Link to my 2013 Eve Vegas photo album.
"Do you live in Vegas?"
It was one in the morning and I was getting a burger at burger king to fuel my writing. I was hungry and had just changed and removed my makeup after the pub crawl. Would a resident be standing in the Rio at burger king at one in the morning on a Friday night/Saturday morning? I had debated room service but I was not in the mood for a 15 dollar burger and my husband was already asleep.
I have no glorious stories about the pub crawl. It was an interesting event. I can say that it was well put together and things ran smoothly. People got left a few times but that is going to happen. The various clubs were very polite and enthusiastic. I felt bad for one gentleman who was holding a rope for me to go up to the party I had just come down from. We had private areas at two of the places and the drink tickets seemed to be enough to keep everyone happy.
I went down and got my pass right at eight. There was already a line and people formed up. It was a mix of people going and people staying and just meeting each other. As is my wont, I floated around the edge and watched people. Some I recognize, some I heard their names and figured out who they were. As it often was, I was completely ignored until someone would realize I had a badge on. Then people introduced themselves. Often I was asked, "Are you a player?" It was a common question through the night as it seemed that a large portion of the female attendees were not Eve players.
I floated for an hour. I introduced myself a few times. For the most part, no one knew wtf I was. I am not e-famous it appears. Then when asked my corp they didn't know who 7-2 is or where Molden Heath is. That also became a theme through the evening. "Is that FW space?" or "Is that Sov or NPC null?' and one of the best, "Oh that's way out there isn't it?" On the bus I had an incredulous look as I explained that Molden Heath is not FW low sec. "Oh. Real pirates then," was the response after I explained that I gave no fucks about FW complexes and chasing FW ships around.
The limos were limo buses and party buses. I wound up riding in the big pink party bus that I saw earlier in the week the entire time. It was kind of cramped but everyone was good natured and people did strike up conversations with me. I tried but I'm pretty pathetic socially and as the night wore on and the alcohol flowed conversations got weird, quickly.
The first stop was at the edge of an outside mall. We eventually found the night club. Two drink tickets each. I found a corner and pulled out my notebook to scribble notes about things. Little stuff like my amusement that PL has their shirts that so closely mimic the developers. Watching people get all giddy around the Mittani is almost as amusing as the Dev excitement. There was a ton of developers buzzing around. They are like super stars when they enter the room.
I wound up going outside and waiting for the thing to finish after the first place. Loud music. Alcohol. Smoking. Large groups of people. None are my environment and after standing there for a minute I decided I'd admire the palm trees and enjoy the weather instead.
The second location was down town off of 6th street. A place called Commonwealth. That had an upstairs, outdoor roof deck/bar thing. The first places had a bar that was also open to the outside. Desert weather. The roof deck was nice and I stood there for a bit admiring the view. When I went downstairs my step sounded a bit strange. I looked down to see that the heel of my shoe was detaching from the shoe. I was wearing a pair of cork wedges that I have had for about seven years. I like them a lot but it seems that cheap shoes have a life span.
That left me dragging my heel the rest of the night trying to avoid a full detachment. I slipped outside and waited near the drivers on the corner until it was time for the third stop. On that ride I was asked if I had gone to Fan Fest because the person remembered seeing me around. "Yes," I said. I keep popping up at these events. Perhaps one day someone will assume that I am the Eve player. Everyone was pretty buzzed and the general volume was increasing. I'm a terrible loud speaker. I can bellow when I need to bellow but being loud just to be loud is not my thing.
The third stop was the Stratosphere with a section reserved for our party. This is the time when I got a bit irritated. I know I'm a wallflower. I find it amazing how many people just step in front of me when I am in a line as if I am not there. Maybe I am not. I'm not sure. After a while, I just kept watching it happen. One person saw my badge and in shock goes, "oh you're with us!". Yes. I'm behind the roped off area for us waiting for the elevator. Yet something about me causes people to look at me, past me, and step in front of me. I could turn on my more forceful side but I save that for work.
I did finally get an elevator. On that elevator I met some Tuskers. They were proud of being Tuskers. I finally leaned forward and said, "I'll tell Naoru you said hi." At that point they proceeded to tell me how Naoru has a spy ticket on their forums and how they have all these previous Tuskers there and they call them spies. My response was, "What do you have to spy on?" While I called Naoru a Tuskers spy on THC2 when he first joined I can't imagine what spying on Tuskers would reveal. They PvP mostly solo? Wee?
