Bowery Mural

When Bad Weeks Go Good – Themeet140 Glasgow

Saturday 29 May 2010

A few weeks ago I’d seen a hash tag being floated about on Twitter: #themeetup140 People were tweeting and retweeting it.  Then came a tweet from Mark ( @markofrespect ) asking if we were going along.  From what I’d read about these meetups (from the London one that is) it would be an informal get-together of a group of people with a common interest in social media.  My first thought was ‘yes I’d love to go but not being a social media professional in any way, I’d stick out like a sore thumb’...  how wrong can you be.

I decided only a few days beforehand that I would go along after seeing the number of people I knew (online knew that is) would be going along and there were people whom I’d been tweeting for a few weeks and months that I really really wanted to meet in real life (
@ThirdSectorLab  @TartanCat to name a few).  Feeling somewhat stressed with 3 days of car garage trouble and a hefty car repair bill I became brave and booked my place at themeet140 and a few days later set off on the train to Glasgow.  A text came in from Nicola (@LilacSwizzle) asking when I’d be at the train station.  We met and headed on the underground to the Landsdowne Bar.  (A lovely friendly venue with a good atmosphere on the two occasions I’ve been so far.  I will be back there!).

It was great to see Mark again, it had been too long since he had cancelled a lunch date on us.  Sorry Mark I’m not going to let you forget that one!!  When we got there, there were about 12 people, we tagged onto a table and were introduced to a few people.  I scanned the room and there were faces I recognised and faces I didn’t.  More people started to arrive and the room started filling.  The sun was shining into the conservatory, people were chatting and introductions were being made.  The atmosphere was good.  The introductions mostly consisted of “I’m so and so and on Twitter I’m x” and the penny drops and you realise and smile at finally meeting these friends in real life.  Being the introvert, I’m quite happy to sit and listen to people’s stories about who they are and what they do.  But here I found myself mixing and engaging with people I never thought I would.  I mean my interest in social media for now is strictly personal as I am but a humble administrator.  But like I’ve mentioned in previous posts I do love social media and all that it has done enrich my life in the past couple of years (whether that be through this blog or via Twitter).  Not once did I feel that I didn’t belong.  All the people I met and spoke with were lovely.  And those who I’d been tweeting with beforehand did not disappoint in person either.  I mean I almost let out a yelp of joy when Julie (
@juliebeee) came across and said “Ange?” then told me who she was (She doesn’t have a picture avatar you see!).  We’ve only been tweeting for a few weeks but I already know this lady will be a friend.  This sentiment applies to a lot of people I met there that night.  Since Wednesday evening I’ve engaged with them on Twitter and had some good practical advice on things and I hope to catch up again at the next #themeet140 Glasgow!!  There were a couple of people missing as they couldn't make it along so until next time...

Chris (
@chrish10) has written a great post on how he and Mark came up with the whole idea, you can read that here.  In it he says:  “there’s nothing better than following the hashtag the next day and seeing the impact the night had on everyone’s mood and week”     I don’t think you realise what an impact it has on someone like me, a quiet person who finds it hard to strike up real life conversations except with people I know.  But Twitter and now #themeet140 has allowed me to find a voice, and like the mountains, to find somewhere I can fit in in my own unique way.  The energy and enthusiasm is infectious so much so that I think I’m finding the confidence to push on with my little crafty idea I have!! (And for which I might need some help and advice from a few of you guys?).

For anyone that is unsure I recommend you try to attend one of these nights wherever they may pop up.  You can follow 
@themeet140  on Twitter for more updates and details of future events.
Thanks to Mark and Chris for dreaming up this idea and more importantly for putting it in to practice.  Brilliant!

And that was the story of how my bad week turned good.  #themeet140 is where it’s at!
Ange x

3 comments:

  1. There is absolutely nothing humble about you my darling. It was lovely to meet you, and to share your thoughts like this is incredibly generous.

    We will definitely meet up again soon.

    tartancat x

    ReplyDelete
  2. Stephen O'Donnell30 May 2010 at 18:42

    Great to meet you too (& everyone else) and now read everyone's blogs.

    Please feel free to chip in on my blog too http://www.ayeright.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. themeet140 only works if there is a broad mix of people who all get something out of social media personally and I have met few people who have gotten so much out of Twitter as you. To me you embody themeet140.

    It is more than that though. Your enjoyment of Twitter has helped me. When I needed a laugh you were there, when I need a kick up the arse ...

    Chris and I really appreciated you making the journey across, and to read this post empowers us to keep doing them.

    Know that your experience, as defined in this post, is shaping future events.

    ReplyDelete

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