Professional women, straight-outta-college women, and a couple of guys dotted the audience at O The Oprah Magazine’s “Evening of Comfort and Conversation” at the Hearst Tower in the Joseph Urban Theatre. What really grabbed me in the invitation was “… and chef Art Smith will be performing comfort food demonstrations of his favorite macaroni and cheese recipe. Cocktails will follow.”

Have you ever been to the Boat Basin? It’s one of those old New York feeling places, almost like an English Grotto or The Secret Garden. It’s a place where you look around and get disoriented, forgetting you’re actually in Manhattan as joggers weave through, sailboats glide by in the glittering, sunset-sparkling Hudson, and media types gather for cheap fermented beverages, good conversation and, in my case, bruised knees from falling up the stairs with fists full of duct tape before the party even started. Yes, Jeremy laughed loudly.

Twitter is pretty neat, huh? One minute, you can let the world know it’s toenail-cutting time, and in the next you can point your followers to the launch of your glossy reflective-button-decorated drop-shadowed wonder of a Web site. Business tangos with pleasure quite nicely and with tweetups (that’s a social gather or “meetup” birthed from twitter) pop up like a bad run of Hep C. One such rash was orchestrated from the tweeting mind of Joe Marchese, President of SocialVibe. The destination was Thom Bar, the goal was to party with social media nerds, and the drink was… whatever Joe was buying.

Leading up to the party, er conference, I kept getting confused. And I kept seeing a scene from “The West Wing” where the dude is at the podium and the reporters all snap snap snap away with their honkin’ cameras and wave their hands in the air while hooting “Mr. President! Mr. President! Were you in the library with Mr. Peanut last night?” Is that what they meant by press conference? And then… I don’t think everyone leaves the Oval Office and drinks exquisite drinks with their exquisite food while tapping their investigative feet to the exquisite music. Want to know what it was really all about?

I don’t know about you, but nothing says “super fun!” like a full day of nothing but investment bankers, Internet researchers, and private companies pitching their wares in a stuffy Boston hotel. It’s not bad if you like to learn about private companies’ missions and needs, and enjoy tented parties along the Boston Harbor plating food from some of the best restaurants Boston has to offer. The only mood cramper would be, oh I don’t know, something like anti-photo sentiments leveled at the person invited to photo-document the day. That’s me.

Based on eyeballing earholes on the walk to work or on the stifling subway heading to parties, I am not the only one powered by music. Every day is a new sound track for me. Sometimes it’s a Death From Above 1979, sometimes it’s Death Cab For Cutie. Whatever the case, inarguably (so don’t try it!), music is powerful connector of people. When you’re in the shaking and shifting world of media, marketing, and advertising, music is also a powerful way to reach your audience, connect them to each other, and create the infamous warm fuzzies around your brand. The 2008 Virgin Mobile Festival bustled with sweaty fans and musicians alike, as well as a supercharged integrated experience both online, in text, and in the flesh.

I know what you’re thinking. Why leave Manhattan to cover a party, when, like, all the best stuff happens in the core of the big apple. Not so, my insular friends. The only thing worse than someone on the East Coast who hasn’t yet been to Manhattan is someone from Manhattan who never leaves. Which is why I mixed business with pleasure (or Bleasure for all you Home Movies fans) on the greatest weekend on earth: the weekend of Virgin Mobile festival. Strapped with my trusty and dusty Canon and I crowd surfing goal (yeah, it’s taken me this long), I headed to beautiful Baltimore, hon, and discovered how the mobile half live.

I never liked the term “networking”. It brings to mind uber-adult dinner parties with low talking, crinkled eyebrows of seriousness, calloused palm squeezing, and “business only please!” conversation — like a mullet without a tail. I’m “that guy” at networking events. You know the one — that pesky critter who actually wants to get to know you and have a real conversation, which is a waste of time for some hardcoded networkers. Now, imagine networking without social lubricant, which is what I did yesterday at IAB networking at the very low lit Vig 27.

I found myself waiting for the L again. And while I waited I thought, “why are all these parties on the West Side?” I mean, is the space cheaper? Just once during the week I want to walk to a party on the East instead of taking the L to the ACE. This time, I was heading to Penthouse 15 for the Sobieski “Spread the Truth” party. Where’s the media tie-in with that!? Does it count that I was invited via email? Probably not. Does it count that I met two endearing foodie/drinkies outside the “truth booth” who are helping you pair cocktails with foods through social media? I vote yes!

I don’t want to say I’m sick of the heat. There are worse things going on in the world like people losing their homes, The Olympics losing their meaning, starving children and all that… so whining about the heat is just so… whiney. But dude, it’s HOT out there. If I actually stand at the curb in the hopes that the Mwhatever bus will splash me with milky road chunder in order to cool off, it’s too dang hot. Lotame has the solution for the thick acrid heat - a party at Marquee!