Should you approach an Australian Mefite?

January 6, 2013 9:17 PM

I was in the courtyard of an inner west cafe today (not one I go to very regularly), and as I was walking inside to pay with my family, saw over someone's shoulder that they had The Blue open on their laptop. I was so startled that an Australian was reading my site I couldn't compose myself to say hello.

It's probably peculiar to Sydney, or rather, not-America....but would it have been proper or terribly unseemly to approach the chap and say..."Gidday...so, uh, MeeFie or Miffy, mate?"

I assume this is not an uncommon thing to stumble over when you're in America-land, but I've never met a Mefite in a non-meet up environ.

What is the etiquette here?

(I should clarify that I'm not asking as a missed connection kind of thing. I'm an elderly married baggage... I was just thinking what I should/could have said, given our teeny Antipodean population.)

So my lovelies....whatcha reckon?

Do you say something to someone you discover is metafilter folk?

posted by taff to Etiquette/Policy at 9:17 PM (104 comments total)

My approach on the rare occasions it has come up has been to become excited and flustered and essentially shout "METAFILTER" in their general direction and see if they respond.

I am not really a go-to person for social etiquette, though.
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:19 PM on January 6 [73 favorites]

yeah, when i consider how this might go, i just yelll out MATHOWIE and see who turns around with recognition instead of "wtf is wrong with that chick?!"
posted by nadawi at 9:24 PM on January 6 [1 favorite]

Nod vaguely towards the laptop (you don't want to be nodding too specifically at the laptop).

Q: Are you a user?

Depending on the answer, you either reply with:

A: OMG ME TOO! I'M TAFF!

Or:

A: You chasin'? Know anybody who's chasin'?
posted by turgid dahlia 2 at 9:25 PM on January 6 [8 favorites]

I don't think I've ever encountered it in the wild, although I've occasionally heard folks refer to it at parties or somesuch-- but more in the way that one refers to the existence of a website, not as in 'I AM A MEMBER OF THIS WEBSITE.'
posted by shakespeherian at 9:25 PM on January 6

I believe the classic introduction is, "Hi, are you a friend of Matt Haughey?"
posted by embrangled at 9:26 PM on January 6 [26 favorites]

A: You chasin'? Know anybody who's chasin'?

Jason? Nah, sorry mate, I'm Dylan.

what I should/could have said, given our teeny Antipodean population

"In the name of the most holy and individual Trinity: Be it known to all...."
posted by pompomtom at 9:28 PM on January 6 [1 favorite]

Embrangled, I utterly forgot that in my fluster!!!!

Would you have said anything though?
posted by taff at 9:29 PM on January 6

Unless I could somehow confirm that they were logged in I don't think I would say anything. They could just be a non-registered reader or even an ex-member who quit or got banhammered. Asking them if they're a user of Metafilter and it turns out they were, once, many years ago, but haven't been members for ages, they just check the site, what really pissed them off is such-and-such, is like a really tedious situation to be in.
posted by turgid dahlia 2 at 9:34 PM on January 6

I believe the classic introduction is, "Hi, are you a friend of Matt Haughey?"

That doesn't always work out.
posted by zamboni at 9:35 PM on January 6

I think I would. Probably along the cortex line of going 'Hey! Metafilter!', and hoping the person didn't think I was a nutbar.

I recently did a Facebook poll and discovered that none of my friends read MeFi. It made me feel...isolated, notwithstanding that I know you live, like, 200m away from me, taff.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:36 PM on January 6 [2 favorites]

Hi, are you a friend of Matt Haughey?

Is it "HOR-EE" or "HOW-HAY"?

nm I just remember it's "howie". Or...is it?
posted by turgid dahlia 2 at 9:40 PM on January 6

I'm your neighbour red thoughts.
I need a cup of sugar.


I love that no one knows metafilter. I let all my Facebook buddies think I'm the cleverest most dedicated net surfer in the universe.
posted by taff at 9:41 PM on January 6 [27 favorites]

"Cortex sent me."
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 9:43 PM on January 6 [7 favorites]

I prefer the challenge trigger phrase: "Are you a friend of Jessamyn?"

