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Why Should You Join Ricochet? To Humiliate Me
You may have heard me say it before, but I’m more convinced of the proposition’s truth than ever: Ricochet meetups provide the unique sensation of attending a reunion with people you’ve never met before. And they are, to borrow a locution from The Daily Shot, pretty awesome. (And you have to be a member to attend, which is why you should join today and use the coupon code APRIL for a free month).
This weekend, four or five dozen Ricochetti — the biggest turnout ever for a member-organized event —came here to Nashville for three days of conversation, laughter, and serious debate. How serious? By the time I arrived for Saturday night’s dinner they were already headlong into discussions about the feasibility of moon colonies. That was a preview of things to come. On Saturday night, I got a master class in the political demography of Georgia from Aimee Jones and Caroline. Yesterday evening, this former George W. Bush speechwriter had the surreal experience of taking the con side in a conversation about our 43rd president’s rhetorical legacy (James of England is a much bigger fan of Bush’s second inaugural than I am).
To give you a feel for how freewheeling the conversations got, other topics included: regulatory overreach in California; the misadventure that was Crystal Pepsi; the quality of roads in Kentucky; the proper production of moonshine (Concretevol and I agree that it doesn’t count if there’s pumpkin spice involved — yes, that is an actual thing); why the “cool teacher” is usually a closet sociopath (and may be embezzling from you); intellectual property law in the UK (part of an unrepeatable monologue from Daily Shot author Fred Cole); The unsettling reason why Ron Kirk was chosen as the U.S. Trade Representative, and why Transparent is the most conservative television show out there (both James of England specials); Why Jeopardy! champions need to be cognizant of rerun schedules; the dismal prospects for the New York Mets’ season (keep Frank Soto in your prayers); and why there is likely to be mass psychosis sometime soon at your local Build-a-Bear workshop.
The sense of community is overwhelming. How dedicated are Ricochet members? One member — a lurker at that! — drove all the way from North Dakota to join us in Middle Tennessee.
Perhaps the greatest measure of fellowship, however, were the extremes these people were willing to go to in order to humiliate me. While the festivities ran from Friday night to yesterday evening, I was only able to attend the Saturday and Sunday night dinners. On both occasions, I was presented with giraffe-related gifts (yeah, you’re also going to have to be a member for that to make sense—and even then it’s going to stay pretty murky). Given the paparazzi-like volume of cameras that suddenly emerged, I have the sinking feeling that evidence of the ceremonies will be showing up on the Member Feed sooner rather than later. For now, all I’ll say is this — Ricochet member Midget Faded Rattlesnake is an evil genius who I hope is being closely monitored by federal authorities.
I’m sure there’s about to be a deluge of recaps of the events I didn’t attend, as well as an onslaught of photos and, if history is any guide, a breathtakingly beautiful recap from Dave Carter (who attended along with bride-to-be Shelley — it’s hard to tell which one of them is luckier…ok, it’s Dave).
Bottom line: if you haven’t signed up yet, you’re missing out on being adopted into the greatest extended family on the planet. If you’re a member and you haven’t yet been to a meetup…well, your friends are waiting for you. And if you’re thinking about putting one of these things together, talk to Vicryl Contessa and Das_Motorhead, who have now set the bar incredibly high for all future gatherings.
I just spend the weekend with dozens of friends I never knew I had. Doesn’t that sound like the kind of thing that’s worth $5 a month?
Published in General
One big incentive for going through the trouble of planning a meet up is the considerable expansion of your dry bar from all the gifts you get.
I usually describe Ricochet as being everything you wish Facebook would be, but never will. Here, you post a “status,” and people respond with funny, insightful commentary. As a bonus, you also don’t get unfriended by your old high school friend that now works for the EPA.
I love Ricochet – and am glad to be a member (I just renewed!), and I know I haven’t used it to it’s fullest. I need to explore all it’s privileges.
I joined because I was really enjoying the podcasts. I enjoy listening to them when I’m doing mindless tasks and running errands. Informative and entertaining. They have managed to get some of the best people to record discussions on current topics
Last year, I realized I was a “free rider” and decided to correct this. Mostly I was afraid that one day I’d come to the site to listen, and it would be gone…because I hadn’t supported it. I would certainty subscribe to any magazine I was enjoying this much.
Anyway, I’m looking forward to expanding my use of this site and getting to better know the community.
Staring down the Rinos ( spring break 2015)
So Majestic.
Troy,
Now that you are a proud citizen of the state of Tennessee, perhaps you should follow the example of that other favorite son, Senator Alexander. What you need is excessive punctuation just like “Lamar!”.
Or you could do him one better and double-down on it. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr. Troy! Senik!
The authenticity around here is remarkable. That word gets thrown around these days way too much, but it’s perfect to describe Ricochet. People around here step up and get stuff done. They fix problems and they meet needs. Generosity abounds. You don’t hear “that’s not my problem,” and you don’t see much eye-rolling (at least not until Peter and Rob install malware that remotely activates users webcams. We all know they’re working on it to keep tabs on us). Instead it’s, “of course we’ll help, and what else can we do?” I’m thinking specifically of a certain van that appeared on the scene a couple of years ago, but the same spirit was evident this weekend.
