It’s the 5th day of SXSW 2012

It’s the 5th day of SXSW 2012. I had arrived in Austin 12 days earlier to help launch a new venue with new lights, sound, and furnishings for the annual conference. On 30 hours of sleep in those 12 days, living on sugar-free Red Bull and Texas sushi, at 7pm I get a text from my partner: “He’s coming”.

Two hours later “He” and I are standing in a room together silently, with an occasional nod to each other to make the awkward situation less awkward. We both breathe a sigh of relief when a hulking bodyguard enters the room carrying a small box and removes its contents. Stage Sneakers. I forget if they were gold plated or Back to the Future auto-laced, but they were cool. He squats down and changes into the sneakers. A few minutes later I am leading him and the guard through a meandering maze of hallways and the underground Kitchen of the Belmont. I mutter “Hello Cleveland!” under my breath to no reaction from either of them. Finally, we reach the back door of the basement. After climbing six cement steps, I open the door and we are completely and overwhelmingly pummeled by a veritable tsunami of flashing lights and frantic screams. Of the thousands of pictures snapped at that moment, this is the only one I could find...