Jessamyn West?
Jessamyn Charity West?
Justice Jessamyn Charity West?
posted by ceribus peribus at 9:46 PM on January 6 [23 favorites]

Big Brekkie, huh? Nice cafe, and the outdoor area is great for the little ones. Shame about the queues on weekends, though.

Would you recognise Fiasco da Gama if you saw him? He lives nearby-ish. Well, I don't know exactly where he lives, but I gather it's more towards Big Brekky than me, and I'm only about 15 minutes walk away.
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:47 PM on January 6

It's probably safest just to run.
posted by HuronBob at 9:48 PM on January 6 [6 favorites]

I love that no one knows metafilter. I let all my Facebook buddies think I'm the cleverest most dedicated net surfer in the universe.

I let all my Facebook buddies think I'm completely fucking insufferable, because whenever they post some kind of article on science or economics or [insert nerdy topic here], I inevitably reply with a link to the FPP about it 6 months earlier.
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:52 PM on January 6 [7 favorites]

Nah, not Fiasco Ubu. He looked like one of the Proclaimers.

We should totally do a breakfast there with all the little metafilterers.
posted by taff at 9:58 PM on January 6 [1 favorite]

"Oh, hey. I love that site. I'm a member there."

(I'm hopelessly introverted. Would never do this. But it seems like it would work out okay.)
posted by zarq at 9:58 PM on January 6

We should totally do a breakfast there with all the little metafilterers.

A MiniMeFi meetup! *paging smoke*
posted by UbuRoivas at 10:05 PM on January 6

smoooooke!
posted by taff at 10:10 PM on January 6

Seat yourself near the suspect. When someone comes to take your order, say very loudly, "I'D LIKE A PLATE OF BEANS, PLEASE." Observe.

I do this everywhere, even if I don't see someone viewing the site. Just in case.
posted by taz (staff) at 10:15 PM on January 6 [35 favorites]

I assume this is not an uncommon thing to stumble over when you're in America-land...

Is it more common in the US? They have more active users, certainly, but they also have more people overall.
posted by ODiV at 10:41 PM on January 6

So my lovelies....whatcha reckon? Do you say something to someone you discover is metafilter folk?

No don’t say anything, but do get on your laptop and create a FPP about smug, entitled, laptop enabled, coffee drinking web heads who should be ashamed of their complacency in the struggle to end world hunger and suggest they buy something for everyone around them as a rallying point to end the suffering.

Make sure to have a menu handy and keep an eye on the wait staff because once the FPP is deleted (after about 36 seconds of going live), you probably won’t get that free lunch. And your Metafilter account will be disabled.

But it might just work.
posted by lampshade at 11:01 PM on January 6

It would appear taz has been subsisting solely on beans for the better part of a decade now, and is not to be trusted in the sharing of an elevator.
posted by mannequito at 11:22 PM on January 6 [2 favorites]

Hi, are you a friend of Matt Haughey?

Is it "HOR-EE" or "HOW-HAY"?

nm I just remember it's "howie". Or...is it?


Well, is it?



(Thanks for bringing it up, turgid dahlia 2.)
posted by she's not there at 11:25 PM on January 6

Standard procedure is to have Greg Nog chase you down the street while shouting.
posted by The Whelk at 12:14 AM on January 7 [6 favorites]

Accost them, demanding to know why they favorites that comment I yours, then a year later unfavorited it, leaving you with a burning little plus-sized hole in heart.

When they recoil, not being a member, having no idea what you're on about, tell them that it's a great site, and it's changed your life for the better.

Parts, anyway.
posted by Ghidorah at 12:28 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

Taff, you're time-travelling. I won't be in an inner-west cafe reading the Blue until Saturday.

