Check out pictures, watch videos and find out how to attend
Xpresit Net Gatherings in Chicago, IL!
THIS YEAR! 12th Annual 2008 Xpresit Gathering
Please see the next section entitled "What Is An Xpresit Net Gathering?" for the overall details of how these things go and what needs to be done.
This year's gathering will be as follows:
Date: Saturday, July 26th - 2008
Place: Forest Glen Woods, Chicago IL 60630 [ mapquest ]
Start Time: 12pm Noon
End Time: When it ends
We've had post gatherings and pre-gatherings so this year we wish to try a little experiment. We're going to attempt to span this gathering accross not one but TWO days -- seeing as it has been discovered that August is actually better for some people than July.
Please do attempt to attend both -- however if you already know you're definately going to be missing the first one, here's the information for Round #2:
Date: Saturday, August 16th - 2008
Place: Forest Glen Woods, Chicago IL 60630 [ mapquest ]
Start Time: 12pm Noon
End Time: When it ends
These dates will be rescheduled if we get rained out or anything stupid like that.
What Is An Xpresit Net Gathering?
INTRODUCTION
Xpresit Gatherings or "GTs" (get-togethers) for short, are always in July and always on a Saturday. This never changes. The reason being - June is too cold and August tends to be too late in the year.
This event tends to be held in the form of a BBQ Picnic at Forest Glen Woods in Chicago, IL. Though this has not always been the case and may possibly change -- for the known future, no changes in this format are planned.
You do not have to be a computer geek to attend this public and open festivity. A lot of our friends attend with us -- just because they are our friends. They do not nessesarily participate in the forums nor do they nessesarily even have any interest in computers what so ever. The online aspects of Xpresit has always been in the spirit of community, so we don't see why the in person
stuff should have any limitations either.
NO RSVP REQUIRED
You do not need to RSVP or even tell us you're thinking about attending. Of course it's nice to know, but it's not required. If you are under the age of 18, please make sure you have your parents permission to attend. If you are a parent, feel free to bring the kids. No one under the age of 21 can drink alcohol and no one who is drinking can (by law) venture into the woods while
drinking alcohol. No one of any age should ever bring anything "illegal" to this event.
POLICY ON PICTURES AND PHOTOGRAPHS
Photos and / or video can and will be taken at this event. This content will be posted in the archives that you're reading right now. If you are camera shy, LET US KNOW IN ADVANCE. We will do our best to avoid photographing you -- however -- you will likely end up in the background of photos and video, seeing as even with our best efforts it is impossible to avoid capturing your likeness entirely. To attend is to understand and agree to this. If you neglect to read this -- or you disagree but come anyways -- we are not libel.
If you are planning on shooting any photos or video, we'd appreciate copies to make available on this site. The prefered method for this is *.jpg (for pictures) and *.avi (or) *.mpeg / *.mpg (for video). We'll accept *.wmv or *.mov (if its for whatever reason unavoidable) but please do try your best to avoid those formats.
WHAT SHOULD I DO OR BRING?
Just as everyone who participates in Xpresit Net contributes forum posts, everyone who plans to attend the BBQ should (unless personal finances prohibit it) contributefood and / or money. How much money you contribute is up to you. We've had people pitch in as low as two dollars. On avergage people pitch in between $10 and $20. If you would prefer to bring food, just make sure it's the sort you'd find at a picnic. Two Liter Bottles of any sort of soda, any sort of chips, hot dogs, frozen burgers, etc.. If you've got a tiny portable grill (of course with charcoal and lighter fluid, etc..) feel free to bring that to assist with getting more food done faster -- provided it's convenient for you to bring.
CAN I BRING A FRIEND?
Yep! Of course under all of the terms described above -- feel free to bring as many friends of yours as you wish to. Just make sure they are aware of our very simple and straight forward policy for this event.
PREVIEW IT FIRST!
