__  __      _____ _   ___ ____  _     
|  \/  | ___|  ___(_) |_ _|  _ \| |    
| |\/| |/ _ \ |_  | |  | || |_) | |    
| |  | |  __/  _| | |  | ||  _ <| |___ 
|_|  |_|\___|_|   |_| |___|_| \_\_____|
get out. meet people.

Meetup: Chicago: Brit YouTuber Meetup at O'Shaughnessy's

I regret I never made it to a Chicago Goat meetup. But I may actually make the trip from the north suburbs to meet one of my favorite London mudlarkers, Nicola White, who is coming to town to meetup with Brycefoot, who does Geocaching and related stuff locally. I don't know how much this might appeal to some of my local Mefites - or even if it doesn't - if you want a reason to get out for a bit, then come on out!
Nicola's meetup post - she has booked the back bar area. Likely a smallish gathering - under 10 people? I'm really not sure. Some great sample videos if you want to take a look The Strangest objects I have found in the River Thames! A Very Rare Find of a Lifetime found in the Thames Mud fills me with JOY! Like many of the mudlarkers and bottle diggers of YouTube, she frequently researches the history of her finds, and sometimes returns lost objects to family members. She also participates in river cleanups and talks about climate change. She has a particular passion for old clay pipes and objects with interesting histories.
Would you like to find out about mudlarking along the River Thames? Are you curious about what can be found in the Thames mud? Here are some videos which can answer some of your questions. In all of these videos, you'll be accompanying me on my mudlarking adventures along the River Thames in London. We are very lucky. The River Thames flows right through the centre of London and so it contains centuries of history, lost and discarded by the people who have lived along its banks. The Thames is also tidal, and so each day, it leaves out historical artefacts for mudlarks to find. These videos contain some of the objects which I have found, and the stories behind them!

posted by Glinn on Apr 04, 2024 at 7:57 AM

---------------------------

I like Nicola's videos. Too far away to join, but I hope you have fun!
posted by terrapin at 8:37 AM

---------------------------

I'm just now seeing this (6:38pm) so it's too late for me to do this, but wanted to say thanks for posting and I'll keep an eye out for hopefully other meetups.
posted by winesong at 4:39 PM

---------------------------

How it went: I am so glad it was still light out when I drove over. Many people said they took the train which is very close but I felt more comfortable driving. It really wasn't too bad, and I parked on the street right out front with no fees. It was much more crowded and loud than I expected, and in a smaller space. That much said, I actually met some very nice people, some I may meet up with again, including two lovely sisters who recently opened an art gallery, one of whom has a 40-yr old cockatoo (she is the second owner). It was such an unexpected surprise. I spoke briefly with a psychic medium who has 9 kids and 17 grandkids, who drove 8 hours to this event from Iowa with her husband. She lived in Chicago when she was about 18 (a farm girl from Iowa) and the first time she saw drag queens she was scandalized. (How did I learn all these facts? Because the only thing I know about socializing is to ask the other person about themselves.) I had two white labels with "Metafilter" written in sharpie stuck to my jacket but if nicodine came, I did not meet them. I even took some photos with Nicola, even though I hadn't intended to when I first got there. And she gave out Victorian clay pipes with a note thanking people for coming out to meet her, and it is the coolest. A++, may go out again. (Oversharing in the hopes this might help someone else who has a hard time getting out to do stuff.) /end transmission
posted by Glinn at 8:05 AM

---------------------------

Thanks for posting the update! I'm bummed I only just saw this event; I haven't heard of Nicola, but O'Shaughnessy's is just around the corner from me, and I would have come for the meetup opportunity. I'm glad you had a good time!
posted by BevosAngryGhost at 1:11 PM

---------------------------

This sounded right up my alley, but I had to pass on it, as I was out of town. I'm glad you had a good time, though!
posted by carrienation at 7:42 AM

---------------------------