2013 QUILTBAG (Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Trans, Etc.) Gamer Meetup - TICKET SALES CLOSED

Themiscyra · October 2012

TICKET SALES ARE CLOSED. FINAL HEAD COUNT HAS BEEN SUBMITTED.

The 3rd Annual Boston QUILTBAG Gamer Meetup is nearly upon us! This event is open to gay, lesbian, bi, trans, queer, questioning, asexual, and friendly straight gamers of all ages and backgrounds -- a chance to meet, mingle and actually sit down and eat something with awesome people in the middle of all the insanity of PAX.

WHEN: Friday, March 22nd, 2013, starting at 7 pm

WHERE: Uno Chicago Grill, 731 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02115

WHAT: Food. Soft drinks. Drinks at the bar if you want them. And, most importantly, the opportunity to meet a whole lot of awesome gamers from Boston and beyond.

WHO: You! Are you gay? Bi? Trans? Queer? Questioning? Asexual? An ally? As long as you’re into games and down with the QUILTBAG crowd, you’re more than welcome to attend.

HOW: This year, we're going with a ticket system. Tickets include soft drinks, an entree, and a dessert. You can purchase tickets for yourself and your friends at http://quiltbag2013.eventbrite.com/

What exactly does QUILTBAG stand for, anyway?
*deep breath*

Q! Queer! Questioning!
U! Unidentified!
I! Intersex!
L! Lesbian!
T! Transgender! Transsexual! Transvestite! Two-Spirit!
B! Bisexual!
A! Allied! Asexual!
G! Gay! Genderqueer! Gamer!

What's that spell? A MADE-UP WORD THAT'S STILL EASIER TO PRONOUNCE THAN GLBTQA! YAY QUILTBAG!

How can I help?
Right now? Post here! Brainstorm! Keep checking the thread! I'll keep you posted on stuff you can do to make this happen.

My friend/partner/sibling/time-traveling alien companion/clone is not going to PAX East. Can they still attend?
Yes! While this event is loosely connected to PAX East (a whole slew of gamers will be in town, so it’s an awesome time to do it), it is not an official convention event. No one will be checking for badges at the door. Everyone is welcome.

Will there be alcohol at this event?
You may need to go to the bar for it, and you will need to pay for it yourself, but you should be able to get booze if you're 21 or over and you want to imbibe.

Can I bring my partner to this event? Even if they’re not a gamer?
Yes and yes. This is a celebration of our community, and if your partner wants to join you, they are completely welcome – just as long as we have room for you, that is! While the focus of this event is firmly on the gaming community, I’m not going to tell anyone to leave their partner at home even if they’re NOT gamers or industry professionals. (This does apply in the plural as well, for our polyamorous guests.)

I’m bisexual, can I still attend?
Yes!

I’m transgender, can I still attend?
Yep!

I’m still figuring out my sexuality, can I still attend?
Indeed!

I’m asexual, am I welcome?
Completely!

I’m straight but gay-friendly, can I still attend?
Indubitably!

I’m gay, can I still attend?
…I…uh…what? Yes.

I’m a honey badger, can I attend?
Are you a gay, trans, bi, asexual, questioning or QUILTBAG-friendly honey badger? If so, yes. But please don’t maul anyone.

I'm a Time Lord, can I attend?
Please bring one (1) bicurious, unmarried leggy Scottish redhead and/or one (1) gleefully bisexual future time agent as your plus one(s). But yes.

I’m not really into labels, can I still attend?
Look, seriously, as long as you’re down with the QUILTBAG crowd, aren’t looking to troll us, and don’t harass anyone, you’re welcome. In the words of Wil Wheaton, just don’t be a dick.

jdixon1972 · October 2012

I'm glad to see this happening again this year! I couldn't attend last year

but i'm bringing my husband this year, so I hope everything works in my favor!!!!

tvethiopia · October 2012

really really want to go this year, but i would humbly request it is anytime OTHER than thursday night, so as not to conflict with the pre-pax dinner. also, if i have a friend who is into gaming and is glbtq and wants to come, but is not attending pax, is it still cool for me to bring him?

edit: nevermind, that was already answered. i need to read more thoroughly!

thorshauk · October 2012

I couldn't attend last year, but I was there in 2011 and had a great time. I look forward to this!

Themiscyra · October 2012

I'm probably going to try and avoid Thursday night for exactly that reason - between the Bar Crawl, the Pre-PAX Dinner, and Pre-PAX Gaming, I think there'll be a lot of schedule conflicts that night. I'd also rather not do anything outside of the convention itself. But it's a discussion worth having every year. I've tried to keep the planning process fairly democratic, so I won't be taking anything off the table JUST yet.

tisanian · October 2012

I don't have any gaymer friends and I'm excited to make some! Looking forward to this a lot!

