When BlogHer announced the date and location of next year's conference two things went through my head:
1. Yay! It's closer to home next year. A bunch of us New England bloggers can take the train together and bond over mimosas in the club car and get to know each other better by chatting in our large, comfortable, non-airplane seats. Probably via Twitter but you know, still chatting.
and
2. Hmm, that date sounds awfully familiar, like I've already planned something for that weekend. But that's silly, I never plan anything that far in advance. It's an entire year away, I don't even know what I'm doing next week. Pshaw. I'm sure it's nothing.
And I swatted that notion away like a pesky fly. Until last night when I was checking my Facebook page.
I don't know what made me check Facebook. I hardly ever check Facebook anymore. I mean occasionally when Twitter is down I'll run to Facebook like a fickle lover. I'll whisper a few sweet nothings and send them out into the ether, just to get my fix. But for the most part, the people I have friended on Facebook are either the people I already chat with in on Twitter, friends I see every week anyway, or high school friends I haven't spoken with in almost 20 years so...
Almost 20 years. Wow. That's a long time.
Twenty years. Twenty years?
Shit, my 20th class reunion is next year. I'm not looking forward to attending that reunion.
My reunion. My reunion? My reunion!
My 20th high school reunion is the same weekend as BlogHer '10.
Okay, that's funny.
It's like the universe is absolving me from having to go to my reunion and mingle with people I didn't really much for when I was a naive 17 year old and will probably really dislike when I'm a much more worldly 37 year old.
Hey, I've had my passport stamped at least twice. Maybe more. That totally counts as being "worldly".
But still, I weighed my options. My 20th reunion should be something I want to go to, right? I have this girlfriend who didn't go to hers, and every once in a while, she gets this really terrible feeling--you know, like something is missing. She checks her purse, and then she checks her keys. She counts her kids, she goes crazy, and then she realizes that nothing is missing. She decided it was side effects from skipping the reunion. No wait, that was prom. And if you get that reference we can friends.
On the one hand, I told myself, I could go for four days to New York City and hang out with people I genuinely want to spend time with. Okay, they're people I met in the computer but as far as I know they're not going to slip me a horse tranquilizer and harvest my vital organs. Although, I do have my doubts about a few...
But on the other hand, maybe I should put aside petty differences and hurt feelings and resentments and all that and bury the hatchet - so to speak because, you know, not literally bury the hatchet, even though I may want to take something sharp to a certain girl who used to be my friend before she stole my boyfriend, bitch - and maybe reconnect with the few people I actually liked in high school.
I gave it a lot of thought (five minutes) and actually came up with a pros and cons list. Ready?
"Should Tania go to the BlogHer '10 conference in NEW YORK FREAKING CITY or go to her 20th high school class reunion and stand in the corner and muse over what happened to that hot boy she had a crush on when she was 16 years old and he never gave her the time of day's hair and probably leave after an hour?"
Going to Blogher -The Pros:- It's in New York City and despite being just a few hours away I've never been. And yes, I've just admitted that I'm really that lame on the internet.- Overwhelming, but in a good way.- Late night parties, good conversation, and you never know where you're going to end up at 3am.- SWAAAAAG: The steel cage match. Two people go in, one person comes out with a trial-sized bottle of laundry detergent.- I like to squee.- Where else can you gush over someone's business card and mean it?- Seeing friends I only see once, maybe twice a year. Even the ones who live twenty miles away from me.- *add something here about cultivating my craft and building business relationships and blah blah blahdee blah*The Cons:- The price. Wowza. I think I need my own street corner to pay for next year.- Overwhelming, but I'm working on my social anxiety. One drink at a time.- Exhaustion. Come to find out, I'm not twenty anymore. Who knew?- Four days of squeeing when I'm generally done after two.Going to my 20th reunion -The Pros:--.....-- Um.-- I'm sure the food won't be too bad?The Cons:- Really? Do I need to write it all down? I have kids to take care of before they go off to college.
So after much soul searching and wringing of hands and rendering of garments, I've decided to go to BlogHer.
Who wants to hit the nightclubs at 3am? Because if I'm going, I'm pretending I'm seventeen years old again... And paying for the after affects for the next year. I'll need the company.
53 comments:
Yes!
And I think the train would be a smashing idea. My hubby suggested it and I was all, "Well, maybe if some of the other New England bloggers are gonna..."
And social issues? I'll be passing out Xanax necklaces on the train. You betcha!