Seriously, though, I find it hard to believe that I could restrain myself from shrieking if I saw someone reading Metafilter. It's a rural Australian thing, I guess. (When WILL someone make a fascinating FPP about sheep dip???)
posted by malibustacey9999 at 12:59 AM on January 7 [3 favorites]

Meet up Stacey?????????
posted by taff at 1:51 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

Sheep dip is one of those things that Metafilter Does Not Do Well.
posted by item at 2:25 AM on January 7 [2 favorites]

What's the Metafilter position on docking lambs? Do we do that well?
posted by taff at 2:30 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

I'd have no hassles with someone going all "HEY ARE YOU ARE FRIEND OF BEANS AND SCHOOPY" at me while I was out in the wild, if only because the Queensland mefites I've met have all been uniformly neat people, even if we do have a habit of getting shitfaced in public at meetups and causing mischief at inappropriate locations.
posted by Jilder at 2:45 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

taff: Depends on how well you grip them with your knees.
posted by Jilder at 2:46 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

i just yelll out MATHOWIE and see who turns around with recognition

But then you get the next one: is it mat-how-ie, or math-owie (I favour the latter, personally).

You chasin'? Know anybody who's chasin'?

Oh man, as a bucolic (can people be bucolic?) 17 year old, fresh out of home and my rural idyll, an interesting young lady once asked me if I knew where get she could "get on". Naturally, I replied, "Oh sure, the bus stop's only about fifty metres down the road, if you jog you'll make the next one." The fact she pursued her original line of conversation with me shows what straits she must have been in.

A MiniMeFi meetup! *paging smoke*

That would be the height of adorableness. Little Puff is unfortunately inclement at the moment. Who would have known that toddlers contain an adult's worth of vomit hey?

Logistically it might prove a bit of a challenge; Quynh is down to one massive sleep from 10-11ish at at the moment, and being away from home anywhere near that time is just... ugh. Additionally, I am regrettably unlicensed, so my partner would have to be enlisted. Dunno if I want to "cross the streams" like that... Dunno if she would want to. She regards my meffing with amused tolerance atm. If she saw Red Thoughts' raw, animal magnetism, she might question the amount of time I spend on here.

Did I say that out loud?
posted by smoke at 2:52 AM on January 7 [2 favorites]

smoke: I always figured babies and toddlers were little portals to the filth dimension, given the high volume output even during period of low volume intake.
posted by Jilder at 2:55 AM on January 7 [2 favorites]

Oh, and would you believe that tomorrow, THE 43 DEGREE DAY, we are having our first baby-free non-work day in.... I don't even know as I don't have a short or medium term memory any more, and we have booked all-day tickets to the Sydney International. God grant mercy on our souls. At least we ponied up for shaded seats. I hope we see some tennis rather than corpses strewn across the service line.
posted by smoke at 2:58 AM on January 7

If you ask me, all the players spontaneously dropping dead would be about the only thing that could make tennis tolerably interesting; like how motor sports are only interesting when they crash, or hurdling when people trip over & fall on their faces.

Might have to put in some overtime tomorrow, to soak up the A/C.
posted by UbuRoivas at 3:07 AM on January 7

Additionally, I am regrettably unlicensed, so my partner would have to be enlisted. Dunno if I want to "cross the streams" like that... Dunno if she would want to. She regards my meffing with amused tolerance atm. If she saw Red Thoughts' raw, animal magnetism, she might question the amount of time I spend on here.

You are, like, the third person to say that today.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 3:08 AM on January 7

I'm just down the road from that cafe. I often read metafilter, or am talking about something I read about here, in inner west cafes/pubs. I would love to be interrupted by a fellow Mefite if they recognised the cues. If I saw someone else reading Metafilter I'd certainly say something.... Probably, "are you a fellow MeFite?" And see where it heads from there.
Stay cool every one.
posted by MT at 3:41 AM on January 7

Was that you in BigBrekkie this morning???!!!! Are you the The Proclaimers MeFite!?
posted by taff at 3:46 AM on January 7

Greg Nog will chase you down the street a-hootin and a-hollerin and drag you back to meet everyone else. I assumed this was standard.
posted by elizardbits at 4:07 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

Was that you in BigBrekkie this morning???!!!! Are you the The Proclaimers MeFite!?

