Well, I’m here. After an overnight flight from SFO to AUS through Dallas, and only a few hours of in-flight sleep, I touched down and made my way to the HI Hostel in Austin to drop my bags and settle in. This included chillin’ at the hostel, bangin’ on the shared guitar in the common area, some food, and some coffee, once I realized that sleep would NOT be included.
My next step was procuring a rental bicycle from a fellow I met through Craigslist. Renting a bike has turned out to be both a brilliant idea to get between my hostel a bit off the beaten path and all the action, as well as quite an imposition — I blew an inner tube mere hours after picking up the bike. Don’t worry, I’m fine, and my man James has been a very responsible rentee. He actually rode out to where I was with a new tube and all the necessary tools. Now that’s Texan hospitality.
Anyway, I’m here, and I’m actually sitting in my first session — How To Rock SXSW, a primer of what to expect and how to make it to the finish line in one piece. If anything, that’s what I’ve come to realize so far. SXSW is a marathon of ideas, sessions, parties, people, music and who knows what else. Since I’ve elected to be here for the whole thing, I’m going to try to pace myself. One practical strategy? I figure the more sessions I go to, the better off I’ll be.
So, to close, here’s a list of sessions that I’m interested in attending:
What Are Analytics? A Guide To Practical Data
Time + Social + Location. What’s Next In Mobile Experiences?
Mind Control: Psychology for the Web
How Nerds Can Foster Democracy in Local Government
Moon 2.0: The Outer Limits of Lunar Exploration
Gmail: Behind the Scenes
Is The Brain The Ultimate Computer Interface
Mapping and Geolocation: Turnkey Approaches You Need to Know
SXSW Interview: Cheap Trick
Devo, the Internet and You
And the list goes on. With sessions like this, if my body manages to make it to the finish line, it might just be with blown mind. Wish me luck!