You've never been to NYC, I've never been to Blogher, we're a match made in heaven! Can't wait until you get here.
OOH, I've decided to make the trip too. My first time! Luckily you're on the east coast because I don't need you cutting into my corner action to raise money for this trip.
Good choice, Smiley.
You + me + NYC?
The potential for catastrophic awesome is mind-boggling.
First, I want to be Ducky in my next life.
Second, I lived in NYC, yo.
Third, the clubs in NYC are WAY harder to get into and the cover is a lot more than $5.
See you in NYC!
Yea!! As a fellow New Englander.. I will be there.... screw the reunion!
I spent my 10th high school reunion drunk dancing to Wham! songs by myself in the middle of the room. Which I guess I could end up doing next year at BlogHer, too, now that I think about it.
Glad to hear you're on board. See you in NYC!
I'll be there! I had so much fun in the limited time I spent at Blogher this year that I've already bought my ticket for next year! I won't have the world's cutest baby and my identity as a Twitter Babysitter to use to break the ice and actually TALK TO PEOPLE and try to not look like a socially anxious idiot, but, you know, I'll try.
That was a really rambly sentence. Anyway, I'll be there, and it will be way more fun than a high school reunion. The end.
Honey, that wasn't a choice. I don't think you could PAY me to go to a high school reunion.
Oh phew. If you weren't there, who would I shoot the deer in headlights look at when I am ready to start fleeing?
And, I went to my 20th high school reunion. Don't. Do. It. Facebook is about all I can handle of those years anymore.
Good choice! I would definitely make the same one. My 20th is next year too - I'm not even thinking of going.
Pretty in Pink! When Annie Potts is trying to talk Molly Ringwald into going to prom. Love that movie.
My 10 reunion will be next year and I seriously doubt I'll go even though my partner and I met in high school. But who knows?
PS What is squee???
Woohoo! There's WAAAAY better sushi in NYC than in Chi-Town, btw. And wait - how is it possible you've never been??!!
See, now there you go making life difficult for me again.
I was all set to be all like, "Sweet. Chicky's not going to BlogHer because of her reunion, so I don't even have to think about going because if she's not there, there's no point in me going."
Now I actually have to consider it. Thanks.
man, now I really want to go!!
Excellent choice.
I DO! PICK ME! PICK ME!
Seriously, I'm very glad you're going to be at BlogHer again next year, because I want to hang out more, okay? :)
Honey, you had me at New York. You've never been? That's enough reason to go.
Totally get the timely Pretty in Pink reference. Love it. BTW- skipped my 20th and regret it. Sort of.
i will TOTALLY go out at 3am!!!! i'll go out and never sleep if you want! lol
I LOVED Pretty in Pink. There. We're best pals now.
I'd like to say I'm going to BlogHer too because I'd like to go to NY again. I miss it. But I probably won't because I can't justify the expense or the time away from my kids so near to their birthday. Also I'm a social misfit.
I'll live vicariously through you.
yes yes yes. I need MORE time with you!
YOU'VE NEVER BEEN TO NY?
I'm ashamed for you.
(Then again, I've never been to the Big BlogHer. So I guess we're even.)
Save me a seat on the train car.
Good! I'm going as well. I mean how else would I ever get to see you? It's not like we live anywhere near each other.
My high school reunion is this weekend. I really wanted to go but between other family visits not to mention unexpected but desperately needed plane tickets when my MIL was in the hospital in May and my mother was in the ICU this past month, it was just too expensive to fly back to Chicago. However, when I looked at the Facebook list of who was going I realized that while there were people I would have loved to see, no one I had been really good friends with was going.
Whoo hoo! I'll bring the pink dress with white polka dots if you totally decide to rock a bee-hive hairdo. Then you won't feel like you missed anything.
Then we can find Edward and take suggestive pictures again. Or just get drunk and talk Southie.
Yippee! I'm thrilled because you are definitely one of the people I want to meet and I just bought my ticket! I've never been to NYC either and am SO looking forward to the craziness of all those bloggers in such an exciting city!
Of course you go to blogher, because one, if people are checking you out at blogher, it's because they think you are hawt, not because they want to see if your ass looks fatter then theirs (don't worry; it doesn't), and two, I will be in NYC, at blogher, and damn woman, I'd like to finally meet you.
YES! I was hoping you would pick BlogHer!
