SOMEWHAT FRANK

AudioSnacks: Bring Voice To Your Travels

If you are into traveling to explore new places you are going to love what AudioSnacks has to offer. AudioSnacks, a Chicago-based company founded by Michael Salvatore, offers a catalog of user-generated audio tours. So if you are traveling to Scotland you could download an audio tour to accompany you as you tour Edinburgh which could add some insight to your experience. Also if you are a Scotland expert with tour guide aspirations you can create an audio tour and add it to the AudioSnacks library for others to enjoy plus make money doing it.

If you are looking for audio tours to download and take with you on your next trip you can search or browse the various options as explained in this AudioSnack demo. If you are interesting in contributing an AudioSnack tour to the community there are a few different levels at which you can contribute. They include simply writing out the tour for AudioSnacks to produce to actually producing the AudioSnack yourself. Which ever method you choose to contribute you can set the price of the download and get paid for your efforts. To find out more information about how to start contributing be sure to check out the AudioSnack tour creation guide.

I am not sure if I would ever take the time to contribute an AudioSnack myself, but I did find a number of tour options while searching the extensive AudioSnack catalog. I also think it is worth mentioning that AudioSnacks offers College Campus Tours as well - which would have come in handy this weekend at Stanford if it weren't for the rain. If you are a college student and well-versed in campus history you might look to make some extra money by creating an AudioSnack of your school. I would think educational establishments would also look to create their own "official" campus AudioSnack to represent their school.

Bottom-line: AudioSnacks offers user-contributed audio tours. Users can download or contribute an audio tour to bring a guiding voice and organization to your next tour.

Desktop RSS Readers Die, RSS Addiction, LinkedIn Resumes, Farecast Insures, Babelgum TV & MyBlogLog Gets Flickr'ed

Somewhat Frank Weekly Tidbits: 01.28.07

My Kinda Town Lit Up With Photo Effects

I stopped in Chicago this weekend after TECH cocktail 3 to catch-up with friends and relatives and so when I found the above photo I thought it made sense to showcase it. It was taken by Trey Ratcliff from Stuck In Customs. The unique technique he used to stylize his Chicago skyline photo is explained in great detail in this tutorial.

The Decline of Desktop RSS Readers

Read/Write Web pulled together an interesting piece discussing the decline of the desktop RSS feed reader. The article is concluded with a poll which upon voting showed that web-based RSS feed readers were the most preferred by about 55% of voters.

My Life As An RSS Junkie

Can you be addicted to RSS? After reading this article you will definitely think so. Check out this article for more information on technology addictions.

LinkedIn Creates 9 Million hResumes

9 million resumes in a microformat - that is pretty amazing. I wonder if sites like Careerbuilder and Monster.com are feeling the heat as LinkedIn moves in for the kill.

Farecast offers insurance on their Air Ticket predictions

Farecast, the travel fare forcasting startup, is now backing up its fare predictions are accurate by offering insurance to users for $9.95. I wonder how many users jump on the offer?

The Next Generation TV Over the Internet

Babelgum is a desktop client that allows their users to watch videos on their computer in a very TV-like experience. You can browse through the channels and choose your favorites show. You can rate the movies, add them to your favorites and watch them later on the video channel.

MyBlogLog picture feature improved by Flickr

Just as I reported back in December as MyBlogLog added a pictures feature they have since taken on Flickr as well. I think this is a great move as MyBlogLog further positions itself to connect faces with names as a social network built around other web sites, blogs and social network profile pages. Brilliant!

Footnote: Tech Geek Meets History Nerd

Who would have thought that a history buff and a techie would EVER have anything in common? Turns out, they do – and it’s on the techie’s turf.

A historian’s dream, Footnote brings the Smithsonian’s National Archives – thanks to a partnership with the museum – and much more right to your screen.  The perk: no more traveling to research primary documents.  You no longer have to hit the road to see the Declaration of Independence… you can view it – in excellent detail – on Footnote.

Harnessing the web’s power to unite all sorts of people, Footnote.com is also a fantastic example of web 2.0’s accessibility. True to the social media movement, Footnote.com connects historians and fosters group collaboration on document analysis – hence the name. Users can contribute comments, annotate historical documents, upload images and even create new pages within Footnote. For more details on how Footnote works check out the screen-cast below.

The negative: not all documents you encounter in Footnote are free to view.  However, with time that could change and if you really want to see something up close, then I’m pretty sure it’s still cheaper than a plane ticket. 

