We have proof of life from the DC Meetup.
I don’t recall which venue the BJ peeps ended up at for the DC Meetup, but it looks like a lovely place. And what a great bunch of people! Did you all play musical chairs so that everyone got a chance to talk with everyone else?
One more thing… who took the photo?
Follow-up note and photo from rekoob, who organized the meetup.
Many thanks to all who made to the DC Meetup on 18 November 2023! We celebrated our recent wins in Ohio and Virginia, talked about 4 Directions and Delmarva politics (Delaware/Maryland/Virginia), the Israel/Palestine situation, and got to know each other a bit better. Ramona and I took in the Obama portraits at the nearby National Portrait Gallery thereafter.
I’ll out myself — I’m the first person on the right (green sweater, yellow shirt). Others will do as they wish.
Perhaps we’ll do it again before too long!
rekoob
Open thread.
lowtechcyclist
I’m the last person on the right.
Baud
Please fix and complete.
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist: hmm. do you mean you were at the other end of the right side of the table, furthest away, down the line from rekoob?
Baud
@lowtechcyclist:
👍
WaterGirl
@Baud: That’s the only person I knew! I was hoping folks would want to help fill in the blanks. :-)
WaterGirl
Everyone looks so happy! Are we sure these are all BJ peeps? :-)
Baud
@WaterGirl:
Ah, then thanks for your post.
Still, is rekoob on the right or the left?
WaterGirl
@Baud: Happy smiling guy that I would love to meet is directly across from rekoob. Closest to the camera and on the left, as we look at the photo.
So, to me, left to right, around the table would start with happy smiling guy, then the lovely dark-haired person next to him, all the way to the furthest person on that side of the table, then to the person across from them, coming back toward the front and ending with rekoob in the green sweater and yellow shirt, who us closest to the camera, on the right as I look at the photo.
lowtechcyclist
rekoob is the nearest person on the right, I’m the furthest-away person on the right.
MattF
I showed up last— got lost and wandered around the streets for 15 minutes— and so ended up at the head (or tail) of the table. It was at Clyde’s at Gallery Place and not at all noisy, since we were there after the morning rush had left.
ETA: Barbara on my right. I’m at the far end, furthest from the camera.
Baud
@WaterGirl:
Thank you.
zhena gogolia
Dare I ask what restaurant you went to? I can tell it’s not the ONE WHOSE NAME SHALL NOT BE PRONOUNCED.
WaterGirl
@MattF: So were you the happy guy across from rekoob, or the person who would have been across the table from lowtechcyclist, who is a lot smaller and more difficult to see?
Barbara
Last on left side of table. It was great meeting people in person and yes, we did get up and move around a bit. Clyde’s was a perfect location for the event. Thanks so much to rekoob, whose family is from near the rural place in Virginia that my SO’s is, and planetjanet knows my BIL.
lowtechcyclist
Next to MattF on the left side of the table is Barbara, next to her is Shana, and planetjanet is next to Shana.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: I think he must be the one at the end, facing the camera.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: Yes, I was not about to state any names of people or restaurants in that question.
Miss Bianca
@WaterGirl: So I was not the only one wondering who the happy smiling guy was! :)
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: They were all facing the camera! :-) And as there are essentially two rows of people, there would be 4 ends.
I think I am going to go back to bed.
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist: I thought we were going to let people out themselves, if they wished. :-)
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Most of them are facing the camera by turning their heads. Only one is sitting at the end of the table, squarely facing the camera without turning his head.
lowtechcyclist
@WaterGirl:
MattF is at the far end of the table, neither on the left nor the right.
lowtechcyclist
@WaterGirl:
I don’t know the customs, this is the first one I’ve been to.
Baud
I hope happy, smiling guy changes his nym to happy, smiling guy.
Alison Rose
(arrrrrggh
(FYWP really hates numbered lists and formatting, redoing this)
Around the table clockwise starting with the man in the white shirt:
1. (unknown)
2. (unknown)
3. planetjanet
4. Shana
5. Barbara
6. MattF
7. lowtechcyclist
8. (unknown)
9. (unknown)
10. rekoob
WaterGirl
@Baud: Maybe he can just add that in parenthesis, so he doesn’t have to give up his regular nym.
zhena gogolia
@Alison Rose: Yes.
WaterGirl
I count 10 people at the table. Is that correct?
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Yes.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: What’s the arrrggh for?
Alison Rose
@WaterGirl: That was me putting in a placeholder grumble while trying to fix the formatting of my list. Comment updated now.
Barbara
Photo was taken by the very nice server.
WaterGirl
click on the photo to see the numbers. I have tattooed everyone!
1 Smiling happy guy
2 Ramona
3. planetjanet
4. Shana
5. Barbara
6. MattF
7. lowtechcyclist
8. A Streeter
9. Dave
10.rekoob
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist: How was it?
Brachiator
Looks like a fun group having a good time.
sab
@Baud: Hint: green sweater.
