I have a theory that every group of friends that’s been hanging out for more than a year or two eventually finds their signature event or events. They may be small, extravagant, or change over time, but I believe if you think hard enough, you’ll be able to come up with some of your friends’ signature events. Once you’ve finished reading, meet me in the comments below, I want to hear about your signature events… back to my friends though!
Our group of friends has been close since high school, and many of them have known each other for a decade longer than that. Our signature events have come a LONG long way from where they started. Back in the day they mostly consisted of trying to find whatever alcohol we could and then hiking up into the mountains to drink a six-pack of Coors or a bottle of Malibu rum…because what else do you do when you’re 17 and living in the suburbs?
Then people go off to college and refine their techniques, study the blade, and become confident in their event planning. In the years since our graduation, our signature events became something to be proud of, something to revel in.
For a few years, we had Dog Day, a summertime day-long hot dog eating contest. To this day, one of my proudest moments is winning the inaugural Dog Day with 14 glizzies taken down. Sure, my buddy John who came in second maintains that he would have beaten me if he wasn’t dealing with a Softball wound that nearly turned into gangrene a few days later but if that isn’t a description of being 25, I don’t know what is.
There was also the legendary Robert Burns night that my friend Matt was the patron saint of. It was a love letter to all things Scottish with a blind Scotch tasting, Robert Burns poetry readings, haggis sampling, and even a bagpiper.
Now, our yearly signature event, three years running is…the Dodger Bar Crawl. It started with a motley crew of maybe 12. Since a few of us live in Silver Lake, it was an obvious event: find a Saturday game when we’re all available, get a handful of tickets, walk to the game, and stop at a couple of bars on the way. Three years in and we had 30+ people this past weekend. We have a set route that takes us through Bar Flores (a gorgeous second-story bar with a beautiful rooftop section), Little Joy (an upscale grunge bar that’s been recently remodeled into a spacious and airy place to grab a cocktail), The Douglas (a local favorite beer bar with great food and even better vibes) and finally The Shortstop (a legendary neighborhood spot that’s packed before games).
This year the event ran like a Swiss watch, we hit all our marks on time, almost every attendee was in their seat for the first pitch, and nobody got kicked out of any establishment. It was a glorious day, a wonderful night (except for the Dodgers blowing a lead and losing in the 10th inning), and a hangover that would instantly kill a medieval peasant.
So, what’s your friend group’s signature event? A holiday party? A yearly trip? Something completely different?
Long live the Dodger Bar Crawl 🫡
Years ago, a group of us began meeting on Friday afternoons at our friend's brewery to sample beers from breweries around the country. Our friend dubbed us The Safety Committee as an explanation when one of his employees asked why we were meeting weekly in the brewery's office. As the brewery grew, so did the need for actual employees to use the office. The Safety Committee now meets at members' homes on a rotating basis. The only new addition is the use of Uber drivers.