Yes, this is the annual, now almost ritualistic, pre-SXSW Interactive post.
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Category Archives: Travel
If it’s March, it must be Austin.
What the hell, Austin?
What the hell is this, Austin? You and I usually have a pretty good arrangement – I visit you for five days or so, and you make me forget it’s winter. This is nigh-unacceptable. *grumble*
I’m back, assuming anyone’s still reading this.
No excuses this time. Putting aside the post from LAX a couple of weeks ago, I’ve been away for a while. I could take the high road and say I was taking a ‘break’ from blogging, or that I was ‘re-evaluating’ what I wanted to do in this space, but I respect my readers (all 5 of you) too much to lie to you like that. No, the truth – the simple, damned truth – is that I kinda let my life get away from me since my last regularly scheduled broadcast. I’m not proud of it, but there it is.
OK, “let my life get away from me” sounds more dramatic than I’d intended now that I’ve actually typed it, so I guess I should qualify that statement a little bit. Over the summer my workload increased by several degrees of suck, and being…well, me…I was firmly of the belief that I could handle everything. I was proven quite wrong, and quickly found myself in the office until 7 or 8 at night trying to get everything done. (Although, in fairness, 7pm is a great time to GTD, because there are almost no distractions.) Sprinkle in some business trips, a generous helping of unexpected internal hurdles at work, and a heapin’ helpin’ of a certain Competition in Math, Science & Technology (130 hours worked in 2 weeks!) and suddenly it’s Thanksgiving.
(Alright, I guess I made some excuses. So sue me.)
So, with the formalities out of the way, I shall recall the good things that have happened since last I posted something remotely interesting in this space, in mostly-chronological order. I warn you now, some of the things on this list may seem a little mundane, but lately I’ll take any victory I can get, big or small.
July & August
- Went to San Francisco. Every six months or so, my work in scholarship administration takes me out to the Bay Area, so I get to see a whole bunch of great people who I would otherwise only ever see in person at SXSW. Over the course of two days, I managed to squeeze in window shopping on Valencia Street with Erica (we got mopped at the Pirate Store!), went to a cocktail party at Esin’s house with Jessa & both of their wonderful, crazy families, and caught a flick at Smokler‘s Sunday Cinema with urban mermaid.
Of course, it’s not all highly alcoholic neon drinks and Back to the Future. That Monday evening, I was off to Sacramento for my client’s scholarship awards banquet. I know it sounds hokey, but one of the best parts of my job is actually meeting the kids who win the scholarships and hearing their stories. Funny thing, tho, is that the parents and the students always come up to me at the end of the event and thank me for the scholarship, and I always have to remind them – all I did was move some paper and push some buttons…the students are the ones who did all the work. But regardless, I leave those events with a smile on my face and a much smaller stack of business cards in my pocket. - Went to DC. From SFO, I got to spend all of one day at home (well, at the office) before heading off to Washington, DC for an application review committee. But at least I got to see Becca for a little while before her birthday.
- I would, of course, be remiss, if I didn’t mention Christmas in August, a/k/a Darren’s birthday. The highlight of which, quite obviously, was Ali’s gift of a shiny new Nintendo Wii. And as it turns out, the console I’ve scoffed at for the better part of a year is actually an insane amount of fun to play. I discovered that, after some practice, I’m quite good at Wii Sports Bowling, although I still pretty much suck at all of the other sports on that disc. Also, I can’t get my Wii Sports Fitness age below 50. *grumble*
September
- Turned 32, which didn’t feel terribly momentous, except for the fact that I actually managed to avoid going into the office on my birthday this year, thereby avoiding a repeat of 31′s disastrous day. It was a low-key affair – dinner, board games at Stacey’s place, some poker (I think) – and that’s fine by me. Maybe I’m getting old?
- CAN HAS NEW IPOD!!~! 32 was almost ruined by the lack of availability of a certain model of new iPod, but I managed to find it on 32.0.1, so it’s all good. (Sorry for the LOLCAT speak…I couldn’t help myself.)
