h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

So it's 4 years ago today that I went, very spontaneously, to the Manchester meet. It was the day after my dad's funeral, the day before I was due to fly home and I really wasn't sure if I should go or not.

But my mum said I should, h2g2 said I should, said I should and so did the Gruesome Twosome. So I wrote stuff on a t-shirt in glitter glue and boarded the Transpennine Express to spend my first ever whole day in Manchester.

I met some old friends again, i met some old friends in RL for the first time and met some people I'd never encountered before. Everyone was lovely and as I see from what I wrote at the time I was hugged and squeezed like a lemon.

i h2g2

h2g2 meets are nice events. It's hard to believe that it is 6 years since I met you and the others in Mannheim. Still haven't figured out the Mayan symbol on your pendant, which I said I'd do.

Both Mannheim and Manchester were great Meets and I always enjoy meeting old, and new, hootooers. Sadly there are fewer Meets and fewer hootooers to attend those Meets.

I miss the ones in Hull and Germany. Also the London ones, as I enjoyed planning something different to experience.

I don't know when the next will be, where it will be or even if I could attend.

I hope some year soon or I'll be too old, or unfit to travel.

MMF

Nah. 2012 was a few weeks ago, tops.

Wasn't it ?

Mannheim was my first ever Meet, it was quite an adventure !

MMF, if you can't travel, it'll just have to be at your place, that's all.

I enjoyed meeting you too, Sho, although I would have preferred it if I could have spent more time with my friends instead of pleasing my (now ex-) partner

I miss the ones in Hull and London and I always said I would try to make a meet in Germany when I could get away from my caring role. maybe someday



GB

GB, get one going in Hull or thereabouts. I'm up for it.
And, Superfrenchie, we can have a mini meet in June. Dates finalised. Will PM you later with dates.

Always up for a London one but there was little interest in the one I was planning for Sept 2015. So I didn't progress further.

Always happy to organise one.

Have arranged ones at Kew, Museum of London, Strand tour, Tate Modern and sort of Imperial War Museum with Sol. Not sure where to plan next. Maybe the Southbank/Southwark environs. Plenty to see and do and easy access to the Shakespeare and Waterloo station plus reasonable ( I understand) hotels.

MMF

I'd love to come to a Hull or Cleethorpes meet, although it wpuld depend very much on the date. I'm sure we could persuade Moonhogg to come along although he hasn't been on the site in years.

Was my favourite Meet as small, friendly, sociable with plenty to do.

Be great if Hoggy was there. And Prof and Scorps.



MMF

Somehow, when GB started her comment with

"I enjoyed meeting you too, Sho, although I would have preferred it if"

I thought she was going to continue

"you had been a nicer person."

I *almost* wrote "...if I had been alone or with someone less grumpy" but decided against it considering everything that kicked off later. meet

>>GB, get one going in Hull or thereabouts.<< Sorry MMF, I have no transport and no funds. Just another 5 years to go until I can claim the state pensionmeanwhile, carry on living on Carer's Allowance which is less than £2 an hour (what's that you say? Minimum wage? Hmmm... it's an allowance, not a wage...)

And, breathe...

Dear GB
As you know, I greatly enjoyed the Hull meets and have long felt I should try to do something in Lincoln BUT, like you, I have neither money nor transport. I am presently living in fear that Lincolnshire will cut our rural bus services.(The meeting is today)

Is it really 4 years! Yikes! That's the last meet I attended! My first was the first birthday in May 2000, A296372 .

However after not even being allowed to eat breakfast in Manchester without it becoming a photo 'opportunity' I doubt I'll ever go to another because I don't agree to the h2g2 privacy policy.

Awww, Sho. I'll squeeze you like a lemon anytime!

Reading your journal made me realise it's eight years since we met in Cologne. Too long! I must do something about that.

Coelacanth, I didn't know that h2g2 had a policy on photographs. In my experience, photos are taken by researchers and published on the net with the permission of the person in the photo. I always ask. And no photos of minors. Or miners.

I was also unsure about the privacy policy on photos. I should probably check it out.

Pah! There's only one Manchester Meet worth mentioning: 4 through 9 June 2014

But there may be another coming up. What say you, people?

KB, I would like to point out that you didn't come to Reims (July 2012) or Dublin (2013), although you had been thinking about it in both cases. I'm beginning to think you're avoiding me.

after that meeting in Köln I'm terrified to go to the photobooth in the U-bahn just in case that cake is still there...

Gnomon, Sho, there is no privacy policy. That's my point. Even if you request privacy the answer is very clear. Tough, you can't have it. No does not mean no, no matter how much you protest, the violation of privacy is still forced on you.

I've requested it in the past and been clearly told that if you attend meets you have to expect that kind of attention, even if you don't want it, because you were obviously asking for it by the very fact of your attendance, and are "fair game". #250
F22118095?thread=8284976&skip=240&show=20#p110562676

And it also seems acceptable to stalk someone, and sneakily steal what you want "on the fly" and then proudly offer to distribute offsite without the consent of the person concerned, or any regard to their feelings. #249
F22118095?thread=8284976&skip=240&show=20#p110562593

Requesting privacy is "daft" #1 F22123548?thread=8290595&skip=0&show=20

Private photos, taken without permission and sometimes without knowledge, will be distributed anyway to anyone who asks. #32 F134192?thread=8290387&skip=20&show=20#p110569611

h2g2's always been a place where as a community we've avoiding making fun of people because of their disability, gender, sexuality, skin colour or ethnicity, but seemingly some approve of the acceptable pastime of laughing and name calling anyone who requests privacy, and then still willfully ignore the request.