Of course not; the Proclaimers Mefite wouldn't stroll around the corner for a big brekkie. He would walk five hundred miles.
posted by UbuRoivas at 4:19 AM on January 7 [5 favorites]

The closest I came to such a thing was Saturday while drinking at the Three Penny Taproom in Montpelier, Vermont. Sitting having wonderful craft beers when a song by frenetic comes on their sound system. Turtlegirl and I both looked at each other and said "OMG, Brad Sucks!" The bartender wasn't a friend of mathowie's but he had good taste in music.
posted by terrapin at 5:23 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

(I should clarify that I'm not asking as a missed connection kind of thing. I'm an elderly married baggage... I was just thinking what I should/could have said, given our teeny Antipodean population.)

Still, it's now clear to me that Missed Connections is the missing MeFi subsite.
posted by reprise the theme song and roll the credits at 5:35 AM on January 7

Do you say something to someone you discover is metafilter folk?

I did once at the time of the Russian Incident; I've totally forgotten his name, but saw someone in my local coffee shop and saw the blue was on his site. I don't remember exactly how I broke the ice (probably something boring like "Sorry, I couldn't help but noticing - is that Metafilter?"), but then we spent another several minutes talking about "so, yeah, that Russian thing, wild, huh?" He was from out of town - Washington, I think - and was just visiting friends for the weekend.

I don't know if I'd say anything in a more normal circumstance, since practically everyone around me who's a member is someone I"ve already met at one meetup or another, so it'd be like "excuse me, is that Metafilter?" "Well, duh, EC, of course."
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 5:38 AM on January 7

I don't know how this Irish surname is pronounced in the States but it's Haw-Hee in Ireland.

An H following a consonant generally softens or makes that consonant silent, same for O' Callaghan, which in the Uk they insist on pronouncing O calagan.

I have approached people I saw reading the Blue with "are you a friend of Matt's?" and they thought I was proselytising, which to be fair I could understand because I totally would have if they gave me half a minute!
posted by Wilder at 5:46 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

My approach on the rare occasions it has come up has been to become excited and flustered and essentially shout "METAFILTER" in their general direction and see if they respond.

This is actually pretty much what I do.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 6:01 AM on January 7

I've seen people reading AskMe on on their phone on Perth buses, and I've seen the blue peeking out from computer screens at cafes around here, too. I've never said anything, though, because I always figured they'd think it was weird. Apparently I've made many mistakes.
posted by barnacles at 6:05 AM on January 7

I must have said that before. I go to the counter and order a plate of beans in a loud voice.
posted by Namlit at 6:11 AM on January 7

Approach them from behind and whisper "What time is taters?" in their ear.
posted by urbanwhaleshark at 6:37 AM on January 7 [12 favorites]

There's a risk of being mistaken for a LoTR nerd. My girlfriend and I often end up randomly quoting Gollum saying "What's 'taters', precious?" Which, given this other meaning of 'taters' is, uh, weird, I guess?
posted by rmd1023 at 6:41 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

But can you recognise Metafilter if it's on a professional white background?
posted by jeather at 7:12 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]

escabeche and I have met each other in person at least four times, including twice in non-MeFi contexts. Two of those occasions have included the concurrent presence of Escabechito in conjunction with his father, which should be a giant hint if one is wondering "Hey, is that escabeche over there with a small child who could quite possibly be Escabechito?"

That did not prevent me from sitting approximately ten feet away from both of them at brunch one day, staring directly at them for half an hour, and still not being entirely sure. I MeMailed Esc the Elder later that day for confirmation and we had a little chuckle, but I still wonder if I've developed some sort of escabeche-specific prosopagnosia. Because he is not actually that incognito.
posted by Madamina at 7:39 AM on January 7

I was catching a ride from a stranger-soon-to-friend in LA once and I told him I'd eaten at [restaurant I swore to never mention on Mefi when someone memailed me about it] and he said, "Wow, how'd you hear about that place?!" and I told him and he said, "Oh, shit, I'm a friend of Matt!" But he meant he was really a friend of Matt. Like in real life in highschool or university or something. It was pretty funny as he'd never met a real non-Matt Mefite before.
posted by dobbs at 7:43 AM on January 7

I assume a good number of people reading the Blue are not members. I'd guess the same for AskMe. So if I saw someone reading either of those I probably wouldn't say anything.

There are also people who have no interest in IRL and meet-ups and such.


