baked potatoes for lunch

I got home about an hour ago from the conference. I'm going to fit in a weekend of rest and relaxation into the next 12 hours. Just try and stop me.

I didn't post as much as I would have liked throughout the conference. The connection at the hotel sucked.

Here are my best and worst of lists from the conference:

Best Things about BlogHer 2006

1. The singalong during the opening session on Day Two. There was meant to be a soundtrack to the flash piece, but it just didn't happen. So, as Lisa Stone fiddled around with her laptop, Elisa Camahort was joined by the women gathered in the conference hall with their version of "All You Need is Love". Try that at your next tech conference and see how well that goes. Boys. (Thanks to Mindy for the video.)

2. Blog Crushes. There was a session, but that's not what I'm talking about here. I'm talking about cool women who write well and bring you back to that time when you were 15 and longing for the day when you were going to be grow up and be like the hot senior girls. Dooce and Fussy are my blog crushes after this weekend.

3. Moms who blog. There was some sh*t talkin' at the conference. A few too many women were picking fights with the women who identify as mom bloggers. Is it jealousy because of all of the attention they get? I don't believe that there is anything worse than women who condemn other women for the choices they have made. It's gotten so bad that women are shirking the identity so they can avoid getting take down with the ship. But the ship's not sinking. Those moms have created a revolution.

4. Arianna Huffington. I wasn't all that crazy about the rest of the closing panel, but Arianna was fabulous. She always wins ten points with me simply for sounding like Zsa Zsa Gabor, but she was also funny and personal and open -- like a good blog. The ladies in the crowd were swooning.

5. Ryanne Hodson and Zadi Diaz's video blogging session. Indie media folks who actually admit the fact that they want their stuff to be seen and have figured out how to make that happen and how to help others to do it too.

6. Shuna from EggBeater. During the session on how blogs are changing people's worlds, Shuna made a briliant and heartfelt comment about how her blog has given her a forum to communicate about the political, racial and economic issues that are so closely tied to food. As a professional chef, she's found a way to connect her work -- and help others to make that connection -- with her political ideals.

7. Poolside Interviews. John and I conducted poolside interviews with some of the ladies -- and Robert Scoble. Dooce (swoon), Ryanne Hudson, Jenn of Mommy Needs Coffee, Kathryn from Daring Young Mom, Chris from Notes from the Trenches, Jenny from Three Kid Circus, Meghan from My Dog Harriet, Mindy from The Mommy Blog, Britt from Have Fun Do Good, Jory from BlogHer. Am I forgetting anyone? I'll let you know when you can watch them on the agency site.

6. Baked Potatoes for Lunch on Day One. You have to love a women's conference that doesn't shy away from carbs.

Worst Things about BlogHer 2006

1. Bad Internet Connection. It was ridiculous.

2. The Hotel. I know that they needed to keep it cheap to enable more women to attend. And the pool in the middle of the courtyard was nice. But there were bugs in my room and I have the lump behind my left knee to prove it. Plus, the walk between the hotel rooms and the conference space was a drag.

2. Be Jane Duo. We were there representing a sponsor, so I won't get all anti-capitalist on you like some people . . . (Actually, someone at the conference pointed out that you don't need to link to people with whom you disagree because there is no need to do them any favors by driving traffic to their site. (Take that, self righteous one.) Jory from BlogHer made the point in the opening session that the conference just wouldn't be able to happen without the sponsors. Women are being asked to travel out to the conference on their own dime and the relatively low registration fee would be a whole lot pricier if that fee was the sole revenue for the conference. But the Be Jane Duo? Yeah, they were there representing MSN Spaces and I am sure they are perfectly nice people, but it didn't work. The crowd was restless. As John said, they would have been great with Matt Lauer on the sidewalk outside the Today show studio, but it was too polished for this crowd.

All in all, a great time. Maybe I will go next year as Alison from We'll Know When We Get There.

What a concept.