<p>It’s assured: jmmom will be here one week from Monday (10/31) and will be gathering with those of us in the Bay Area who are interested and available, for good chat and good cheer. I am acting as point-person here: I have the names of several Likely Suspects who want to get together, and am ■■■■■■■■ for any more possibles before we do a brain-drain to choose the venue that would be most convenient for everyone.</p>
<p>Those of you who’ve already PM’d me about this (like a month ago?): where is your preferred meeting location? It can be anywhere from Berkeley to San Jose, although somewhere in the middle is preferred – it COULD be the Peninsula rather than the East Bay, though. Just let me know your desires. We’re talking early evening, so everyone can get back before our coaches turn back into pumpkins. (And so I can pick up my H from SFO at 10:30pm-ish, where he returns after working overseas for 3.5 months…!) </p>
<p>I shall clear some space in my PM inbox and await all comers. Don’t delay, RSVP today!</p>
<p>Ooooh kay, the logistics on this one are gonna be tricky.</p>
<p>I’ve got half a dozen responses, ranging from “only near Oakland” to “only near Palo Alto” to “only in SF” and two more of us are hanging out in San Jose being buffetted on the winds of Tropical Storm jmmom-party. ( Aren’t you glad I didn’t say Tropical Depression? )</p>
<p>jmmom, you’re going to have to do some coin-flipping, I think: I am so brainless recently I’m not up to the emotional task of making a decision that will mean someone can’t attend. I vote for somewhere mid-peninsula or easily-approachable mid-east-bay: Fremont maybe? (That way, the Palo Alto contingent could just zip across the bridge and the Oakland/Berkeley folks can just buzz down 880? Maybe? Heck, what do I know, I never drive any farther north than Milpitas on that side of the Bay…) We’ve been talking about an early evening post-dinner coffee shop/dessert sort of thing, rather than dinner somewhere, would that work for those attending? I’m thinking 7pm to 10pm-ish (which is when I’d have to leave, but y’all can keep going long into the night if you like!)</p>
<p>I’d love it if we could find somewhere where <em>all</em> of us could get to, but we might end up locating in an inconvenient place for someone, in which case I apologize in advance. jmmom, care to make an executive decision on location?</p>
<p>As Steven Wright so eloquently said, “You can’t have everything: where would you put it?”</p>
<p>EDIT: OK, scratch the above. It’s looking like more folks are clamoring for the Berkeley/Oakland area, so consider that possibility. I know nothing of venues there, you and Slugg will have to confer. I will plead, however, for those of us in San Jose who have to drive way-the-heck-up-there that you try to find something on the SOUTH side of the area? Please?? I really don’t like the idea of driving to Berkeley for this (just as I wouldn’t expect all those from that area to like the idea of driving to San Jose), but I’ll try to do it for the jmmom-er. Let me know what y’all think…</p>
<p>OK, slugg, maybe you can give her East Oakland? :eek:</p>
<p>Mootmom, you’ve been a trooper, but Berkeley/Oakland ain’t that far from SFO. Think of it as an adventure. No, think of it as a College Tour. We were all willing to go to the Ends of The Earth for them. </p>
<p>PS My DH used to commute DAILY from Berkeley to Silicon Valley when we first met, so perhaps I live in an altered reality.</p>
<p>:D Are we trying to find the scariest freakin’ place in the Bay Area to meet on Halloween! Now that Daylight Savings Time is about to end, two Berkeley policewomen visited my husband’s (Berkeley) office last week to give them a refresher course on self-defense and walking to their cars at night. I dunno, there might be a place in Berkeley where we could meet on Halloween Night, as long as it’s surrounded by a 12-foot, electrified, barbed-wire fence to keep out the zombies. </p>
<p>We could ride BART for 3 hours and throw everybody off the train as we get to our various destinations! Jmmie, are you going to be in the City? Moot, I’ll take BART in with you, or you can drive your fancy-schmancy-pants hybrid. My Mazda Proteg</p>
<p>I’ll be in Berzerkly…but I am on a mercy mission and just a few days to get things done for my folks and then back to work. Maybe this summer when I have more time. Anyways, out of here tomorrow. And you just never know…</p>