I settled into a chair and wound up benign asked if I was upset, okay, angry, and offered drink tickets which I try to politely decline. That was a weird time since I was in a generally good mood, bored, tired of loud music and loud people, and hungry. I will admit I don't have a good happy face. I stick with a neutral wrinkle free expression. With everyone around me starting to scream, yelp, bang on things and spontaneously dance, I probably did stand out. We had spent 45 minutes per location at the previous two locations. At midnight I asked the driver when they were leaving and the answer was at one.
I went to get a cab. It turned out to be a painless process. My driver was interesting. He told me how he got into a fight with three Chinese ladies at the start of his day. His days are twelve hours. He kicked them out of the cab and says, "I've never struck a woman but if I was ever to hit one it would be a Chinese woman. I can't stand them."
Back at the hotel I hobbled to my room still dragging my shoe. Scrubbed the makeup off and went to find a burger. In the morning I will go have breakfast at the cafe near the convention rooms.
For those who are a bit more social than my not at all and/or consume alcohol I'd give the pub crawl a thumbs up. I had a pleasant time. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves a lot. I guess there was spare space because a group of people who were not going to go got to go. That was very cute and nice of them I think.
My favorite quote of the night: "Iphones don't crash." I giggled.
Also some random FW guys decided that I'd want to hunt them down. I tried to explain to them that I don't care. It was hard.
Another question I was asked several times was, "Who and what do you fight?" and the puzzled and shocked reactions to my response of, "Everyone and anything." I'm going to have to wrap that up in its own post.
Off to bed.
"Do you live in Vegas?"
It was one in the morning and I was getting a burger at burger king to fuel my writing. I was hungry and had just changed and removed my makeup after the pub crawl. Would a resident be standing in the Rio at burger king at one in the morning on a Friday night/Saturday morning? I had debated room service but I was not in the mood for a 15 dollar burger and my husband was already asleep.
I have no glorious stories about the pub crawl. It was an interesting event. I can say that it was well put together and things ran smoothly. People got left a few times but that is going to happen. The various clubs were very polite and enthusiastic. I felt bad for one gentleman who was holding a rope for me to go up to the party I had just come down from. We had private areas at two of the places and the drink tickets seemed to be enough to keep everyone happy.
I went down and got my pass right at eight. There was already a line and people formed up. It was a mix of people going and people staying and just meeting each other. As is my wont, I floated around the edge and watched people. Some I recognize, some I heard their names and figured out who they were. As it often was, I was completely ignored until someone would realize I had a badge on. Then people introduced themselves. Often I was asked, "Are you a player?" It was a common question through the night as it seemed that a large portion of the female attendees were not Eve players.
I floated for an hour. I introduced myself a few times. For the most part, no one knew wtf I was. I am not e-famous it appears. Then when asked my corp they didn't know who 7-2 is or where Molden Heath is. That also became a theme through the evening. "Is that FW space?" or "Is that Sov or NPC null?' and one of the best, "Oh that's way out there isn't it?" On the bus I had an incredulous look as I explained that Molden Heath is not FW low sec. "Oh. Real pirates then," was the response after I explained that I gave no fucks about FW complexes and chasing FW ships around.
The limos were limo buses and party buses. I wound up riding in the big pink party bus that I saw earlier in the week the entire time. It was kind of cramped but everyone was good natured and people did strike up conversations with me. I tried but I'm pretty pathetic socially and as the night wore on and the alcohol flowed conversations got weird, quickly.
The first stop was at the edge of an outside mall. We eventually found the night club. Two drink tickets each. I found a corner and pulled out my notebook to scribble notes about things. Little stuff like my amusement that PL has their shirts that so closely mimic the developers. Watching people get all giddy around the Mittani is almost as amusing as the Dev excitement. There was a ton of developers buzzing around. They are like super stars when they enter the room.
I wound up going outside and waiting for the thing to finish after the first place. Loud music. Alcohol. Smoking. Large groups of people. None are my environment and after standing there for a minute I decided I'd admire the palm trees and enjoy the weather instead.
