the Bay Area after earning my grad degree, until GW Bush torched the global economy. Here I sit biding my time here when I should be back in Silicon Valley cursing my commute home.
So now you can begin to understand the true reason for the depths of my rage towards the man and what he stands for…
I’m always up for drinks (hic) but Wednesday nights might be a bit rough.
@subtlefrog: Add me to the LA-ers who hate LA but need to be here so lets meet up list! I’m in the Southbay area, not at all far from Trai, (hi, neightbor!)
Chicago in da house!!!! I like the Skype idea as well…..
Can we have a meetup in Fiji? No, I don’t live there, but, dang, it must be nice in Fiji.
@Applekid: How do you expect us all to fit in a bottle of water?
@GitEmSteveDave_MovesHisHipsLikeYeah:Congrats GitEmSteveDave!!!
Is this a 21 and older meetup?
@haimtime: It’s a bar, so it’s quite possible.
I volunteer to run one for the Denver, Co, Area. I already have a meetup group formed online and was planning to start meeting in person soon.
Denver meetup group site here:
[www.meetup.com]
Please contact me via the site if interested, or tell your Denver consumer buddies if you don’t live here.
Damn you consumerist…couldn’t you have done this while I lived in NY!
Anyone in Atlanta here?
Damn. Just another (Gizmodo Gallery ’09) cool get-together that I can’t make because I’m living on the other side of the country. When this comes to LA, I’m there. have fun my fellow consumerists!
ummmmm anyone else in canada? for instance, edmonon? doubt it, but i had to check…