- Got jammed into an elevator with Colin Powell and Nancy Peloci. But I’m getting ahead of myself – I went back to DC in September for another client’s big-time press conference and luncheon at the Library of Congress. And when I say big-time, I mean big – the First Lady was supposed to speak, although she had broken her foot, but the Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings, was there, along with half of Capitol Hill (including Ted Kennedy, who is a surprisingly eloquent speaker). Following a Bataan Death March-like walk through the bowels of the LoC, the luncheon was headlined by the former Secretary of State, with the Speaker of the House as a warm-up act. Both are quite compelling orators (also, Colin Powell is ridiculously tall), and in retrospect, I wish I had paid more attention and spent less time worrying about making the return train to Jersey (which I did, in fact, miss). But on the way out of the luncheon to make that train, my colleague James and I ended up jammed into an elevator with Powell and Peloci. (James just happened to have business cards at the ready.)
October
- Got paid for crazy overtime. I said I was going to list the good things, and while, yes, October is where the wheels basically came off the wagon that is my sanity, I did earn quite a bit of green in the process. And that, my friends, is a good thing.
November
- Got a new all-in-one printer. I warned you that some of these things would be mundane, but I really, REALLY hated my old Epson Stylus Photo RX600. With a passion. Seriously…Epson? You’re On Notice. Also, my new HP is five kinds of awesome.
- Ate with my hands. Which is to say, I had Ethiopian food for the first time, when we went to dinner at Makeda’s for Jen’s birthday. I think I ate too much of the strange skin-like bread.
- Went to a forum on global warming. Long story short, we’re managing an essay/scholarship contest for a group that was sponsoring a forum on global warming out in LA earlier in the month. (Hence the recent update, live from LAX T-5.) I got to hear Dennis Kucinich (nice guy, interesting ideas, but hasn’t got a chance in hell), Hillary Clinton (well-rehearsed & wooden, got heckled), and John Edwards (remarkably passionate, amazing speaker) talk about their plans to address the climate crisis, should they get elected in a year’s time. Although I wish more of the candidates showed up to speak, it was an informative afternoon, and I’m looking forward to working with this client. (As a side note, at the VIP reception – yes, la-de-dah, I’m a VIP now – afterward, I’m about 95% sure I was cut off at the entrance by Sheryl Crow. Also, saw Richard Simmons at the airport…but I think I mentioned that last time.)
- Became the lead singer (and occasional bassist) for Skeletor in a Fright Wig. Alright, I guess this one will take some explaining. I’ve Twittered at length about my love of the Guitar Hero franchise…well, Harmonix, one of the original GH developers, has expanded the metaphor with Rock Band, which adds bass, drums, and vocals to the mix. I suck out loud at drums, and I’m not too great with the chords on the guitar line, but I do well enough on bass, but 10 years of musical theater training are paying off on vocals. The game is remarkably addictive – even more so than Guitar Hero, because just like being in a real band, it’s a cooperative effort. (As to the name of our ‘band’…well, remember that Richard Simmons sighting? I was describing him to Darren as we drove back from getting burritos last week, and between the eyes, and the hair, the best way I could describe it was “like seeing Skeletor in a fright wig”. The name stuck, and a legend was born.)
- Finally got a decent single-cup coffee maker. After suffering mediocre coffee courtesy of my HomeCafe brewer for the last few years, and not wanting to pay through the nose for a Starbucks fix every morning, I finally decided to spring for a Keurig B60. (The 20% coupon, store credit, and rebate offer for free coffee at Bed, Bath & Beyond helped the decision along a little bit.) So far, so good, but I’ve been burned before. (Literally – that damn HomeCafe thing used to spray coffee everywhere, even on me on a few occasions. I’m glad to be rid of it.)
I’m sure I glossed over some things, but that pretty much gets you up to speed on where I’ve been for the last 5 months or so. Next week I’m in DC for a cup of coffee, and the week after that, it’s back to the Bay Area (yes, again; yes, already – it’s amazing how fast time goes by when you’re not chronicling the events of your life on a regular basis). And astoundingly, SXSW is only 3(ish) months away. But in the short term, I’m looking forward to some time off at the end of the month, and generally getting things back under control at work. Oh, and providing you with regular updates of my escapades, of course.
SXSW 2007 – Day…um…zero?
Here’s a quick update prior to (finally) going to bed:
- Unlike last year, there was no airline drama to speak of. Aside from a bit of a delay prior to take-off (which I didn’t really notice, mostly because I was asleep), everything went smoothly.
- Also unlike last year, I decided to get my badge today. The line was insane, but it moved quickly. I was also able to take in the majority of MJ’s “How to Rawk SXSW” panel before heading off Buffalo Billiards.
