Wordcamp redux
Wordcamp was pretty fun; I was there at 7.45 this morning, but only sat in on about ten minutes of one session (podcasting and vlogging). I spent the rest of the time handing out free t-shirts or printing name tags for people, answering questions about timetables and where the food was and where the nearest coffee shop was. It was like being back at high school and working the concession stand (which my dad always volunteered me to do), but without the complications of having to take money and do sums.
One thing that gets me, though, is how completely shitty some people can be when they’re getting free stuff out the wazoo. Someone actually had the cheek to remark on her blog that the event was “mostly beneficial for Wordpress since everyone got free shirts and stickers”. Yes, find a way to make it sound sneaky or underhand that you got free swag. The same person proceeded to complain that the free lunch (which was delicious, and from the acclaimed smokehouse Memphis Minnie’s) didn’t look good to her (she didn’t taste it, but snark quotes around “lunch” were employed) and that the sessions were boring because they were user-led (something for which people have been crying out for ages, and which was singled out as one of the best things about Wordcamp to those who were singing its praises to me throughout the day). She’s definitely welcome to her opinion on these things, but the high sense of entitlement is pretty shocking to me.
Having seen how hard Matt and everyone else worked to bring this event together, I find it quite breathtaking to encounter such teenager-style attitudes in some people. They’re called manners, people, and you really should take them with you when you leave the house.
Happily, I overheard - or was told directly - that most people had a blast, got a lot out of the day, and were extremely grateful to all those who played a part in making it happen, for free and for anyone who wanted to participate. My thanks to Matt, Kiki, Chris, Glenda, Casey, Elea, and Om for making today extra-fun for me.
Filed under: Blogging, Fun, Life, Manners, People I Know, Tools
If there’s anything I learned from when I worked for a non-profit, it’s that people have massive and bizarre senses of entitlement. Sigh. I’m sorry that woman was so rude. I really appreciated everything! (I babbled about it a bit in my pseudo-blog on LJ: wintersweet.livejournal.com ) I thought it was a wonderful event, and thank you for helping make it happen! (Found you via Technorati, by the way.)
Hey, Clarissa! It was lovely to meet you. And yeah, I bet you experienced some entitlement issues in the non-profit world! (My friend Hillary Johnson also says that people who work for non-profits can develop some huge martyr complexes about it. I suspect this is right, too.) So glad you enjoyed the day!
Yes, thank you for everything you have done. Hot food for lunch is almost never heard of, and hot FREE food is never heard of. I think I know who it was who was whiny. Someone with the same tone was right behind me in line, complaining that the line was not moving fast enought, that while she likes meat, there was too much of it, and why isn’t the line moving? I was about ready to give her a wack on the head with my cane. I’m sorry, if the gimp (i.e. me) can wait so can you. Again, you guys were so nice to us and I came home with so many ideas that I can’t thank you all enough.