So I feel that someone at Gnomedex got the totally wrong impression of me. They accused me of thinking I was cool because I did not agree with a speaker yesterday. The funny thing is that me and the speaker are very casual about our disagreement. I think she mistook my passion for something totally different. Me and the speaker are just two people that are very passionate about the subject (of doing interviews) and so we disagree passionately. I hope this speaker has as much respect for me as I have of him. How can I not respect someone who is passionate about something I am passionate about? So anyways, one of the questions I could hear (noisy lunch room) was if I thought I was cool. I have to admit that I was thrown and didn’t know how to answer. She totally caught me off guard because it is not something I care to think about. I make jokes about not being cool because I think the whole concept of a person thinking, caring, wondering, or even hoping they are cool is down right retarded. For the record, I don’t think I am cool.

I could totally be wrong, but I think most people have enough uncool moments in life that it keeps them from honestly thinking they are cool. If you think you are cool, I am willing to bet you are the furthest from it. If my memory serves me correctly she was lead to believe I thought I was cool because I mentioned I interview rock and metal bands instead of saying I interviewed people. I’m not clear how those choice of words make her think that, but that’s not the point. I interview people I think are cool, but does that make me cool? I don’t know because I don’t care. I don’t interview bands to be cool. I interview bands because I am passionate about it. I love doing it. It doesn’t make me anymore cool than someone who interviews underwater basket weavers. This is just my passion. It does bother me that someone would think I could be “one of those people.” I hate those kind of people! I shouldn’t let it bother me, but I can’t help it.

Full Disclosure:
Here are some reasons I could never be cool. First off I hate cool. I hate the entire concept. Cool is uncool for the most part. Second, I grew up as one of the reject kids. I have always been an outcast. A loser. A dreamer. A nobody. Now don’t think for a second that I am putting myself down. I take ownership of those tags that people have thrown at me my entire life as a minority might “take back” a racial slur. I have grown to love them because it has come to drive me. It’s the battle cry of the underdog. Third reason I could never be cool is how I make a living. Online music journalism makes dirt for money, so I have to scrub toilets at the local high school. Yes, I am a high school custodian. It’s a union gig and pays better than any tech job I am currently qualified for. It gets great benefits too. Better than most of my higher paid (and educated) friends.

So I will assume that this person that has this horrid impression of me has not done too many interviews themselves. If they had they would know that nothing will humble you more than interviewing “rockstars”. Not sure if this person will read this, but if they do please know that you seem way more offended by my questioning of the speaker than the speaker was. I am a very casual guy and am pretty much the exact opposite of the impression you seem to have. I hope someday we can have a conversation in a place we can hear each other better so that maybe we can clear the air. I’m not a bad guy…really!