I was informed the attire was “Texas Cocktail”, and I had NO clue what that meant. I played it safe and wore a tux, until I found out I was WAY over dressed. The bow tie came off, a few buttons were let loose and my wardrobe looked decent.

I had the chance to hang out with my friend N-a.te P a – ul at this party (He’s a college freshman and has already sold six companies….a whole post will go up about this guy later).

It was quite an eventful night, but some few major points:

I somehow heard Lucy Liu was in the crowd, and after dinner I actually went up to her and said, “Are you Lucy Liu? May I take a picture with you?” She gave me the COLDEST look and said, “I’m not Lucy Liu” and her friend sitting next to her confirmed her statement.

Turns out is was Lisa Ling from the show “The View”! Obviously, Lisa Ling is not a big Neville Medhora fan anymore. I’m usually not embarrassed easily, but I must laugh at MYSELF for that slip up :-)

In hindsight it’s clear to see they don’t look exactly alike…but it person in was deceiving!

Towards the end of the night me and NP happened to stumble upon access passes laying out on the tables. I got lucky and picked up an “All Access” pass which allowed me to go in the promo picture room with all the celebs and directors. It was surprisingly strict in there, the bouncers actually made someone delete two pictures from their digital camera inside the room.

Matthew McConaughey was there being inducted into the Hall of Fame, and NP and I went through a lot of crap to get this awful picture. We FINALLY got MM’s picture while he was ordering a drink. Long story short, Matthew McConaughey is an ASS. He’s also People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive.

I’m hardly in the picture. When he finally agreed to take the picture, he said, “Fine, but I’m not moving.” So far that night I had pissed of TWO celebrities, a new record.

Lyle Lovett performed that night, and we got a picture with him. His people were trying to get him out of the venue and told us we couldn’t have a picture, however he told them to hold on and took one with us anyway. He even talked to us for a little while. He looks a bit like a rooster, but otherwise he was a great guy.

The party was great, but the BEST part of the night was figuring out where the after party was! A little asking around got us the location, so we headed to Downtown. When we arrived, NP dropped a big name he knew personally which got us past the tight security. Surprisingly, it was at a 3-storey, private condo in the middle of Downtown Austin.

THIS is where all the fun and mingling was that night! Before we left, me and NP took some “Party-Crashing” pictures by the rooftop pool to remember the good times:

It was an awesome time. Of course I wouldn’t have known about it without “Bob”, so another great big thanks to him for another party hookup!

I met “Bob” in the lobby as dinner was being served. The place was packed and every seat was taken except at one table. We went up to the table, “Bob” did a little talking, and in an instant we were having a conversation with people we didn’t know, at an event we knew nothing about, and having a delicious meal.

After scoping out the room, it became very apparent that this was a big event with big people. In fact, while opening the bathroom door, I literally bumped into Lance Armstrong!

The event was in honor of Michael and Susan Dell for their philanthropic contributions. There were three billionaires in the room, the biggest being Michael. There was a movie about the Dell charity, several speakers and then they both gave a speech after being honored.

Michael Dell’s wife, Susan, is a tri-athlete and frequently goes bike riding with Lance Armstrong. Here is a picture of Lance, Susan and Michael together….well, their backs at least:

Later in the evening I got to meet Michael Dell, the famed founder of Dell Computers who started his company from a dorm room at the University of Texas. I talked with him briefly and found him to be a very approachable and extremely nice guy.

After the event was over, “Bob” and I headed back upstairs to the hotel lounge to finish up the night with an evening cocktail. That suit cost me $200 and the drinks cost me $25, but now I had the opportunity to meet Lance Armstrong and Michael Dell.

Thanks “Bob” for another great event!

Crashing this party was a little different because it was black-tie attire only and held at a secure venue. Three days before I had a tuxedo tailored at K&G Men’s store. The entire ensemble including the tux suit & pants, cufflinks, bowtie and cumberbund cost me around $200 after tailoring. Not too bad, especially since there will be lots of black-tie events during the holiday season.

Now that I have a suit AND tuxedo, I’m properly outfitted to attend upcoming events. Looking the part really helps when attending a fancy-shmancy party. When I was checked at the front of the base, they checked my ID, saw I was wearing a tux, asked me if I knew where my table was (I said yes) and they handed me a gift bag filled with Grey Goose, assorted bottled waters, pens and all sorts of other goodies. “Bob” had given me a table name to use, I was wearing a tux, sounded like I knew where I was supposed to be and acted as if I belonged there…and it worked.

I pulled up to the event, and my car was valeted because there was no self-parking. A photographer at the front entrance took my picture by one of three huge tanks, and I asked him to also snap a picture with my own camera:

I ordered a martini, Grey Goose of course because they were partly sponsoring the party and began to mingle. I found the crowd very easy to talk to, and striking up conversations was simple, especially since UT had just won a football game an hour earlier.

After cocktails, the crowd entered a large aircraft hangar (I think) which was converted beautifully into a large fashion show runway. There was loud music playing and the whole place had a very New-Yorky feel to it.

After the fashion show, which was actually pretty cool, everyone was ushered to several enormous and connected tents for dinner, dessert and dancing. There was a silent auction, a live auction, and raffle. The main prize for the raffle was one of three Mercedes cars. I found out the event was being coordinated by the Four Seasons, so it was very nice, and MUCH more elegant than the pictures show:

I knew a few people before I came to the event, but their table was already full. Also, my whole goal of attending this was to meet NEW people, so after some mingling with the crowed I was invited to another table for dinner.

After desert, coffee and some dancing people started to leave. The valet area was around several M1 Abrams tanks….I couldn’t resist climbing on top of one and getting a picture!

I left the party with several contact numbers, new friends, some interesting business ideas, a full stomach and having had a great time.

I must remember to thank “Bob” who told me about the party in the first place. He’s one of the people “In the know” about all these events, and is always gracious enough to inform me about them and help me get in. He also introduces me to his well-established network of friends and mentors, he’s a really great guy…always smiling!