2007 Web 2.0 & Tech Conference Outlook

It is time to start planning which conferences are going to attend in 2007. To make it easier  I have compiled a list of some of the best web 2.0, technology, design, marketing and innovation conferences and events scheduled in 2007. This is meant to be a working list, so if you think I have missed a conference or event please feel free to comment on this article or send me an email and I can update the list.

JANUARY
Consumer Electronics Show
January 8-11 ~ Las Vegas, NV
With four decades of history, the International CES reaches across global markets, connects the industry and enables CE innovations to grow and thrive. This show is filled with innovations in technology, gadgets and lots of big TV's!

MacWorld Conference & Expo
January 8-12 ~ San Francisco, CA
Immerse yourself in five revitalizing day’s worth of the largest gathering of Mac industry experts, pundits, and enthusiasts. Cultivate fresh skills, nurture new acquaintances, and harvest indispensable tools in which to further feed your imagination and fuel your Mac soul.

DLD
January 21-23 ~ Munich, Germany
DLD (Digital, Life, Design) is one of Europe's freshest conferences covering digital innovation, gaming, arts and science, bringing together thought leaders from Europe, the Middle-East, America and Asia.

Search Engine Watch LIVE!
January 25 ~ Dallas, TX
This informal, half-day event offers attendees the opportunity to meet editorial staff, Search Engine Strategies speakers, and members of the Search Engine Watch community in person, network with local peers, and discuss the hottest topics and latest news in the search industry.

DEMO
January 30 - February 1 ~ Palm Desert, CA
The premier launch venue for new products, technologies and companies. DEMO has established a reputation for identifying and presenting to an elite audience the products most likely to have a significant impact on the marketplace and market trends in the coming year.

FEBRUARY
Brave New Web
February 7 ~ Boston, MA
Designed to bridge the gap between the current practitioners and the business and financial communities that are crucial for innovation and new business creation. Innovation happens at the intersections of different industries and disciplines.

Digital Hollywood Media Summit
February 7-8 ~ New York, NY
The Premier International Conference on Motion Pictures, Television, Cable & Satellite, Broadband, Wireless, Publishing, Radio, Magazines, News & Print Media, Advertising and Marketing.

CommunityNext
February 10 ~ Palo Alto, CA
The premier conference on how successful online communities and social networks build, grow and monetize.

Adaptive Path San Francisco: MX
February 12-13 ~ San Francisco, CA
Design has emerged as a strategic force in business. Managers building the next generation of digital products are confronted with an increasingly demanding set of challenges. MX San Francisco brings together thought-leaders in design & business to address these challenges.

Search Engine Strategies UK
February 13-15 ~ London, UK
The industry converges for a week of spirited discussion, high-level learning and attendees leave with actionable battle plans to go forward with for their companies.

Future of Web Apps
February 20-22 ~ London, UK
Three days of inspiration and insight where speakers will be discussing the future of the web industry, Web 2.0, emerging technologies and standards, and how it will change the way you build applications. 

MARCH
South By Southwest Interactive
March 9-13 ~ Austin, TX
Attracting digital creatives as well as visionary technology entrepreneurs, the SXSW Interactive Festival enables you to connect, discover and inspire your link to the cutting edge.

VON (Voice, Video and Vision)
March 19-22 ~ San Jose, CA
A conference founded by Jeff Pulver, VON has built a community on the evolution and convergence of IP communication technologies. Find out the latest industry news about VoIP, IPTV, Fixed Mobile Convergence, IMS and much more.

AJAXWorld
March 19-21 ~ New York, NY
The most comprehensive meeting on the most significant technology subjects of recent times: AJAX, Rich Internet Apps & Web 2.0.

Information Architecture Summit 2007
March 22-26 ~ Las Vegas, NV
A premier gathering place for information architects and for discussion about information architecture. Everyone who touches on IA is welcome to share and learn. Last year's IA Summit attracted over 500 attendees, including beginners, experienced IAs, and people in a range of related fields.

An Event Apart
March 26-27 ~ Boston, MA
Hear from the top people in the field as they discuss best practices in web design and development. Not only design and coding, but usability, accessibility, and more.

APRIL
Search Engine Strategies NY
April 10-13 ~ New York, NY
The industry converges for a week of spirited discussion, high-level learning and attendees leave with actionable battle plans to go forward with for their companies.