Don't you ever write a post that makes me think you are not going to BlogHer because I almost blew a gasket reading these. I only have so many gaskets left my dear.
1. Love that movie.
2. Good choice. I'm hoping to go next year. I'm pretty sure my family wants to go back to the Jersey shore that weekend but (after this past week with them) I'd prefer the company of strangers.
3. If I do go, I'm totally taking the train.
To hell with the reunion. That's what FB is for--you can decide to meet up with the people you DID like whenever and wherever.
Road trip?!
Duuuuuude, you make me laugh!
Ok, first, you haven't been to NY? I'm going to pick you up in that End of the World town you live in myself and haul your ass down to the Big Apple.
Or at the very least, I'll buy you a very big mimosa on the train so you won't notice (or care) about the weird street smells once we land in NY.
Awesome that we'll get to party together in NY. Squeeeeee!
-Christine
Yeah, I'd totally pay the more-than-$1,000-to-get-my-Canadian-ass-to-NY price tag to spend the weekend with (basically) strangers over spending an hour with the people I went to high school with. *shudders*
I will party with you, at 3am, can we pretend to be rock stars.
geez, I can't believe I typed that. Hoping that next year when I meet you again it won't be for 2 seconds with me squeeing in the EA sports line and then bitching about my hubby. Because next year I am so not planning to attach vacations like that. It was insane!
YAY, I'm glad you are going next year. I am too.
I am anti-reunion. Mostly because I figure if I wanted to know any of these people (besides a few bff's that I do know), I'd have remained friends with them right?
Can I steal this: "I like to squee" and put it on my cards next year?
Good choice... Besides, there's always your 25th & 30th where you can catch up and what's one night of boring retellings of high school stories and playing "who's got the better career" and "who's got the cutests kids."
Your time would be better spent partying for 4 days, having an awesome time with like-minded people who's company you enjoy :D
Fuck yeah!!! Sooooo excited that you're coming (going?) to BlogHer. I can't wait to see you again and burb some more sweet nothing's into your ear. LOL
Well the one thing that was nice about going to my high school reunion (and my high school was like the movies Heathers and I still bear emotional scars) was to see that the people who stayed in my small hometown were still into the high school clique thing but that the majority of the people that moved away and came back for the reunion were cool. In fact those former A Listers talked to me like we were best buds in Hihg school. Cool - we've all grown up and let's enjoy ourselves. Better still I met up with a former A Lister who still thinks she is all that (? come on we're adults) but lives with a permanent rain cloud over her head because life handed her her some not nice things. I was nice and polite to her as we talked and she stilled looked down her nose at me (? Grow Up!) As tempted as I was to say something snotty to take her down a peg, I thought, "living well is the best revenge." I'm in a really confident happy place in my life right now and I'm sorry she's eating a bowl of suck flakes, but I can take the higher road on this one because she still lives in a High School world of cliques. Worth the price of admission.
I just went to a mini-reunion in my hometown last week (a prequel, if you will) sponsored by the "reunion committee." Here's the thing- I KNEW I would be seeing former classmates there, so I had CONTEXT and I still didn't recognize a lot of the people there. Without context, I would have walked right by most of them on the street. Sure, there were a few surreal moments (Oh, Colleen, I see you brought your new breasts! Sarah.... wow... I guess all those things they said about tanning and skin aging are true after all!) but nothing earth shattering. And, other than a few people that I still speak to regularly, I was kind of reminded why I drove away from my hometown like it was burning all those years ago.
It was actually nice to see a few people who I really admired in high school and probably would have been friends with were it not for that rigid social hierarchy crap. Did it psych me up for the actual reunion? Eh... not so much. I'd rather pay the $75 admission price to hang out with the people I still keep in touch with. But! It did teach me that I don't need to be afraid of the ghosts. I look much better than some, worse than others and I'm happy. I think that's what really matters.
1.) We can totally be friends, then. Annie Potts is my 2nd favorite character in that movie -- after Duckie, of course.
2.) I think you made the right decision. The best part about the reunion I attended was seeing how FAT the popular girls had gotten, while I was pregnant and still looked better than they did. LOVED THAT.
We can definitely be friends! Pretty in Pink is one of my favorite movies! "Blaine, his name is Blaine...that is a major appliance, that is not a name!!"
Love reading your blog. I am new to the "blogging world" and I am loving it!
Michele
You don't really want to do the high school thing, do you? I don't think so. Plus, us TO girls are talking BlogHer road trip...
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