My experience as a member of CNBC’s Fast Money live audience – Part 2

Yesterday, I took you though the preparation and process of being an audience member of CNBC’s Fast Money. When we last left, I was just arriving at the Computer Science Museum at 12:20, ten minutes before I was requested to be there and an hour and a half before the live broadcast starts.

• 12:20 – I get out of my car in a business suit (as the dress code stated). Before I take two steps, two young men, probably not far out of college if out at all, comment about their lack of dress after seeing me. They aren’t dressed poorly, but no tie or suit as I expect business attire to be. I didn’t catch their names, so let’s call them Jack and Mike.
• 12:22 – As I get towards the entrance, I see more people that are more casually dressed than me. I’m starting to get nervous now
• 12:23 – I step inside. I was unaware that the Computer History Museum was a Disney theme park. I’m amazed to find no roller coaster, but everyone waiting to get into show. There’s line snakes around on the current level for awhile and then goes up some stairs and out of sight. So much for showing up a full 7 minutes before they requested. If not for this blog, I’d turn around and go home.
• 12:26 – There’s a gentleman that seem to be ushering people to the front of the line. Maybe my “ticket reservation” (see yesterday’s article for explanation of that) pay off and I’ll be able to skip this line.
• 12:27 – No such luck. Charles Schwab has invited some special guests and they don’t have to wait in line it seems. For the first time in my life I’d like to “Talk to Chuck.” I’d have a few words that can’t be written in this space. (Later on I’d change my stance on this.)
• 12:35 – Jack and Mike directly behind me in line, become my “entertainment.” Entertainment, like most things, is a relative turn. It seems that Jack is a software engineer for a medical start-up. He says the company has a bunch of shell companies and corporate faces, but it’s all legal and necessary. To paraphrase him, “if you didn’t know better you’d think we are doing shady business.” Also, the doctors submit funny bug reports. I feel you need to know these things.
• 12:42 – I love Google Reader. I catch up this article from The Simple Dollar. It’s a great article, so I star it for later.
• 12:51 – I’ve reached the stairs – not bad for nearly a half hour. It’s only two two flights before I get the space that I can’t see past.
• 12:53 – Mike shorted the market on the previous Monday. It was a bad move and he couldn’t get out because he wasn’t near a computer. He was afraid the market was going to open negative the next day and he’d lose more money. Again, you really need to know these things.
• 12:54 – Keeping in mind that entertainment is still relative and everyone is quite bored, a female staff member gallops in slow motion down the stairs. Jack probably explained it best to Mike, “I’ve never seen someone so enthusiastically bounce down a set of stairs and yet take so long.” Every heterosexual male noticed as well.
• 12:56 – The female staff member returns up the stairs. My notes for this entry simply reads, “Bouncy Girl 2.0”.
• 12:58 – I look down at the line behind me and longer than when I got there. I notice a guy with a shaved head, ZZ Top goatie, and an Oakland Raiders game day jersey on. He must have missed the line about the a dress code, but no money in the world is going to make me break it to him.
• 1:01 – I reach the top step! Better yet there’s a check in desk in front of me. There are only about ten people between me and the finally being done with this line!
• 1:02 – A staff member informs the ten people in front of me that they are out of seats and that they are trying to add more, but we’ll have to be considered as “on standby” and there are no guarantees that we’ll get to see the show. So much for the people that actually showed up when they were supposed to. At this point, I wish they simply had tickets that were giving out to people who requested them online first.

Will I be part of the audience? Or will I have to do the rest of series by watching the DVR? We’ll have to find out in Part 3.