I just discovered there is a Computer Human Interaction working group of the ACM in Philadelphia! Info found at http://phillychi.acm.org. Looks like there is a potentially very cool talk at the end of March by Kip Voytek, an designer from interactive giant r/ga.

From the post:

For our March meeting, PhillyCHI is pleased to have Kip Voytek from R/GA presenting. Kip will discuss how interaction design must reach beyond usability and the satisfaction of user needs in order to truly help clients achieve their goals. By examining interactive product examples, he will demonstrate how interactive experience is being infused with emotion, creating connections between users and the products they are using. In today’s market, the successful completion of user tasks and usability are table stakes—the competitive advantage lies in being able to make experiences enjoyable, fun, delightful.