Web 2.0 Expo 2007
April 15-18 ~ San Francisco, CA
A companion event to the Web 2.0 Summit, Web 2.0 Expo is the first event specifically designed to help teach Web 2.0 techniques and best practices to people in the trenches directly involved in the design, development, engineering, marketing, and business of second-generation internet technology.

Gel 2007
April 19-20 ~ New York, NY
Gel ("Good Experience Live") is a conference and community exploring good experience in all its forms -- in business, art, society, technology, and life.

CHI 2007 Reach Beyond
April 28 - May 3  ~  San Jose, CA
Computer/Human Interaction or CHI for short is the premiere conference in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Every year, it is a venue for 2000 HCI professionals, academics, and students to discuss HCI issues and research and make lasting connections in the HCI community. In addition, 40-50 industry exhibitors attend CHI to showcase their user experience products and departments and to recruit professionals to enhance their business.

MAY
World Wide Web Conference
May 8-12 ~ Banff, Alberta - CA
The World Wide Web Conference is the global event that brings together the key innovators, decision-makers, technologists, businesses, and standards bodies shaping the Web.

Streaming Media East
May 15-16 ~ New York, NY
Covers both the business of video on the net and the technology of streaming, downloading, IPTV and mobile video delivery. Covering both b2b and b2c business and technology issues in the enterprise, advertising, media and entertainment, broadcast and education markets.

Where 2.0
May 29-30 ~ San Jose, CA
Brings together the people, projects, and issues building the new technological foundations and creating value in the location industry. A great place to meet the people behind the mash-ups and platforms, and the folks looking ahead to the future of geospace.

Mesh
May 30-31 ~ Toronto, Ontario - Canada
Hear from thought leaders, connect with peers, and get a better understanding of the impact of new developments online. mesh brings together people who are passionate about the potential of the Web to change how we live, work and play. Meet the next generation of Web ideas, leaders and companies at mesh.

JUNE

 The Next Web Conference
June 1 ~ Amsterdam, Netherlands
A must attend for every forward thinking CEO, Internet Entrepreneur, Strategy Planner, Top Notch Consultant and Venture Capitalist in Europe and a great networking opportunity. This event has an all-star cast of speakers as well.

Digital Hollywood Spring
June 11-14 ~ Santa Monica, CA
The Premier Event for Transforming Entertainment, Technology & the global communications network: TV, cable, telco, mobile, broadband, consumer electronics, search & email, VoIP, RSS, blogs and web sites.

Search Engine Strategies Latino
June 18-19 ~ Miami, FL
The industry converges for a week of spirited discussion, high-level learning and attendees leave with actionable battle plans to go forward with for their companies.

Supernova 2007
June 20-22 ~ San Francisco, CA
Challenge your insights and predictions for the connected future with some of the top technology and business influencers, leading investors, visionary entrepreneurs, and provocative thinkers debating the major emerging trends in computing, communications, and media. Here is a sliver of coverage from Supernova 2006.

JULY

CommunityNext
July 14th ~ Palo Alto, CA
The premier conference on how successful online communities and social networks build, grow and monetize. Go viral!!!

AUGUST
Gnomedex 7.0
August 9-11 ~ Seattle, WA
Hosted by Chris Pirillo this technology conference pulls together the leading bloggers and social media industry leaders. Attendees from years past have grown accustomed to this experience - finding it refreshing and genuine. They created a conference that seemingly broke ALL the rules.

Search Engine Strategies San Jose
August 20-23 ~ San Jose, CA
The industry converges for a week of spirited discussion, high-level learning and attendees leave with actionable battle plans to go forward with for their companies.

Adaptive Path Washington: UX
TBD ~ Washington, DC
User Experience Week 2007 with all new material full of indispensable training, stimulating discussion, and fantastic networking opportunities.

SEPTEMBER
euroGel 2007
September 6-7 ~ Copenhagen, Denmark
euroGel is a European version of Gel ("Good Experience Live") conference and community exploring good experience in all its forms -- in business, art, society, technology, and life.

TechCrunch20 Conference 2007
September 17 - 18 ~ San Francisco, CA
Twenty of the hottest new startups will announce and demo their products over a two day period. And they don’t pay a cent to do this. They will be selected to participate based on merit alone.

Digital ID World 2007
September 23-26 ~ San Francisco, CA
A source for the straight talk, hard-won lessons, and practical insight derived from real-world deployments. Our focus is simple: putting enterprise IT professionals onstage to give you their unvarnished views on what it took to achieve success with their identity deployments. Digital ID World is the industry event for learning how to help manage your business with identity.

