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SXSWi Dress Rehearsal: What I Wish I Had Known

NOTE: I wrote this blog post after returning from SXSW Interactive in 2010. For some reason, it was never published. I'm publishing it now in case anybody might find it helpful for this year's conference which runs from March 9-13 in Austin.

If you’re looking for a post about the SXSW music festival, I can’t help you. Yes, I know it's really famous. Yes, I know it's really popular. And yes, I do love music. But I didn't go to the music festival. I went to the the tech/geek/digital media frenzy that’s known as SXSW Interactive.  What is SXSWi? Beer. BBQ. Bloggers. Breakfast tacos. Shuffleboard. Foodspotting. Parties. Panels. Not necessarily in that order. Well at least that was my experience.

This was my first time at SXSWi and I eagerly looked forward to the conference. I'd heard about it from a ton of people and made the decision to go. But even before arriving in Austin, I admit to feeling a bit overwhelmed. There were so many panels and parties, how could I decide what to do? And where to go? And what to eat? And what to wear? Sure I read some blog posts and talked to people who'd been there before, but like anything, you need to learn from your own experience.

So after about one day, I realized that it would be less overwhelming and much less stressful to treat my first time at SXSWi as a dress rehearsal for next year. What could I learn during my 5 days there that I could apply to future trips? And that I could share with others who might be making the trip for the first time.

With that in mind, here are the top things I wish I knew about SXSWi before I arrived this year. Is this really just a cleverly disguised travel and helpful hints post? Of course it is. But it's a little more interesting than just calling it "Top Tips about SXSWi."

• Location, location, location. You thought I was going to talk about Foursquare and Gowalla, didn't you? Those geolocation services were certainly present all over the city this year, In fact, Foursquare proved to be extremely helpful (beyond the badges) in deciding where to go next. But no, this point is really about hotels. Stay downtown. If you don’t or can’t stay downtown, don’t bother going. Ok, maybe that’s a little dramatic. But when it comes to the interactive conference (I can’t speak for music), having a hotel near the convention center and parties will make or break your experience.  We learned this lesson the hard way, having booked a hotel out in BFE. After one night in North Austin, the hotel gods smiled upon us and we somehow scored a room at the Marriott Courtyard on 4^thStreet, just across the street from the Convention Center and near all the nightlife. This was the make or break moment of the conference. Once we secured prime downtown accommodations, the rest of the trip worked like a charm.

• Comfort over Fashion. These are long days and long nights. Sure you want to look good, but you also want to be comfortable. There’s lots of walking and lots of standing around. Ladies: ditch the heels and go for sandals, flip flops or sneakers. Your feet will thank you.

• Panel Pressure. So many panels, so little time. How do you choose?  And how do you handle overload? Don’t stress about the panels. Sure there might be a few that you really want to go to, but SXSWi isn’t so much about the panels as the people you talk to outside the panels. And it’s ok if you just can’t make a panel. Take a break. And follow along on Twitter. P.S. Some panels were fantastic. And some were really bad. That's going to happen. Of course there’s nothing worse than missing one panel for another that turns out to be disappointing.

• Go With the Flow. I’m the OCD Chick. I like schedules. I like knowing what’s coming next. But sometimes you just need to go with the flow. And SXSW demands that. I was headed to one event when I got a text to come to another, changed direction, went to the new event and the whole evening changed. I ended up having dinner with two new friends I hadn’t met and ended the night at the best damn NOLA-themed party I’ve been to outside of NOLA. Oh, I also found a 12^th player for the Battle of the Sexes fantasy baseball league.

• Always Be Charging. Ok, so this is something I did know before I went, but it cannot be overemphasized enough. Battery life is brutal. Bring a portable charger if you can. If you can’t, then when you have a chance to charge your iPhone, Blackberry, Droid, whatever, take it. A full day of live tweeting and texting does a number on your battery. At around 4 p.m. every day, people were sitting on the floors of the hallways of Austin Convention Center, surrounded by their gadgets. It looked like a homeless shelter. Only with iPhones and laptops.

• BBQ Battles. Everybody knows about the legendary Salt Lick BBQ. Talk to just about anybody and they’ll tell you it’s the best bbq in the world. I went there a few years ago and it was great. But Salt Lick is 40 minutes from Austin and impossible to get to without a car. If you want great Texas bbq, look no further than Iron Works, located just behind the Convention Center. I went to both on this trip and Iron Works was just flat-out better. The briscuit was more tender, the sausage perfect and the beef ribs meatier and more flavorful.

• Food Trucks. Austin provides fantastic food options. But the real treats are the food trucks. Next time I go I may actually have every meal from a truck. Well, not really, but I’ll have as many as I possibly can. We didn’t get to most of the trucks we wanted to (especially the Takorea Korean BBQ Taco Truck) and already have a list for the next trip.

• Badges? We Don’t Need No Stinking Badges. Actually, you do need a badge, but I wanted an excuse to get in one of my all-time favorite movie quotes. You wear your conference badge everywhere, everyday. At the conference. At the parties. At restaurants. It’s basically a business card you wear around your neck. And since it’s pretty much attached to you for 5 days, why not spruce it up with a fun strap that shows off your personality? Next year, I’m definitely bringing a Yankees strap.

