I would attend one, but the closest shot I have is in Columbus. I would be fine with that, but I work way too much to get up there without a month’s notice or so. Maybe sometime in the future.
Brendon Small
I keep telling myself I’m gonna go, then I totally chicken out. But, no offense to our Cleveland Dopefest hosts, I even chicken out going to parties that are thrown by people I have known since I was 4.
I also feel kinda weird about a few things - One, I could never figure out how to ask my boyfriend to go with me (“Hey, wanna hang out with some strangers from the 'net?”), so that leads to Two, I’d show up alone. And three, I’d have to drop my dog off with my folks for the day and explain where I’m going (“er, gonna go hang out with some strangers from the 'net”), and back to showing up alone - I seem to be the only single woman under 30 on the Cleveland Dopefest guest list, so that makes it kind of awkward. I don’t feel like I fit in with older guys or family people. And the host with the most is all about beer and I don’t do beer, or chili or hot stuff…And, I would be weird about being in pictures because uhm…some folks aren’t so nice about Dopefest pics.
So yeah, I am such a wet blanket and such a bundle of nerves, I just stay home. I am much more fun in 2D 
Sure! I met the Philadoper crowd first, and since they cross over into the Baltimore/DC/NoVa doper group, I met all of them, and it has branched out from there.
Dinners, parties, christenings, farewell soirees, let’s get together and shlep all of their stuff down from the 9th floor, all kinds of good get-togethers.
Thus far, I’ve been to PA, NJ, NY, MD, and VA fests. Lots of cool people met at every one.
If there’s one in Los Angeles, I’d go in a heartbeat.
LA dopefests happen with a fair amount of regularity. Watch MPSIMs.
Hey, I was wandering around 6th and Howard today. I think I might have seen you guys. I prefer slightly more sophisticated surroundings, I was thinking Red’s or the Buddha. I chickened out on the last Bay Area Dopefest, but could probably make it around Christmas time. I’d like to try to make it to an L.A. one sometime. I really could stand to meet some new people.
I was tremendously nervous about my first Dopefst this summer. But in real life a lot of the people I met were really cool and really interesting. Which shouldn’t be too much of a surprise considering the content of their posts, but my fears were alleviated nonetheless.
So yes, I’ve been to one. And now that I’ve been to one I will try to catch as many as I can.
I’ve been to two. It’s a great way to meet new people, and discuss grammar.
I went to the Las Vegas Dopefest.
I really didn’t know what to expect (and I’m pretty nerdy with interests like chess, roleplaying + computer games. I also don’t drink :eek: ).
It was excellent! 
DMark hosted a relaxed pool party, where someone (Silenus?) made the mistake of asking me about cricket. But they listened patiently to me.
DMark also kindly showed me round suburban Las Vegas, which most tourists don’t see.
Kurilla (and hubby Thomas) also welcomed me into their home and turned out to know even more about roleplaying than me. 
They also were easy to talk to.
So it’s only a single data point (as we here like to say), but I think Dopefests are well worth it.
I certainly want to return to Vegas for another Dopefest!
I’ve been to a few fests, as well as met up with a few dopers on business trips (either mine or theirs). Always a good time, IMHO.
A few years back for a Boston fest, someone (maybe CoffeeCat?) wore a tinfoil hat so the dopers could find him in Quincy Market (and, of course, to save himself from Major League Baseball).
Why I love the Dope, Part Six Bajillion and Ninety-Three.
monstro, I think we’re going to need a cite.
I hope to see you at the next one. July 11th, or maybe sooner. And we’ve got to do some more minifests.
You’ll have to share the story about the black binder from the other night, and how you got sodium chloride to projectile squirt from my tear ducts and tom yung gai to dribble from my nose. I can’t remember when I laughed so hard.
Huh.
And how did I miss this one?
I thought this was a joke meaning that 6th and Mission is the center of hell which it might be. (actually thats the Tenderloin)
No. It’s completely incomprehensible to me that people on a board like this would want to meet in person. I can understand specific individuals wanting to meet but the idea of a general gathering is totally alien.
Well, if you were going to find any place that people would be fascinated by that, it would be the Bay Area. 
Really? It seems like a pretty logical progression to me. People who are cool to hang out with on the board are probably pretty cool in person as well.
I went to one in Albany. It snowed. taxicab was the only one to show up, and we’ve been friends ever since.
We tried to schedule another one for Albany but lots of people dropped out at the last moment, so we cancelled.
Last summer some MMPers had a Ren-Faire Dopefest that I went to, and enjoyed.
Then I was going to meet the chicago Dopers - bus guy and hazelnutcoffee - but my flight out of Albany was severely delayed and I barely had enough time to catch my transfer in Chicago, so I had to cancel.
I wanted to go to What Exit’s Dopefest but that was the Sunday after I came back from a week out of town, so I was too tired.
Recently I went to the NYC Dopefest, which was tons of fun. I wanted to take the train down and learn how to take the subway on my own anyway, so I killed two birds with one stone.
And next month I may be going to a (small) Vermont Dopefest.
That’s, what, three I’ve been to? (Sorry if I forgot one!) So of course I’d go. And I’m pretty much the same online as I am in person…somewhat more reserved about some things in person is all. (You’ll never catch me talking about sex IRL, though I will laugh at the jokes.) But I am easy-going and open and fairly easy to talk to, so I get along with most people.
Even when our interests don’t match I love going to them.
What are we guessing? How great my shirts are? How jealous everybody else is of my sartorial splendor? The albedo of my head versus that of my shirt?
As far as your first & second concerns, when I went to the recent get-together in Chicago, Mr. Bus Guy brought Mrs. Bus Guy and their daughter, and the rest of us came alone…I don’t think anyone cares either way. The more the merrier, but if someone’s partner doesn’t want to come, no one is going to think that’s weird, either. I left my husband home with the kids. At that dopefest, there was a pretty good mix of ages & genders…not sure what it’s like at others. As far as telling your folks where you are going, I just told my sister (who sat for the kids until my husband got home from work) that I was meeting some friends…don’t know if that kind of non-information would fly with your parents, but I just acted casual and she didn’t think anything of it. I think as far as beer is concerned, no one would make a big deal if you were drinking pop. I ordered a Coke when I got to the restaurant (because I like Coke better than beer with pizza), and no one seemed to notice, although they were mostly drinking beer.
And fuck the people who aren’t nice about dopefest pictures.
Basically what I’m trying to say is that most of the concerns you mention really aren’t anything anyone else would notice or care about…I think you are blowing little things all out of proportion in your mind (which, I totally get is easy to do in a new kind of social setting). You might try to put some of those things behind you and go to one…I think you’ll find that you really enjoy it! Think about it…people who would go out of their way to do something like go to a dopefest are bound to be relatively friendly, nice people (if I do say so myself!)
It’s the spouses that tend to suffer at 'fests. Everyone is usually very nice to them, and tries to include them in things. Winston Smith was great at entertaining a couple of SOs at the last Boston 'fest. But let’s face it, when someone says “I burning your dog!”, all but a couple people will laugh. It’s a little awkward.