Podcast & New Media Expo
September 28-30 ~ Ontario, CA
Event that brings together influential audio and video podcasters, digital media creators, and bloggers to cover the complete range of creation techniques, business objectives and future trends.

OCTOBER
Web 2.0 Summit
October 17-19 ~ San Francisco, CA
Focuses on emerging business and technology developments that utilize the Web as a platform and defines how the Web will drive business in the future. 

NOVEMBER
Streaming Media West
November 6-8 ~ TBD
Covers both the business of video on the net and the technology of streaming, downloading, IPTV and mobile video delivery. Covering both b2b and b2c business and technology issues in the enterprise, advertising, media and entertainment, broadcast and education markets.

DECEMBER
Search Engine Strategies 2007
December 3-6 ~ Chicago, IL
The industry converges for a week of spirited discussion, high-level learning and attendees leave with actionable battle plans to go forward with for their companies.

Happy conferencing in 2007!

ParkWhiz: Find Parking Before You Go

Finding a parking spot can be a major drag. You can circle an area and  minutes can easily turn into hours as you look for an open crevice to park your set of wheels. Wouldn't it be great if you could find out about potential parking spots before you leave the comfort and warm glow of your television or computer monitor?

ParkWhiz, a Chicago-based startup, might be able to assist with this problem, as it offers users the ability to quickly search for parking near a location. Currently in beta, ParkWhiz offers parking search only in Chicago and Philadelphia.  If you are looking to check out the Sears Tower in Chicago then you simply type in "Sears Tower" and ParkWhiz should present search results and a map of all the parking locations within up to a 10 mile radius, so you have instant visibility into the parking situation before you leave your door. The site fields user ratings for each parking venue. ParkWhiz currently does not appear to offer a mobile component but might have one in the works as it could be an extremely helpful feature.

ParkWhiz has made its plans for 2007 pretty clear as it looks to create a parking marketplace and essentially empower users to buy and sell parking in a real-time environment. According to a recent article on the ParkWhiz blog the ParkWhiz Marketplace will be:

• A place to buy parking.
• A place to sell parking.
• A place to find parking information.
• Free for buyers and inexpensive for sellers.
• Environmental friendly.

Though it appears to still be in the early phases of development, CarHarbor (link to blog since site does not yet exist), a startup advised by Craig Newmark, Scott Rafer and James Lazarus, could give ParkWhiz some friendly competition;  though it appears ParkWhiz is currently ahead of the game. 

Shameless promo disclosure: ParkWhiz is helping guests find parking for the upcoming TECH cocktail 3 event in Chicago - don't forget to RSVP for TECH cocktail 3.

Photo Attribution:  sourabhj via Flickr

A Look Back At 2006

It has been a great 2006, as Somewhat Frank has offered up over 400 articles which attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors. I thought it might be interesting to reflect on some of the best of 2006 as we look forward to 2007. Here are some of the most popular articles:

1. Facebook Redesign Angers Students Over Invaded Privacy (September  6, 2006)
2. VideoJug: The Online 'How To' Video Site (December 28, 2006)
3. Why Isn’t Internet Access Free For Travelers? (November 27, 2006)
4. The History of the Personal Homepage (September  3, 2006)
5. Widgets Live! Everywhere (November 11, 2006)
6. Philanthropy Through Technology (October 18, 2006)
7. Kiboze: Group Text Messaging Made Easy (August 12, 2006)
8. RunFatBoy.net and Get In Shape (September 26, 2006)
9. 37signals Preaches "Less" For Success (April 29, 2006)
10. PlentyofFish.com the Craigslist of Dating (March 25, 2006)

Most of the traffic to Somewhat Frank came from:

1. Google 
2. Digg
3. Direct or RSS feed
4. Yahoo
5. Technorati
6. MSN
7. Techmeme

The top web 2.0 keywords which brought visitors to Somewhat Frank were:

1. web 2.0 directory
2. web 2.0 compliant
3. web 2.0 widgets
4. wine web 2.0
5. how to start a web 2.0 company
6. web 2.0 aggregator
7. web 2.0 sites
8. web 2.0 techniques
9. web 2.0
10. learning web 2.0

Some of the top overall keywords that brought visitors to Somewhat Frank were:

1. frank gruber (no big surprise here)
2. plentyoffish.com
3. green monster games
4. moobella
5. goodsearch
6. like.com
7. somewhat frank (another shocker)
8. devilfinder
9. myheritage
10. chalksite

Finally, let's take a snapshot look at where Somewhat Frank readers came from (click the map to see a larger view):

Alas, Somewhat Frank is a global destination. Thank you all for reading and interacting with Somewhat Frank in 2006 and be sure to tune in for more in 2007.