How much of this is based on how I would be weirded out by someone asking me about what they saw on my computer I don't know.
posted by mountmccabe at 7:45 AM on January 7

I just go up to anyone that I see reading Mefi and say "Hi, I'm jessamyn - nice to meet you " and offer to send them a tee-shirt.
posted by madamjujujive at 8:13 AM on January 7 [7 favorites]

Datapoint: I would love it if I was approached and asked if I were friend of Matt. I would likely buy you coffee/alcohol. I don't even have to be reading MeFi for this to apply.
posted by arcticseal at 8:20 AM on January 7

I'd sent a link to the GMO FPP to my agriculturally minded colleague. We had our call today (first day of work etc) and he goes "So MetaFilter, what am I supposed to do with this Metafilter?"

[Insert paean of praise that's actually quite embarressing in retrospect]

"Ok, nice sales pitch"
posted by infini at 8:21 AM on January 7

Apart from my brother (and spouse of course) basically NOBODY in my family or close associates knows about MetaFilter. And on the few times I've sort of tried to tell them about it their eyes kind of glaze over as if we were discussing how to typeset Gregorian square neume notation in LilyPond or something. So if I saw someone viewing it in the wild I would positively SQUEE WITH DELIGHT.

Also the idea of a popular website with no pictures is quite baffling to a lot of folks.
posted by Doleful Creature at 8:23 AM on January 7 [3 favorites]

I'm with arcticseal, would be thrilled to buy drinks for random mefites encountered in the wild. But if I noticed someone else looking at the Blue would probably wig out, scream "METAFILTER!" and run away.
posted by zoinks at 8:46 AM on January 7

I think I'm way more introverted and shy than I'd like to believe. I probably would make a mental note of a localized mefite, but not say anything and go on my way. It usually depends on what I'm doing out and who I'm with and what sort of errands or tasks are pending.

It might have something to do with the fact that I wouldn't know how to continue the conversation or end it, once it started. "Hey, MetaFilter!" is a great intro, but what do you do after that when your spouse is waiting to continue grocery shopping or whatnot? Ideally I could break convo quickly with a "Nice to see you" and carry on, but I always feel uncomfortable doing that. I don't know why, maybe it's the way I was brought up, or the social contrivances of the area.

Maybe it just stems from the fact that I've spent so many RL hours with people who don't exactly share my interests, that I've forgotten how to interact with those that do.

Anyway, you could scream "MetaFilter" at me or name-drop Matt if you see me sporting a T-shirt, and I would smile and nod and maybe say a word or two in return. But I beg your forgiveness if I seem uncomfortable or like I'm in a rush to go somewhere, especially if I'm with company.
posted by CancerMan at 10:03 AM on January 7

Thing about Australians is they startle easily and are prone to biting or charging and you do NOT want to be in the way of an Australian defending its territory (board of choice). The best thing to do is make sure you wear some kind of noisemaker so they know you're coming and can easily get out of the way.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 10:07 AM on January 7 [3 favorites]

A meetup sounds spectacular, Taff! But I will be wrangling two over-excited teenage girls who are going to see the greatest singer/songwriter IN THE WORLD, so I'll have to put some thought into logistics.

Whaddaya mean you've never heard of Diviney???
posted by malibustacey9999 at 10:12 AM on January 7

I got the T-shirt to wear to the beach, hoping the ladies will notice the plumage. Alas, i have never heard, nor witnessed, the ''shriek and run away". maybe i'm doing it wrong.
posted by OHenryPacey at 10:43 AM on January 7

Oh, THAT Diviney?!!

Logisticise away. What burb will you be staying in?
posted by taff at 12:45 PM on January 7

Identifying a MeFite is accomplished through a series of increasingly arcane questions:

Q: Do you know Matt Haughey?
A: Yes

Q: What about the cabal?
A: There is no cabal.

Q: And the image tag?
A: It is forbidden.

Q: Where do pancakes go?
A: On the rabbit's head.

