The North American Meetup
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Beale Streetis like the Memphis version of Bourbon Street. Bars, bars, and bars! Oh, and B.B. King! And Graceland.
Of course, New Orleans is always a blast - especially at Halloween and Mardi Gras, but then again, any weekend is a party there.
Unless you guys want to come to The Coast- we've got casinos, beaches, bars, and bikinis.
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Everyone should meet in Missouri so that people on the east and west have equal travel plans, and I won't have to travel at all.
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Face it, the US is too big for all you poor people to travel.
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And Syntax gets pelted with stones by children when he goes out in public anyway.
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I like Seattle. I live only 2 hours away from there in Olympia. =D
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Beale Street and New O are the best ideas so far. Both are great and a lot of fun. New Orleans has the added benefit that's if it's too hip, for added nerd factor we can all dress up like vampires and hang out in America's most awesome graveyards… or by Anne Rice's house. I also haven't been back to New Orleans since it was underwater. If it's still there I know an ancient hotel that, while not the nicest, is clean, cheap and close to Bourbon Street.
Chicago is usually a cheap flight for people all over. If there's a city in the US that has a lot going on, a bar every fourth storefront and usable public transportation it's Chicago. Being midwestern, it's also a fairly cheap city. Mmm.. Twisted Spoke for brunch and then Goose Isle near Wrigley for 11% beers.
Boston is ok except it can be pricey ($100 half glass at port at Clio is still my best purchase there) but I'm sure we can find someplace to hang out. I could use some North End... the Italian food in the northwest where I'm at is terrible. Not to mention Cambridge and Harvard abound with geek friendly joints.
If Seattle were just the Microsoft campus and Syracuse was just the college, Seattle would still be a better place. I've been to Syracuse twice. I almost got a tattoo that said "Don't go to Syracuse" on my neck because I obviously have some sort of Momento thing going on with the place and can't remember to keep driving when I see the sign. Seattle for the geek factor might be worth it- we could all show up for PAX, take a tour of WotC (I think maybe they closed their office here actually) and I know someone with a cabin near Forks so we could go do some Twilight crap.
Las Vegas is only cool if you're a lower middle class suburbanite who wants to throw some cash around and be cool for a weekend. The joint is way too played out these days. The only really awesome thing about Vegas is that they're so customer service driven that you it's almost impossible to get thrown out of a casino for anything beside cheating at gambling. I spent an afternoon at the BARE pool "giving dance lessons" and drinking vodka on the rocks because I refused to pay $150 per hour for a chair. Strangely I made a lot of friends, got invited to a wedding and a guy tried to set me up with his sister-in-law. Maybe Vegas isn't as bad as I remember it being... I usually only remember the boredom that sets in at the blackjack table at 4 am.
I found Orlando as an adult very depressing too. It's mostly traffic, strip malls, humidity, mosquitos and Jai Alai. By the way- paying the extra $$ to have the high-roller seats at Jai Alai right along the fence is worth it - 100mph shots from really short guys. Although, it's important to remember that betting on Jai Alai is not the same as at the horse track- Jai Alai players are human, not horses, and have feelings so you should avoid for screaming how bad they suck and how they're ruining your bet at them from 8 feet away. You might hurt their feelings, and they're all friends and can throw the match so you lose.
Missouri loves company (haha!). It's also the place where all good cows go to die. So, if you like to eat steak, ribs... well any part of the cow- Missouri is the place to go. Pretending to be a tour guide and telling tourists that the arch in St. Louis is made of 100% recycled Budwiser beer cans doesn't make you many friends with the locals. U City is cool- good reggae bars and the Landing is alright although it does attract a lot of assholes. KC is pretty much a small town with some culture and major league sports. Twin City tavern or someplace along 39th street, Harlings Upstairs... could handle a nerd group. Their bar districts (KCPL, Westport and the Plaza) are crowded pick-up fests in loud crowded bars. 18th and Vine sports the Musicians Guildhall which opens at 1am and runs until about 5am with jazz musicians that finish their paying gigs and go their to jam.
Houston. No never again. They somehow got LA style smog and pollution to stick on flat ground with no natural barriers to keep it in. Having no natural geographic features to make one part of the city prettier than the next or to serve as barrier to growth the city sprawls 200 miles in every direction and somehow still manages to have stopped dead traffic 24 hours a day. If there is an example of everything that is wrong with the United States it is Houston.
San Francisco- we could pull a stay at the Phoenix hotel in the Tenderloin district- it's decent and hip and fairly cheap. Now the Tenderloin has a few (hundred) crack heads and is a little (carry a knife) dodgy but the hotel has a pool and you can stay out all night there. The Shins were staying a few doors down from us last time I was there and I guess they get a lot of bands that stay there. The Irish bar across the street will bribe you with free whiskey shots to keep your mouth shut if you see one of their employees doing something illegal. Which happens more often than not.
I stopped in a bar made mostly of corrugated sheet metal in a small town north of Biloxi once and was told, "we don't serve beer here," when I sat at the bar. I guess they can smell northerner. I backed out of there slowly with my hands up like I was facing a bear. I haven't been back to Mississippi since. I'm not sure I'm welcome.
P.S. I apologize if I insulted you home... this are rough estimates of places visited where I spent most of my time, most likely, in a bar. I mostly like places you can walk/take a train around and are fairly urban.
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Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Exchange rate makes it cheaper for you guys south of the border!
In addition, the legal drinking age here is 18 so more of the younger players can come.
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lol
This will never happen unless it's regional.
UK = 94,600 sq mi
US = 3,790,000 sq mi
Canada = 3,850,000 sq mi -
Its just not happening because the US is too big. I said that already!
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You said it from New England, so nobody listened.
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If we all were in New England it would be hours drives to somewhere, not flights!
KoH and I are going to go mini golfling. It'll be great.
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Everyone should meet in Missouri so that people on the east and west have equal travel plans, and I won't have to travel at all.
It will probably have to be something like that.
Anyone near Montreal ready for two 18hours roadtrip to split the gas bill? -
There's a new England?
There's more than one country in North America?The plot thickens.
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There's a new England?
There's more than one country in North America?The plot thickens.
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I always wanted to go to Boston/New England…during football season.
I always wanted to go to New Orleans...during football season. -
New Orleans does sound pretty sweet, perhaps mardi gras
:D
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IMO New Orleans lost a lot of its strength after Katrina, I'm not sure how much luster and such is left for it.
And no, I'm not saying that because of living close to Memphis.
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I was gonna make a comment on bring a scuba suit but the moment has passed due to serious comment before me
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IMO New Orleans lost a lot of its strength after Katrina, I'm not sure how much luster and such is left for it.
And no, I'm not saying that because of living close to Memphis.
lol, like you go outside.