SXSW in the ATX

This past five days in Austin have been nothing but music, fun, food, drink and friends. I'm exhausted but had a freakin' blast. SXSW had me flitting from venue to venue all over town in an effort to hear/see/experience all that the music festival had to offer. There was so much squashed into such a short period of time that I can't possibly share all. Here are the highlights in no particular order:

1. Keanu Reeves bumped into me on the street. Literally. It was so crowded that when he was easing through the masses he bumped shoulders with me. Strangely, though he's very cute, he looked ummm, well, more average than I expected. And he was with a chick who appeared to be 12 years old.

2. Thomas Dolby rocked! Yes, Thomas Dolby of "She Blinded Me With Science" fame. He gave a great concert to a disappointingly small crowd. During South By, it's sometimes difficult to pack the house for the earlier shows. Thomas was gracious, funny and handsome. My friend Rockett took a pic with him after the show. I simply stared.

3. Meeting new people! Donald & his brother from Ireland and the charming Alessandro from Italy. And then there was Rob, the triathlete and music industry guy from San Fran. We shared a delightful interlude hiding out from the sheer overwhelming wave of sensory overload that is SXSW.

4. Princess parking. The parking gods blessed me with free and close parking every day. I did not pay $20 to park. This meant I had $20 to spend on pizza and Pearl pomegranate vodka & Seven.

5. New-to-me bands. There were so many that I saw and loved, so many I saw and thought "eh" and so many that I'd love to see again because they were just that different. A few of my top picks include Vaeda and The Panda Band. I also am officially now a fan of Never the Nines whose bass player was kind enough to invite me to their show at Flamingo Cantina.

It was a fabulous festival but I'm relieved it's over. Now I can get some rest. This party girl is tired out. But...last night Austin Homegrown was rockin' the Mean Eyed Cat and Mr. Italian Man hadn't experienced either one so we ended up chillin' out on the patio for a set. I'd never heard Paul's band before and now I'm smitten. Austin Homegrown was slammin' through some serious good music.

I'll sleep tomorrow.