Meeples Indoors & Out

_🎎 Meeples Meetup at Destination Asia Festival — Sunday, August 3, 2025

https://mortonarb.org/explore/activities/events/destination-asia-festival/

📅 Date: Sunday, August 3, 2025
🕘 Meetup Window: 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM (Welcome early birds — I’ll stick around through closing!)
📍 Meeting Spot: Outside the Visitor Center entrance at the Morton Arboretum (4100 IL‑53, Lisle, IL)
🎟 Admission: [General Arboretum ticket]
Purchase online in advance (includes festival access)

***

🧭 Meetup Plan:

9:00 AM: Gather at the Visitor Center entrance

9:15 AM: Head in together to enter the festival

9:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Group exploration of the festival—feel free to stay with the group or wander, and I’ll check in periodically

I’ll remain at the festival until close (~4:30 PM), so you’re welcome to hang around longer even if you can’t stay the full time

🧭 Meetup Plan

9:00 AM: Gather outside the Visitor Center entrance

9:15 AM: Enter the festival as a group

9:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Enjoy planned group exploration — feel free to wander or stay nearby; I’ll check in regularly

I’ll be at the festival all the way through closing (~4:30 PM), so whether you stay or return later, you can connect anytime

***

🌟 Sunday Morning Schedule Highlights (9:00 AM – 12:30 PM)

9:00 AM – 4:30 PM: Bonsai Show with demonstrations by Prairie State Bonsai Society

9:30 – 10:30 AM: Japanese martial arts (Shinto Muso Ryu) at the Golden Ginkgo Stage

10:00 – 11:00 AM:
Midwest Cricket League showcase

Folk dancing and Mandala arts by Mandala South Asia Performing Arts

Bonsai demonstration

Interactive Chinese yo-yo booth

10:30 – 11:30 AM: Taiko drumming with Asian Improv aRts Midwest

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM:
Chinese classical music by Kerry Leung

Pungmul drumming by Korean Performing Arts Institute of Chicago

Origami folding workshop

Japanese archery demos

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Sumo wrestling exhibition with USA Sumo

***

🎒 What to Bring

Comfortable walking shoes, sunscreen, water bottle, hat or umbrella

Optional blanket or seat cushion for grass seating

A festival-ready spirit — bring curiosity and a friendly smile!

🎶 Meeples Meetup: A Gentle Night of Sound at Millennium Park

📅 Monday, August 4, 2025
📍 Meetup Location: Cloud Gate ("The Bean")
🕔 Meetup Time: 5:00 PM | Walk to the lawn at 5:15 PM | Music begins at 6:30 PM
🎟 Cost: Free

---

🌿 What This Is

This isn’t a dance party or a hype night. This is a space to breathe.
A space to stretch out on the grass, share something good to eat, and let the music do what it does best, slow us down in a world that rarely does.

The Millennium Park Music Series brings us Orchestra Resavoir, Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few, and DJs Sonny Daze & King Hippo—an evening of live instrumental beauty, warm rhythms, and ambient peace under the open sky.

---

🧭 How the Evening Will Flow

5:00 PM: Meet near The Bean

5:15 PM: Walk together to the Jay Pritzker Pavilion lawn and find a calm spot

5:15 – 6:30 PM:

Unpack food or snacks

Mingle gently (or not, quiet presence is welcome)

Maybe play a card game or just rest together

6:30 PM – 9:00 PM: Live music begins — stay as long as you'd like

---

🌙 Running Late?

Totally okay. Just message me through the Meetup app and I’ll guide you to our spot. No pressure, no shame.

---

🧺 What to Bring:

A blanket or low lawn chair

Water, snacks, or dinner (bring something to share if you’d like)

A light game or quiet hobby (sketching, journaling, etc.)

Your full, unfiltered self, no expectations

---

This group is for soft joy and real moments. We’re not here to impress or consume.
We’re here to reconnect, to stillness, to wonder, and maybe, to each other.

If that sounds like something you need too… you’re more than welcome to join us. 💛

🎭 Meeples Watch Night: Wicked at Millennium Park

📅 Tuesday, August 12, 2025
📍 Meetup Location: Cloud Gate (“The Bean”) in Millennium Park
🕔 Time: Meet at 5:00 PM • Walk to lawn at 5:15 PM • Movie starts at 6:30 PM
🎟 Cost: Free — bring snacks, a blanket, and something to share if you'd like

---

🌿 What This Is

This isn’t just about watching a movie. It’s about reclaiming joy, with snacks, conversation, and gentle connection under the open sky.

We’re gathering as Meeples to watch Wicked (2024) together, the colorful, musical reimagining of Oz’s misunderstood witch. Most of us haven’t seen it, and that’s kind of the point: we’re not here to be experts. We’re here to explore something together, freely and without pressure.

---

🧭 How the Evening Will Flow

5:00 PM: Meet by The Bean (Cloud Gate). I’ll be standing nearby.

5:15 PM: We’ll walk as a group to the Great Lawn at Jay Pritzker Pavilion and find a spot

5:15 – 6:30 PM: Time to unwind:

Share food (if you bring some to offer)

Mingle, laugh, or just rest

Maybe play a light game or card deck (optional)

6:30 PM: Movie begins

---

🌙 Come Late? No Problem.

If you’re running late, don’t stress — just send me a message through the Meetup app, and I’ll guide you to our spot on the lawn.

---

🧺 What to Bring:

A blanket or low lawn chair

Non-alcoholic drinks and snacks (or a light meal)

Something to share, if you’re feeling generous

A small card game or conversation starter (optional)

Yourself — as you are

---

This is not about fandom status or movie trivia. It’s about sitting together in the heart of the city, beneath the sky, and remembering how to be present.

✨ Let me know if you're coming, we'd love to share the grass with you.

🎲 Meeples at FAN EXPO Chicago — Friday, August 15, 2025

📍 Location: Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont, IL
🕓 Meetup Time: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
🕘 Expo Hours: 2:00 PM – 9:00 PM (VIP & Ultimate entry at 2:00 PM, General entry at 4:00 PM)
🎟 Tickets: fanexpohq.com/fanexpochicago

---

🌿 What This Meetup Is

This isn’t about idolizing celebrities or proving your fan status. It’s about finding peace in the middle of all the noise. A quiet reconnection to the joy of creativity, wonder, and play — without pressure or performance.

We’re not here to flex. We’re here to walk slowly, laugh lightly, and remember how good it feels to explore.

Come in cosplay or don’t. Come early or drop in later. This is a low-key space for good people who want to enjoy the day with childlike freedom, grounded kindness, and no weird energy.

---

⏳ Our Friday Flow

🕓 4:00 PM – Meet up inside the convention center (exact location will be posted closer to the date)

🧭 From there, we’ll:

Explore artist alley and the vendor floor

Catch cool costumes and quiet moments

Sit down when needed and talk if we feel like it

Share snacks, stories, or space

🕖 7:00 PM – Soft end of group time
🕘 9:00 PM – Expo closes (I’ll be around the whole time if anyone wants to hang out longer)