<p>Overseas, I understand about the responsibility to your parents. It’s hard to split up your time between the folks and anything else. I’m the same way whenever I’m in town (Nevada) to see mine. ;)</p>
<p>But, if you find yourself at loose ends, send out a virtual ringy-dingy. ~slugg</p>
<p>slugg and everyone - I have sent my email address to mootmom and thinking maybe we should all do that? Because at this rate, we’ll all be still sitting here staring at the screen waiting for our posts to load when our Big Night arrives.</p>
<p><em>sorry to burst Roger’s bubble that the problems have been “solved”</em></p>
<p>overseas - maybe you can sandwich us in between trips to the Safeway. Or, at least that could be your “cover.”</p>
<p>slugg and everyone - I have sent my email address to mootmom and thinking maybe we should all do that? Because at this rate, we’ll all be still sitting here staring at the screen waiting for our posts to load when our Big Night arrives.</p>
<p><em>sorry to burst Roger’s bubble that the problems have been “solved”</em></p>
<p>overseas - maybe you can sandwich us in between trips to the Safeway. Or, at least that could be your “cover.”</p>
<p>I don’t know how I am going to make this trip…I hate planes…I should go to the cyber bar! Leave in 3 hours! I need to brush up on my temporary German. Switch driving on the left to the right and I’ll try the Safeway suggestion. We’ll see. I am going to really try.</p>
<p>Yep, email addie on its way. Double WAAAAAA!, SB. We’ll definitely miss you, cyberpal. Despite the fact that we’re all techno-challenged (speaking for Mootie and myself, anyway), we might be able to do a Podcast, if I can figure out how to do that by asking my resident computer whiz. :)</p>
<p>OK, last last call! jmmom will be here shortly, and on Mon. 10/31 we’re going to do the meet-up thang.</p>
<p>Date: Mon. 10/31
Time: Officially 7pm - 9:30-ish. Some of us might get there earlier.
Location: a cafe in San Leandro (“right off 580, very easy to find”) – (PM me or click on my name and send email if you want details)
Attenders: jmmom. sluggbugg. mootmom. calmom. mstee. 90Mom. … ** you?? **</p>
<p>Still room for more! Want to join us? The secret password for the night is “Sinner’s Cafe” (we rejected “HYPSM” and “Early Decision” as too stressful, and went straight for Sinner’s Alley). We promise no costumes. (Slugg promises to leave her plastic butt at home. Sorry.)</p>
<p>Only my real butt will be there! Booo~ooo! SB, I’m going to bring a camera, and I think somebody else said they would, too. We’ll make an iMovie for you. I’ll bring a paper sack for anyone who is too shy to be on camera…did I say shy? LOL :D</p>
<p>I’ll have you know that we are pulling off a minor miracle here by getting all of these CC’ers together in the SF Bay Area. This is one motivated group! If we can handle college apps, I guess we can handle the piddling details (e.g. planes, trains, and automobiles) of coordinating this gathering. </p>
<p>Next thing y’know, we’ll be playing Bridge and going on cruises together. Some of our offspring will marry. We’ll make up College Confidentialia teeshirts and have reunions every summer. We’ll include updates of our CC friends in our annual holiday letters. We’ll travel around the U.S. meeting all of the parents, who probably won’t mind having company. We’ll raise funds for the Home for Aging CC’ers in Beverly Hills. We’ll have a glorious future together! Or, we’ll be lucky to have the opportunity to meet this one time. ;)</p>
Aren’t you glad I didn’t say Tropical Depression? 
I vote for somewhere mid-peninsula or easily-approachable mid-east-bay: Fremont maybe? (That way, the Palo Alto contingent could just zip across the bridge and the Oakland/Berkeley folks can just buzz down 880? Maybe? Heck, what do I know, I never drive any farther north than Milpitas on that side of the Bay…) We’ve been talking about an early evening post-dinner coffee shop/dessert sort of thing, rather than dinner somewhere, would that work for those attending? I’m thinking 7pm to 10pm-ish (which is when I’d have to leave, but y’all can keep going long into the night if you like!)</p>
Let me know what y’all think…</p>
Booo~ooo! SB, I’m going to bring a camera, and I think somebody else said they would, too. We’ll make an iMovie for you. I’ll bring a paper sack for anyone who is too shy to be on camera…did I say shy? LOL :D</p>