Okay Okay Okay

You might remember that the good folks here at Makeout Creek promised (in a post since deleted -- how's that for covering our tracks?) to update y'all about the generally depressing shenanigans at AWP Chicago. Here's why we didn't: because, despite the fact that we paid the inordinately expensive fee for wireless internet at the Hilton Chicago, we were unable to access the internet on the bookfair floor. At any time. Even though said bookfair was in a convention hall that was part of the hotel where we were paying for wireless internet. As in, a contiguous portion of the same building. But no internet. Thanks, Hilton Chicago! Thanks, Freeman Exhibits! We blame you both!

Now that that's out of the way: Thanks (and in this case we mean honest, sincere thanks) to all of you who came by the table to visit us. Some of you have contacted us in the days since to inquire about the buttons we handed out, the ones that say LET'S MAKE OUT. Here is the sad news: they are all gone. The makeout-hungry attendees of AWP Chicago depleted most of our supply in the first day. And then killed it the second. We're sorry, we're sorry, we're very sorry. We can only promise to come prepared with more buttons next year.

Anyway, it was nice to see you. And we made some friends! Please visit Tacos Avant Garde.

Other highlights:

1. The woman who said, "Is that a real creek? That's not a real creek!" She was like the first person to the table on Thursday morning and never stopped talking on her cell phone while also talking to us and we're pretty sure she was wearing a gauntlet. Anyway, there was something charming about the whole thing.

2. The woman who, when told we were hungry for new writers, promised to be our food.

3. The woman who informed us that Makeout Creek is in fact a real creek, and that it runs alongside a meth lab somewhere in Missouri. A message to this woman, if you're somehow reading: We're serious! Submit your work! You will be published on awesome points alone!

3b. How to identify yourself and get published on awesome points alone: tell us where in Missouri -- or, specifically, outside where -- this meth lab/creek combination is located.

4. That guy who tried to pronounce "Makeout" as if it were an old Native American term.

5. Boxed wine breaks with the cool kids at the Bat City Review table.

6. The two fellows who got so very excited when they spotted Allison Titus's name in Makeout Creek. (Which, in turn, prompted Allison to observe, "AWP is going nuts?! Nice nuts, though!")

7. Finally being able to visit Quimby's Bookstore, which was very thrilling for us, even though they informed us that they've not sold a single copy of Issue Two. (Chicago! Help us out here!) In any case: what a selection of Philip K. Dick they have! That, and just about everything else!

8. All the kind people who took the time to come up to our table and compliment the magazine on its logo, content, contributors, aesthetic sense, size, outlook, whatever. Seriously. We don't get to hear stuff like that very often, so it's nice and it's surprising, and it's also kind of embarrassing, which is probably why Andrew was so bad at receiving these compliments from you.

9. Our beautiful little table. "It's like a cross between Vegas, a Little Miss USA pageant, and 1991 over there. In other words: cute!" -- award-winning poet Joshua Poteat