Planetjanet
@WaterGirl: 2 is Ramona
8 is Eighthstreeter
9 is Dave
Planetjanet
@zhena gogolia: Clyde’s
Rekoob
@Barbara: It was fun to talk about Rappahannock Oysters. I first heard about them through The Splendid Table:
Splendid Table on Oysters
I’m in Richmond for Thanksgiving with family.
Another Scott
Nice photo of a great group. Thanks!
nycsouthpaw says on Twitter that Biden is having an announcement/speech at 1:45 re the hostage release.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/live/
Cheers,
Scott.
WaterGirl
@Rekoob: Aren’t you usually rekoob, with a lower case R?
Rekoob
@Planetjanet: Looked up the Amish Trail ride and it’s a bit north of me, mostly around Dover and environs. Here’s a link to the Junction & Breakwater Trail and to the Georgetown-Lewes Trail:
Junction & Breakwater
Georgetown-Lewes Trail
Rekoob
@WaterGirl: Yes. For some reason, it’s capitalized on my iPad.
WaterGirl
@Rekoob: Okay! I try to use the right capitalization (or lack thereof) for nyms, so I wanted to be sure I wasn’t doing yours wrong!
If you want to be lower case rekoob on your iPad, just change it once and make a comment, and then your iPad should remember rekoob.
Quaker in a Basement
Great photo. Looks like a good, fun meetup. Glad to make your acquaintance, all y’all.
WaterGirl
@Quaker in a Basement: It really does look like fun!
Alison Rose
I hope we solve The Mystery of Smiling Happy Guy.
MattF
@WaterGirl: And check the ‘Nym’ field below the comment box for the desired capitalization. I have unintentionally erased that field from time to time, with unpredictable results. As WG says, fixing what’s in that field and making a comment generally sets things right.
WaterGirl
@Alison Rose: Me, too.
Or maybe we will have an “I am Spartacus” moment, where 5 people claim to be smiling, happy guy.
edit: Maybe it’s Baud!
Alison Rose
@WaterGirl:
I admit, I had that thought, too. It would be just like him to innocently comment and pretend he was someone else.
sab
@WaterGirl: Nobody respects the case of the first letter around here, except you who has to think of nyms in moderation.
As usual, nobody looks like I expected. I am always surprised when jackals whose intellect I admire also turn out to be quite cute.
lowtechcyclist
I *think* Happy Smiling Guy may be boatboy_srq, but I can’t say for sure.
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist: I am reminded of one of my favorite lines from the movie Dave. “You don’t know, or you can’t say?”
(When Dave was talking to the Secret Service agent.)
WaterGirl
Biden speaking now.
Alison Rose
@WaterGirl: I loved how he dropped his voice to imitate the officer. “You don’t know, or…you can’t say?”
WaterGirl
@Alison Rose: Yes, it was perfect!
Mai Naem mobile
Dave looks like Lanny Davis. I think anyway. He looks like some famous Politico, I’m sure of that.
Quaker in a Basement
@WaterGirl: No, I am Happy Smiling Guy!
WaterGirl
@Quaker in a Basement: Or are you? [insert single raised eyebrow emoji here]
Alison Rose
@WaterGirl: 🤨
Mr. Bemused Senior
@WaterGirl: Me Claudius
A Streeter
@WaterGirl:
I’m #8, A Streeter.
(Not the first time people have heard my street as “8th” instead of “A”.)
Miss Bianca
@WaterGirl:
*blink*…*blink*…but…*pants*! Happy Smiling Guy is wearing them!
WaterGirl
@A Streeter: I fixed that up top in the list of people in the photo, and I changed it in my comment.
I left it in the comment from Allison Rose because that wasn’t mine. :-)
If you see it anywhere else, let me know.
Nice to make your acquaintance!
WaterGirl
@Miss Bianca: I have to admit – I did not check for pants!
edit: Maybe to throw us off our game?
Planetjanet
@Rekoob: awesome! Will check it out next season.
Planetjanet
@A Streeter: Sorry! My bad.
boatboy_srq
@WaterGirl: Aw shucks. That was me.
boatboy_srq
For the record, I’m the guy nearest the camera on the left. Also for the record, the last “proof of life” BJ photo I was in was for a trip efgoldman made a few years back, and back then I had hair. So, not surprising I’m not easily recognized.
WaterGirl
@boatboy_srq: Yay! I thought maybe it was going to remain a mystery!
Who needs hair when you are a smiling happy person that anyone would be happy to meet?
Happy Smiling Guy (fka boatboy_srq)
There. Nym sorted. Pbbbbbbt.
WaterGirl
@Happy Smiling Guy (fka boatboy_srq): I laughed! And then approved your first comment with your new nym. (For however long you keep it.)
Ramona
@Happy Smiling Guy (fka boatboy_srq): hanging tastefully on a wall…
Ramona
@WaterGirl: …then the lovely darkhaired person next to him…this identification has warmed my heart for a nigh long week now 😚