Besides nostalgia, the pictures and video also serve as a means for you to preview the atmosphere before you decide whether or not you wish to attend. To see what sort of people attend and what sorts of things tend to happen at these events. This is so you can verify whether or not this atmosphere is to your liking. Not everyone gets a long with everyone else and our environment is not nessesarily everyone's cup of tea.
PICTURES AND VIDEO
(1997) 1st Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
Though the Network was created in 1994, the NC (Network Coordinator) "Time Warrior" turned 18 in 1996 and as such, the soonest he was able to host such a thing (without needing "parents permission") was in 1997. It consisted of a small but fun group of people who hung out and had a pizza dinner at Time Warrior's house. So this tradition had some very simple beginings.
Time Warrior had attended the TSO Gathering in 1996 which gave him the idea to have his own for Xpresit. Not everyone got photographed. Strangely, even Time Warrior did not get photographed for his own first gathering.
Nicknamed "The Xpresit Net Hottie", Drulithian was the first "chick" to attend the very first Xpresit Gathering. Also in attandance was: Stryphez, Balky aka Klekx, Chris aka Phoenix aka Jumping Cloud, Mike Kuntz, Terran Wanderer and several others who did not get photographed and it's too damned long ago to really mater :-)
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(1998) 2nd Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
The second gathering was much more productive. It took place at Forest Glen Woods in Chicago, IL. The first of the gatherings to be in "picnic" format. Roughly 15 people attended, give or take a few. Time Warrior tried the whole "long hair look", Grey Wolf made his special BBQ Sauce (ie: added beer) and Archfiend snuck up behind Time Warrior and drenched him with an entire cooler of ice cold water.
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(1999) 3rd Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
This year was back to Time Warrior's house and pizza with a smaller group. We \ don't quite recall the exact reasons as to why -- most likely schedule and / or financial. It is however the first year both Jokester and Grey Wolf's brother Road Dogg attended.
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(2000) 4th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
The pictures here are just representations of some of the people who attended, seeing as money was so tight we didn't even have a camera that year. It is also the first and only year where the imfamous Jennifer Codak (Time Warrior's long term friend / ex-girlfriend) attended with her daughter Rebecca and her boyfriend (at the time) Bill (who ended up being a Christian Fundementalist shithead, who inevitably betrayed her, using "religious belief" as a lame excuse to do so).
The Y2K Bug didn't kill everyone and all of the computers continued their operations as usual, but even so -- the year 2000 still seemed to be a very problematic year. The fact that we need pictures for representation instead of actual ones from this event, seems to make it clear that lack of finances were only the begining.
Mid-Gathering, Kathleen openly hit on Jennifer's boyfriend, the reprocussions of that lasted into the night. The only good thing about this one, was the start of the "post gathering" tradition as a ton of people who did not make it to the BBQ just all "decided to show up at Time Warrior's door step" after sun set!
Time Warrior and Jennifer even had a massive falling out in September of that year in which most of us were dragged right into the middle of what has been refered to as "the shit hitting the fan". It took Jennifer and Time Warrior 7 years to even start talking to each other again.
So yes -- this was a very bad year and thankfully the only Xpresit Gathering that we can honestly say sucked for the most part.
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(2001) 5th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
Once again at Forest Glen Woods in Chicago, IL and a sizable crowd in attendance. A lot of new comers to this one -- including many who would continue to attend for years to come.
We also had our first "Out Of Staters" for this one -- Quetwo (Nick), Sysop of Children of Technology BBS (and author of BBSip Dyndns Update Software) and his Co-Sysop, Talon. They came all the way from the State of Michigan to attend the Xpresit Gathering in Chicago, IL.
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(2002) 6th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
Seeing as Time Warrior moved into his own apartment which was right near Jefferson Park, this was the location chosen by a majority vote. Originally we were going to go to the woods -- however seeing as the park was right there (as well as a grocery store, too!) everyone felt it to be far more convenient to just have the BBQ at the park -- seeing as the woods are several miles away from there.
