You Are All My PeopleI am really not sure about the best way to get back into the blogging zone or even write my first blog entry since getting back to NY after over 2 weeks away. So I'll just get started.
I love NY and got really homesick towards the latter part of my trip. I missed hot dogs, buffalo wings, Ginger Ale, the Brooklyn Bridge, and my own bed (with special pillow cases).
After 11 days in Cannes, at the Film Festival, I flew straight to Miami, for my only brother's wedding.
Content on GAZM.org moved along pretty slowly during my absence. But traffic continues to increase and incoming links continue to grow. When I get some more sleep I plan on writing a blog entry on the curiosity of how traffic, membership and hoopla do not necessarily help achieve a site's goals. In our case the goal is user-generated content. But all the links, users, press, etc. does not necessarily get people to add content. Very few new users ever take the leap and create a new post. Instead, members reply to existing content. Definitely an interesting and maybe unsurprising phenomenon. More thoughts, and calls for advice, later.
GAZM is the number ONE
search result for the term "
blogging" on Google - ahead of Blogger.com! That is pretty damn awesome.
I joined the NYC Blogging map
here. I am under the Church Avenue stop on the F train (the orange line). My entry is
here.
Cannes highlights:-Separate conversations with director
Michael Moore and
BioDome star
Steven Baldwin (no jokes, please). Met Michael in the lobby of the Carlton hotel. Met Steven at a party in a gorgeous villa set in the hills of Cannes. It was in honor of the
Creative Coalition, a non-profit run by his brother William Baldwin.
-Screening of 11 short films in the main festival area of Cannes for emerging filmmakers associated with GAZM.org. The screening went really well with a packed room and lots of applause. I'd like to thank our Israeli projectionist, Avner (total coincidence, by the way).
-Many new friends made, particularly people from Texas and New York. Previous years saw many friends made from LA. Glad to increase my NY base of friends.
-Not being a big drinker, I surprisingly grew a liking for Tequila in Cannes. Enough said.
-Can't wait for next year!
Wedding rundown:Joseph Shwirtz is 6 years older than me. I was the happiest younger brother in the world this weekend. He married the beautiful Dori in a religious ceremony on Sunday. I was honored to be his best man. But if I was the best man, why did she marry
him? You can't imagine how many times I made that joke. I also enjoyed nurturing my growing enjoyment of tequila after successfully delivering the 65 second toast I wrote on the flight from France.
For your enjoyment I will include my toast below. Just remember that I was speaking to a very diverse group of people. Also, it is obviously meant to be spoken, with appropriate pauses and inflections.
A perfect marriage is like a really fine bottle of Manishevitz wine - it doesn't exist. It doesn't exist because it is a dream, the pursuit of which binds the desires, hearts and passions of husband and wife, enriching the soul they now share and strengthening their commitment to each other. I am sure I speak for everyone here when I say that I'm sure neither Dori nor Joe will falter in this commitment. Dori's friendship, dedication, beauty and mile-wide smile have made her a welcomed addition to our family. And Joe's thirst for knowledge, passion for people, curiosity for culture and affinity for alcohol and argument have made him equal to the life-long task begun here tonight - even if his many travels around the world have yet to unearth a cure for baldness.
Can't think of much else to write right now. Believe me, the toast went over really well and was funny. Maybe you just had to be there.
apologies for the devil eyes and crappy photo quality
