Well some of us (me, Rocketboy, Rik, Aaron and a few others) have "known" each other online for 10+ years, so that's long enough to be on a first-name basis, even if we may not have met.
I've met lots of BE'ers at various STP shows: CMCracker, Rocketboy, Loungefly611, Purple, Sbux, Christie, AndrewHayes, Sad Daisy Girl, Valsoline... I'm sure I'm forgetting some.
Highlites of BE meetups include the Common Ground Festival in MI back in '09. There were 5-6 of us (and the friends we dragged to the show!) that hung out at STP and then went for drinks at a nearby bar.
Also, the Chicago Weiland solo gig - my now-husb and was proposing to me after the show and several people here were aware of it before me (Loungefly, CMCracker, Christie).
On top of that, Scott humped a smoke machine during the show and both Christie and I lost hearing and vision for about 30 seconds or so. Had we not been holding hands, it would have been too much to handle.