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I chose to attend the [[event]] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naperville,_Illinois Naperville, Illinois] and went with my [[friend]] Eric Johnson. I went with a decidedly open [[frame of mind]]; I had consciously chosen not to ‘pre-empt’ my [[experience]] with either [[skepticism]] or an excitable [[expectation]]. I knew that many others had chosen one or the other [[orientation]] prior to attending; I just wanted to truly [[participate]]--but not as an outsider or an [[observer]] or a ‘[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True-believer_syndrome true believer]’. At the time I had a [[healthy]] [[respect]] for the [[activities]] of the [[Teaching Mission]], and often had defended their [[beliefs]] on the various [[UB]] chat sites of the period.
I chose to attend the [[event]] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naperville,_Illinois Naperville, Illinois] on April 24, 1993 and went with my [[friend]] Eric Johnson. I went with a decidedly open [[frame of mind]]; I had consciously chosen not to ‘pre-empt’ my [[experience]] with either [[skepticism]] or an excitable [[expectation]]. I knew that many others had chosen one or the other [[orientation]] prior to attending; I just wanted to truly [[participate]]--but not as an outsider or an [[observer]] or a ‘[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True-believer_syndrome true believer]’. At the time I had a [[healthy]] [[respect]] for the [[activities]] of the [[Teaching Mission]], and often had defended their [[beliefs]] on the various [[UB]] chat sites of the period.
The [[event]] took place in a large auditorium in the [http://www.holidayinn.com/hotels/us/en/aurora/chiau/hoteldetail Holiday Inn in Naperville]. If I remember correctly the place was filled to [[capacity]], maybe 250 people in total. The [[lights]] dimmed, and there was a period of approximately twenty minutes when the crowd sat in [[silence]], [[encouraged]] by an event coordinator to stay open to the [[spirit]] and to welcome [[Machiventa]]’s [[advent]]. There was definitely a [[powerful]] sense of [[silent]] [[expectancy]] in the room, which I was [[happy]] to [[share]].
The [[event]] took place in a large auditorium in the [http://www.holidayinn.com/hotels/us/en/aurora/chiau/hoteldetail Holiday Inn in Naperville]. If I remember correctly the place was filled to [[capacity]], maybe 250 people in total. The [[lights]] dimmed, and there was a period of approximately twenty minutes when the crowd sat in [[silence]], [[encouraged]] by an event coordinator to stay open to the [[spirit]] and to welcome [[Machiventa]]’s [[advent]]. There was definitely a [[powerful]] sense of [[silent]] [[expectancy]] in the room, which I was [[happy]] to [[share]].