Happy New Year from Somewhat Frank!

Why Isn’t Internet Access Free For Travelers?

I have been traveling quite a bit lately and have had to rely on public Internet access. Much to my dismay I have found that most hotels and airports still do not offer free Internet access. Why isn't airport and hotel Internet access a standard free feature?

Airport Internet Access
I feel that having to pay for Internet access in airports is unconscionable since travelers are a captive audience and are only in the concourse for a short period of time. I understand it is a business however the price is manifestly unjustice as travelers pay between $5 and $21 for short term access. I would think airports would want to make concourses friendlier to business travelers by offering a complementary service. There are quite a few airports that have taken the lead in this movement as shown in this running list of airports with free wifi. These free wifi airports are most likely supported by advertising. I think most people would look at a few advertisements in return for free Internet access. I just hope that other airports like O’Hare Airport (the busiest airport in the world) and Dulles near Washington, DC would look to please its travelers with free wifi soon.

Hotel Internet Access
Hotels are also guilty of ridiculous markup on Internet access. Hotels do not have you pay for television, water or electric access but Internet connectivity has not yet been lumped into the category of necessities. I would definitely place it on my list of hotel room must-haves. I stayed at the Bellagio in Las Vegas over the summer and recall paying close to $20 a day for an Internet connection and another $20 for a T1 an Ethernet cable. A recent stay at another luxury resort surprised me with similar $10 a day Internet access charges. In both hotels I paid the Internet access charges but I feel these charges should be rolled in as a complementary service.

Other Access Options
There are other Internet access options if the connectivity is as much a part of your life as breakfast. Verizon, Cingular and Sprint among others offer wireless cards and access for between $40-$60 a month which is a steal if you are always on the go and paying for Internet access. Additionally, you could try and find free wifi in your area as I have written previously. 

Bottom-line: The Internet is a series of tubes and is here to stay - therefore it should be looked at in the same light as television service since for many travelers Internet access is a necessity.

Amanda Congdon Headed Across America

Amanda Congdon, of former RocketBoom fame,  has decided to start a new project as she relocates from the east coast to the Los Angeles-area which is fittingly called, AmandaAcrossAmerica. Laughing Squid pointed me to the new site and immediately after reading about it I thought about the traveling trivia blog, 88Slide, which I covered previously since it also sports a traveling video blog format.

AmandaAcrossAmerica combines a map which plots the locations Amanda has visited with Flickr photos and video blog features. It could prove to be a compelling vlog formula. I just wonder how long Amanda will keep her show on the road?

Prep For Vegas With Online Blackjack

If you are headed to Las Vegas in the near future, as I am, you might want to strengthen your card playing skills. I plan on playing some craps which is always a good time as well as playing some Blackjack. To prep for Blackjack I have been playing HitorStand.net a free online Blackjack strategy game.

If you start the online game in normal mode with no timer and find your score around 80% and carry the same skills to Vegas you show potential for walking away from a Vegas Casino a big winner. My favorite feature of the game is that it teaches Blackjack game strategy as you play thus further strengthening you skills. Of course it wouldn't hurt to watch the movie Swingers either just to talk the talk.

HitorStand.net was created as a passive promotion by Higher Media an Austin-based web and database development company specializing in e-commerce, web design and content management. 

Shel and Rick's Excellent Adventure

Ever want to circle the globe? Shel Israel author of Naked Conversations and Rick Segal, a venture capitalist, are teaming up to do just that - circling the globe in 23 days. Here is what Shel has to say about teaming up with Rick for the journey:

We are coming from different perspectives. I'm a writer and hope that this journey will sell more of the book I wrote with Robert Scoble and give me a mountain of material for "Global Neighborhoods" my new book. Rick is a Canadian venture capitalist who would like to show that Silicon Valley is not the center of the universe. He's a champion of his adopted country in technology and has passion for tech companies germinating there. I believe that Silicon Valley remains precisely that, but the universe is expanding at such a rapid rate that being at the center is becoming less relevant.

I look forward to hearing about the journey on Shel's blog and in his new book...when it comes out. It sounds like a Shel and Rick excellent adventure.  

