Final day wrapup...
Category Live From Lotusphere!
Thursday, January 29th, 10:14 pm
So much for crashing at the hotel early... I'm blogging from the Hyatt at the Orlando airport, and I'm ready to collapse and sleep until 9 or so tomorrow. I'll probably blog more about Lotusphere over the next few days, but I thought I'd capture the last day thoughts before they become a blur.
I can't say I did a whole lot today. The decompression from speaking yesterday was still in full effect. For those who do this frequently, it's probably no big deal. For me (and probably for Joe too), it was an incredible first time opportunity that will be remembered fondly for many years. I conquered quite a few fears that have haunted me for a long time, and I discovered that I really enjoyed being up there. If and when the opportunity comes up again, I'll be much more comfortable to tackle it. And for those of you who attended and filled out evaluations, thank you so much for your kind words and feedback. I was blown away, and I'm glad we were able to help you start to make that transition to using Java.
For the first time, I attended the "Beat The Developers" session. The real title is Meet The Developers, and it is the next to last session at LS each year. All the main players are up on stage, and the audience is given free reign to make requests, ask questions, and gripe. Generally everyone is well-behaved, but there were a couple of people who had agendas to press and must have liked the sound of their own voice. Hey, if you ask a question or make a demand and the entire audience boos you, you may want to reconsider pressing your position...
The final session was comedian Richard Jeni. As Chris Miller blogged, he walked a fine line for a corporate session. No profanity, but he touched on a few subjects that had the potential of being rather controversial. Regardless, it was outrageously funny, and my face hurt from laughing so much. Nothing against last year's Irish Tenor, but I'd much rather leave LS laughing than with tears puddling up in my eyes.
Jonvon was kind enough to give me a lift to the airport. Much nicer than having to wait for Mears and wait for the bus to lumber to the airport. Thanks, guy.
Normally I experience the "post-Lotusphere letdown". It happens when you finish the final session and head back to your room for about an hour. You then come out to go to dinner or something, and you can't tell that LS even happened. The signs are gone, the tables are packed, no one is wearing backpacks or badges, and you realize it's all over. You want to yell out "IMPORTANT STUFF OCCURRED HERE THIS WEEK! DON'T LET IT END!", but if you did that, the Disney bots would probably shuffle you out the door. I think that by leaving the Dolphin before all that occurred, I was able to leave with LS still "there". Or, I may just be too tired to think about it right now.
Rooming with Bruce was a blast. If you've spent time around Bruce in meetings or parties, you see a very wild and crazy guy. But there's another person there who has gone through a lot and has some great insight (and a nutty sense of humor). My normal path is to have my own space at LS so that I can retreat when necessary. I wasn't sure how having a "roomie" was going to work out. But I can truly say that rooming with Bruce made LS much more enjoyable. And I don't have any tattoos that I didn't show up with... :-) Thanks for a great week, Bruce. I promise to keep my stuff a little more picked up next time.
So many new faces and experiences... Meeting Julian in person for the first time, as well as jonvon, Tom Nichols, Melissa from DDN, Volker, and a couple dozen other people who I can't even think of right now. Wandering the vendor showcase meeting people who I've emailed but never seen in person. Renewing friendships from prior Lotuspheres, and picking up like nothing happened. Seeing my face on screen from an opening day interview as clips were replayed during the week. Not *recognizing* my face or voice when I first saw those clips. Hanging out with the e-Pro crew at House Of Blues, and learning some smooth moves from Ed Brill. I was impressed. :-) Having discussions with people trying to figure out what Workplace actually is, but also knowing that IBM's commitment to Notes/Domino is strong. Learning that Rocky has a Napoleonic complex, and trying to figure out how I'm going to follow that on stage. Handing out CULT shirts after his session and coming close to getting trampled. Dumping water on myself (on purpose) during my session, and having someone refer to it as a "FlashDance" moment in the evals. Hanging with Ben and JoAnne at Universal, and learning exactly what a "naked capitalist" is all about. Being with 5200 of your closest friends, and knowing you don't have to "explain" Notes. Finally meeting Ed's twin Alan, and seeing "eye to eye" with him. Getting the chance to see Libby speak, and realizing what a great presenter she is. Wondering what happens to all the Lotusphere water in the bottles that *didn't* get consumed. Trying to understand how you could cart 12 books down to Florida, give them all away at your session, and *still* have a problem getting all your stuff in the bags to come back.
I'm overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation for everyone that made this an event to remember. Thank you all...
