Blog Posts About: newfriends

Pre-GnomeDex BBQ Retrospective

I few months ago, I had a bar-b-cue at my house and invited the Internet to come over. It was the afternoon before GnomeDex and I wasn’t sure what I was getting into. I didn’t write about it much then, but the results were incredible and I hope others will do similar events.

It all stated with the guys at Bryght, who planned to come over that afternoon. I offered a BBQ and someone mentioned that I should have something for other folks coming into town. I accepted the offer and, on a whim, put an invitation on my blog, open to everyone. It was called “Pre-GnomeDex BBQ- You’re Invited�?. Word quickly spread to the GnomeDex wiki.

One the first times I felt a hint of panic was this comment from Carrick:
“You just invited the whole Interweb to your house for free beer? You are a brave man.�?

My response was:
“Yeah that's pretty much what it looks like Carrick, we'll see how this goes. :) If nothing else, it will be interesting."

As it turned out, I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people. For people who know Open Space Technology, this was great example of the first principle: Whoever comes are the right people. I was impressed and excited by the folks that came. Here’s a somewhat complete list:

(I’m sorry if I missed others here)

Despite all the things that could have happened, the best things did. We had enough beer and food. The caliber of folks was high and I think we had a good time. I would surely do it again, if I was going to be around for GnomeDex 2006 that is. Not that this was anything like Bar Camp, but I think there is something about planning for spontaneity that makes things like this work.

Here are some photos, more can be found here:

Andy Face and the Crowd
Andy Smith Freaks Out

Boris Mann, Grill Master
Burger Mann

Chris Pirillo and Marc Pincus
Chris and Mark

PhotoMatt
Matt Mullenweg

Zinga (Mark Pincus’ Dog)
Zinga

Dan Gillmor with Nick Dylan and Kris
People with cameras like to talk to dan

I really appreicate everyone coming, helping out and being well-behaved. ;-) A BIG thanks for Boris Mann for manning the grill. I hope we can do it again sometime.

Seattle, Renaissance and the Creative Class

Jordan Rule, a former stranger who stayed at my house recently has a few things to say about his decision to quit his job and move to Seattle.

On a related note, he previously pointed me to an article by Richard Florida about the Rise of the Creative Class. It opened my eyes to some of the reasons I, like Jordan, were so attracted to places like Seattle to start a career.

Stuck in old paradigms of economic development, cities like Buffalo, New Orleans, and Louisville struggled in the 1980s and 1990s to become the next "Silicon Somewhere" by building generic high-tech office parks or subsidizing professional sports teams. Yet they lost members of the creative class, and their economic dynamism, to places like Austin, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Seattle---places more tolerant, diverse, and open to creativity.

Further, a recent interview with "Get Back in the Box" author Douglas Rushkoff by Kris Krug echoes some similar themes as he talks about a new type of networked renaissance.

On a deeper level, the book is about renaissance, and the unique moment we’re in as a society. A renaissance allows for a profound shift in perspective. While the original Renaissance invented the individual, as well as competition, this renaissance has really brought us new possibilities for collaborative action - networked collectivism and a society of authorship. We’ve been wrestling since the Renaissance - and some would say since high Greek culture - with the seeming contradiction between the agency of individuals and their power as a collective.

Jordan and so many folks I've met lately can feel that there is something big afoot that will change (are changing) the basic assumptions of how to harness the power of the social Web.

Perhaps it is a sort of renaissance and I'm hoping that Seattle is becoming a place that draws more people in and gives them a foundation for exploration, innovation and community.

Jordan, Meet Seattle

A guest stayed with us this weekend as he looked for a place to live here in Seattle. He is a bright young guy named Jordan Rule and this is the story of how he got here.

On Friday night over dinner, a friend of ours said this before Jordan arrived: “So, let me get this straight, you left a comment on this guy’s web site and now he’s staying in your HOUSE?�? My answer was yes, with a grin.

This friend was looking at web sites in the old view- that web sites and people are different things – that you can’t trust someone based on their web site. My reality was that Jordan and his site are the same thing and I trusted him.

Over the weekend, Jordan and I talked about the idea that I could trust him enough to stay at my house, partially because of his weblog. Here were the major points:

  • I could tell, from his blog posts, that Jordan and I have similar philosophies
  • His blog could not be written by someone who is a risk in my house
  • Jordan, as a blogger, has some reputation to uphold by being here – I could be telling a different story today.

 

It all worked out perfectly though. Jordan found a place to live, made new friends and even got to have lunch with Scoble, Matt Mullenweg (who organized it), Chris Pirillo among others. Here’s how this all transpired…

  • Nancy White subscribes to alerts for “online communityâ€??, reads Jordan’s post
  • Nancy IMs me “This guy is talking about stuff like youâ€??
  • I leave a comment on Jordan’s entry
  • Jordan reads the comment, visits my site
  • Jordan emails me- “I’m moving to Seattleâ€??
  • I reply- “Let’s hook up for lunchâ€??
  • He stays at my house for the weekend

 

Maybe I am naïve, or too trusting, but I think this is a great example of the power of weblogs- the power to have an online identity that accelerates relationships like this one.

This reminds me a little about how Josh Peterson and I became friends.