Real-world social networking

I've been known to roll my eyes when my husband describes a party as "relentless socializing," but that phrase perfectly described last night's high-energy doubleheader: A blogger confab organized by Chris Pirillo (Lockergnome) and hosted by KOMO, followed by a Biznik get-together at the intriguing McLeod Residence gallery in Belltown. (The evening went into extra innings: A late-night supper of "happy hour" tidbits at Flying Fish with a couple of fellow Bizniks.)

The KOMO event drew many of the usual tech bloggers I've met at the Seattle Weblogger Meetup, Ignite Seattle, and Seattle Mind Camp but there were plenty of new faces as well. I came away with a heap of business cards and URLS -- for postmodern blogs, for mountaineering blogs, for parenting blogs, and more.

I walked from the KOMO building at Seattle Center down to the Biznik event, discovering along the way that Second Avenue in Belltown is just one continous sidewalk party. Outside the Crocodile Cafe I chatted with a blogger friend, Michael Hanscom, who was getting reading to take photos of the Crocodile's dance-off contest ("You don't need talent to dance").

Upstairs at the McLeod Residence Bizniks were networking dizzily -- a reaction, perhaps, to gallery's landing, which features flocked neo-Victorian wallpaper in a style reminiscent of a cheaply remodeled B&B. After a minute or two of that wallpaper, one of the elegant mixed drinks from the bar was a necessity. Thus I found myself seated on a long bench, flanked by an exercise physiologist and an award-winning pastry chef, sipping a Kir, and speaking Italian. (This is clearly how Biznik earns its reputation for "business networking that doesn't suck.")

And, yes, I talked with a Biznik who is interested in having me do some writing for her new website. In English.