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The New York City Meetup (and with Pictures to Prove It!)
That’s right! It happened, it was lots of fun and we wish you could’ve been there.
Ricochet members and the good people of America’s Future got together on the Hudson River to enjoy free drinks, free food, absorbing conversation, many laughs and the excitement of making new friends. We owe a big thanks to our very own Alex Rosenwald and Rob Long, along with America’s Future’s Larry Gillheeney for organizing the event and providing the former two; and we owe a thanks for all who attended for taking care of the rest.
I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say everyone had a good time. The persistent rain interfered with our plans to enjoy an outdoor gathering on the water, and hampered the “crawl” portion of the event a bit, but freedom-lovers know how to improvise!
It was great to meet members I’ve thought I’ve known for years–@franco, @rightfromthestart and @richardeaston, for instance. We got to meet with a contingent of members who don’t post often, or who haven’t at all. Since they’ve been shy thus far, I won’t run the risk of embarrassing them, but I’m sincerely hoping they’ll show up here, or in this post by @spacemanspiff or in this one by @netrc, to make themselves known to the rest of us. (There were also a few spouses and significant others that I hope will join Ricochet too, because it was a grand time getting to know them as well.)
Each of them confirmed a suspicion I’ve had for a while: we have a lot of wonderful members who support Ricochet–and we really, really appreciate that!–but who don’t participle on the site. And as for those I met who aren’t Ricochet members yet, another suspicion was confirmed: there are a lot of people interested in what we do who should finally join and jump in with both feet.
Everyone was surprising in the way the Ricochet members I’ve met tend to be, by which I mean not exactly what I expected; they were unsurprising in the way the Ricochet members I’ve met are, by which I mean they were lovely and I’d have been happy to spend more time with them than I did.
Anyway, I’ll shut up now and get to stuff you guys came to see: the evidence that a good time was had and that you ought to be there for the next one.
***One side note: I am philosophically constrained from interrupting good conversations–probably why I joined this place–for the sake of taking a big group photo on an iPhone. (We got one of the “late” night crowd, though.) I snapped a bunch of shots of Ricochetti, undisturbed and in their natural habitat, and our friend Larry with AF sent me some too. Perhaps I’ll have to try to convince management to invest in a good dslr. But to do that we need a budget; and to have a budget, we need those of you reading this who aren’t members to get off the fence and join Ricochet! Do it. You’ll have fun and can join us for the next big meetup that’ll be coming to a place near you.
Okay, pictures now!
A great report! Wish I’d been able to be there. (Actually, wish I still lived there!)
The photos need name keys.
“Front row, left to right…” etc.
And you can find a good dslr on shopgoodwill.com, for example, for way below original price.
I still do live there (officially) and work there (virtually) but unfortunately, have not wrapped up my extended stay in Kansas, yet.
So I demand another one of these, in the fall. I should be back by then.
Ricochet should do more Zoom meetups, which are nearly free and involve no travel. Susan Quinn and I had a delightful meetup with Marjorie Reynolds from Ireland last year and it was wonderful. Next to no downside either.
I hope you all remembered your masks.
Whole lotta close-talkin’ going on in this event, and so far I remain unsymptomatic. The entire bar was packed and maskless, a testament to the lethal delusion that the pandemic is over and we can go back to living life. Because Americans are sociopathic and do not care. (I’m quoting someone tweeting in their New York apartment wearing an N95 because the window is open and someone down the street coughed.)
It was a great event, once we figured out that we were not supposed to go to City Vineyard, or City Winery, but City Vineyard by City Winery. At least we were reasonably certain of the “City” part. I am not surprised my yap is open in all those shots, but I do remember what the conversations were about, and they were great. Wide-ranging, too, because it’s Ricochet: 70s movies, then prog music, then Freudian analysis, then Star Trek, then the early days of Mac journalism, then Brazilian politics, and on and on.