Q: Finish this phrase: Metafilter: the _____________ it's ok to ___________.
A: [soft weeping]
posted by blue_beetle at 12:47 PM on January 7 [5 favorites]

I don't have a laptop, but if you, OP, see me in an Inner West cafe in Sydney and recognize me from my time as Lovecraft in Brooklyn or browsing the Blue on my iPhone please feel free to say 'hi'. If you see me outside of an Inner West cafe I'm probably lost, so take me to Scrambled for a poached stack and a latte.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 1:37 PM on January 7 [2 favorites]

I know you and love you Charlemange. And I'd have hugged you and smacked you up the back of the head if I'd seen you. How the hell are you?!!
posted by taff at 2:39 PM on January 7

You chasin'? Know anybody who's chasin'?

a friend of mine, freshly arrived in a Collingwood share house after moving from rural South Australia, was exploring Smith St. (aka "smack street")

a thin grubby fellow approached him and asked "are you Jason?"

my friend was surprised this bloke knew his name, but replied anyway "yeah I'm Jason". this led to a rather confusing conversation.
posted by russm at 2:50 PM on January 7 [5 favorites]

Can't say I've ever undestood the appeal of Scrambled. I assume it's that it has a core lesbian clientele who make up a critical mass of punters, and everybody else thinks it must be good because it's always crowded. Personally, buses pulling up right in front tend to mess up my enjoyment of a breakfast, although the velvet eggs were alright, from memory.

My hot tips at the moment are the small place next to the bottlo on the south side of Stanmore station, as well as Cornersmith in Marrickville - both doing restaurant quality food on a seasonal / locavore ethic, or at least sourcing things like bacon from this little organic piggery in the Riverina somewhere. Double Roaster in Marrickville is also one I mean to check out. Good reviews, and it's always packed even though it's slap bang in the middle of an industrial estate. That's one that had to earn its clientele, rather than lazily relying on being next door to the Sly Fox.
posted by UbuRoivas at 2:50 PM on January 7 [1 favorite]

Can't say I've ever undestood the appeal of Scrambled. I assume it's that it has a core lesbian clientele who make up a critical mass of punters, and everybody else thinks it must be good because it's always crowded. Personally, buses pulling up right in front tend to mess up my enjoyment of a breakfast, although the velvet eggs were alright, from memory.

It's close to my apartment and the laundromat, and the open design lets me watch King Street easily. It's interesting enough for dates but always packed so you don't feel lonely if you eat there alone. The new art gallery cafe that opened up across the street is good too, but lacks a bit of the atmosphere.

On the other end of Newtown there's the South End Cafe, which introduced me to the wonders of haloumi.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 2:54 PM on January 7

(you're not an inner westie unless you're a cafe snob. them's the rules)
posted by UbuRoivas at 2:54 PM on January 7 [4 favorites]

* puts South End Cafe on to-do list* - should be able to pick up some frozen pastizzi from the Maltese Cafe (formerly of Crown St Darlinghurst) on the way home.
posted by UbuRoivas at 2:57 PM on January 7

I must say I find Sydney's cafe hysteria both confusing and irritating coming from Melbourne. The idea of queueing for a restuarant - let alone a cafe for breakfast - is pretty anathema to me. The idea of queueing for more than ten minutes for a table of 4 or less is just... insane.

The worst part is, every trendy cafe I've been has been like, nice, but not worth a 30 minute+ wait to get into.
posted by smoke at 3:02 PM on January 7

Just avoid them when all the late night boozehounds drag themselves out of bed for 11am breakfasts. Anybody with a small kid should probably be getting up around 6am, so you're set for opening time.
posted by UbuRoivas at 3:10 PM on January 7

11am is way too early for a weekend breakfast.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 3:14 PM on January 7 [1 favorite]

Perfect time for yum cha, though.
posted by UbuRoivas at 3:26 PM on January 7

Okay. Logisticising done. I'll be free from early Sat arvo 'til... whatever time the allegedly divine Diviney finishes his set and the meet'n'greet afterwards (because I'm a scaredy cat country chick who wants to escort the girls back to our accom so they don't get kinghit/stabbed/abducted/raped/in-a-Russian-girl-askme-type-situation).

We're staying in the CBD, a stone's throw from Central. Okay, it's a youth hostel, and I'll be at least twice as old as anyone else there, but we've got our own bathroom!