This years gathering had yet another batch of "Out Of Staters" and again, from the State of Michigan. Two Sysops -- we don't remember what the names of their BBSes were but we do remember their handles: Crazy Bone and Eazye.
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(2003) 7th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
Once again at Jefferson Park and the first year that we actually had any video! Also the first and only year in which "Mr. No Call No Show" Jarobi attended. He's promised to attend every year since 1999 :-)
We did get tons of great video antics of "The Native Morons" in their "Natural Environment" climbing trees and all sorts of silly stuff. Absolute hilarity!
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(2004) 8th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
Continuing to desire to do the whole park thing again, we decided upon Merrimac Park seeing as Jefferson Park turned out to be a "parking nightmare". Unfortunately -- we did not realize until it was too late that not all parks allow BBQing. So, we had to order a piza. We still had fun however and it was yet again a sizable group who attended.
Roalt (Sysop of Mental Meltdown BBS) and his family came from Indiana, so they were our "Out Of Staters" for this one.
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(2005) 9th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
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This was the first year that we had a full blown Xpresit Sign that wasn't made of cardboard paper and marker. Raistlin Majere (Kevin) had this sucker done up at Kinkos. It was a fairly large turnout and we all had a lot of fun. Once more at Forest Glen Woods.
This is also the first gathering that Stryphez had attended since 1997! His brother Steve came with him. Stryphez regrets not having come to the ones between 1997 and 2005, but seeing as the one in 1997 was kind of small and he wasn't really into the message posting aspect of the BBS Scene, he didn't think future gatherings would be much fun. He came to realize one very simple truth. A party is a party and everyone likes a party! :-)
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(2006) 10th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
This one was rather interesting. The original date for this got rained out, but the rain stopped around 1pm. The forest preserves were too wet so a few people decided to just show up at Time Warrior's place and have a BBQ in the back yard. For everyone else, they ended up making it for the reschedule date which took place at Forest Glen Woods.
This is also the second Xpresit Gathering that Stryphez had attended since 1997 and the first Xpresit Gathering that Chris aka Phoenix aka Jumping Cloud aka whatever the hell he goes by these days, had attended since 1997. Chris as well as Raistlin Majere were also the first ones out of our little rag-tag group to start messing with the Linux Operating System! Though Time Warrior is typically at the top of the game for stuff like this, even Stryphez beat him out, having also begun his Linux experimentations before Time Warrior -- who finally migrated to Linux this year.
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(2007) 11th Annual Xpresit Net Gathering
Details:
At Forest Glen Woods and our first "International Attendee" Carolin, originally from Germany but had currently been living in the United Kingdom. She spent 8 days in Chicago and her & Time Warrior had lots of fun, besides the gathering.
She turned out to be a really good friend. Unfortunately shortly thereafter, something happened that tends to happen to a lot of ladies. She acuired a "signifigent other" who ended up jealous of Time Warrior and she seemed to think that she'd rather be seen as a witch with a capital B rather than a coward (her plan backfired as Time Warrior is no dummy -- he already knows that Carolin is a sweetheart, not a bitch), so she coldly ended the friendship via email in April of 2008 -- under what has been presumed as a lot of pressure from the guy -- because Carolin is a really sweet girl and this action completely violated her entire moral and ethical foundation. Time Warrior wishes her no ill will and hopes that she finds that true happiness in her life that has been long over due and well deserved.
Overall, this gathering was a pretty great time. Lots of pictures and hillarious video to be seen. We had a sizable number of people in attendance. We also had several new comers as well as a few people who had not attended an Xpresit Gathering for quite a few years since this one. So it was pretty nice overall and everyone appeared to have a pretty good time.
The "Native Blue Moron" in his "Natural Environment" even returned, now pregnant with the "Pink & Yellow Moron" though he was not witnessed climbing any trees this time :-)
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