Some people may think it odd that communicating via computers can lead to increased non-computer communications, but I've known that for decades.
I've previously blogged about some of my BBS experiences in the early 1990s (see this list of BBS systems I frequented), but some of the most fun from that time would be when the people from The Grotto and other WWIV boards would gather at places such as Benjie's (long gone), drink cold brown thingies, and shoot the breeze about Ralph the iguana and other topics that were the BBS generation's equivalent of bacon/mango conversations.
After that, most of my online communications remained strictly online until I began going to Oracle OpenWorld and blogging about it. When I first went to Oracle OpenWorld I'd only stay for a day or two, so it's wasn't until 2007 that I got to personally meet the other Oracle bloggers at the Thirsty Bear. I've joined them again in 2008 and, depending upon what transpires in my future, I hope to join them again at Oracle OpenWorld 2009.
So over a week ago, Anika Malone began planning a FriendFeed meetup for FriendFeed users in the Los Angeles area, at the Five Guys in Cerritos, California. While part of the attraction was the chance to sample a Five Guys burger (my parents had told me about them), obviously another part was the opportunity to meet Anika and other FriendFeeders, none of whom I had met before (other than the Oracle people, of course).
So my wife (who is not on FriendFeed or Twitter, but who did get active in the Grotto and some other BBS systems back in the day) and I drove down to Cerritos, a little later than usual (tips: make sure you leave on time, and that your just-repaired car seat actually works, and that you have money for food). After I got my lunch, I got a chance to visit with some other FriendFeeders: not only Anika (faboomama), but also adrianculici, krynsky, geekandahalf (Derrick), elzbeth (Pea), and faithx5 (Jandy).
While my wife and I skipped out on post-burger geek store goodies, we had a fun time.
Incidentally, I've written three additional posts which are at least tangentially related to the FriendFeed meetup:
- Buffalo in Hovercraft, or Why I Don't Direct Videos (Empoprise-MU)
- Five Guys Burgers and Fries (Empoprise-BI)
- Van Hagar and the stringless phenomenon (Empoprise-MU)
But this isn't the last meetup that I'll be attending; the LinkedIn group Professionals of the Inland Empire will be getting together on Tuesday, and I hope to stop by there for a little bit (although I have another commitment later that evening). Sphere: Related Content
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