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Never Mind the Hobnob, I Have a 7-10 Split
Reflections on BlogBowl I

May 26, 2000


Brig was late.

It wasn't that big a deal -- after all, I didn't show up until 9:45, too far past the 9 p.m. gathering time to be fashionable and long after the bowling commenced. But the whole thing was created in Brig's honor, since she was visiting New York, even though she wanted nothing to do with the quasi-athletic event at BowlMor that defined the evening, and her absence was cause for concern.

"Where's Brig?" were the first words Cameron spoke to me, way before "hi" and "how's it going."

"She's not here?"

"I thought she was coming with you."

Seven geeky guys, no guest of honor. Hm. Before I had a chance to settle in, however, Brig and her sister came walking up, and we had a party on our hands.

What made the night fun was the sheer lack of skill of most of the participants. Bowling provides a wonderful excuse to applaud, encourage, self-deprecate and laugh. Cam and Damien came toting their own bowling shoes, but Cam's coworker Neil posted the highest scores of the night, leveling the playing field. I shot a 113 and a 98 and threw as many gutter balls as spares.

We stayed past midnight, talking after our lanes were shut down, exchanging stories and business cards. There was very little web-geek talk while we bowled, although I was offered a G4 upgrade card for my shoes at one point. I had a great time re-establishing contact with some people I'd met before (like Damien, Grant, and Elan, if you want me to name drop) and meeting some more folks that do what I do, like Brigitte, who was in good spirits despite our making her waste three of her waking hours in New York sitting in a bowling alley.

Note to self: ugly bowling shoes are an excellent social equalizer.

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