New York - October 2012
-
As an addendum to my pictorial report, I just want to say a few words about the people we met through this trip/ gathering.
Some of you guys I have spoken to extensively in the last couple of months/ years, and some of you less so, I can honestly say that I genuinely like everyone I met during the course of this party, and seriously consider you guys as friends.
Urb, I felt very comfortable with Shane, like we had been friends for years, and I am sure that will prove to be the case.
D666, I knew what Jeff was about before we met, he's a big guy with a big heart and big passions. I can relate to Jeff as there is nothing at all false about the man, which makes him a very easy guy to get along with. It's no coincidence that one of Jeffs favourite musicians is Bruce Springsteen, as Jeff has a very Springsteen vibe about him.
Lando, Landon had been so helpful to me in the run up to the trip, he helped me get restaurant reservations, and when we met he went out of his way to make Tommy and Pam feel welcome, which showed me the exact kind of guy Landon is. A laid back, fun and friendly individual.
RP, I spoke to Richard a lot prior to going to NYC, but didn't really know what to expect still as I had only ever seen his back in fit pics
Richard is a really great guy, knowledgable, fun to hang out with, genuine and very cool.Doug, like quite a few of the others, I found Doug to be a bit of a surprise. Doug (to me) comes across as a very straight talking, no nonsense kind of guy, who takes charge and deals with situations. He is all those things, but he is also fucking hilarious, he's helped by the fact that Jodie is so awesome too.
Chris, I regret not having more time to hang out with Chris, for two guys in similar situations, with kids in town, our schedules never seemed to entirely match. We had a great game of cat and mouse in the M&M store on Times Square to complete a bit of business. What I can say about Chris is that he is EXACTLY as he posts on the forum, which is funny, incisive, able to laugh at himself as much as at others.
MikeC, Mike was a surprise to me, I was expecting a very direct and no nonsense kind of guy, what I found was the most chilled out guy I have ever met. Great sense of humour, very sharp, always laughing, a real fun guy to hang with.
Alex, had met Alex a couple of times before, but I was really pleased to spend more time chatting with him and getting to know him better. Alex is a very clear minded, sharp witted guy, and extremely genuine, if the Lord G ever retires that IH-UK empire would be in good hands with the Crown Prince.
Madmonday, Mike was another surprise, I was surprised when he suddenly appeared right in front of me, and I was equally surprised to find that he wasn't mad at all. Mike is another guy with great humour, again also very sharp, open and friendly. I wish I got more time with Mike, but our schedules didn't match again….there's always next time. Pams biggest disappointment was that she didn't get to meet Mike, as he has gone out of his way to help her out with some stuff she wanted from the U.S.
Seawolf, Zach was another guy who I spoke with a lot over PM before coming to NYC, and meeting him he was exactly as I expected. Very cool, very open, very sharp, but also clearly a caring family guy. Along with Doug, he also shares the strength of having an awesome wife in Caitlin.
EmceeQ, the first thing that struck me about Mike (apart from his very impressive hair and beard) was that this was clearly a very clever individual. The second thing that struck me about Mike was that he had a shitload of stamina for drinking and not sleeping. Again, a very honest, genuine and fun guy to hang out with.
TVShooter, Aaron said to me on the night that he couldn't believe I was there. I couldn't believe that he was there so the feeling was most definitely mutual. I have read Aarons posts since my early days on SUFU, and always thought he was one of the coolest, nicest, and most interesting guys on that (or any) forum. In real life he did not disappoint. Really cool guy.
I also really enjoyed meeting DirtyDenim (Sal) and Krissy, as well as Twin (Richard), Scroogen (Sean) and all the other guys from Self Edge, and the IH-JP crew. I am sorry that we didn't have more time to hang out and would sincerely love to get more time with the entire crowd.
To anyone who didn't make it, I would say to you that the next time an event like this occurs if you can possibly be there then do it. Being there this weekend was more important to me than any shirt, jacket, boots or denim I have bought this year. The experience of meeting all these cool people was more than I could ever have hoped for, and I thank you all for making me and my family so welcome.
-
Gavin, you have a beautiful family, and I look forward to seeing you next summer, if not sooner. Thank you for your kind words
I have a hard time forming relationships on this forum. Since day 1, I have been a moderator on this forum, I've never been a regular member. Giles brought me onboard with the intention of taking care of problems. That tends to make me seem like a real asshole. I know it, and I've never denied it. I treat being a moderator as a job, and it's hard (at least for me) to be effective and shoot the shit at the same time.
I'm not going to post up individual shout outs, but as you've probably figured out by the smiles on our faces, we had a great time with you all, and can't wait to damage our livers with you again. You're a great bunch of guys and gals
Back to cracking the whip
Doug Ng
AKA DougNg -
Mega- wish i could say some nice things about you too, but i'm at a loss.
no, really, really amazing to finally meet you and your family. Tommy came right up to me immediately and was just sooo cool. very outgoing and well mannered. and his knowledge of older school wrestlers was quite impressive. i really wished he could have suplexed a few of those beer scragglers that wondered over from the movie shoot, especially the guy that looked like Lionel Ritchie. really wish the night didn't go by so quickly.
as for the rest of the motley bunch, it was a pleasure to meet you and make new friends. i tried to bounce around and make time to get to know a little about everyone, some familiar faces, and some not, but each of ya'll very cool peoples. let's party again sometime soon!
-
I'll say this again. I would have moved heaven and earth to meet you all…turns out, they're really feckin' HEAVY!!! Thank you all so much for including us in the party with your wonderful posts and pictures. It really helped guys like me, feel like we were there. Seriously, thanks for taking us with you. Oh, and tell Kiya to lay off my look...it's almost copyrighted...just waiting on the damn paperwork to process.
-
Cool pic's Mega and write up about the IH Peeps you met up with.
Thanks for sharing
Cheers
-
Sorry to hear you had such a rubbish time Mega.
-
Yeh, you would have hated it SM. Are you going to Rivet and Hide this Friday by the way?
-
Sadly, it clashes with a friend's wedding so I'm unable to make it. Would have been grand to finally meet you and G&P. Next time…
-
For those who were not able to make it to the party two Saturdays ago to meet Haraki-san and team, here's the next best thing - Haraki-san on video!
A big thank you to The Crosby Press for coming out to film the party. We've got a few more videos coming out with them in the coming weeks that be pretty entertaining as well.
-
I'd just like to mention that the NYC trip really hammered home how much trouble is coming my way in the next 17 years, via my daughter.
This is her visit to Macy's:
When we entered the store, we owned neither the purse, nor the notebook. When we left, we owned both.Second, Julie, Benjamin, Caroline and I had a lovely dinner with the Padmores on Sunday. My daughter, who does not like strangers at all, was immediately taken with Giles.
So now, even though she is only 18 months old, I know that she is a dangerous shopper and has terrible taste in men.
