UltraNormal

I wanted to get these down before they completely got away from me. Last week was tiring, but well worth it. Boston was frickin' freezing, but I learned a lot, actually contributed this time, and met some great people. So, here are my favorites from last week:

• Favorite Meal: Meeting Frank Wilczak and Betsy Devine for dinner at Atasca. It was a fun evening, with good food, good conversation, and some good laughs. I'm sad that Betsy won't be joining us for SXSW this year...
• Second Favorite Meal: Bella Vista with the CSS WG. It started snowing while we were inside this cute little place in the North End that only took cash or American Express. I sat between Markus and Tantek, and had dueling conversations, about business travel and how to semantically markup the menu. The grilled veal was amazing, and the strachiatella was homey and rich.
• Favorite Joke: We were doing introductions at a group meeting, went around the large table saying our names, and who we worked for. Then, we went around again so the minute taker could write down everyone's first names. Then I suggested we go around one more time and give our initials. Ok, it was funny at the time. The runner up was, "It's Bert, spelled C-S-S."
• Favorite TV Show: Top Gear!! I watched the rest of the episodes I'd downloaded, and it's the best car show ever. It's funny, smart and a great way to get reviews of new cars without getting bored by the minutiae. My favorite bits are the challenges: car olympics, historic people carrier (minivan) racing championship, the Ferrari vs. British Airways and Public Transport race, the 1,500 pound Porsche challenge, etc. They're all funny, and better yet - fun. These guys love cars like little boys love cars, and it's fabulous.
• Favorite Moment: Coming home to shouts of "Daddy!"

And I'm off again on Thursday... looking forward to more favorites.