A black-and-white photo of a person mid-air in a Superman-style body suspension pose, supported by multiple hooks in their back and legs, smiling joyfully toward the camera. They are suspended horizontally in a large indoor space with high ceilings and visible rigging. A group of onlookers—some seated, some standing—watch with expressions of admiration, amusement, and support. The atmosphere is lively and communal, capturing a moment of shared experience and transformation.

BME BBQs have a way of pulling you in

The BME BBQ.  A time honored event in which the greatest minds of our generation come together to chat about the ails of the world, the possible solutions to all of life’s problems, all while enjoying the finest foods and beverages known to man.  Animals on the verge of extinction willingly give themselves up to be served to these individuals, while monks from an ancient sect pass out 200 year old wine to be sipped from glasses made of diamonds.  These monks, being both deaf and blind, and having taken a vow of silence are the only ones permitted to near these individuals as their discussions can alter the fabric of reality as we know it.

Recently, at a secret gathering of these minds in Southern California, a small number of photographers managed to slip past the ring of security (a wall of 8 foot tall men, all the direct descendants of the vikings), and capture these images.  I’d like to ask for a brief moment of silence for these brave men and women, as once the images were transmitted out, a small tactical warhead was launched, killing them all instantly.

Thanks to their sacrifice, we are able to now see what until this time was only a legend.  For security purposes, I need to place the images behind a click through, as the contents of them may shatter your entire world view.

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So there is a slight chance I may have embellished the story just a little.  So while the vikings and the monks may not be there, there are a great bunch of people having a fun time in the park.

These pictures in particular come from the most recent SoCal BME BBQ.  From what I understand the SoCal guys and gals get together pretty often for things like this, as you can see in their own gallery on BME.

Ever thought about hitting up a BBQ or other get together, but didn’t know where to find out when and where there might be one?  Well look no further, the IAM.BMEzine.com event listing is the best place to look for events going on near you.  Taking a quick look, it seems that on September 10th, the SoCal gang is getting together for another gathering, head on over to the listing to get all the details.

Comments

7 responses to “BME BBQs have a way of pulling you in”

  1. Midian2000 Avatar
    Midian2000

    I’ve hosted this event every year, for 10 years running. It is the people who attend this get together who make it, though. I’ve never had the opportunity to enjoy quality time with a better caliber of people in my life. Many of the attendees have basically become family over the years, and I look forward to seeing them ever single year. Others are new to our event, but the nice thing is that there are no cliques or isolated groups there: everyone seems to make a supreme effort to get to know everyone else. Thanks for the little article and shout out, Rob. I didn’t know this was coming, but it was truly a pleasant surprise seeing it. Cheers!

  2. han Avatar
    han

    I like new Rob and his long and detailed descriptions that are rather funny. It’s very sweet 🙂

  3. Midian2000 Avatar
    Midian2000

    Oh, and lest I forget, the highlight of this year’s event was the pull pictured above, which was facilitated by Eddie and Potato from Enigma and Roger Rabbit. What you’re NOT seeing in the pics above was the hub for the pull, a 2.4 foot wide disk of aircraft-grade aluminium, bored multiple times around its diameter, from which we rig people for the pull. Yes, the disk is big enough to put things on. BIG things. In fact, this year, for the first time since we started using this hub about five years ago, we had a person SIT on the disk and be supported, feet off the ground, by the people pulling from the disk. It was pretty amazing to watch, let me tell you! Ever since I got the hub, I’d been wondering if we could pull this off (no pun intended), and this year it happened. All I can say is bravo to all involved.

  4. Midian2000 Avatar
    Midian2000

    Thanks to IAM:Shaman (my wife Tiffany), without whom this event would NEVER happen.

  5. Dan Avatar

    aw, bummed I missed it. I just moved to San Diego not too long ago and have had an itch for some hooks. Maybe the next event.

  6. the wong fuckin person Avatar

    i love the thing you wrote hahaha!

  7. Pharmacist Avatar

    haha finest foods and beverages, theres a pic of me with a beer somewhere in all of them. haha

    really was alot of fun though, still working on getting the footage of Wong sitting on the disc as Median said. just a quick snippet. also made a video and a quick run through of everyone who pulled.

    It was a blast getting to see alot of old faces that Id missed over the years and alot of new faces that came out. A big thank you to the Enigma team again and i hope i get to see you guys all again soon.

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