It’s
summertime in the city and while there are no shortages of events, this gal has
been taking it easy…
Well,
taking it easy since July 8th, which was my arbitration against my
divorce attorney. Yes folks, you heard right. Not only did I pick a bad apple
for a husband, but I also managed to get the most incompetent law firm on the
West Coast. How’s that for luck! Anyway, the lawyer I dealt with (the nice guy)
left the law firm and I was left to finish the miserable affair with
Mr.-Screw-the-clients-I-don’t-care-if-I-do-have-four-cases-already-pending-in-Arbitration!!!!
In any
case, I bulldozed over that guy, which reminded me I let the sot (my ex) get
away far too easily.
Sigh. Okay.
Now that I got that off my chest, I’ll reveal the fun, happy, exciting things
I’ve been doing in my free time.
You know
that phrase, “time flies…” Well, a few people have remarked to me how it has
been a decade since the first stirrings of the internet “industry” in New York
began to pop, gurgle and spurt into a frenzy. “Ten Years?!,” you exclaim. Yes,
10 years! And in these moments of shocking nostalgia, the second comment I’ve
heard is invariably that “we should have a reunion!”
Since NYNMA
has gone the way of the Industry Standard, WWWAC is planning something soon (so
stay tuned). To get things started, Roz Goldfarb & Associates hosted a
networking party to reconnect, inviting guests to “party like it’s 1999” on
July 13th at the Black Door.
Our hosts, Jessica Goldfarb, Rita Armstrong, Lori Schwab and Ben Finkel
were as effervescent and gracious as when we last saw them. Upon arrival, I
felt like I was at my own private surprise party—each familiar faces I saw from
a prior dot-com life was another moment of joy. The club itself was vaguely
familiar, having been there before went it too, was something else.
The room
buzzed with energy of people catching up after years of plodding in their
respective fields. Deborah Schultz was beaming as she told us about her new
one-month project in San Francisco with some super groovy famous people. *stay
tuned for the skinny!
Amanda
Richman of Zentropy/McCann, Ellen Auwater, Laura Auerbach and Claire O'Brien
all bopped around and caught up with each other and others. Steve Messer of the
successful company Linkshare gave me some great pointers on where to go for my
spa vacation. Rob Steir of Mindforce consulting is still making things work
with his business and Chris McCarthy of Local Magic and Nancy Jaffe of
Wunderman were both full of stories and adventures to tell. Other guests that
mingled, musing down memory lane were Evan Orensten of Rockwell Group, Josh
Rubin of upoc, Digitas’s Ricki Goldhamer and Consuela Ruybal and the elegant
Audrey Fleischer of Ogilvy. The Talented Mr. Davis, Owen Davis, that is told me
of his new adventure, Petal Consulting, while Ms. Tery Spataro and I snacked on
some crudite.
The musings
around a reunion are getting louder, so stay on the list so you and your
cyber-friends can come to the big Dot-Com Homecoming ’04. Before departing of
this vein, you must check out Professor David Kirsh’s Creative Destruction
site. http://www.creativedestruction.org/
Come on, you know you’ve got something for him! Give it up!
OTHER NEWS WORTH NOTE:
* That flashy and fabulous Michael Tchong is at it again!
Trendscape, a research and consulting firm that provides provocative and
insightful reporting on trends affecting business and lifestyle, will host a
gathering of leading marketers for a half day of education, entertainment and
networking opportunities. INVENTrain will explore trends defining success in
today’s marketing environment and present attendees with a unique view of the
future. INVENTrain premieres on Sept. 10, at Studio Z in San Francisco.
(Trendsetters.com)
* The fashionista Vivian, of “Vivian Lives,” has gone on
vacation, but before she did, she managed to squeeze out the third novel in her
trilogy “'Vivian: The V Spot'” and redesigned her website! (vivianlives.com)
* Tired of getting endless emails inviting you to events you
have no interest in attending?! Me too! So I went online to EventMe.com and
fine-tuned my profile so I get only the events I’m really interested in. The
Detering brothers have totally revamped the website added a lot of new event
categories and other options and have begun offering their service in many
other U.S. cities, too. Update your
profile at http://EventMe.com so you don't miss out!
* Announcing WWWAC's new Web Developers Roundtable -
informal sessions where Web pros can talk about development related issues.
Thursday, July 29th, 2004 at 6:30pm. Barnes & Nobles Cafe at Union Square,
33 East 17th Street, 212-253-0810, FREE. Look for big Geek at a cafe table with
a Web Dev Roundtable sign. :)
* Congratulations to Kevin Werbach, who just joined The
Wharton School as Assistant Professor in the Legal Studies Department.
* If you missed Tony Perkins’ webcast for AO2004: The
Innovation Summit, which took place at Stanford University, check out the
webcast on their website. www.alwayson-network.com
* Did you know about “Information Fatigue Syndrome?” Here
are some stats:
49% are unable to keep up with information flow
43% have trouble making important decisions because of data
overload
38% waste substantial amount of valuable time trying to
locate needed information
33% suffer from stress-related health problems brought on by
too much information
For more about this alarming new social epidemic, check out:
http://www.trendsetters.com/trendscape/index.html
* Susan Polis Schutz, the poet & BlueMountain.com
founder spoke to NOW Members about their rights (or lack thereof) under a
potential GOP second term. Ms. Schutz and her husband founded and built Blue
Mountain Arts into a successful greeting card company and sold its offshoot
Bluemountain.com during the height of the Internet boom. She has written and autobiography titled,
Blue Mountain: Turning Dreams Into Reality, which will hit the bookshelves this
fall.
* Interested in streaming media? You must check out Dan
Rayburn’s “Streaming Media Newsletter” www.StreamingMedia.com