The girls have their hearts set on Pancakes at the Rocks for brekky the next day, and then we'll be coming back home to the boondocks.

So. Anyone up for a Sydney CBD meetup on Saturday arvo/evening?
posted by malibustacey9999 at 5:02 PM on January 7

Sure, but it has to be the evening for me.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:04 PM on January 7

I must say I find Sydney's cafe hysteria both confusing and irritating coming from Melbourne. The idea of queueing for a restaurant - let alone a cafe for breakfast - is pretty anathema to me. The idea of queueing for more than ten minutes for a table of 4 or less is just... insane.

Jesus, where the hell are you eating breakfast? You can't throw a rock without hitting a cafe in this town. No reason to queue.

I suggest Clover in Annandale, Store in Camperdown (they have a Leichhardt branch too these days).

Double Roaster in Marrickville is also one I mean to check out.

You should. It's good.

For Yum Cha, Marigold in Haymarket is my go-to.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 5:04 PM on January 7

So. Anyone up for a Sydney CBD meetup on Saturday arvo/evening?

Maybe. Afternoon would be better than evening.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 5:06 PM on January 7

I suggest Clover in Annandale, Store in Camperdown (they have a Leichhardt branch too these days).

You just save me 5 minutes of walking this weekend.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:08 PM on January 7

Store - yes, one of the two cafes now right alongside Camperdown Oval. Lovely spot. For burgers & suchlike, there's a place called Recharging basically on the corner of Parramatta Rd & Johnson St Annandale that seems to be run by crazy Korean christians or something, but they do great food with a smile. Back to Camperdown, Deus is OK, but better yet, scoot around behind it & you'll find Runcible Spoon.
posted by UbuRoivas at 6:50 PM on January 7

a friend of mine, freshly arrived in a Collingwood share house after moving from rural South Australia, was exploring Smith St. (aka "smack street")

I used to live on that street with a bunch of folk. Number 51. Nice place, inside. Urinated out the front window a few times (it's the done thing). Left my Tea Party playing upstairs too loudly one night and went downstairs to, I dunno, try and find a cigarette to smoke or something, and the gay guy next door started banging on the door and told me to turn it down. So, sure, I did, and apologised. Turns out I was only turning it down so that he and his gay friends could violently play Elton John songs on the piano and sing and and holler all night without, I dunno, the timing being off, or whatever. Drank horrible cask wine in an inflatable pool in the back yard. Nobody ever took the bin out. Everyone was having sex with one another except me. Good times.

Charlemagne in Sweatpants

Hey LiB!
posted by turgid dahlia 2 at 8:19 PM on January 7 [1 favorite]

I used to live on that street with a bunch of folk. Number 51. Nice place, inside. Urinated out the front window a few times (it's the done thing). Left my Tea Party playing upstairs too loudly one night and went downstairs to, I dunno, try and find a cigarette to smoke or something, and the gay guy next door started banging on the door and told me to turn it down. So, sure, I did, and apologised. Turns out I was only turning it down so that he and his gay friends could violently play Elton John songs on the piano and sing and and holler all night without, I dunno, the timing being off, or whatever. Drank horrible cask wine in an inflatable pool in the back yard. Nobody ever took the bin out. Everyone was having sex with one another except me. Good times.

John Birmingham? Is that you?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:54 PM on January 7 [8 favorites]

Since my favorite recent Australian band is named after it, I was planning on making a pilgrimage to Smith Street. It sounds just like I imagine it.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 9:07 PM on January 7

Drank horrible cask wine in an inflatable pool in the back yard.

I'm reading this to mean that the inflatable pool was filled with cask wine. I don't care if you try to correct me; you were sitting in a pool filled with goon & drinking it through a straw, or cupping your hands, or just dunking your mouth right into it & slurping it up. That's what happened & I won't hear anything to the contrary.
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:24 PM on January 7 [5 favorites]

Worst fake tan ever.
posted by ODiV at 9:37 PM on January 7

Thing about Australians is they startle easily and are prone to biting or charging and you do NOT want to be in the way of an Australian defending its territory (board of choice). The best thing to do is make sure you wear some kind of noisemaker so they know you're coming and can easily get out of the way.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 10:07 AM on January 7 [2 favorites +] [!]

