I won’t lie.  I can’t give Sundance Film Festival two thumbs up this year. Most notably, the crowds were smaller due to the economy and the Oba-otomy (inaugural).  Then behind the scenes, there was this little drama that played out — in which the Sundance press office denied my press credentials (although I was good enough to be approved three other years.)

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Sundance gave me my money’s worth today in star power, especially considering I am the ultimate budget traveler on this trip.  After a good film to begin my day (previous blog), I spent several hours in the drizzle — like about a thousand other people — listening to a dramatic reading on Main Street in Park City.

Alexander of "La Mission"

Josh Brolin, The Anti-W

Several stars participated with Robert Redford and his Sundance gang for a dramatic reading — quoting disobedience and dissent from several generations — Thoreau, Anthony,  Actually, I didn’t listen to much of it, but rather waited by the exit door from the street stage/tent.  I would have liked to have seen Wycliff Jean perform some “stole I from Africa”-esque grooves, which ended the afternoon presentation. But I wasn’t giving up my photo perch. Just as well … he closed with an ode to Obama, which would have been wasted on me.

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Man!  I swear the dude behind me in the theater — the one who kept kicking the back of my chair/head — was Charlie Manson.  Ha … well, he looked just like him, except for no telltale swastika etched into his forehead.  I digress … and I haven’t even gotten started.

What do you do if you are at Sundance, and your Internet provider is down — so you can’t read e-mails?  Ha … you step into a movie. And as luck would have it, the film showing this morning at The Egyptian on Main Street was a French film with subtitles.

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This just isn’t the same old Sundance … but I remain hopeful it will pick up.  They tell me that lots of folks skipped this year for financial reasons and because of the event in DC.

For me, there have been some great opportunities although the festival press office has been unreceptive.  Oh well, they are just “doing their jobs.”

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Unlike millions, I missed the inauguration yesterday.  Well … I didn’t miss it.  I had better things to do.  But, as I made the 14-hour drive to Sundance Film Festival I listened to portions of the play by play.

So, it is official.  Congratulations to President Obama, who was sworn in yesterday … ha … on a Republican Bible, no less.  Most forget that it was Abraham Lincoln, the Republican, who signed the Emancipation Proclamation, ending slavery.  And the 44th president was sworn in on Mr. Lincoln’s Bible.

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Don’t get me wrong.  Don’t be all hatin.

Any president of the United States is my president.  I wish him/her well and will be supportive in most circumstances.  Will I poke fun? Bet your arse!  Thank goodness,  I am encouraged that already common sense, economic necessity and better decisions are overruling the seductive campaign promises and rhetoric of the last year.

However …

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If you have tried to use Twitter on this fine Saturday morning, you may have found that some features are not working … and there is a Twitter message that says the system is “a little stressed.”

Probable cause? I will bet money there are more than a few tweets emitting from the tracks between Philly and DC.  If so, here’s why. (Strange … I dint get no invite fo that train???)

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My friend WesterFunk pointed out that NASA may be jumping to some pretty ambitious conclusions about the methane gas detected in surveys of Mars.  I however, encountered the same evidence on the showroom floor at CES — and I DO NOT think it was a sign of intelligent life.

Yes … the “crop dusting” incident — or the CDI — as it will now be known in my office, really happened at CES during an interview with Winston Guillory, president of RaySat, the partner with AT&T CruiseCast. You can read more at:

CruiseCast blog post

And, for those suffering from morbid curiosity about the CDI, knock yourself out:

Urban Definition: Crop Dusting

A second shout out.  Yes, my other old buddy RockDog correctly identified the reference to a Monty Python skit when I mentioned someone “mysting” in our general direction.  Gross! People! … my goodness have some couth!  Any way, here is the video of the interview.  (Bare with me as I piece together stuff with limited equipment and free software.)  I am sure it would get more hits on YouTube if the infraction occurred before the three minutes of information regarding satellite TV fo yo SUV.

Guillory kept a straight face and was a good sport, even though a passerby violated our airspace — 6 pings to Winston.

Know what I sayin?

Wi-Fi-based Positioning Technology By Spotigo, Available In More Than 25 Countries

Düsseldorf / Madrid — The German software and service provider Spotigo announced that its Wi-Fi-based Positioning Solution (“WiPS”) is now available in more than 25 countries.  Major cities in the United States, Germany, UK, Spain, France, Russia, India, Korea, etc. are covered significantly already.

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In college, I was fascinated with the theories of “Subliminal Seduction” as proposed in a couple of books about hidden messages in advertising.  Of course, nowadays anything goes, so why take the time to bury the smut, right?  Can you believe truck adds use the word “frickin” on TV?  I mean … I am no stranger to euphemisms.  I digress …

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