- Break Bread with Brad was fun, but insane. It was nice to see some familiar faces who were absent last year, although the turnout was staggering. Someone told me that the interactive registration numbers doubled again this year, which should make for some interesting panel sessions.
- The karaoke event went well – and yes, I sang (alone, Tom Petty’s “Breakdown”, Frank Sinatra’s “The Lady is A Tramp”, and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing”; with others, TMBG’s “Don’t Let’s Start” and “Ana Ng”, The Beastie Boys’ “Brass Monkey”, and Sugar Hill Gang’s “Rapper’s Paradise”). Two things were apparent by the end of the evening: that if you’re going to attempt a song that needs to be sung in all-falsetto, do it early in the evening, and I should never, ever attempt to rap. (As a side note, if/when we try this again next year, Bryan and I will try to find a downtown location – I think a lot of folks who heard the announcement at BBwB opted-out of attending when they realized that we were a $10 cab ride away from the other parties.) Update: Kevin Lawver has video of Kevin Smokler and David Dylan Thomas doing a face-melting version of “Under Pressure”.
- Twitter is your friend. Just make sure you have a compatible text messaging plan, otherwise you’re going to have some problems at the end of the month.
That’s all for right now. I’m off to bed once I’ve figured out which 10AM panel I’m going to tomorrow. Also, I’m really beary-eyed, and I don’t know how coherent this post really looks. So it’s probably time to call it a night.
Progress update: The Pre-SXSW Checklist
Late last week, I posted the list of things I needed/wanted/probably should do before I leave for SXSW on Friday. Let’s see how I’m doing:
Dentist– done. No cavities, nothing unusual on the x-rays. In other words, no news is good news.Supermarket– done. Although a side-trip to Target to get some socks ended in disappointment. (Damn my giant feet.)- Laundry – in progress. And I’ll probably still be doing laundry on Thursday. What can I say? I like my clothes clean.
- Haircut – tomorrow night at 7. I’m not planning to come to Austin bald or anything…just a trim.
Check with Continental– done. Not only that, but I got my OnePass Elite status sorted out too. (Squeaky wheel = grease.)- Get some damn sleep – trying. Really, I’m trying.
- Tie up loose ends at work – ongoing, but losing ground. I’m not where I wanted to be by the end of Tuesday. (Especially since I’m trying to finagle things so I can take a half-day on Thursday.) Mainly, I’m plagued by committee issues – the committee this week in Sacramento is all set, but next week’s committee still needs to be nailed down.
Maybe buy the FastMac 62wh battery– decided against it. The battery has gotten some good reviews, and it’s less expensive than the genuine Apple battery, but even with the extra 2wh, I’d still need to plug in at the ACC at some point during the day. Instead, keeping with the battery theme, I sprung for a set of eneloop rechargable AA batteries for my camera. They’re still NiMH, but they use some new technology to prevent the batteries from discharging when not in use. (They also ship pre-charged, so…bonus.)- Hit Franks Big & Tall for new threads – Thursday, hopefully. But I did order some new causal Dunham slip-ons, just in time for Austin. (I hope. I had to spring for overnight shipping.)
Make karaoke happen– it’s on like Donkey Kong. Opal Divine’s Penn Field, Friday at 9:30PM – check the Upcoming listing for more details.- Find a new book – tomorrow, maybe. I’ve got a Borders gift card burning a hole in my pocket, and I’m itching to use it, but I’ve still got a decent chunk of An Empire of their Own left, so I’m debating. (I thought about bringing the gift card with me to use at the SXSW bookstore, but alas, it’s been taken over by the Giant Corporate Overlord this year.)
Looking everything over, I guess I’m not doing too badly. Friday can’t be here soon enough!
Soon, there will be Shiner.
With all of the business travel I’ve been doing lately, I think my sense of time and place is starting to get warped. I’m currently sitting in the FDIC‘s student lodging facility in Arlington, VA…well, calling it ‘student lodging’ is understating it – this place is a full service hotel, and the room I’ve been assigned is both larger and nicer than the one I got when I stayed at the New York Hilton last September. (Also, I wouldn’t be shocked to find out that it’s less expensive – I don’t know for sure, since my client is paying for the room.)
This is my third business trip this month:
- Back at the beginning of February, I was in New Orleans for a couple of days for an application review committee meeting.