The secondary locale was Tribeca Grill, Robert DeNiro’s restaurant, where we argued about big issues and then settled into gossip. I walked back to the hotel in the mist, grateful for a great night with some sharp and delightful people, knowing I would have no voice the next day.
Thanks to all who showed up! It was a pleasure to meet you, and you’re all too kind.
Too bad I wasn’t there, to be Right about Star Trek.
I had no idea that Ricochetti are all such good-looking people.
Too many nice faces in one room! Wish you could caption these pictures so we know who is who. Love the photo of that last pub in the group – really neat vintage look – is it old or just looks that way? Did the conversations run mostly political or a buffet of topics ? Never mind – James Lileks answered that one.
Man, I should’ve gone . . .
They were those new transparent types . . .
Thanks for the report! Glad it happened, wish I had been there.
Yikes! Good thing I wasn’t there. I’d’ve embarrassed myself by saying, “Brazilian what?“
(Or, worse, by saying something irretrievably obscure, e.g., decades ago and on just one street in just one town, I saw advertising for an outfit I hadn’t heard of before and haven’t heard of since, the Liberal Party. Its slogan was “Brazil, Taken Seriously.” Not only did I not know what it meant by this, I could not recall any other party having a slogan at all. They all just kind of exist.)
Seriously, though, glad everyone had a good time! In the “City.”
What? You would never do such a thing! :-)
That was lovely we should definitely do that again 😁
Now the borders are open again, I guess I should try and do that Canadian meetup again.
James, before I read your comments I was wondering why MY mouth was always open even in the two shot we took upstairs. I posted that on the Bleat where I am being hailed as a hero among the Bleatniks. I left before the Tribeca part which is just as well since I may have over done the vino by then. Great Time. Funny thing is I didn’t hear a word about politics.
(For the Ricochetti I’m the blue sport jacket/ blue shirt guy)
I still think there should be names put with those photos.
MegaDittos!
MegaUnditto!
SamBlock’s excuse checks out–whoever the local organizer was seems to have screwed up, and if it wasn’t for our intrepid cyber-pal, it could have been a shambles. It’s tough to take care of details like that when you’re doing all you can to metaphorically keep your head above water.
Okay, but does that somehow mean that names can’t be added now?
You can see my bald spot from the back in the first picture.
Well done!
Sorry I missed it.
You’re right. It’s only that that I wasn’t able to get everybody’s name–or rather, their handles. Regrettably, some of the pictured were people I had the opportunity to shake hands with, but conversations were interrupted in one way or another. So, alas! I could name only most of them–and as for the rest, I could tell you what we spoke about. (If anyone can help me fill out the puzzle, I’ll happily come back to fix it.)
In the meantime I won’t do anybody the injustice of being labeled “The guy who said X”, or “The person I shook hands with but who was gone before I had a chance to converse with”. The tone of the afternoon was jazzy, after all. And since the right is the new home for true egalitarians, I’ve reduced us all to anonymity! It’s the general preference, no?
I’ll do better next time.
For anyone who finds my shortcomings intolerable, I say this: take advantage of the next opportunity to meet your online friends!
I suspect most of the members who were there can identify themselves and probably at least a couple others. Hopefully they step up.
Don’t forget that pseudonyms are used for a specific reason for many. If they don’t volunteer to tie themselves to the photos, no-one else should either.
Any reason not to put their pseudonyms on the photos? (And that’s how we would know them anyway, not by real names.) It was out in public, after all. Anyone else in the vicinity could have taken their photos too.
You really have to ask?
Any random surfer who encounters this public post and recognizes someone (Google Image Search, hmmm?) won’t be able to make the connection. Same as in public. We know them by pseudonyms. Their faces are known to others under their real names. Doing as you suggest ties them together.
Well Phil is the only person I know who read all of Facebooks terms of use. I trust him in this area.
I would have loved to be there. I’m from the ’70s and am a huge progressive rock fan. I have met James and Rob on an NR cruise at least!