We had a great time at the reception last night. I did get to meet James Randi and this long-awaited thrill was more than I'd anticipated as he recognized my name — something I wasn't expecting. A few years ago, I wrote an essay for a website and not only did Randi read it, he thought enough of it to quote it in one of the Swift reports. I was dumbfounded, as I'd really just been paraphrasing many of the things I'd learned from him over the years. That paled in comparison to being recognized for the work we've done on The Atheist Experience/Non-Prophets shows.
Whoever suggested that one avoid meeting their heroes in order to avoid disappointment never had heroes like mine. I've met several of my heroes and I haven't been disappointed in the least.
One of the bigger surprises of the reception was that I was approached by a surprising number of people who were fans of the work we've done. I expected to run into a few people who might recognize me from a YouTube clip, or some who might spot the name and ask "Don't I know you from somewhere?", or "Hey, I really like the shows"...but what happened was substantially more than that. I spent the better part of the evening talking to people who were big fans of one or both shows.
It's very nice to hear that people appreciate and have benefited from the work we've done and I can't wait to meet more people over the next few days. If you're at TAM and haven't stopped by to say hello - do.
After the reception, we went to the 'Magic, Mentalism and Mayhem' show...hosted by Jamy Ian Swiss and featuring Kevin Burke, Banachek and Mac King. A brief summary: Jamy was the perfect host and entertainer (as expected), Kevin Burke was laugh-out-loud funny, Banachek was baffling and Mac King was at his best - and was the perfect highlight and closer.
As I've mentioned, I don't ever leave Vegas without seeing Mac's show. I've seen his act several times and we'll be going to his show on Monday...even after seeing last night's show (perhaps I should say 'especially after').
After the show, we sat around and drank with some of the attendees and then turned in...because the events started at 8:00 this morning.
We just finished listening to the Skeptics Guide to the Universe Live, and Hal Bidlack is finishing up his opening remarks. My laptop battery is dying, so I'll have comments about his opening remarks a little later.
Time to enjoy my day!
Friday, July 10, 2009
5 comments:
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Congratulations! It's always fun when someone you admire have heard of you.
ReplyDeleteHope you have a wonderful TAM!
Re: Being mobbed by fans.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't particularly jealous before, as I'm not a big Vegas goer. Now I am. You're tempting me.
Matt-
ReplyDeleteAny chance you can dig up that old article you wrote that Randi used?
I'd be curious to read it.
See Matt, the reason people recognize you is very simple: you're really very good at what you do. I'm sorry, but you're going to have to deal with it. ;)
ReplyDeleteWhoever suggested that one avoid meeting their heroes in order to avoid disappointment never had heroes like mine. I've met several of my heroes and I haven't been disappointed in the least.
ReplyDeleteIt's all about choosing the right heroes.