h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

South by Southwest begins today and runs through until next weekend, and for the first time since 2001 I don't have to work at a venue that's involved in it in one way or another This time last year (and for the previous seven years) at... 8.50am I'd have been frantically brewing gallons of coffee and trying to deal with some very, very irritating SXSW volunteers.

When I was at Cheapo Discs (which bowed to the inevitable and threw in the towel last Christmas) the store was stuffed with people all week long, and although we weren't an official venue we had in-store performances, usually from either Tuesday or Wednesday until Sunday, starting around 1pm and going on until 9pm or 10pm. It wasn't so bad in some ways - I'd see the same faces every year, some of them British, and it always was fun to dig out that box set called 'Produced by George Martin' and watch their faces go when the opening chords of Barwick Green (The Archers), My Brother or Nellie the Elephant came over the store play Oh, and we could drink beer all day because we had a keg on tap for the duration of the in-stores (two drink limit for customers, no drink limit for employees ).

Then I moved to the Drafthouse. The one I worked at opened just before SXSW 2005 and the Drafthouse has been one of the main film venues for South by since there was only one Drafthouse, so we had to hit the ground running. Being in the film part of South by is actually a whole lot easier than being in the music part because although the film part starts on the Friday and lasts all the way through to the end of SXSW, once the music starts on Wednesday the film attendance drops off a cliff. But all the usual admin tasks such as ordering beer and receiving deliveries have to be taken care of, and it's a pain in the bum when a beer truck shows up with 50 cases of beer just as 150 people start ordering coffee, lattes, sodas and milk shakes. Yes, 20oz milk shakes for breakfast

And now I don't have to do it any more It's a pity that Cheapo has closed down - it was always a pretty good place to hang out, and as long as the owner was there, or someone who knew me from when I worked there, the beer limit didn't apply It was a good place to people watch too. Mark Lamarr almost knocked me to the ground one day as he came barrelling out of there with an armful of used CDs. We had a name or two play there too. Michelle Shocked, The Rezillos, Flaco Jimenez. Oh, and Herman the German

I might go and wander around for a bit but I think I'll do my best to pretty much steer clear of it. I always wondered what it must be like to be in Austin during South by and be in a job that isn't affected by it, never having had one like that since I moved here. Downtown is going to be just stupid, especially once the music officially starts, although there'll be plenty going on before that, and plenty of people trying to get to it.

One thing I will miss though is that wonderful feeling I used to get on the Monday morning after it had all finished, and for two reasons. Firstly, the place was back to normal. It must be the same kind of feeling people who live at the seaside must get when the season's over and they get their town back, but far more sharply delineated. It's like taking off tight shoes And secondly, all those people had to go back to wherever it was they came from... but I didn't, and that felt especially good as far as the British visitors were concerned because I'd wanted to come and live in America for so long. And now I did

oh Michelle Shocked! - did you meet her?

So how is it feeling to be part of it, but not part of it?

Not 'met', as in spent time talking to her, but I did say hello and help her in with some of her stuff. I did 'meet' Fay Fife though, and got me picture taken with her too

I kind of did end up being part of it yesterday. One of the local breweries held its 2nd anniversary party. They're way up north and I'm south of the river so I had to get a bus that went through downtown, there and back. What a 'mare Not only was the bus diverted because of road closures, it was full of people who had no idea where they were going or how to get there, nor any inkling of the notion that all municipal transport systems have websites with journey planners that you can access on your smartphone, and there are satnav apps that can tell you exactly where you are, so there's really no need to hold up a busful of people while you quiz the driver the driver for three or four minutes about your trip.

So, note to self: for the next seven days only leave the apartment complex for essentials such as food and beer , and don't go anywhere near, through or within a country mile of downtown.

Oh, and Flaco Jimenez asked me where the toilets were