I drove up to Wilkes-Barre yesterday to meet some NEPA bloggers. Gort42 hosts this a couple times a year and it was a chance to meet some of the local and regional bloggers and commenters. I went to Allentown to see what the Steelworkers were up to at the Goodyear store (nothing), did some shopping, bought the book "The Greatest Story Ever Sold" about Bush's lies about Iraq and Katrina, then headed up to W-B.
As I headed down the steep mountainsides into the burg I remembered all the visits we made there as kids. My father was born and raised in Plymouth and my grandmother lived there all her life. At one time we had scads of Morgans and Williams relatives in and around Wilkes-Barre. I wonder if any are left? I drove around but didn't recognize much and couldn't remember how to get around. Next time I'll have to do some homework and check some maps. It would be nice to visit some of those old areas.
I found Mark's Pub (after a bit of getting lost) and waited for Gort and the others. It was a nice group. Several of our readers and commenters attended along with Dave from the Lu-Lac Political Letter, Mark from Wilkes-Barre Online, Chris Casey of True Democrats of the Lehigh Valley, and some spouses. As Dave writes the noise from the music was deafening but we managed to converse and have a nice time. We chatted about mundane blogging matters like site traffic reports, blogrolls and commenting and much, much talk about politics. Mark Cour and I had a spritied exchange about Iraq and 9/11, we had some great cheeseburgers, lost our hearing because of the jukebox, and got to know one another better.
It's always nice to put a face with a name and talk with readers. I enjoyed the trip, the company, and the camaraderie. Thanks go to Gort for organizing the event and inviting me to their neck of Penn's Woods.
Come to Pittsburgh next. You can bunk with us if you give some notice.
Check PghBloggers.org for the next blogfest (seasonal, generally) -- and visit with 20-40 bloggers at once.
Posted by: Mark Rauterkus | December 03, 2006 at 05:34 PM
That would be great. The Pittsburgh bloggers are very active and the community there is thriving. I'd definitely need a place to crash though with it being a 5 hour drive. Wilkes-Barre I can do but not the 'Burgh.
Posted by: John Morgan | December 03, 2006 at 05:41 PM
The world is getting smaller. My husband and myself are natives of the Wyoming Valley.I was and grew up in Pittston,my husband in Wilkes Barre.
Posted by: jane harris | December 03, 2006 at 07:16 PM
Jane you wouldn't have wanted to see the succession of trucks I saw parked along the turnpike by hunters. I didn't see any dead deer though. I was quite concerned with frightened deer running across the highways though. Hunting season makes things far more dangerous for motorists as these idiots scare them out of the woods.
Posted by: John Morgan | December 03, 2006 at 11:09 PM
Thanks for comming John, it was great to meet you. I'm sure we'll run into each other again at some political function.
Posted by: Gort | December 05, 2006 at 01:42 AM
I'm sure we will Gort. It'll be easier now that we know each other. I was wondering if you were also at some of the Carney events I covered. Not having met you meant I didn't know. Tell the new Congressman congratulations for me.
Posted by: John Morgan | December 05, 2006 at 09:11 AM
USW Goodyear Workers take their
message to NASCAR in
Times Square New York City
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL27MF4qIdw
Posted by: united steelworker | December 05, 2006 at 12:45 PM
USW Goodyear Workers take their
message to NASCAR in
Times Square New York City
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL27MF4qIdw
Posted by: united steelworker | December 05, 2006 at 01:36 PM
Give us a heads up before your visit to Pittsburgh. We've got a room for fellow bloggers, for sure. :)
Posted by: Mark Rauterkus | December 06, 2006 at 11:22 AM
We have some of the best bloggers in the country in PA, and I think it would be tremendous if PA Bloggers would host a Roots Camp like they had recently in DC in PA.
Here is a description from their website (http://rootscamp.org/) "RootsCamps are 2006 post-election debriefs. The progressive community — everyone from the "netroots" to precinct captains to field organizers to national message consultants — is invited to come together to hash out what we learned in 2006 and how to apply those lessons going forward"
The website states that they would like people to host regional Roots Camps, this MeetUp could be the stepping stone to something bigger.
As someone who was an active blogger and a political candidate, I would be more than willing to help coordinate this in any way I can.
Posted by: David Slavick | December 09, 2006 at 03:56 PM