Thursday, January 29th, 10:14 pm
So much for crashing at the hotel early... I'm blogging from the Hyatt at the Orlando airport, and I'm ready to collapse and sleep until 9 or so tomorrow. I'll probably blog more about Lotusphere over the next few days, but I thought I'd capture the last day thoughts before they become a blur.
I can't say I did a whole lot today. The decompression from speaking yesterday was still in full effect. For those who do this frequently, it's probably no big deal. For me (and probably for Joe too), it was an incredible first time opportunity that will be remembered fondly for many years. I conquered quite a few fears that have haunted me for a long time, and I discovered that I really enjoyed being up there. If and when the opportunity comes up again, I'll be much more comfortable to tackle it. And for those of you who attended and filled out evaluations, thank you so much for your kind words and feedback. I was blown away, and I'm glad we were able to help you start to make that transition to using Java.
For the first time, I attended the "Beat The Developers" session. The real title is Meet The Developers, and it is the next to last session at LS each year. All the main players are up on stage, and the audience is given free reign to make requests, ask questions, and gripe. Generally everyone is well-behaved, but there were a couple of people who had agendas to press and must have liked the sound of their own voice. Hey, if you ask a question or make a demand and the entire audience boos you, you may want to reconsider pressing your position...
The final session was comedian Richard Jeni. As Chris Miller blogged, he walked a fine line for a corporate session. No profanity, but he touched on a few subjects that had the potential of being rather controversial. Regardless, it was outrageously funny, and my face hurt from laughing so much. Nothing against last year's Irish Tenor, but I'd much rather leave LS laughing than with tears puddling up in my eyes.
Jonvon was kind enough to give me a lift to the airport. Much nicer than having to wait for Mears and wait for the bus to lumber to the airport. Thanks, guy.
Normally I experience the "post-Lotusphere letdown". It happens when you finish the final session and head back to your room for about an hour. You then come out to go to dinner or something, and you can't tell that LS even happened. The signs are gone, the tables are packed, no one is wearing backpacks or badges, and you realize it's all over. You want to yell out "IMPORTANT STUFF OCCURRED HERE THIS WEEK! DON'T LET IT END!", but if you did that, the Disney bots would probably shuffle you out the door. I think that by leaving the Dolphin before all that occurred, I was able to leave with LS still "there". Or, I may just be too tired to think about it right now.
Rooming with Bruce was a blast. If you've spent time around Bruce in meetings or parties, you see a very wild and crazy guy. But there's another person there who has gone through a lot and has some great insight (and a nutty sense of humor). My normal path is to have my own space at LS so that I can retreat when necessary. I wasn't sure how having a "roomie" was going to work out. But I can truly say that rooming with Bruce made LS much more enjoyable. And I don't have any tattoos that I didn't show up with... :-) Thanks for a great week, Bruce. I promise to keep my stuff a little more picked up next time.
So many new faces and experiences... Meeting Julian in person for the first time, as well as jonvon, Tom Nichols, Melissa from DDN, Volker, and a couple dozen other people who I can't even think of right now. Wandering the vendor showcase meeting people who I've emailed but never seen in person. Renewing friendships from prior Lotuspheres, and picking up like nothing happened. Seeing my face on screen from an opening day interview as clips were replayed during the week. Not *recognizing* my face or voice when I first saw those clips. Hanging out with the e-Pro crew at House Of Blues, and learning some smooth moves from Ed Brill. I was impressed. :-) Having discussions with people trying to figure out what Workplace actually is, but also knowing that IBM's commitment to Notes/Domino is strong. Learning that Rocky has a Napoleonic complex, and trying to figure out how I'm going to follow that on stage. Handing out CULT shirts after his session and coming close to getting trampled. Dumping water on myself (on purpose) during my session, and having someone refer to it as a "FlashDance" moment in the evals. Hanging with Ben and JoAnne at Universal, and learning exactly what a "naked capitalist" is all about. Being with 5200 of your closest friends, and knowing you don't have to "explain" Notes. Finally meeting Ed's twin Alan, and seeing "eye to eye" with him. Getting the chance to see Libby speak, and realizing what a great presenter she is. Wondering what happens to all the Lotusphere water in the bottles that *didn't* get consumed. Trying to understand how you could cart 12 books down to Florida, give them all away at your session, and *still* have a problem getting all your stuff in the bags to come back.
I'm overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation for everyone that made this an event to remember. Thank you all...
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Comments
Those presentation slides are great! Nice job to both you and Joe on the materials. Sorry I couldn't have been there to see you douse yourself.
Posted by Jerry Carter At 13:51:39 On 30/01/2004 | - Website - |