2014 Cleveland Memories
 

Given that we are hearing some of the same hesitancies to attend Atlantic City that we heard about Cleveland, thought this might be good.

Post some positive experiences from Cleveland 2014.

A few great experiences:

• not being sick - had a horrible cold the entire 2013 Chicago show
• meeting Ken - I had been looking forward to it for months, and he is a great guy
• having drinks with Doug Allen. Regardless of his situation and his criminal activity, hearing his stories from the days before I was in the hobby, was really special
• Meeting so many Net54 members, and re-meeting others
• A consistently delicious evening meal at the Marriott
• others in no order, but the best was the roadtrip to/from (especially 'from') Cleveland. David and I got to see a part of the country that I had never been through - Little Big Horn, Deadwood, Badlands, etc.
• Sharing a table with Mike, Tim and David
• Leaving a load of big items with Al for consignment :)

Definitely hearing Doug talk about some of his earlier finds and chasing big consignments was an odd highlight.

Chris, I'm glad you responded. I am expecting to get bashed over that comment, but it was an entertaining evening. Just wish I hadn't crashed so early that night.

2014 was great! It was my first National Convention, I was able to finally meet in person a bunch of people I had known for years online (including Chris B., albeit briefly), I had a really nice dinner on Friday evening, and I got a hug from Al @ LOTG. Wins across the board! :)

Meeting you Scott for the first time at your booth was very enjoyable.

The only bad part about the 2014 National was having to get the convention center asap in the morning and having to eat a convention center hot dog for breakfast.

It was great to finally meet you, Scott!

As for hanging with Doug, I'm sure that in all aspects in life it's much more fun to spend time with a scoundrel than a saint. Who wouldn't want to have a beer with John Dillinger or John Brown or Jose Canseco?

Ken

"I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints" ~ Billy Joel

It's creepy that you mentioned John Brown. I saw a dead ringer for him outside my local pub last night. He looked so much like Brown that I wanted to take his picture, but of course did not. There are some chairs on the sidewalk for smokers, and the homeless often take butts out of the ashtray and sit down for a smoke.

But yes, I think there is an added flair to the stories of such people due to remembering the adrenaline rush they felt during their illegal escapades.