Menolly07 · October 2012

...... I clicked into this thinking it was somehow crafting related. "Quilt"bag.. But it is so much better. I shall bookmark so that I may subscribe to your newsletter.

Themiscyra · October 2012

That's actually a really good point. I've changed the thread title so it's hopefully a bit clearer -- given that I only heard the term in the last year or two, and I specifically explain the acronym in the FAQ, I probably should have expected that not everyone would be familiar with the term. No, this is not the PAX East quilting bee. I can't even sew a patch onto a bag without the thread unraveling a few weeks later.

Tektonikk · October 2012

I've missed out on these events twice now (one at East and Prime) cause of scheduled tournament conflicts. I am really going to make the effort now to go to this. I'd love to meet some gaymers. =P

<Omicron-8643> · October 2012

Aww yis. I'm so ready for this meetup.

I was at the 2011 meetup and it was grand but I'm really excited to see what you've done with it, @Themiscyra! (I was the guy who took the really REALLY drunk guy back to his room shortly before we left for UNO's and met up with everyone else later.)

Anywho, I'll cast my votes for a few questions and see what you and others have to say:

Alcohol:I'm fairly neutral when it comes to alcohol so whatever option is the least expensive is fine by me. I'm working on a very limited budget this PAX and this in going to be my only outside event.

Swag: Of course, that said, I'm totally for swag. There's just so much to do and see at PAX that my mind simply cannot remember everything that happens. It's nice to have something that recalls specific moments of PAX. I'd support a wristband but of course, any other ideas would be awesome as well.

Timing: Friday night would probably be the best night to have the meetup as Saturday you're butting up against JoCo and P&S (probably? I dunno, it's been a while since I've followed PAX stuff so I don't know if they still play.) That said, I'd prefer to have it Saturday but that's just my selfish opinion.

Etherangel · November 2012

Woot woot! Excited this is happening again. I liked last years a lot, but also like the idea of adding a option for the 21+ crowd to grab a drink if we so desire one. Option B sounds good, if the Westin turns out to be insanely expensive.

tisanian · November 2012

I cast my vote for Option B on Friday night, though I'm fairly open outside of the Pokecrawl, and as long as I have a nom in one hand and a cocktail in the other I'll be pretty content.

Twiminy · November 2012

This is going to be my first PAX, and in fact my first major trip anywhere alone. I'm glad to see that this is being organized. Even though I'm in a more or less gay-friendly city like Miami, I don't have many gay friends, let alone gamers.
As I'm not really familiar with the goings-on yet I don't have any suggestions but I may be willing to put forth (a little) money to help things roll along when you start taking donations.

jimtherabidcow · November 2012

My girlfriend isn't coming to PAX, and thinks I should save money instead of going, however she is interested in this meet up. So, all signs point us heading to this, as long as it syncs up with our schedule we can't wait.

gigabrain · November 2012

My younger sister is going to be going into PAX with me on Saturday (I'm there all weekend anyways), and this is definitely something she'd be interested in. Mind you she is under 18 so that'd be the sticking point.

Themiscyra · December 2012

Hey all --

Sorry I've been scarce. I've been pulling long hours at work and my mental bandwidth has been severely limited. It sounds like Option B is the most popular of the options, and it's probably going to be easiest on me, so I'll take a look at local restaurants that might be able to accommodate us. If anyone has suggestions for local restaurants, that'd certainly be appreciated. UNO was fun but a bit crowded, I think. On a similar note, how much would you guys be looking to pay for Option B, if we did manage to arrange a flat fee for food and soft drinks? A general ballpark figure is fine.

@gigabrain, my goal with this event has been to keep it open to all ages. I don't think we've had anyone under 18 attend before, but I haven't kept close track of anyone's ages. I remember what it was like to be excluded from con parties because of my age and I'd like to give everyone a safe, welcoming space to mingle. That said, I have to confess to a little anxiety at the prospect. We've never had any issues that I'm aware of, aside from the drunk guy @<Omicron-8643> mentioned (and I don't think I got the chance to thank you for nipping that in the bud, so thank you, seriously), but I'd want to make sure any underage attendees were safe as well, and I couldn't really promise my personal supervision. So I guess my question is -- would you be accompanying her? I'd feel a bit less nervous if I knew that she had a chaperone (and the same would go for any other potential underage attendees, really).

