- Michael M.: Too much going on. Life in flux, etc..
- Sunshine: Wow, I was soooo happy to see a new post in my rss reader. I was hopping this is already the comeback! :(...
- gandalf: Did you only get caffeine through Dr.p or did you drink coffee as well? I’m interested, since...
- neeka: nine kilos… wow… :) happy holidays to you, michael, and to all your loved ones! veronica
- m: It was a bargain. No strings attached.
Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Maribor, Slovenia.
Portoroz, Slovenia.
• AlienMelon
• Burger.si
• Heck
• Izklop
• si.blogs
• Sloblogi
• Blogorola
• Natalija Verboten
Blogres, the first congress of bloggers in Slovenia, is on June 9, 2007.
Move over Congress of Vienna: this Saturday Ljubljana is hosting the first official gathering of bloggers in Slovenia. There are a number of workshops planned; there will also be a ton of lectures, ranging from subjects like “Blog ethics,” “Blogs in the political sphere,” “Blogs as a medium” and a lecture by me entitled:
“You Know That Dude that Natalija Verboten is Currently Together With — Don’t You Think She’s Making a Huge Mistake with Him? I Mean, Seriously, I Don’t Want to Sound Like I’m Envious of His GODDAMN Happiness But Don’t You Think He’s a Perfect Candidate for a Crushing by Elephant?”
At least, that’s what I wanted my lecture to be about. The organizers rejected it — probably for no other reason than the fact that I’m a foreigner. It’s a shame because I already have 18 hours worth of usable notes scribbled in various notebooks, including a 5000-stanza epic poem. It’s set in 17th century India and it’s about this beautiful young princess who sings turbo-folk songs and is blissfully happy until the day her boyfriend is tragically crushed by a runaway elephant. The first half of the poem mostly just describes the elephant smooshing in very vivid detail. It’s kind of gross. But the second half deals with the distraught princess finding consolation and peace with a mysterious young American explorer who is searching for a cure for super AIDS in the jungle but decides to give it up so that he can build the Taj Mahal for her using only his bare, manly hands. It’s great stuff; definitely Hollywood (or Bollywood) material.
But I suppose that will have to wait for next year. This year, it will have to be something else. So, at 11:15 a.m. this Saturday in Ljubljana, right before the coffee & cookie break, I’ll be talking about the foreign media, bloggers, and their Herculean struggle for Slovenia’s image.
My first point will be to attack the foreign press like a runaway elephant for its generally sloppy and clichéd reporting on Slovenia. I will then use many curse words and will give many depressing examples (many never seen here) of how unprofessional many professional journalists really are. I will then suggest that blogs (with the notable exception of this one) are stepping into the gaping void left behind by the rampant closing of foreign bureaus. I will try to convince you that they have the potential of providing a truer image of the country. And I will try my best not to sound like too much of a dickhead while doing this.
If none of the above makes any sense to you, please come on out on Saturday and let me try again when I’m not so dog-tired. I should also mention that there’s lots of good stuff going on during the day: here’s a schedule of events. By the looks of it, some delicious people are coming. I do know that, among the speakers, Lesjak won’t make it, which is a shame. Jani Sever will be there, though, which means that everyone at the conference can count on being put on a government “watch list.”
Anyway, I’m looking forward to meeting you there!
Comments
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I have trust in you that you won’t sound like too much of a dickhead. Anyway, in case of a bad-karma-day I will let you know that you did your job poorly.
Well, there’s a Q&A afterwards, so you can definitely stand up and ask: “WTF was that, dickhead?” if need be.
I am sitting here with a headache and trying not to laugh too much to your Indian fantasy! I bet Bollywood producers are lining up to get the movie rights as I speak.
I will not be on Blogres this year, (unless someone invents teletransportation between now and Saturday), so I trust you all will behave and make this first one a success! And good luck with your lecture, Michael!
I’ve got two words for you… “CRA” and “ZY”
Can I bring banners saying “Michael 4 Pr3sident” ?
dickhead as in fan of Philip K.?
So you are all going to get together, get terribly drunk and forget each other’s identities by Sunday?
That was just TOO funny! Now beacause of you I’ve reached the highlight of my day at 10 AM and from this moment on it will only get worse.
See you at Blogres.
@Klemen: Too much American Beatuy, huh?
@envinessa: Shhhh! That way my cunning plan, and now you’ve blown it!
Will there be pictures of the events readily available? And not those pictures of other blogger gatherings where everyone is looking askance, eyes searching for a keyboard so that they can talk to each other, but nto face-to-face.
I’m talking lampshades, togas, and cigarettes puffed furiously in each other’s faces. That’s the pix I’d like to see.
Oh, and good luck with the speechifying; have some ripe tomatoes ready at hand to keep the rabble at bay.
Michael: will you post your presentation here, maybe?
Hi
Interesting site! Actually I am lost looking for records on my ancestors from St. Rupert’s near Ljubljana. Can you guide me on how I do that from my computer in the US? Thanks Annette
Wow! This sounds awesome. Sad I will miss it. We expect a full report…if you get out of there alive.
Toll … und ich bin gerade dann in Ptuj …
Sniff. I wish I could be there.
Let’s start a little support group for all of us not being able to attend that blogeristic extravaganza in Lowblow (that’s how my friend Stephen pronounces Ljubljana). I mean, LA POULETTE will be there! Maybe Blogres Anonymous? At the end of our 12-step programme we will NOT regret that we were not there and would, therefore, feel a bit better. I hope. Also: you look handsome even on a somewhat tiny photo accompanying “Pogovarjamo se s predavatelji” feature. Fret not! You just have to turn up and people will love you. Michael 4 Pr3sident, indeed!
How about all of us non-bloggers here? Not that there’s that many, but it’s still a population, I think. I wish… Can we come?
Sure you can. If you pay 50€.
@Tadej: La Poulette will indeed be there, but what’s a party without your sexy ass in leather chaps, hmmm?!
@ Ls Poulette: Oh, I don’t know what you are talking about. YOUR SEXY ASS? Leather chaps? Party? Somebody pass me my smelling salts! (I hope you don’t have any pictorial evidence. And no, I am not sending you any more pics
“by pengovsky on June 5, 2007 at 8:52 am: Can I bring banners saying “Michael 4 Pr3sident” ? ”
I second this motion.