From Mike Barthel's "The American Experiment on the Last Day of the War" in The Awl:

[...] Two years ago, it seemed like ending the war in Iraq would fix America, just like it seemed like electing Barack Obama would fix America. Both things are an improvement for the country, but we're still dissatisfied. Why?

It would certainly be easier to pile up symbolic acts and hope they accumulate into a meaningful heap. But that won't work, and resolving our own ongoing conflict is a debate we need to have. Otherwise, the great American experiment will have to be abandoned, and then we'll be just another country.

I love my friends for lots of reasons, but the last two weekends have given me the chance to show it through some especially enjoyable activities:

setting things on fire

searing choice cuts of meat and fish and vegetables

talking and listening

drinking

enjoying natural beauty outdoors.

You would know this just by looking. Why? Because I am holding it upside down.

After this came breakfast, as much as I could stuff myself with, and then one of a couple of cabs down to Palm Park for Kick, followed by some turkey BBQ at Iron Works, and a bit of wandering through Screenburn back inside the convention center.

Then the opening keynote, which rocked.

I wound up not going to the journalism panels that were happening that afternoon. Susan made good company on these two other panels; if you didn't go, you should hunt down related tweets and video.

I was curious about Downtown Burgers just across Trinity Street from the center. Once I ordered my food, I looked over and saw a four-legged SXSW fan receiving visitors.

Finding the fellows once again atop Fogo de Chao was a fun time.

We went walking-walking-walking after that, finding the one and only Ice Cream Man in downtown, and then not much else of what we were seeking in West Austin. Doubling back led us east to downtown and beyond, beneath Interstate Highway 35 and to Cogaoke.

Christian is a mensch. I'd completely forgotten he played the ukulele, but I'd managed to drag him onstage at an old Ireland's 32 gig with one. To run into him and to be able to introduce him to mine was an amazing feeling.

Wake up, dress, stumble down to the lobby, find the breakfast bar, fill a couple of plates worth of food, consume, chat with the other guys, ride in cabs downtown to the Austin Convention Center, lead them up the escalator and discover that badges are being handed out downstairs halfway to the far side of the building.

Refuse to panic, as the line's moving smoothly. Acquire a badge, then wait for the fellows to get theirs. Then wait some more for the fellows to get theirs. Greet several friends in and out of line. Then wait even more for the fellows. Then ...

Finally. Pick up our conference bags, wander over to a welcoming party at Moonshine, then back to the center for panels.

Black Blogging Rockstars! Then ukulele for geeks! Then a fire-alarm interruption that evacuates much of the building and send sme off to Moonshine, and then to Central East Austin for the Blacks in Tech meetup at the Carver Center.

But no cabs came when we called to get away afterward. Next year? Shuttle service! A ride later to the Hilton, I found the guys at the Roaring Fork, walked with them over to Pete's Dueling Piano bar and left them, accompanying Ms. Jen to the Omni Hotel, where awesomeness ensued.

This moment was the magic key to the year's conference potential: the Omni's not holy, it's just where everyone stayed when they first started coming -- kinda like the Hampton used to be, and the Hilton is now. The bar was full of familiar faces, I'd brought my ukulele and found a Ning developer with blues-harmonica expertise and blam, just like that, the evening's stress evaporated in the happiest of ways.

Oh, my G-d. I'm really going. I didn't plan. I don't know who's doing what, when or where to go. I'm just getting up and eating breakfast and packing and slinging a bag over my shoulder before ho-hum trying to catch a bus to a subway to another bus to a plane to another plane to a bus.

My goodness, they treat you nicely in first class. I wish my ears would unclog! Oh, boy, did I really submit that video and do I really have the next five days off from work? I can't stop smiling and it's not the Jack-and-Coke.

Hm, he's funnier than he sounded in his e-mails. He seems to be holding up well for someone who ought to be massively jet-lagged. I just hope I remember enough about getting around that I don't lead him too far afield. Geez, he's got a sweet N900 all freshly flashed and tricked out with widgets. I mean, I love my N82 and everything but I need to see what new gear everyone coming'll be working with.

And they all throw darts way better than me. On the other hand, they're all South by Southwest virgins. On the third hand, I was a virgin once. On the fourth hand, I didn't have nearly as much fun my first year as they appear to be having now. On the fifth hand, this "hand" gig is getting pretty tired.

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And, hours later about six miles or so north of the Ginger Man Pub, I realize I'm tired too.

"Ada Lovelace Day is an international day of blogging to celebrate the achievements of women in technology and science."

Today I'm thinking of Henrietta Lacks (Creative Loafing; Smithsonian Magazine). Rebecca Skloot's new book about Lacks will be on my spring reading list. Here's a good Baltimore Review conversation from 2005 with Skloot. Here's Marvel Comics' completely unrelated but not unserendipitious look at Hela. Here's Isis The Scientist's ScienceBlogs post "My Mother's Hairbrush and the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks."

Dear Nokia,

My friend Ms. Jen was wondering if I was going to post a video about your all-expenses-paid offer of a trip to South by Southwest 2010. Well, she shouldn't have done that! Especially since, you know, she's already going herself.

Dear Nokia, Re: SXSW from Ms. Jen on Vimeo.

She's been going to Austin every March for years now, and she's just the bees' knees. I'd walk all over downtown looking for shot glasses and vodka for her. I'd even put on a priestly collar and listen to web designers' sins from just outside a confession booth.

But I had two ideas. Not wanting to give up on either one, I figured I could post two responses -- one that was serious and one that wasn't quite so serious. I bet you can't tell which one is which!

Hint: The one above is the serious one. Unless you like the one below better:

Cheers,
George

William Gibson, "All Tomorrow's Parties"

(extra credit: Anil Dash's "The Power of the Audience")