I suppose the alternative plan would be to find some trusted adult volunteers to act as chaperones and keep a lookout for any potential trouble...like Enforcers, I guess, but in more diverse and fabulous colors. :P That poses its own problems, though, starting with how I'd vet them.

Perhaps I'm overthinking this. But I want to make sure this event is safe for everyone involved, open to as many people, and fun for all concerned, in that exact order, and particularly where underage attendees are concerned.

gigabrain · December 2012

Either myself or our mom would be going with her, most likely me.

Jude0487 · December 2012

I'm so glad your doing this again! Looking forward to it

tisanian · December 2012

I think $40-50 would be my budget, though I'm not really sure what a normal amount would be.

tvethiopia · December 2012

personally, i'd start getting wary if the flat rate went over $25, particularly if i'm factoring in cocktail prices on top of that.

tisanian · December 2012

Good point, $25 sounds a bit more sane, especially with keeping beverages in mind.

<Omicron-8643> · December 2012

@Themiscyra Not a problem at all! Thank *you* for running this whole thing.

And $25 sounds like a reasonable price point if the whole shindig isn't too elaborate. I think that was around the total spent on UNO's + cab. A quick glance at the Pre-PAX dinner thread shows that's what they paid last year too. I can't imagine we'd be able to top them.

randy_wrecked · January 2013

This sounds very cool! Count me in. $25 is a nice price.
In the interest of being "that guy", someplace vegan-friendly would be nice.

Commence eye-rolling...now.

shadowfae · January 2013

I missed the gathering last year, and I'm really looking forward to going this year!

shaun0h · January 2013

This will be my first PAX, and I'm also excited about this meetup! I'd also like to offer up that I'm an admin over at Queercraft minecraft server (link removed) and that we'd be willing to host an event if there's interest in Minecraft. We may also have access to a TF2 server, and other games by then too, just wanted to put that out there.

Can't wait for this!

Themiscyra · February 2013

Hey folks -

Sorry for the radio silence; I have been absolutely swamped at work and it's only now starting to let up. I have put in some inquiries with UNO's (where we held the 2011 event; it was a bit cramped but largely worked), Atlantic Beer Garden and Papagayo. I tried to put in an inquiry with Legal Test Kitchen as well, but there seems to be a problem with their form submissions, so I'm not sure that went through. I also contacted M.J. O'Connor's -- the pub over at the Westin -- but understandably they expect a LOT of business during PAX East and can't reserve any space for us unless we buy out the place, which would be cost prohibitive.

If anyone would like to suggest additional venues, I'm all ears. Right now, I'm just waiting to hear back. Hopefully I'll have more news for you all soon. But no, I haven't forgotten you, and yes, I'm doing my best to make this happen. Fingers crossed!

tvethiopia · February 2013

papagayo would be AMAZING. margaritas = i am there.

coconutcrow · February 2013

Themiscyra · February 2013

Atlantic Beer Garden is also a no, as they're expecting large crowds from PAX East (not that I'm terribly surprised on that front). They did want to know if we'd consider an alternative date, but since even a Thursday or Monday event would leave people out, I don't think that's going to work either. Still waiting to hear back from Papagayo and UNO's.

I may need to widen the search...I suspect most places around the waterfront and even South Station are honestly going to be really full or out of our ideal price range. Are people willing to go farther afield? I know some places in Central and Harvard Square that might be able to host the gathering.

Again, alternate suggestions are welcome.

<Omicron-8643> · February 2013

Uno's worked well enough last time, in my opinion. Everywhere is going to be packed no matter where we go.

Themiscyra · February 2013

True enough. I'm hoping I hear back from UNO's soon. I'd rather not show up anywhere with 30 or 40 people and ask if they can squeeze us in, so I still need to make some kind of arrangement in advance.

If I don't hear anything from UNO's by the weekend I'll see if I can dig up some fresher contact info. It's possible my contact doesn't work there anymore.

Themiscyra · February 2013

I haven't heard back from my previous contact at UNO's, so I submitted a request through their website. Will hopefully hear back in the next week or so. Still have not heard back from Papagayo. I'm hoping UNO's will come through for us, but if not, I may need to start looking a bit farther away from the BCEC. Suggestions are still welcome, and as always, I'll post when I know more. Sorry, guys -- I really wish I'd found the time to get this all sorted sooner.

<Omicron-8643> · February 2013

Themiscyra wrote: »

Sorry, guys -- I really wish I'd found the time to get this all sorted sooner.

That's not a problem in the least. Hell, worst comes to worst, we'll throw a picnic. Actually, weather depending, that's not a bad idea now that I think about it. Thoughts as a backup plan?

