BlogHer…The Good, the Bad and the Ugly Part I

Say it Rah-shay By Aug 09, 2012 No Comments

I'm going to BlogHer '12I’m late with *MY* particular BlogHer recap but quite frankly I had to spend a few days reflecting on the conference and really processing the thoughts and feelings from my experience. BlogHer was fantastic. BlogHer was overwhelming. BlogHer was great, and awesome and left me wanting more. I’ve been to other conferences through my library, a family social media program and conferences that served me as a woman in some fashion (color, mother, reader) but the BlogHer experience was just that…an experience of the mind and body that I still feel as if I cannot put into words. Bare with as I muddle through.

Volunteering:

The Good:

I was able to attend this year’s BlogHer conference as a volunteer. Originally I was to live blog three sessions but my fear of doing a “bad” job caused me to only do two of the three. I still haven’t looked at the pieces I submitted but if you go to the BlogHer website you can search for the live blogging sessions and see mine from the Healthminder day.

I loved being a mic wrangler and working the registration desk. As a mic wrangler I was busy running through the session to make sure that people were able to be heard as they asked their question. At the registration desk, I was able to put faces with names and chat with bloggers and brands I knew online, through reputation and in real life.

The volunteer coordinator is Tonia Sanders who did a fantastic job making sure everyone was where they needed to be, matching up the best personalities with the correct job and she did it with grace. I also met Shannon, NOT redneck mommy who is the Conference Programming Manager at BlogHer. She was on top of things and made sure people were where they needed to be. There were other people who made things run well but these two ladies I ran into more than the others and were so helpful in making sure things ran smoothly.

The Bad:

 There was a conflict with a session I wanted to attend and my desk time. Tonia was very graceful and helpful, allowing me to attend my session and still fulfill my duty. This is bad because if I was really needed I could have missed a great panel featuring Issa Rae and Francesca Ramsey.

The Ugly:

From my own doing. My live blogging sessions weren’t SO bad but I really felt that I wasn’t doing a great job. I should have kept my mouth shut and just did it. At the time I felt that saying something was the best thing so that someone else could cover but on second thought I think I talked myself into failure.

Sessions:

The Good:

I have no complaint about the sessions I attended. I will say that when I first registered and took a look at the schedule for the conference I was a bit confused. There were seven tracts people could choose from in order to get what they needed out of the conference. Online and unbeknownst to me, there was a full conference brochure that one could download that featured tips, tricks and ideas to enhance to conference goers experience. Since I wasn’t sure where my volunteering services were needed, I didn’t really make an agenda, figuring I would let the chips fall where they may.

I was able to attend several sessions which is going to result in some changes on the blog. The best one for me was the Erotica Out in the Open session. I have been thinking of ways to embrace more mature themes  and this session gave the information and suggestions to do it. This session was moderated by Twanna Hines and featured bloggers Arielle LorenLauren Fleming aka Queerie Bradshaw, and Sienna Jae Fein, and was the funniest and most fun and informative session. There was a frank and open discussion about sex and body without judgement. If you’d like information about the panel check out the tweets using the hashtag #bh12erotica


The Bad:

There was SO much packed in for the few days of the conference that I felt that I missed so much information. I know live blogs were kept and the sessions were recorded but there is nothing like being there in person.

The Ugly:

Overcrowding!
Sweet baby corn…I attended the iphoneology session and it was literally standing room only. I may or may not have flashed people as I was attempting to stand in my too big skirt. Seriously there were some sessions that were so popular that it seemed to be just jockeying for space. I felt that I had to rush from session to session in an effort to get a seat instead of taking the time to process what I just learned, vidit the expo or chat and meet up with fellow conference goers.

There’s more!
Check me out tomorrow when I dish on bloggers, swag and feeling lonely in a crowd of thousands.

Author

I am mom, daughter, sister, yarn lover, word lover, crazy cat lady and library chick. Find me with book or with hook and a hot cuppa.

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