Online Mapping Explored On TechCrunch

TechCrunch recently published a comparison piece titled, Comparing the Mapping Services which explores the online mapping landscape. The field of online mapping services has grown and competition it heating up but this post should help you sort through all the noise to find a clearer signal.

We looked into the five major mapping providers: Ask.com Maps, Google Local Maps, Mapquest, Microsoft Windows Live Local and Yahoo Maps Beta. I think you will find the results of our analysis surprising.

This is the fourth article that I have written for TechCrunch, the site tracking web 2.0. I hope you enjoy it - and of course you can digg it here.

*Image thanks to ctv.es/mapping/home.htm

Yahoo Improves Maps & Travel Search

Yahoo had a big day today (April 12, 2006)  unveiling some improvements to its current map beta and to its travel search offering. The mapping improvement adds global satellite imagery to Yahoo Maps offering which is a feature that is currently offered by most of Yahoo's direct competitors with the exception of Ask Maps. This improvement was needed as Yahoo and Google are leading the battle for web 2.o mapping supremacy. To demonstrate the new feature I have included a satellite image (below) of one of my favorite Chicago landmarks.

The travel search improvements appear to two fold. First, Yahoo has integrated links from Yahoo Chasefare, a Yahoo travel search product, which aggregates travel deals (flights and hotels) and maps them on a Yahoo map. Second, the Yahoo Trip Planner which I highlighted previously has had some of its user generated content integrated into the travel section to offer travelers resources to help with travel planning decisions. Does Yahoo plan to mirror this user generated content integration strategy in other search verticals by offering links to Flickr or del.icio.us?

RSS Hightlighted By NY Times

Rich Ziade posted a nice piece detailing the various ways to leverage RSS and I explanded on it on Somewhat Frank last week (January 23, 2006). Receiving travel deals via RSS was listed in Rich's post. Ironically, the New York Times highlighted this use of RSS for syndicating travel deals in the article titled There's a Popular New Code for Deals: RSS today (January 29, 2006).

The article which was run in the travel section details the use of email for newsletters and a very introductory explanation of RSS and how it can be used. I applaud the author Bob Tedeschi for educating his readers on RSS. Education is key in speed the adoption of RSS and other technologies. Nonetheless, I feel it is only a matter of time until syndication via RSS becomes the standard for receiving information replacing the email newsletter and becoming just as profitable with the insertion of advertisements.

For additional perspectives from the blogosphere on the RSS mention in the NYTimes check out these posts on Pito's Blog and The Social Customer Manifesto.

First Class To LA

  First Class To LA  originally uploaded by Somewhat Frank.

I just arrived in sunny Los Angeles, California on official Tribune business at the LA Times. At LATimes.com I will be training the online production staff on the Tribune's proprietary online systems that help run its 50 plus websites. The training should help to answer any questions that they have and lay the groundwork for future usage.

I had the pleasure of flying out with a colleague and friend of mine who took it upon himself to upgrade my ticket to First Class. I am greatly appreciative of the gesture. It was nice to drink out of real glass and the larger seating space was wonderful.  Not to mention the food served beats normal peanuts.

I spent the four hour flight further preparing for my two days of training and brainstorming for evening plans. With the Golden Globes Monday night I feel it is going to be an entertaining couple of days staying at the Sunset Tower Hotel on Sunset strip. Not to mention the Vanity Fair Golden Globes party is taking place at the same hotel on Sunday night. Isn't that ironic?

HOLLYWOOD UPDATE: Since the Vanity Fair Golden Globes party was on Sunday night (January 15, 2006) at the Sunset Tower Hotel where I stayed, I was able to see quite a few sights. The entire first floor of the hotel was closed off to the public but I managed to swing threw after watching every possible celebrate you could think of arrive as I watched out my front window which overlooked the party check-in where every single guest entered upon exiting their Bentley’s, Range Rover Sports and Mercedes. From Keira Knightley to Tim Arnold to Bill Maher to Donald Sutherland (briefly) I saw them all.  To get an idea of what I am talking about check out this link to photos taken by Patrick McMullan Company at the Vanity Fair Party. I had better double check to make sure I did not make it into any of these photos.

Headed to Florida For New Years

I am headed to the airport right now for a New Years weekend in the sunshine state of Florida. I am looking forward to seeing my girlfriend, getting some sunshine and relaxing while the holiday season draws to a conclusion. I will do a little mobile blogging from Florida if I feel so inclined.