Also you should surveil the area closely, lest the blue is being used as bait to lure you into the striking rage of a lurking drop bear.

Since my favorite recent Australian band is named after it, I was planning on making a pilgrimage to Smith Street. It sounds just like I imagine it.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 9:07 PM on January 7 [+] [!]

The first time my younger brother visited me in Melbourne we were having breakfast on Smith St. We'd just been served when a gentleman across the road doubled over and disgorged his 'breakfast' into the gutter. Good times, my brother was most impressed with my choice of cafe that day.

Also, welcome back LiB! If you enjoy Smith St you should also check out the nearby Victoria St in North Richmond. It is as they say, colourful.

Drank horrible cask wine in an inflatable pool in the back yard.

I'm reading this to mean that the inflatable pool was filled with cask wine. I don't care if you try to correct me; you were sitting in a pool filled with goon & drinking it through a straw, or cupping your hands, or just dunking your mouth right into it & slurping it up. That's what happened & I won't hear anything to the contrary.
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:24 PM on January 7 [2 favorites +] [!]

Perhaps they were combing the cask wine with that other great Australian invention, the Hills Hoist, and playing a merry game of Wheel of Goon?
posted by Hello, I'm David McGahan at 10:40 PM on January 7

barnacles, if you see a person on Perth public transport or in a cafe reading any part of MeFi, please do say hi because it might be me :)
posted by harriet vane at 12:28 AM on January 8

I'm in for a meetup on Saturday. May I suggest the Carrington Hotel in Surry Hills? Seriously delicious yet reasonably priced tapas (no sad, soggy $10 patatas bravas here, promise), air conditioned, lots of comfy booths to sit in. Good cider and beer. Particularly lovely of a lazy afternoon.
posted by embrangled at 1:40 AM on January 8 [3 favorites]

Wheel Of Goon? I always knew that game as Goon Of Fortune. either works, I guess...
posted by russm at 3:12 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]

embrangled, that sounds perfect for me. What about the rest of youse? (Sorry, couldn't resist using Jeff Fenech's favourite word.)
posted by malibustacey9999 at 4:21 AM on January 8

Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod. Am I on the path to my very first meetup? Which I never thought would happen, due to living in the boondocks, hundreds of kilometres away from most active Mefites?

Mind blown. Must go to sleep. Won't be able to sleep. Shaking with excitement. OH GOD, WHAT DO I WEAR? I DON'T HAVE A METAFILTER SHIRT!!!
posted by malibustacey9999 at 4:25 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]

Don't wear a top hat, bouncers will try and confiscate it and then it may get sat on.
posted by Jilder at 6:31 AM on January 8

I'm down with that if youse are. Can someone do an IRL? I'm on an iPhone at the mo and it's all a bit hard.
posted by taff at 9:22 AM on January 8

What are you doing awake & on an iPhone at 04:22? Wait. Nice cool change, isn't it? Dropped 5.1 degrees C from 01:30 to 01:41, and 13 degrees from midnight to now.
posted by UbuRoivas at 10:02 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]

Q: Are you a user?
posted by XMLicious at 12:12 PM on January 8

John Birmingham? Is that you?

Yes. Look out for my new book, USA America Warfighter 3.0: The Rocket's Red Glare, part of my new AMERIMANIA sextology.
posted by turgid dahlia 2 at 2:33 PM on January 8 [4 favorites]

I put the meetup in IRL.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 3:26 PM on January 8

I have bolloxed the IRL entry - the correct date for the meetup is 12 January 2013, at 4:00pm, at the Carrington Hotel in Surry Hills (the post incorrectly says 8 Jan). The mods will fix the IRL post shortly.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 4:57 PM on January 8

OK, this is the correct IRL post. The other one is going to be deleted. Sorry for the confusion.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 5:03 PM on January 8

I was wearing my MeFi t-shirt about a year and a half ago on Land's End Trail in San Francisco and a guy on the path yelled "I LOVE THAT WEBSITE" at me and kept walking before I even had time to respond. So basically I think we're all pretty weird.
posted by naoko at 7:35 PM on January 8 [1 favorite]