Themiscyra · February 2013

The picnic sounds interesting, but I wouldn't trust the weather in March to cooperate, especially now that the climate's suddenly remembered it's supposed to be winter.

BUT! I did just hear back from UNO's. We have a few different workable options in our price range; I'll try to sum them up here. All of them include unlimited soda and iced tea. I don't know offhand if you can get booze separately, but if all else fails, you can probably go to the bar and buy drinks.

ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT
In addition to the soda and iced tea, these options include lemonade, coffee, tea, and gourmet cookies for dessert.
PIZZA - Garden salad and three deep-dish varieties: pepperoni, veggie, and cheese & tomato.
PIZZA AND PASTA - Garden salad, same deep-dish varieties as above, plus penne with marinara and chicken & broccoli alfredo.
PIZZA AND WINGS - Garden salad and pizza as above; choice of bone-in or boneless wings with buffalo and/or honey BBQ sauce.
BURGERS, CHICKEN AND PASTA - Garden salad, penne with marinara, chicken fingers, burger sliders, and fries.

FIXED MENUS
FAVORITES - Side house salad included. Choice of fish & chips, romano crusted chicken parmesan, chopped honey citrus chicken salad, Numero Uno deep dish pizza, eggplant & spinach & feta on a 5-grain crust, or chicken & broccoli alfredo for the entree. Dessert is a choice of a mini Granny Smith apple pie or a mini brownie sundae.
CLASSICS - Choice of chopped honey crisp chicken salad, chicken finger platter, cheese & tomato deep dish pizza, pepperoni thin crust pizza, cheddar burger, or turkey & bacon & swiss sandwich for the entree. Same dessert choices as above.

I'm afraid none of these really give us vegan options, and vegetarian options are, as you can see, somewhat limited. We'd also need 20 people minimum for each of these menus, and I'd probably need to get the money together sooner rather than later. We MIGHT be able to just do a really big group reservation, and have EVERYONE pay their own way, but frankly, I'm surprised we got away with that two years ago and I'm not sure they'll love that idea now. I'm e-mailing back to check availability on our preferred location; in the meantime, feedback is welcome.

tvethiopia · February 2013

all of those options look good, except for the burgers/chicken/pasta one, because going to uno's and not having a pizza option seems crazy! are there price differences between the choices? that could be a deciding factor.

Themiscyra · February 2013

There are. The all-you-can-eat options start at $16.00/person (just pizza); pizza & pasta is $18.00, and the other two options are $19.00 a head. The favorites menu is the most expensive of the options I've listed, at $19.50 a head, while the classics menu is $15.25 a head. There are some more expensive options (around $25 or so) that I haven't listed, but there's no pizza on either of those menus anyway. All the prices include tax & gratuity.

tvethiopia · February 2013

my vote would be for the classics options then, as it is both the cheapest and provides the best variety of options for the price.

<Omicron-8643> · February 2013

Ah, a picnic was wishful thinking. Glad to hear you've heard back!

tvethiopia wrote: »

my vote would be for the classics options then, as it is both the cheapest and provides the best variety of options for the price.

Going to second that vote. However, I come from a position where I have very few food restrictions. The lack of vegan and limited vegetarian options is concerning. Perhaps we'd need a word from them?

Themiscyra · February 2013

Absolutely. Any vegan/vegetarians in the house? Please chime in!

jdixon1972 · February 2013

I like Uno's and think it's a great idea. I'm all for any of the pizza options! I love the pizza...

Themiscyra · February 2013

So just FYI, with Eventbrite and PayPal fees, the actual ticket cost will be a little under $17.50 per if we go with the Classics menu (which seems to be the popular choice so far, and is the least expensive of our options). That's still well below our ideal price of $20/head. Sorry, folks -- I'd offer to eat the fees, but I really can't afford to do that this year. I could possibly set up something through PayPal directly; then it would just be $16.05-ish with the fees factored in. Eventbrite is easier because it gives us a distinct landing page for the event, but it wouldn't be impossible for me to pull something together.

I am going to need to sell tickets in advance for this one, I'm afraid -- if we're paying for a group event, I can't really afford to have people promise to pay at the door and then fail to show up at the last minute. I'll try to give everyone as much wiggle room as possible, but it'll depend on the deadline they give me for the deposit and the full payment. (I might be able to cover the deposit. Something else I'll have to check on.) I'll also need a full headcount ASAP. I tossed out the number 40 as a guesstimate, in keeping with our attendance this year and last (last year we had 100 people sign up, but it was a free event and there were definitely plenty of no-shows; I'd estimate our actual attendance was closer to 40-50), but more precision would be good.

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