Hard to believe it was a year ago. It feels like 10 years ago, and on top of that, a bit ironic; for someone that nearly never wore a suit outside of a Wedding or Funeral, to actually wear a suit out to an event. Perhaps it really was a funeral…for events?
One of the not-very-high-priority items on my bucket list, a “if I ever get around to it” thing, was to attend the “Black Tie Tailgate” of the Philadelphia Auto Show. I had no particular reason for this, other than that I never got to really dress up for much. Even being a bonafide “adult”, jeans and a t-shirt got me through 99% of all of life’s events. There were a few rare occasions that I’d put on something nicer, usually to go to some event in the city, but nearly never did I wear a suit. Interestingly enough, I DID wear a suit to the Philly Zombie Prom at the Trocadero at one point, complete with fake blood, and makeup they actually provided at the door:
I just had always wished I had some friends that would actually want to do something a little nicer and higher end, and finally in early 2020, a coworker got some tickets to the Black Tie Tailgate and asked if I’d like to go. The Black Tie Tailgate is basically a pre-party for the annual Philadelphia Auto Show, with tickets often costing a chunk of change to attend. The nice thing is, you get a much-closer look at the cars, a much smaller crowd, and food and drinks are included as well. The food was good, and it felt great to be shined up for once.
Little did I realize that not 3 weeks later, events like this would literally come to an end. No more would I be attending a show side-by-side with thousands of people. In a way, it was pretty ironic that one of the last large events I may attend in some time, was the one I finally got to dress up for.
I will say I was very lucky to be able to attend several great events in early 2020, in the few weeks before the Pandemic hit. I was able to attend Magfest at National Harbor in DC, I had toured the Battleship NJ several times, which I started to volunteer at, and even bought a season pass for. I also attended an absolutely awesome 1920s “Speakeasy” party at the Franklin Institute, which I have to post some pics and vids up of at some point.
One thing I realized over the course of 2020, that a lot of the events I attended were the same annual events year after year. On one hand it was a nice “break” to get out of the rut of attending these things (even though they were very enjoyable), but on the other hand, I cannot wait to get out of the house and be able to see these things again. I think I’m not alone in that when things bounce back, they will REALLY bounce back.
Here’s to hoping for a better, coronavirus-free future, but in the mean time, enjoy some more pics from the 2020 Philadelphia Auto Show Black Tie Tailgate:
