Sunday morning (well, sort of) afternoon night, from Dangerblond's compound:
Light rain is falling outside, the remnants of Fay, making her way across the Gulf States, making me glad I hadn't planned to drive back to Atlanta today. I almost titled this post "Rising Tide III, the hangover", but that's not completely accurate. Somehow, thanks probably to being a distance rather than sprint drinker in addition to a high water to beer ratio, I don't have an actual hangover, but that hangover-like full body tiredness that comes from the push of the last few days, with that scratchy throat that comes from having spent last night shouting over the noise of a crowded smoke-filled bar for hours of lively repartee with a rotation of interesting individuals. As Dangerblond and I pulled away from dropping Racy Mind at her downtown hotel after a midnight group supper, I remarked that I never have this much fun at home, that I'm losing count of how often I have the most fun I ever have, here in New Orleans, with the NOLA Bloggers.
I will spend part of today cleaning up the registration data, but I was not prepared for the slam of last minute attendees, which was a problem, since I was maintaining the registration list and making the nametags. Official major thanks to Liprap, whose assistance averted complete disaster. Rising Tide exploded. Attendance exceeded all of our expectations. Whether or not some of the increase was a result of the new venue's more central location, we were lucky to be at the Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center, because our previous venue would not have held the crowd. Zeitgeist's cavernous space with that under renovation ambiance, was almost perfect (needed better AC). There are recaps and critiques abounding; so, rather than go over it all again here, I'll point you to those who have said it better than I possibly could. There's this article in today's Times-Picayune, and Maitri's comprehensive live blogging is almost as good as having been there (scroll down for pictures). Varg, Cousin Pat, & G Bitch all have interesting posts. Maitri & Lisa have pics posted on Flickr. I'm waiting for dsbnola to post his (great talking to you!), as he is sick gifted with the camera. If you click Lisa's link and notice all that decadence (beer & tobacco!) on the Friday night registration table in front of Sophmom & Dangerblond (and Cousin Pat), I would like to point out that the bottle of water on the table was mine (cough). Really.
Best journalism conference I've ever attended. Period, full stop. Absolutely blown away by the quality of the people, their work, and their welcoming camaraderie. (And it wasn't even strictly a 'journalism' conference. Although a lot of j-conferences would benefit by studying this model.) Thanks to all who organized, participated, came up to say hello, and made me laugh. Thank you all.
I think Inspector General Robert Cerasoli coming to Buffa's Friday night, and then settling in for the evening, not so much to talk to the bloggers but to listen, had to be a high point. Mominem put it perfectly in his post:
Tonight Ray Nagin was presented with an award for "Award of Distinction for Recovery, Courage and Leadership" at an event called "A Tribute to the Recovery of New Orleans". A number of people protested at the site of the award...
Later in the evening at Buffa's Robert Cerasoli strode into a room full of bloggers like a Rock Star... Nagin spent the evening with sycophants and Cerasoli spent the evening with concerned citizens of New Orleans and a few amateur investigators.
Odds and ends? Lee Zurik is much better looking in person than he is on television, regardless of what Adrastos says about his eyebrows. Here's Lisa's hot pic of Zurik with Dangerblond. Mominem did an amazing job (looking for a picture of the incredible banner behind Saturday's registration desk) pulling so much together, including the wonderful swag (posters, shirts, koozies). The poet laureate of the NOLA Blogosphere, Mark Folse, again played a major part, as did Tim Ruppert and Jeffrey. Mark continues to post updates and a great round up of RT blog posts on the RT blog. (Damnit. I swore to myself this post wouldn't devolve into a link fest, just because I know I'm too worn out to remember everyone. Please forgive me if I've forgotten you.) Oyster, of course, managed the team and hit the home run by snagging John Barry as the keynote speaker, with a little help from Eli and the inspirational Karen Gadbois, this year's Ashley Award recipient. I also keep thinking about just how important Greg Peters is to the whole thing, in so many ways. More than just a planner or a panelist, he provides a reality check, with always dead-on honest critique, when we start to get too full of ourselves, and again the fabulous poster that he created for the event set the bar. Anyone who saw the poster got the idea that something special was coming.
My favorite touch was Varg's, though. Varg built the Rising Tide website, a job that had been done by Ashley, and he put just the littlest bit of Ashley into it. Go to the Rising Tide website and scroll down. You'll see it there in the bottom right hand corner, almost indiscernible, Ashley's face. Well, all day, at the front of the room, was a large projection screen, with the website conference schedule page projected upon it, with Ashley there in the corner, watching over Rising Tide III.
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