Last night we had a little neighborhood get together at our house. There were probably around 20 adults in attendance. After several hours of eating and drinking, I casually asked, "Is anybody up for some pinball?" This question was followed by an awkward silence that seemed to last an eternity. Finally, one of the other husbands said "I'm happy just hanging out on the patio and enjoying everyone's company." I have to say, I felt like a complete loser for even bringing it up.

As much as I wanted to do that, I don't think my wife would have been very happy if I ditched the first neighborhood party we ever hosted.

I'd like to believe this at least had something to do with the guy's reaction. The weather has been crazy this summer, and it was particularly lovely on the evening of the party.

Part of the problem is that these people really aren't my friends. They are neighbors. I am friendly with some of them, but we are kind of the newbies in the neighborhood. I have a lot of close friends who aren't into pinball at all, and they generally humor me and at least play a few games. Unfortunately, my next door neighbors had to leave the party early. They love pinball, and even have a Gottlieb Lawman that they bought NIB back in the early 70's. They would have led the charge, and others probably would have followed.

I think you are dead on. Many people haven't played pinball since they were a kid. Consequently, they associate the game with childhood, and won't even give it a chance.

Unfortunately, this won't work in my situation. My games are all in my basement, so people have to make a very deliberate journey down there.

He's a doctor, probably in his early 40's.

Of course!

Yep, that kwiKi is a real sicko!

I'll take that under advisement.

Way more than me, I'm guessing. But can he rebuild a flipper?

I'm bumping this thread because I'm about to experience "Part Deux". It's our turn to host again, and people are about to arrive. We'll see if it goes better this time. Hopefully, that f***er from last time doesn't show up.

It went much better this time. The adults were all hanging out in the backyard for a while, and then one of the kids came outside and his mom asked, "What have you been doing, sweetheart?" He responded, "Playing pinball." This led to a discussion about my hobby, and I used the opportunity to invite anyone who was interested down into the basement to check out the games. Only a couple people came at first, but then the rest soon followed. The fact that it started pouring rain outside certainly didn't hurt my cause ...

Party_#1.jpg
Party_#2.jpg
Party_#3.jpg
Party_#4.jpg
Party_#5.jpg

Everyone really loved WOZ. Although, to be honest, they were having a blast playing all the games. If anything, Safecracker and AC/DC were the two most popular. One of the women grew up with an F-14 in her basement. She hadn't been exposed to many other pins, though, and she was like a kid in a candy store.

That's awesome! I'm also jealous because of how easy it must be for you to get games in and out of your game room.

You're more than welcome anytime. If you're ever in my hood, shoot me a PM.