Who knew?
#1) – I enjoy driving long distances. (1900 miles Portland, ME to Dallas, TX)
There was so much on my mind I never – not ONCE – listened to an audio book. I listened to music a couple of times, but for the most part it was just me, the littlest Pablo and the sound and sights of the road. That still surprises me. I’m not sure what I was thinking about. For the most part it was an absence of thinking rather than thought. Which is not …normal for me. At least I didn’t it was normal for me – especially now. I expected the drive down to be a good platform for lots of self analysis. “Where I am, where I’m going, what I want.” You know… the usual. But nope. I still don’t know where I’m going or what I want… other than for the next few weeks. Which brings up…
30-something Chris Brogan and me.
#2) – WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING going to South by Southwest!?! This afternoon I’m driving from Dallas to Austin and tonight is the first event of 5 days, 9am to 3am – workshops, panels, keynotes, dinners, karaoke, bars, dances, parties… Yes, South by Southwest is a business event. In “traditional” business days, they say the golf course was where a lot of deals were done. A lot of today’s interactive deals are done after hours at South by Southwest. Deals… DEALS… Who’s got the deals?
Seriously. What am I doing here? I’m over 50 and heading into a mob of 20 and 30-somethings… they’re looking to connect, do deals, save the world, ring the bells, rock the tide – and all of a sudden I’m feeling very tired. And out of place. And uncomfortable. The fight or flight reflexes are alive and well and again, You’ve heard the saying “You’re as young as you feel.” Until now, I’ve always believed that to be true. I’ll let you know if it holds true at South by Southwest.
Wish me luck.