Here’s a closer look at the presentation slides. Cheers.

BarCamp Nashville

It was incredible to reconnect with so many awesome people, and it was equally great to meet loads of new folks. BarCamp continues to draw people together from every walk of life, all with technology in their hearts and heads.

The talented speakers really ran the gamut, I wish I could have attended more sessions. Instead, I kept finding myself caught up in deep conversations in the halls over coffee and drinks (thanks Sitening).

Speaking of drinks, it was fantastic to hang out with so many friends afterward at Mulligan’s, Hard Rock Cafe, Robert’s and Layla’s. I don’t get out much at night, so it was a blast catching up over beverages other than coffee and juice.

My presentation (which I will post here soon) included a mission to ask our friends at BarCamp and beyond to help a school teacher pay $411 for alphabet literacy packs for her high poverty Pre-K2 class. I am thrilled to announce that together we met our goal. I sincerely want to thank everyone who contributed:

Kathleen Kirby
Rex Hammock
The UTP Corporation
Timothy Choate
Cyber Star
Allen Fuller
Gavin Richardson
SEO by the Sea
Beth Kanter
Scott Monty
Scot Justice
Kevin Mason
Cyclonic Consulting
Jeffrey Sass
Lizzie Keiper
Michael Bertoldi
Bill Seaver
Tanglewood Ventures
Robert Henley
Christian Grantham
Connie Crosby
Dana Franks
Shanna Zannini
Joshua Smith
L. Enterprises, LLC
30 Days to Business
Holly Morgan
Cian O’Donovan
Stephen Horton
Meredith Bennett
James Webster
Caleb Garner
C.C. Chapman
20-Something Marketing Forum
David Barger

Together we proved that micro-philanthropy is possible. I hope we all learned how we can use microblogs like Twitter for the greater good. Special thanks to the folks who were kind enough to retweet my (and other’s) requests to help make my mission a success.

The total amount needed was $411.00 and I received $466.00, we exceeded our target by 12%. Unfortunately, PayPal charged $23.76 in service fees. I’d love to hear suggestions on how to bypass service fees for philanthropic missions like this in the future.

The first transaction was last night for $261.00 to Donors Choose, the second today was for $129.59 (someone else had contributed directly) and it completed her request for the alphabet literacy packs.

I had $75.41 remaining and chose another high poverty class in Tennessee to contribute to. The remaining money went to Mrs. M’s Let’s Become 2nd grade Authors program. She’s still seeking $199.00, if you would like to contribute please click the link above and donate directly.

Thank you all for making BarCamp Nashville such an amazing experience. I hope to catch up with you guys over breakfast this Thursday if you’re in the neighborhood. Cheers.

1. I grew up listening to loads of punk rock music. My first concert was Circle Jerks and 7 Seconds at the Siboney Club in Kensington Market, Toronto. I think it was around 1986.

2. I was a huge horror movie fan when I was a kid. I attended Fangoria’s Weekend of Horrors where my friend and I met Bruce Campbell, Tom Savini and H.G. Lewis, the god father of gore. My buddy and I use to have fishing tackle boxes filled with horror makeup. We would get together and create really nasty wounds and freak out our friends, parents and strangers.

3. I met Blues legend Albert Collins, who invited me backstage with my friends at a show. After the show we all hung out and he invited me on the road to his next gig as a roadie. I almost dropped out of college to become a permanent roadie for him. Leave me a comment if you want to “hear” that story.

4. I climbed Europe’s most active volcano, Stromboli. My wife and I made the six hour hike during dusk, so we would be at the top in time for night fall to watch it erupt into the Aeolian Sea below.

5. I rubbed shoulders with Francis Ford Coppolla, literally. I was attending a movie premiere at the Toronto Film Festival when I spotted Coppolla sitting a few aisles down. After the movie, as the crowd began to enter the aisles I made my way toward him. Just as he stepped out into the aisle I intentionally, gently, rubbed my right shoulder across his. Why did I do this? So that I can honestly tell people that I rubbed shoulders with Francis Ford Coppolla of course!

6. I was punished for misbehaving in Grade 1 or 2, my role in the school play had been demoted. I was suppose to play the lumberjack in Little Red Riding Hood, but was re-cast to play “the tree”. Dressed in brown cords and a green turtle neck, my job was to stand still with my arms spread out. When Little Red yelled for help, as the lumberjack was chopping me, I was suppose to tilt my arms in one direction. The fantastic effect would make it look as if I had been cut. In the last second I decided to improvise a little.

When the lumberjack swung his axe and hit me, I remained standing tall and still. Then, I slowly fell forward crashing on the stage below. The only person not laughing in the room (including my parents) was my teacher. I stole the show. :-)

Years later I studied improv comedy with Second City in Toronto. When I moved to Galway, Ireland I started a troupe called “Da Ladds”, we performed every Thursday night for a little over a year. I miss performing comedy.

Now it’s time to tag six more people, here goes: Bob Goyetche, Sylvain Grand’Maison, Lizzie Keiper, Jett Loe, Scott Monty and Molly E. Holzschlag. Don’t forget to use the rules below in your posts. Have fun.

Random rules (hat tip to Connie Crosby):
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on the blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know they have been tagged.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.