• Sleep When You’re Dead. Just acknowledge that you won’t sleep while you’re in Austin for SXSWi and you’ll be much happier. Trust me. Resistance is futile.

If you're looking for more substantive posts on what was discussed at the actual conference, check out these posts:

The Social Technologies Powering South by Southwest, from David Berkowitz’s Inside the Marketers Studio

13 Observations from South by Southwest from Jay Baer’s Convince & Convert

10 Thoughts About SXSW 2010 by Michael J. Barber

In case you missed it: my busy week at espnW

It's been a busy week. In case you've been off the grid, here's what you missed over at espnW.com:

I ran for President...sort of. Yes, I auditioned to be a Washington Nationals Racing President and wrote about it:

http://espn.go.com/espnw/more-sports/7601949/espnw-amanda-rykoff-auditions-sp...

I caught up with Fatima "TNT" Maddox, the first female Harlem Globetrotter since 1993, when she and the Globetrotters stopped by ESPN. I also interviewed Globetrotters legend Curly Neal.

http://espn.go.com/espnw/more-sports/7607131/fatima-maddox-newest-female-harl...

I made my debut on espnW's new video talk show, The Word.

We talked Yani Tseng here: http://espn.go.com/espnw/more-sports/7603386

We dished about Danica Patrick here: http://espn.go.com/espnw/7610847/word

And here's our hot topics debate: http://espn.go.com/espnw/more-sports/7603386

 

 

In which I say goodbye and thank you to Jorge Posada

In case you missed it, I wrote a few words on Jorge Posada's retirement over at espnW.

http://espn.go.com/espnw/commentary/7451951/amanda-rykoff-says-goodbye-new-york-yankee-jorge-posada

Thank you, Jorge. We'll miss you.

John Fogerty - Beacon Theater November 18, 2011 - Green River Set List

The set list from John Fogerty's outstanding show at the Beacon Theater in New York City. November 18, 2011.

The entire album Green River in its entirety, start to finish
Green River
Commotion
Tombstone Shadow
Wrote a Song for Everyone
Bad Moon Rising [a highlight of the show was the use of a graphic for the men's and women's room with an arrow pointing to the right during the chorus of the song. There's a bathroom on the right!]
Lodi
Cross-Tie Walker
Sinister Purpose
Night Time Is the Right Time

Centerfield
Hey Tonight
Born on the Bayou
I Will Walk With You
Hot Rod Heart
Gunslinger
Keep On Chooglin'
Have You Ever Seen the Rain?
Pretty Woman
Down On the Corner
Susie Q
Bad Case of Loving You [he absolutely crushed this cover]
Old Man Down the Road
Fortunate Son

Encore
Good Golly Miss Molly [instead of Travelin' Band]
Proud Mary

The Power of Photos (and Why I Take Them)

As many of you know, I take a lot of photos at sporting events. I do it because I like to keep a photographic record of the game. I do it because I enjoy capturing moments in time. I do it because at this point, it's part of my whole game-viewing experience.

Last week, I attended my final Yankees regular season home game on Tuesday, September 20 against the Tampa Bay Rays. It was a gorgeous night and we arrived at the Stadium earlier than usual to ensure we got our souvenir Snoopy dolls, courtesy of Met Life.

As we settled in for the game, we noticed a gathering of men in fatigues walking along the warning track. Who was this group of military men? I asked my friend Mark Schwartz, himself a USMC veteran, but we could not tell the affiliation of the group.

Once they lined up behind home plate for pre-game ceremonies, we learned it was the Fighting 69th, based here in New York.

The Fighting 69th has a long and storied history, going back to the Civil War and continuing to this day as a part of the New York Army National Guard. It's an Irish heritage unit and Wikipedia tells me that it's the "original owner of "Fighting Irish" nickname, which the University of Notre Dame inherited via chaplains who served with the unit during the Civil War."

The unit lined up behind home plate and was greeted first by Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson, who came out and shook the hands of many of the members of the unit. Manager Joe Girardi followed Jackson with a greeting for the group.

As the unit marched back along the warning track, Snoopy saluted the troops. It was a moment that made both me and Schwartz smile.

I took photos of all of this and posted them on Flickr as part of my photoset from Tuesday's game.

Yesterday, I received an email from a man who found my photos on Flickr. It read:

My son is a solider in the 69th. Do you have any other pictures? Is it possible to get the three you have on your site? He is off to Afghanistan later this year.

I immediately responded and asked him for his email address so I could send him the photos I had from the game, as well as others that weren't posted on Flickr.

I sent him the photos and he responded with the following:

The soldiers you saw at the game are all leaving tomorrow morning for the National Training Center at Fort Irwin CA for 1 month of intense desert training. They will be home for approx 1 month then ship out to Mississippi than Afghanistan. The support they get from the community means a lot to them.

I know that my photos don't mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things. If taking them and sending them to a father of a son who is shipping off to Afghanistan can help bring a smile to his face, it's the least I can do.