- Two weeks ago, I had a cup of coffee in Burbank, meeting with a client.
- And this weekend, it’s Arlington, for yet another committee meeting.
And inbetween trips, we’ve had committee meetings on-site at ETS. It wouldn’t be inaccurate to say I’ve had a busy month.
On the train ride down to DC earlier today, I realized two things: 1) I forgot the cables for our committee laser printer, and 2) SXSWi starts in one week. Yikes. Has the year passed that quickly? (Yes. Yes it has.)
Upon that second realization, I started formulating a list of everything I need to do to be ready for next week. That list includes (in no particular order):
- Visit the dentist. (This isn’t so much for SXSW – the timing is coincidental. But at least I’ll have clean teeth!)
- Go to the supermarket and replenish the supplies in my travel kit (shampoo, hair gel, shaving cream, etc.)
- Do laundry. If feels like I’m forever doing laundry, but the truth is that I always try to do the laundry before I travel so I don’t come home to a full hamper. (Or, at least, pre-existing dirty clothes, since I’ll be dragging a week’s worth of dirty clothes back from Austin.)
- Possibly get a haircut. To the best of my recollection, it wasn’t too long since my last haircut, but I feel like my hair is too long. Also, I prefer short hair when I’m warm weather, and last year it was 90 degrees+ for most of SXSWi.
- Re-confirm my itinerary with Continental. I booked my tickets back at the beginning of October, in part because that’s when I booked my hotel in order to get a room at the Hilton, and in part because I wanted to get everything in before my boss changed his mind. But in the intervening months, Continental’s schedule has changed a couple of times, and I nearly got bounced to a return flight four hours later than the one I booked. So I want to make sure everything is in order before I fly.
- Try to get a few nights of decent sleep before traveling. This seems like a no-brainer, but truthfully, I haven’t been sleeping all that well lately. And as I think I’ve mentioned in this space on a prior occasion, I don’t generally sleep well the night before a trip. Add into that equation the hours we keep at SXSW, and…well, I need to get some decent REM sleep this week, or I’m boned.
- Try to tie up all loose ends at work. Again, seems like a no-brainer, but those loose ends include an application review committee arriving at ETS the day after I return from SXSW, meaning everything has to be done before I leave. Truthfully, my real goal for the week is to not stay in the office much past 5:30pm (unlike this week, when my average departure time was 7:30pm).
- Maybe buy the FastMac 62wh battery for my MacBook Pro. Not so much for the ‘extended’ nature of it, since the two extra watt-hours only buys a 5% improvement over the stock battery (although any extension is nice), but more for the ability to not have to plug in during and between panels at the Austin Convention Center. (On a related note, I should also look for a small power strip. Because the fastest way to make friends at SXSW is to have a power strip.)
- Make a run to Frank’s Big & Tall for a couple of new shirts. Also, maybe some comfortable walking shoes.
- Work with Bryan to try and make the Friday late-night karaoke thing happen.
- Maybe find a new book to read on the plane. I’ve been enjoying An Empire of their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood, but it’s not exactly upbeat. I’m thinking maybe a nice, frothy mystery.
I think that’s about it. For now. I’m sure I’ll think of other things before I get back to NJ on Sunday.
Don’t confuse pragmatism with pessimism – I can’t wait to see everyone again. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – SXSW feels like home to me, in much the same way that Stagedoor felt like home to me. I’ve just got a few things to do before I get on the plane and leave real life behind.
[Oh, and in case you're curious...I had the cables shipped to me, so I should have them in the morning. Because I know how y'all crave the closure.]
Drunken greetings from New Orleans.
Alright, that post title is a little bit of an exaggeration, but
- I am in New Orleans.
- I have had a significant amount to drink tonight. Specifically, two pints of beer and a Hand Grenade.
- I am feeling all kinds of good right now.
And the really fun part is that the client we’re here to see went out to Bourbon Street with us. It’s a good thing that this is atypical of most client visits, or I might end up with a drinking problem.
Seriously, tho, I am here to work. (The booze is a nice bonus.)
Side note: I have some photos from New Year’s Eve that I’ve been meaning to post for a while, but due to circumstances beyond my control (involving an ear infection and my idiotic self leaving my camera at Darren’s place), I just got those photos into iPhoto the other day. I should have them posted at Flickr by the beginning of next week.)
