Home Away From Home

I went to a good event on Monday, the Blockchain Alternative Investments Conference #baiconf, one of the first ones I attended around Blockchain, but more importantly, focused on institutional investors and banks. Was a bit of a killing that Goldman got mentioned 15 times within an  hour of the start of the conference. I liked it despite that, good content, focused on where I am focused, where will this go to become a ‘boring’ pension fund like type of investment. Good food for thought.  But today I want to talk about the genesis of many of these conferences - networking. At some point the noise coming from people at the door chatting was so loud that I had trouble focusing on the speakers. Lunch was organised to continue this and off I went thinking how I could minimise it. Don’t get me wrong, I was meant to be networking and finding potential investment opportunities but i) I am not yet entirely comfortable in the space and ii) I was in so much pain and barely able to eat or speak

I sit in a Spangler couch. ‘It looks like an  expensive countryside hotel lounge’ my sister said when she first came to visit. It is all that except for the hotel part. Unbelievably comfortable for a solitude moment or a chat around a coffee table. Designed for both.  I sit inside as Boston weather sticks to its reputation. 26 degrees for the 3rd day but rain has hit amidst the sun. Everyone is quick to reallocate. It is na odd environment, one where I am an outsider. It is not my reunion after all. And amongst all my strong interpersonal skills, I am still an introvert, which most people don’t recognise as truth (incl B really). Large social gatherings with people I don’t know get me exhausted. When I started going out with B, he was already out of the section ‘cult’ and I was full on my own cult. Our friends intersected in the international crowd and that was sufficient. And barely noticeable. But as I am here, with no offence, I belong nowhere. I am not in reunion but I am also n