R.E.M. Set List - Madison Square Garden, NYC - June 19, 2008

R.E.M. has been my favorite band for over 25 years. I've got every one of their albums plus several rarities. I've seen them perform live in the three cities where I've lived - Los Angeles, Philadelphia and New York.

With news of the band's break-up breaking my heart today, I pulled out the set list from R.E.M.'s amazing June 19, 2008 show at MSG. It was the last time I saw them perform live.

The guys put on a great show and pulled out some oldies but goodies (including three from Life's Rich Pageant! Really!) for the old-school fans. So glad I got to see them.

1. Living Well is the Best Revenge
2. These Days
3. What's the Frequency Kenneth
4. Bad Day
5. Drive
6. Hollowman
7. Ignoreland
8. Man Sized Wreath (tribute to MLK Jr.)
9. Leaving New York (not performed in rehearsal or concert for over three years)
10. Disturbance at the Heron House
11. Houston (response to Bush's response - or lack thereof - to Katrina)
12. Electrolite
13. Don't Go Back to Rockville
14. Driver 8 (yeah, you read that right)
15. Harborcoat
16. The One I Love
17. Until the Day is Done
18. Let Me In
19. Horse to Water
20. Pretty Persuasion
21. Orange Crush
22. I'm Gonna DJ

ENCORE
23. Supernatural Superserious
24. Losing My Religion
25. Begin the Begin (yeah, you read that right, too!)
26. Fall on Me (with Johnny Marr on guitar)
27. Man On the Moon

Fantasy Football 2011: Introducing White On Rice

The first of my two fantasy football drafts is in the books. This is a fourteen team, all girls league run by Girls Guide to Fantasy Football. It's basically standard scoring, no PPR. I had the sixth pick in the snake draft.

Without further ado, presenting White On Rice.

Round 1 - #6
Ray Rice - RB/Ravens
Yes and please. I planned to take McCoy at this spot, but Ray Rice was there.

Round 2 - #23
Roddy White - WR/Falcons
I could not believe he fell to me at this spot. Julio Jones? Not concerned.

Round 3 - #34
LeGarrette Blount - RB/Tampa Bay
Yeah, I'm high on Blount this season.

Round 4 - #51
Josh Freeman - QB/Tampa Bay
I admit this was too soon but something got screwed up with my queue and he was my pick.

Round 5 - #62
Mario Manningham - WR/NY Giants
This is who I meant to take in Round 4. He was still there for me in Round 5. Michigan Man.

Round 6 - #79
Marshawn Lynch - RB/Seattle
Not much competition in Seattle at the RB position.

Round 7 - #90
Steve Smith - WR/Carolina
Cam Newton to the rescue!

Round 8 - #107
Zach Miller - TE/Seattle
Tight end on a bad offense. Lots of checkdowns coming. Sure, why not?

Round 9 - #118
Kevin Kolb - QB/Arizona
I needed a backup QB and I could not bring myself to take Jay Cutler.

Round 10 - #135
Jerome Harrison - RB/Detroit
I am being sneaky here. I don't think Jahvid Best stays healthy.

Round 11 - #146
Detroit D/ST
Lots of sacks coming, right?

Round 12 - #163
Deion Branch - WR/New England
Just filling out the bench at this point, and he plays in a Tom Brady-led offense.

Round 13 - #174
Derrick Ward - RB/Houston
I don't have anything to say.

Round 14 - #191
Marion Barber - RB/Chicago
Lord help me if he actually gets a start on my team.

Round 15 - #202
Danario Alexander - WR/St. Louis
Big sleeper potential here.

Round 16 - #219
Jay Feely - K/Arizona
A kicker with my last pick, of course.

Bacon On a Stick. Oh yes.

Labor Day Weekend 2011 Sports Extravaganza

Because life is short and I love sports, I've put together quite a ridiculous (and awesome) sports extravaganza for Labor Day Weekend. For purposes of this post, let's say Labor Day Weekend started today, September 1.

Five days. Five events. Three boroughs. Two states.

Thursday, September 1: Toronto Blue Jays at Baltimore Orioles, Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, MD, 12:35 p.m. Because my friend suggested we take a day trip to Baltimore, and I said what the hell. I love Camden Yards.

Friday, September 2: Staten Island Yankees (Baby Yankees) at Brooklyn Cyclones (Baby Mets), Keyspan Park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY, 7 p.m. Because it's baby baseball and fireworks.

Saturday, September 3: U.S. Open Tennis, USTA Tennis Center, Flushing, Queens, NY. All day. One of the best live sporting experiences we have in the New York area. I try to get out there at least once each year. I've got a grounds pass for Saturday which provides access to all courts except Arthur Ashe.

Sunday, September 4: Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY, 1:05 p.m. Of course there had to be a Yankee game in here.

Monday, September 5: Baltimore Orioles at New York Yankees, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY, 1:05 p.m. Labor Day baseball.

Note: I turned down a ticket for Monday night's U.S. Open night session at Ashe Stadium. It would be too much. Even for me. I have two fantasy football drafts to prepare for.

Enjoy your sports holiday, whatever sport it is you enjoy.