off to austin again

I'm busily folding laundry, loading up files on the powerbook, and trying to keep Spoo (my cat) out of my bag long enough to put my clothes into it. It's that time of year again.

This is going to be my 5th South by Southwest. Last year was such a whirlwind of stress and joy, I decided to see if I could top it this year. So here it comes: Fray Cafe, where I'm going to stand up and tell one of the many embarrassing stories from my troubled youth (I still haven't decided: the vegetarian story or the flaming stereo story?), a panel called "Getting Published," where I'm supposed to stand up and pretend that I know anything about writing a book, other than the fact that it's really stinking hard, and my solo talk, "Design for Community," that I've given so many times it should be rote by now, and yet somehow I still manage get nervous.

It could all crash land in a steaming heap of trouble for me, frankly. I could get confused and start telling the book panel why I'm a vegetarian. Or talking to the Fray Cafe audience about designing community spaces in between acts. Or ... or ... or....

I wonder if I have enough room in my duffel bag for all the hats I'm supposed to wear.

{ 11:23pm }

» Boohoohooo - I wish I was going too! Have fun. :-)

– prol  { 3.7.01 @ 11:36pm }

» Wait...this was a plea for sympathy right? Right?

– dan  { 3.8.01 @ 9:44am }

» you named your car Spoo?!?

– Mike  { 3.8.01 @ 10:02am }

» And he's off! Good luck with all of your endevors in Austin, and forget about the hats. Stick with just the regular ol' Derek hat, and things'll work out naturally! :)

Already looking forward to the stories that you'll assuredly bring back...

– anathea  { 3.8.01 @ 10:26am }

» Derek, I'm sure that you of all people could figure out a way to quickly recover in any of those situations. "...ahem...So I'm using the experience of becoming a vegetarian here as a metaphor for the kind of personal change which becoming a writer involves. Besides the obvious analogy to meat production (once you see how sausages are made, you look at breakfast a little differently), there are other ways in which involving yourself in the process of publishing will change the way you relate to books..."

hee hee!
:)

– Dinah  { 3.8.01 @ 12:29pm }

» Oh thanks for that Dinah, I may never read again. ;^)

Have fun!

Oh, and D?

Touch my monkey. Love him!

– Joe  { 3.8.01 @ 3:55pm }

» Break a leg, Derek, and have a good time down in sunny Texas.

– Michael  { 3.9.01 @ 8:14am }

» Have fun and break a leg. While your there try to spare some time to go party on 6th street or go shopping on the Drag.

– Marcus  { 3.9.01 @ 4:46pm }