The second location was down town off of 6th street. A place called Commonwealth. That had an upstairs, outdoor roof deck/bar thing. The first places had a bar that was also open to the outside. Desert weather. The roof deck was nice and I stood there for a bit admiring the view. When I went downstairs my step sounded a bit strange. I looked down to see that the heel of my shoe was detaching from the shoe. I was wearing a pair of cork wedges that I have had for about seven years. I like them a lot but it seems that cheap shoes have a life span.
That left me dragging my heel the rest of the night trying to avoid a full detachment. I slipped outside and waited near the drivers on the corner until it was time for the third stop. On that ride I was asked if I had gone to Fan Fest because the person remembered seeing me around. "Yes," I said. I keep popping up at these events. Perhaps one day someone will assume that I am the Eve player. Everyone was pretty buzzed and the general volume was increasing. I'm a terrible loud speaker. I can bellow when I need to bellow but being loud just to be loud is not my thing.
The third stop was the Stratosphere with a section reserved for our party. This is the time when I got a bit irritated. I know I'm a wallflower. I find it amazing how many people just step in front of me when I am in a line as if I am not there. Maybe I am not. I'm not sure. After a while, I just kept watching it happen. One person saw my badge and in shock goes, "oh you're with us!". Yes. I'm behind the roped off area for us waiting for the elevator. Yet something about me causes people to look at me, past me, and step in front of me. I could turn on my more forceful side but I save that for work.
I did finally get an elevator. On that elevator I met some Tuskers. They were proud of being Tuskers. I finally leaned forward and said, "I'll tell Naoru you said hi." At that point they proceeded to tell me how Naoru has a spy ticket on their forums and how they have all these previous Tuskers there and they call them spies. My response was, "What do you have to spy on?" While I called Naoru a Tuskers spy on THC2 when he first joined I can't imagine what spying on Tuskers would reveal. They PvP mostly solo? Wee?
I settled into a chair and wound up benign asked if I was upset, okay, angry, and offered drink tickets which I try to politely decline. That was a weird time since I was in a generally good mood, bored, tired of loud music and loud people, and hungry. I will admit I don't have a good happy face. I stick with a neutral wrinkle free expression. With everyone around me starting to scream, yelp, bang on things and spontaneously dance, I probably did stand out. We had spent 45 minutes per location at the previous two locations. At midnight I asked the driver when they were leaving and the answer was at one.
I went to get a cab. It turned out to be a painless process. My driver was interesting. He told me how he got into a fight with three Chinese ladies at the start of his day. His days are twelve hours. He kicked them out of the cab and says, "I've never struck a woman but if I was ever to hit one it would be a Chinese woman. I can't stand them."
Back at the hotel I hobbled to my room still dragging my shoe. Scrubbed the makeup off and went to find a burger. In the morning I will go have breakfast at the cafe near the convention rooms.
For those who are a bit more social than my not at all and/or consume alcohol I'd give the pub crawl a thumbs up. I had a pleasant time. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves a lot. I guess there was spare space because a group of people who were not going to go got to go. That was very cute and nice of them I think.
My favorite quote of the night: "Iphones don't crash." I giggled.
Also some random FW guys decided that I'd want to hunt them down. I tried to explain to them that I don't care. It was hard.
Another question I was asked several times was, "Who and what do you fight?" and the puzzled and shocked reactions to my response of, "Everyone and anything." I'm going to have to wrap that up in its own post.
Off to bed.
Sounds like some experience, being in the middle of things and feeling as an outsider. I had something similar at an EVE meetup in DC. People around me were super nice and were talking about the amazing things they do in nullsec. I recognized none of their names or coalitions (if it isn't goon or russian, what is it doing in null?). When they found out that I live in a WH, they were very kind and found someone in the group who has an alt in a hole so I have someone I could talk to :)
ReplyDeleteI think thats t he great part about EVE - we think we play the same game but we are not. Meet 10 people and it seems like they are in very different games.
Hope the rest of your Vegas stay gets better. Is Zumanity still on? Thats a great show...
Oh it was not a bad time. I just don't think it is the right type of event for me?
DeleteMy husband just told me that normally people go to that type of thing knowing people or having at least one other person instead of walking in cold. Not being one to go out or do such things I didn't/don't know the quite of 'going out for the night'. I decided to give it a try instead of just assuming it isn't my thing as it normally is.