Thanks to everyone for coming out and making the weekend such a brilliant success.
Troy, have now been to three Meet ups that you also attended and you deserve kudos for how accessible you are and how gracious you are spend time talking and laughing with the members. I think you could actually make it here in the great state of Tennessee. :)
Another reason to join a Ricochet meetup? Friends share exclusive memories. Ricochet members enjoy a multitude of inside jokes and shorthand. Meetup participants share an even deeper layer of shared experience.
I admit, I wrote about the national debt today more to sneak in a Nashville reference than to talk politics. Since this is Ricochet, though, we can be serious and silly simultaneously.
Yes, it was awesome! Neutral observer and I got home about 30 minutes ago (safely!), and we’re still pumped from the merriment, political discussions, food, adult beverages, comraderie, and most of all: watching Troy “Giraffe” Senik squirm as he was bestowed with age, gender, and species appropriate gifts.
Now, where are those pics of him . . .
Oh, and if you haven’t joined because you’re worried about what you would have to contribute…well, fear not, as I comfortably anchor the left side of the Ricochet Intellectual Bell Curve (TM): Of all the deep, broad, and mostly thoughtful conversations Troy mentioned, I managed to contribute to exactly one. And I’m still confused about why PepsiCo thought clear cola was a good idea.
This weekend was fantastic. The food was great, the Belmont Mansion tour was fun and interesting, being with fellow Ricochet members was a blast – not to mention eating dinner with Troy and (almost) wringing out of him the real backstory of the giraffe…
I’ll bet it has something to do with “Underoos” when he was a child . . .
We had a fantastic weekend. VC and Das put on a stellar event. Addicted Mind and Vaquero gave us the warmest welcome you can imagine. Thanks to all who traveled from near and far to visit our fair city. We hope you’ll come again!
We Southerners would stop at Mr. Troy!
“…Dave Carter (who attended along with bride-to-be Shelley — it’s hard to tell which one of them is luckier…ok, it’s Dave).”
Agree 100 percent no that one, Troy. Shelley had a wonderful time meeting everyone, and I was overjoyed to be there with her.
Oh how I wish I could have hung around for Sunday. Here’s my contribution to the roasting.
Truly, Troy, we love you, and that you put up with this so well. And to let you know how much we love you -the proud members of Team Giraffe.
A pic from Thursday night in Louisville-
And some shots from Friday and Saturday-
The weapon Staad is holding in picture 3 is the eponymous sabre (I know, it’s a foil based on the Spanish short sword, the piece isn’t called “short-sword dance” though). Turns out, he’s a saber fencer, too.
Many of us made new friends for life. I was impressed with the distance so many came to meet up in Nashville. And, loved seeing the younger generation represented along with us more “seasoned” folks. Great group!
Dave Carter looks like a man in love. That’s a nice thing to see. Great pics overall. Who’s that mistress of the dark.
My heartfelt thanks to all for the enjoyment of virtuality on Friday night! The atmosphere was restorative…The surroundings gracious, the smiles contagious, the food and drink were eye-candy – no calories, no guilt. Special gratitude to the generous and resourceful James, without whom…
I’m going to put together a slideshow from the pictures from the Nashville Meetup, and I’ll post it online when I’m done. If you shot any good pictures during the meetup, please e-mail them to me. Use the address Randy@ricochetmeetup.com.
The pictures don’t have to be from one of the official meetup events. If you’ve got a picture of yourself or other Ricochetti at the NRA convention, hanging out in a honky tonk, shaving in your hotel room, whatever, just send it in.
What a great time this was. Thank you Addicted Mind and Vaquero for hosting that terrific party on Friday night.
Aww…. That’s the second-sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me, Troy.
I am not, however, responsible for the love letter you received. That was Rudert’s doing.
Randy, great meeting you and thanks for the Passport sticker!
With any luck, I’ll humming this (you REALLY don’t want me to sing!)—” Kansas City, here I come! They got some crazy little women there, & I really hope to be one!” (my humble apologies for taking liberties…)
I told my husband I wanted to go, & he hasn’t said no yet. Finances will be the issue, I fear. My birthday is 4/28, our 40th anniversary is May 9th, & the Chautauqua Blues Fest is Memorial weekend, in Sedan, KS. Gotta hear Moreland & Arbuckle again! Keeping my fingers crossed for 6/15!
Why Should You Join Ricochet? To Humiliate Me. Troy Senik
Wow! Another unexpected benny of joining Ricochet.
Randy,
The pleasure was all ours. We were delighted to meet ya’ll and get to place a face with the names we’ve been reading in posts and comments. A house is just bricks and mortar. A home is filled with memories from times with family and friends.
I see that Mr. Rudert was doing an impression of yours truly.
I was pleased to meet you, too. Thanks for bringing the moonshine to the party. As a rule, my wife does not like hard liquor but she loved that Apple Pie Moonshine.
I just drank some moonshine!