I met/talked to more people than I have combined at fanfest and eve vegas last year which is a major improvement. For those a bit more used to going out socially I think it is a fantastic time. I'm glad I went. It was an interesting and different experience.
We are going to Penn and Teller on Sunday. I saw Zumanity in 2007 and it is still on, yes.
i really would give a lot if CCP would put out some statistics on who lives where. Hell just a rough but accurate % of players in Hi/Lo/Null/Negsec... Everytime I read a post about a meetup (by people I am interested in such as you, Mab, Stabs etc.) it seems they are swarmed by Nullseccers. With the generally accepted figure of 90+% of eve players live in Hisec, is it just that Nullseccers are more gregarious? and non-nullsec players are less? You are there, Mab (though SYJ has recently forayed into NPC Null) is there... so what gives with the general feeling in posts such as these that non null players are not really a part of the Meetup scene?
ReplyDeleteThey've given out those numbers in the past lowsec tends to hover between 6-9% of the population. Nullsec around 20% and Wormholes around 7%.
DeleteMarc Scaurus did a blog on it last year; http://scaurus.com/lowsec-by-the-numbers/
So... lets call Lo 8% + Negsec 7% + Nullfun 20% = 35% leaving 65% of the player accounts in EvE living primarily in Hisec... (missed Marc's post, thanx)... So at RW gatherings is it just that nullseccers are more 'clannish' and tend to do things together, in RL as it is in EvE, combined with the more solo-small group playstyle of Hisec players? Or is it in part that a vast number of Hisec toons are just, as has been proposed, Null alts?
ReplyDeleteThoughts? Discusson? Tur, shuddup? =]
Theory-crafting ofc, but I'd say ~65% of the player base plays EVE casually and the other ~35% less so. Both null and wormholes take fairly seriously commitments to EVE, lowsec less so, perhaps but still more so then high-sec.
DeletePeople that take their EVE quite seriously are also the group that is likely to show up at player events I'd reckon. Though I'm sure there's a portion of the high-sec community that is fairly hardcore too.
It probably also matters that pre-existing EVE group bonds take away some of the social barriers in travelling to fan meetups by yourself since there will be people there you know at least from voice comms etc.
Not sure what the fuss is about mitten, ya he has a nice website and all but I would have been a lot more excited to meet you! I check your blog everyday, And i love reading it. Screw a mittens!
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting but unfortunate that you suffered the invisible person problem.
ReplyDeleteI brought my girlfriend (who doesn't play EVE) along with me on the pub crawl and she kept getting asked who she flies with, so there were probably a lot of mixed signals regarding whether any given woman played EVE or not.
Retrospectively, it definitely does help to have at least one or two other people you know there, just as something to fall back on when you're not feeling like breaking into other people's conversations. Maybe it's just me, but I found it a lot scarier to try to chat up some singleton who was hanging out than to try to insinuate myself into a relatively developed conversation.
I figure I just don't emitt the proper friendly and approachable vibe. :P
DeletePeople on the pub crawl on the bus were quite nice.
I went to Eve Vegas knowing only one other corp mate who I had not actually met in person before. With the WAG (wives and girlfriends) group, it was possible to spot them a long way off but most were still approachable and were happy to chat about various stuff besides EVE. Some knew who their spouse/partner flew for and I had spoken to them before and knew who they were talking about.
DeleteAs for breaking the ice with other players, it had already been done, we all play the same game and had our tags written up and hanging around our necks, I went up to most and asked "who am I talking to?" while looking at their tag, they responded with a good handshake and the we go from there.
I may just have the social grace of none at all. :)
DeleteEVE has always been only for PC gamers. No this straight in that forum https://forums.eveonline.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=246578&find=unread but if I get curious to know what will happen with Dust 514, is a great game, which I think it is growing and improving.
ReplyDeleteSorry dear fellow, but I have read some information online that EVE Dust out something expensive to maintain in service, so you can go broke, causing the closure of this as it mainly
I was one of the Tuskers in the elevator. It was nice to meet you and thanks for the shout. You have a nice blog.
ReplyDeleteI was the Tusker you talked to in the lift up to the stratosphere.
ReplyDeleteThe joke about Narou being a spai is a general one on our forums with most ex-Tuskers, they still have forum access because we have no 'super sekrit ops' to hide and the Tusker family is mostly for life.